cyccommute 

By the way, Park Tools is a good place to start if you want to learn how to fix your bike.

PaulH

Wouldn't the question, "Can you be a car commuter and not be a mechanic?" sound strange? Of course, I think it iis still a good question. After all, John Muir's VW books reached a wide audience in the 1960s and 1970s, and auto repair even became (quite properly, I think) a feminist issue at the time. I think it is good for all owners of transportation devices to know at least some mechanics.

However, we as cyclists seem willing to accept levels of maintenance time that we would not accept as car owners. Why is this?

Paul

cyclezealot

I am constantly at the bike shop addressing bike maintenance issues. Commuting. I say you better have some skills or take your bike in for maintenance as needed..W/o hassling them about preventative, well- then you better be maintenance ready. Commuting. hate to make excuses to the boss about being late. But, even worse what if you are out in the wilds of the wild west and your cable snaps.
IT is a long taxi ride.

10ch

I've only been commuting for a couple of months and before that time I didn't think of myself as a source of bike maintenance at all even though I put hundreds of miles on my bike on local trails (paved and offroad).

Because I've been commuting I've already learned a bit of bike maintenance and am only itching to learn more. I have visions of having my own work stand, collection of tools, etc. and buying worn out bikes and repairing them to a condition of which PeeWee Herman would approve.

I'll be getting a new bike in a few weeks and when I do, I'll be much more experimental w/altering & adjusting my (old) bike. I just don't have enough confidence to do that when it's the only bike I depend on and boy am I grumpy when I don't get to ride in.

cyclezealot

As a reference source. I think Bicycling Mantenance Guide along with Park Tool introductory maintenance books are great for starter information.

1fluffhead

Bikes are way cooler then cars, therefore they deserve more attention.

roadfix

Especially when cycle-touring, if I had no or even little mechanical bike working skills, I'd be afraid to venture out into the open country. In a car, if I'm in trouble, all I have to do is push that silly little blue button on the dash and some On Star operator in Sri Lanka will aid you.
I've always been a tinkerer by nature, as a kid dismantling old TV sets and bicycles just for the heck of it. As a hobby, building and maintaining bikes is half the fun as riding them.

Marylandnewbie

I think the answer to Paul's question is a matter of design. Both bikes and cars are designed for their intended audiences. As Paul observes car owners for the most part will only put up with small amounts of maintenance and thus cars have always been pushed to be more and more reliable. The bike audience is far more likely to tinker so reliability has been less of an issue. I'm guessing that the fact that all parts of the bike are exposed to the elements also increases the problems and need for maintenance.

I think the summary point of view here is that being a mechanic is not necessary, but knowing how to do the basics (and maybe the intermediate things) can save you a lot of time and money. That may be important if you are really weighing the costs of biking against the costs of driving a car. For many people unless the difference between the two is huge, biking is too much of a hassle to be a valid means of transportation.

Personally, I think being able to tend to your bike basics is a meaningful way to really possess and take control of your bike. The LBS is always there as a backup or for the major things where my skills or tools are inadequate.

cerewa

I don't know how to weld, braze, or solder. But I know how to install a replacement for any part on my bike, headset and bottom bracket included. I used to have a serviceable bottom bracket of some sort, which I didn't really know how to fix, but I brought it to a shop and they took it apart and lost a piece of it in the process. They couldn't replace the part, but I didn't pay them for not fixing my bike. I went to the bike co-op and got me a sealed bottom bracket. Now I know how to take the sealed thing out and put it back in again.

I agree with the idea that if you depend on bikes, it's a good idea to have two that you can use. That way one can be under repair while you use the other.

cyclezealot

What would blow ones' tights more..the passing of a Mustang or a Colagno. But, then Litespeed's dialiate my iris pretty quickly.

cyccommute 

Actually, I think that mechanical problems with bicycles are a bit overblown. I've been commuting year round for at least the last 25 years and there have only been a few times that I've had to find another way home. I have had a broken crank, a broken pedal, a broken fork, a broken head and a couple of rim failures but, really, none of them are maintenance related. The maintenance related problems like squeaky chain, cable issues, drivetrain issues, etc. are all fixable in the field or at least I can limp home on them (including broken rims ). I have saved a bucket load of money by doing my own work but I spend a bucket load of money by tinkering. And there, I think, lies the problem.

If you start to do your own mechanicing, the next thing you know you are changing stuff and improving stuff and adding stuff, until you have your grandfather's axe. "It's the same axe as my grandpa used. Had 3 new heads and four new handles but it's still my grandpa's axe!" I have bikes like that. Everything has been replace, including the frame

robmcl

To answer the original question: I would not put off commuting for mechanical issues because the LBS option does work.

I consider myself to be some what mechanical and I can appreciate the reasons given for doing your own work, but I can think of at least two instances where it is not practical to do your own repairs:

1.)You share a small apartment with a roommate where there is not room to do the work or store tools nor the tolerance for the grease and crime.

2.)You have some activity in your life that takes a substantial amount of time (like working >>> 40 hrs/week) and you don’t have the time or the energy for bicycle repair. Bicycle repair has nothing to do with my livelihood and there have been times when it was far done my list of priorities. I would have lost way more cycle time doing the repairs myself because the bike would have sat in the corner. Yes going to the LBS costs a few more bucks but time is money too.

Most LBS are very responsive and can do the repairs the same day or even while you wait. I have had my 95 Marin for eight years now and I can only think of one instance where the bike was left in the shop overnight to get a tune-up done. Also despite putting hundreds of miles on it, I have not had any major break downs. If you find that one LBS is jerking you around. Go to another one.

Daily Commute

ANother reason to do be your own mechanic--the joy of fixing something you didn't understand before you started.

Another thing I like is self-reliance. PaulH says we would never ask,"Can you be a car commuter and not be a mechanic?" All cars require all routine maintenance like oil and brake pad changes. Almost all cars require significant other repairs from time to time. Most car owners (yes, there are som do-it-yourselfers) just plan on spending time and money at the auto shop. Most couldn't fix anything more than an empty wiper fluid container.

Nicodemus

I do about the same amount of maintenance as the OP, and I enjoy it. And because I know what I'm doing it's not a chore. And this is generally required if you want your bike to ride nicely. At least for the types of bikes we tend to ride. I also love my bike

However, it doesn't have to be this way. Bicycles can be the kind of trusty machines you ignore and never do any maintenance on. That's the norm in Holland. No spoke replacements, no oiling, no tire pressure, wobbly wheels and squeaky chains and spongy tires, just toodling along in the simplest, most relaxing, enjoyable way imaginable. Hilarious!

Now, of course, these types of tank-like granny bikes aren't the kind you're likely to ride on the streets of the US, but I like the fact that a bike can be just an instant, comfortable, get-around town, knarled, withered old beast of a machine and still be your trusty friend that never lets you down.

JohnBrooking

I agree that you will naturally want to be a better mechanic the longer you ride. The first time I even removed the front wheel I felt very adventurous. I'm now to the level of replacing my own brake pads (last month), but a cassette change (as I had done last spring at the LBS) still feels a bit beyond me. But I would like to learn more. The fact that my LBS is small and sometimes can't get to the repair for a few days is an additional motivator. (Although he does try to move me up in line, but I never know how much he'll be able to, and I don't want take too much advantage.)

ItsJustMe

I don't think I put in even that much time. About once a month I wheel the thing over to a spot of crabgrass that I'm trying to kill, do a couple of cycles on the chain of WD40 wash then paper towels until it looks relatively clean, then lube it. I'll hit the deraillers with WD40 and after that evaporates, a few drops of lube. Every few months I toss the chain gauge on it and replace it when it's worn. So far I've only had to put one new chain on (3500 miles so far on this bike).

In the winter that doesn't suffice for cleaning; the chain will get to where it won't bend in places anymore (chains are supposed to bend, right?) So I pop the chain off (SRAM link, off in 10 seconds) dump it in hot water and dish soap for 10 minutes, rinse, dry, WD40, dry, replace and lube. Those take 30 minutes.

Sometime in the spring I'll rip the bottom bracket apart and check and relube it, and I'll spin off the freewheel, wash it in hot soapy water, drench it with WD40 to wash a bunch of crap out of it and chase most of the grime off, then spray in some lube.

I suppose every couple of weeks I'll spend 5 minutes topping off the tires.

Most derailler adjustments I make at the shifter while still going down the road, so I don't know if that counts towards maintenance time. When I near the end of the adjustment, when I get back home I'll wind it back and take up the difference in the cable, which takes about 3 minutes.

I took the head tube apart a few weeks ago to see how it was doing, and did regrease it but it didn't really need it.

This annual stuff probably takes 2 hours. The monthly thing takes about 10 to 30 minutes, depending on how crudded up the drivetrain is (on-bike WD40 wash or remove chain and wash).

Averaged out, it probably comes out somewhere between 30 minutes and an hour a month. Probably less time than I spent at the gas pump when I was driving all the time.

There's probably a lot of stuff I could do if I was really anal about keeping my bike working as well as possible, but as long as it's not a safety issue (I want the brakes and powertrain and steering to not fail in a bad way) I figure it's a better use of my time vs money to just run them until they start making horrible noises and then replace them. If it's not going to hurt me or cause me to work noticably harder, to hell with it. I could fix it, or I could stop worrying about it and have fun.

When I hear a new noise, I do figure out what's causing it. 9 times out of 10, it's not a safety issue, so I start ignoring and keep riding. The Cartalk guys have the same theory on cars.

Walkafire

I can pretty much handle any maintenance problem on a Bike...

...It's these frickin Acronyms that are killing me!!!





Guess that makes me acronymically challenged?

genec

I have never taken a bike to an LBS for a repair... I started wrenching my first bike as a kid and have done it ever since.

Sometime in the late '70s I realized that my standard set of tools wasn't gonna do everything, so I started buying bike tools. Everytime I needed a special tool, I bought it. Everytime I installed some odd part that needed a special tool... I bought the tool. (yes, that meant that a $35 freewheel also had the additional cost of a $12 tool).

I eventually bought a work stand. I even worked as a mechanic for a very brief time between other jobs.

I have built wheels.

I think bikes are the ultimate "folkswagon," and are generally workable by anyone with decent mechanical knowledge.

Now, the downside to all this... believe it or not... bike technology moved right on past me.

There I was keeping my now 20+ year old bikes running just fine and along came index shifting, brifters, cassettes, smaller BCD chainrings... just to name a few new technological changes.

My bikes still work fine, but the stuff in the bike shops now sure looks different... and sadly, it is harder to find parts for my old bikes.

Looks like I'll be buying more tools... if I ever get around to buying a new bike.

ItsJustMe

Take heart. Even in their current incarnation, bikes are still among the simplest machines ever built. There's nothing fundamentally different, there are just a few extra adjustments and more shiny stuff. Just dive in and do it.

genec

Oh no problem there... but it just shocked me last year when I went to get a new freewheel. "Oh we don't have those anymore.. "

"What?"

Then I took a closer look and noticed that hey, these bikes are different from my 20+ year old ride... not a downtube shifter in the lot. Not to mention Ti and Carbon Fiber... whoa.

I do miss the old Campy stuff though... it just had a certain style. Guess I'll just keep those old parts around for the hell of it... in a little case.

I did get my wife an index shifting Trek about 10 years ago... she loves it... and so do I... I no longer have to listen to her grind through the gears.

Another thing I have noticed, is that handle bars and brake hoods are much much more comfortable these days. My bars are still covered with basic cloth tape... today's bikes are covered with a plush tape that really makes grabbing the bars so much more comfortable. "Riding on the hoods" is akin to a leather steering wheel. Every time someone shows me their new bike... I grab the bars and am just amazed by the feel... that is incentive alone to upgrade... but I do love my old rides... the whole stable. Hard to give up something you have been with for 20 years.

levensnevel

ItsJustMe wrote

Take heart. Even in their current incarnation, bikes are still among the simplest machines ever built.

Well I tend to disagree.
I can drive a car 10,000 miles before it needs servicing, an occcasional wash and check on the tyrepressure will do in the meantime
Tyres of my car last 20,000 miles plus
I check my bike after each trip, and they get fully serviced by my LBS every 6,000 miles
Tyres on my bicycle last 2,000 miles (if I'm lucky)

cyclezealot

My thinking..Bikes need routine maintenance that shops will normally not do..Like maybe a bikes ball bearings in various moving parts will not get changed during the life time of the bike..with this you risk failure on a long tour.

tokolosh

heh. i think i detect a slight assumption that whoever you're talking about will understand it once they STOP fixing it. i'm here to tell you, it ain't necessarily so. some of us are quite capable of fixing things and still not having a clue what they did, but i try to keep my own tendency that way confined to fixes you don't need a helmet to put to the test. computers, sure. bikes, no.

to be honest, i don't think i'm really up for the full-blown Bike Lifestyle. i sure like my bike, and i sure love riding it, but i just don't see myself ever sitting in a living room strewn with various parts on a saturday morning or weekday evening, tinkering. i don't know how big a deal it is. i don't think it's a big deal when other people don't knit their own sweaters or knead their own bread.

Raiyn

I hereby decline to answer as I am a mechanic who commutes. It would tend to bias my opinion.

Roody

I wish you worked around here. The mechanics at my lbs all drive in to work with their bikes racked on the back of their cars. Like they have a big race right after work or something!

On Topic, I like to lube. I replace chains and brake shoes pretty good. I look wise and knowing when others are working on bikes. I also loosen things that need tightening and tighten things that need to be loosened. I bought a repair book today but I doubt if I will ever recoup my $15 investment in it.