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Basic Bike Maintenance Guide

Carrying out your own bike maintenance, whether that’s on a road bike or a mountain bike - is incredibly rewarding, and it’s surprising with a few guides and information, just how much of your own maintenance you can do - expanding your knowledge, and in the process - understanding and knowing that your bike is ready for everything you can throw at it, whether that’s downhill trails or fast descents on the road.

Your bike needs maintenance for a lot of different reasons - mainly the hard time that it can undergo when you are riding it - rough terrain, bad weather, muck and grime can all cause premature wear and tear on your bike. Regular checks of the bike provide good results, and you can easily pick some issues up, before they become a more serious issue and/or cause you a safety risk once on the bike.

Thing to regularly check, include:

Bolts: check that all bolts on the bike are tightened and secure - these bolts shouldn't, but they can become loose when riding/cleaning and moving the bike about. All bikes have a lot of bolts across them, check them in a systematic way starting from front to back, ensuring that none are missed.

Tyre Pressure: An easy thing to check, correctly inflated tyres not only means a lower risk of punctures and flats, but also keeps your bike running as efficiently as possible. If you are struggling to find your ideal tyre pressure, use the tyre pressures on the tyre sidewall as a guide, stay within these parameters and then find what feels best for you.

Handlebar Angle: Through knocks and bangs, handlebar angles can become out of place and misaligned. A quick check on handlebar angle, ensures comfort and performance is protected throughout the ride. As well as adjusting handlebar angle after use, many bikes come out of the shop with a handlebar angle which does not fit you exactly, use the stem bolts and reposition the handlebar to a more comfortable position.

Chain Stretch: As you ride, your chain can stretch - when it does, gear changes can become unreliable. Checking for chain stretch and maintaining your chain, prevents this from happening. In the worst case, chains can snap when pedalling. Chain checking tools are available, and as a guide - a new chain will measure 12 inches across 12 links.

Seat/Saddle Angle: Another simple check which is well worth doing, check the angle of your seat to ensure it has not slipped from side to side, or is pointing too much to the ground, or too much to the sky.

Cables: As you ride your bike, and after many miles the cables that control and run through your bike may stretch. A simple check to ensure they are all tight & correct means you can enjoy safe and reliable performance.

Brake Pads: Brake pads, whether on a vehicle or a bike - are consumable items meaning that they wear down over time, keep an eye on them to keep brake performance, as well as overall brake health good.

Checking the above items on your bike, not only keeps your bike running safely - but also saves you money in the long run, nipping and identifying any issues early on - instead of being hit with a larger bill as and when components on your bike fail.

Tubeless Sealant Top Up: The tyres, as what should be the only contact point between your bike and the road, take a smashing every time they are used. Those running tubeless tyre sealant should check tyre sealant levels regularly, topping up every few months to ensure the tyre pressure remains correct, and the tubeless tyres and the sealant are able to prevent punctures.

Brake Reach Adjustment: Due to the constant use of the braking system, your brake cables can stretch. Make small adjustments when needed, to keep the brake lever within comfortable reach of your fingers. To find the ideal position, check the travel allows you to adjust the brake reach at a point where the brake pad hits the disc.

Bike Maintenenance Tools

In order to carry out your own maintenance, you need some tools. If you are looking to maintain the bike yourself, consider the following: