General maintenance - MTB
Discussion
Its me again the one who keeps falling off!
I would like some general advice and pointers for some general maintenance for my bike please. Other than the obvious clean the bike, chain, lube the chain etc is there anything else I should be doing on a regular basis? Packing grease into hubs and/or bearings - if so which ones and when and what grease? Sorry if these sound like dumb questions but I would like to keep my bike running well and I really have no idea. Bikes a Scott Scale 50.
Thanks
I would like some general advice and pointers for some general maintenance for my bike please. Other than the obvious clean the bike, chain, lube the chain etc is there anything else I should be doing on a regular basis? Packing grease into hubs and/or bearings - if so which ones and when and what grease? Sorry if these sound like dumb questions but I would like to keep my bike running well and I really have no idea. Bikes a Scott Scale 50.
Thanks
Edited by medicineman on Wednesday 23 July 23:15
Wash the bike and lube the chain after every ride, also lubricate (using GT85 or WD40 or similair) all moving parts (derailiers, front and rear mech, brake and gear cables and moving brake parts) but remember that spray on lubes are usually degreasers as well so stay away from those grease packed areas in the hubs, bottom bracket and susspension.
Every month (depending on your milage and the terrain etc) or so re pack the grease if you have open bearings and do a proper strip down and clean and oil of the bike.
Also, if your running disc brakes, check the brake pads often and bleed the brakes when they start to feel spongey/soft.
HTH
Every month (depending on your milage and the terrain etc) or so re pack the grease if you have open bearings and do a proper strip down and clean and oil of the bike.
Also, if your running disc brakes, check the brake pads often and bleed the brakes when they start to feel spongey/soft.
HTH
Be careful not to spray lube on your disc brakes and pads as this will contaminate the pad material and wreck them.
Maintenance really is dependant upon how and what type of riding you do. If you're out in all weathers and ride all surfaces then you'll need to do a lot. But if you're a fair weather guy who sticks to the bridleways on sunny days then you won't need to do a lot.
If the bike runs Shimano hubs then I would clean and regrease the cones and bearings at least once a year. I think Scott hubs are also 'cup and ball' too so the same applies. Most other makes use cartridge bearings so, simply put, they'll either work or not.
The last sentence also applies to the bottom bracket. Headsets too but I check mine for water ingress once a month.
Brakes - check for alignment / binding. It's easy enough to do so after each ride.
Gears - cleaning and lubing with GT85 (other brands are available) are muddy rides or after a couple of dry rides will see them fine. Lubing the cables once a month will keep them shifting sweet - try using a candle (or other wax) instead of oil as this won't attract dirt or allow it to stick. If shifting becomes erractic and inprecise then they'll need some work.
Chain and rear cassette - a clean well lubed chain will run sweetly and wear slowly. Using a 'dry' lube when conditions are dry and dusty will help stop the chain from gumming up will gunk. Using a 'wet' lube when conditions are wet will stop the lube from being washed away.
If you don't have a clue about bike maintenance then it would be a worth while investment to buy a book. Haynes do a bike mintenance book that covers all types of bike and, iirc, it has been recently updated. That's only one choice though. There are loads of books to choose from.
Maintenance really is dependant upon how and what type of riding you do. If you're out in all weathers and ride all surfaces then you'll need to do a lot. But if you're a fair weather guy who sticks to the bridleways on sunny days then you won't need to do a lot.
If the bike runs Shimano hubs then I would clean and regrease the cones and bearings at least once a year. I think Scott hubs are also 'cup and ball' too so the same applies. Most other makes use cartridge bearings so, simply put, they'll either work or not.
The last sentence also applies to the bottom bracket. Headsets too but I check mine for water ingress once a month.
Brakes - check for alignment / binding. It's easy enough to do so after each ride.
Gears - cleaning and lubing with GT85 (other brands are available) are muddy rides or after a couple of dry rides will see them fine. Lubing the cables once a month will keep them shifting sweet - try using a candle (or other wax) instead of oil as this won't attract dirt or allow it to stick. If shifting becomes erractic and inprecise then they'll need some work.
Chain and rear cassette - a clean well lubed chain will run sweetly and wear slowly. Using a 'dry' lube when conditions are dry and dusty will help stop the chain from gumming up will gunk. Using a 'wet' lube when conditions are wet will stop the lube from being washed away.
If you don't have a clue about bike maintenance then it would be a worth while investment to buy a book. Haynes do a bike mintenance book that covers all types of bike and, iirc, it has been recently updated. That's only one choice though. There are loads of books to choose from.
mk1fan said:
If you don't have a clue about bike maintenance then it would be a worth while investment to buy a book. Haynes do a bike mintenance book that covers all types of bike and, iirc, it has been recently updated. That's only one choice though. There are loads of books to choose from.
I wholeheartedly agree with this above - but with a proviso: Anything you can't deal with or are unsure about, support your LBS and get them to do it. If you build a good relationship up, they'll generally let you watch and you may decide you can buy your own tools to do certain jobs.Equally, some tools are pretty pricey, and you may decide that the amount of times you'll do a job, your LBS is better value to do it.
If we don't use the LBS's, they'll give up and we'll be buggered.
Also, try the Park website - http://www.parktool.com/repair/ for general help, and the Sheldon Brown site http://www.sheldonbrown.com/ for more in depth tinkeryness...
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