Bike Maintenance and Mechanics

From ibikeu Wiki

This article is intended mainly to explain the "How To" of bike mechanics and repairs, any detailed explanations of components, their inner workings, or manufacturers should be directed to the Bike Components and Technology article.

Knowing what type of bike you have may help determine what maintenance will be required or possible.

1 Choosing the Right Bike
2 Bike Maintenance

Choosing the Right Bike

Measuring Bike Size

Proper bike fit is often overlooked, and can be the most important aspect of choosing a bicycle. It is surprising to see how many people ride a bicycle that does not fit properly, since this limits the capacity to fully enjoy a bicycle. Performance, comfort, and even risk of injury can be affected by measurements as little as 1/4" (6 mm.) in a rider's position. There are several methods and measurements that can used to determine how well a bicycle fits the rider (this is called "sizing a bicycle"), ranging from very simple to very complicated. The more measurements one makes, the more likely the bicycle is going to fit properly.

As outside involvement in the race world from major corporations grows, usually in the form of team sponsorship, so grows the demand for top performance from riders. The subject of determining proper bicycle fit, and the science behind it, has been given a lot of attention in the last couple of decades. Professional athletes, or those concerned with top performance, use machines and formulas to determine their optimal riding positions. Because of this, a fairly well founded set of principles have arisen to help the average person size a bike properly, serving as an excellent starting point.

Once a bicycle has been correctly sized and a proper riding position determined, it is generally advised that the rider keep that position, even if it feels uncomfortable initially, as it takes a bit of time (no more than a week for regular riders) for muscles to adjust to the new riding position. If the position remains uncomfortable, make the appropriate adjustment, and allow some time to adjust to the new position.

It should be noted that not all methods of sizing a bicycle are applicable to all bicycles or all riders. This is due to physical differences from rider to rider (most obviously between male and female riders), and what the bike will be used for. For example, racers and mountain bikers should generally use the smallest frame that fits (due to weight & rigidity issues), while tourers & commuters would do well to choose a larger frame that still fits (for stability while cornering and descending).

Sizing Bikes for Women

Women generally have longer legs and shorter torsos than men do, so a little extra care must be taken when sizing a bike for women. Just measuring the inseam, or standover height, would probably result in a frame with a top tube that is too long. Traditionally, to compensate for a top tube that is too long, a smaller frame (with a shorter top tube) would be chosen and a longer seatpost would be used to achieve proper leg extension. Currently many manufacturers offer frames that have a "women's specific" design that feature a shorter top tube, and corresponding geometry that favors a shorter torso. These bikes also tend to come with "ladies'" saddles, to account for the fact that women generally have wider hip bones than men do.

Sizing Methods and Measurements

Standover Height (also known as Clearance)

This is determined by standing with the bike between your legs and measuring the distance from the top tube to your pubic bone. This method is used primarily to determine whether a frame is too small or too big, and is usually the first step in sizing a bike. It does not take any other measurements into consideration, and as such should not be used a the sole method of sizing a bike.

No rider should ever have less than 1" (2.5 cm.) standover height on any bicycle. (Freak bikes are the exception to the rule; these bikes are not ridden for efficiency or comfort.)

Road bike frames (racing, touring) generally require 1" (2.5 cm.) to 2" (5 cm.) standover height (add 1/2" (13 mm.) to frames with a sloping top tube). Off-road frames (mountain bikes, hybrids) generally require 3" (8 cm.) to 6" (15 cm.) or more.

BMX bikes, folding bikes, step-through frames (traditionally "ladies" bikes), and some bicycles with non-traditional frame designs are not able to be sized using this method, due to unusual frame sizes and/or severely sloping top tubes (or a complete lack thereof).

Determining how the bike will be used

New cyclists often do not give enough thought to how they will use their bikes. When buying a bicycle, think about what you will do with it. Where will it be ridden? On good roads or bad? Long distances or short? Will you be riding it by yourself or with others, and if the latter, what kinds of bicycles do your riding partners have? Do you plan to ride every day? Will you commute to work on this bike? The answers to these questions will determine what kind of bicycle you should buy, and how you should outfit it. For example, a person who will commute fifteen miles each way to work every morning in good weather will almost certainly do better with a road (or touring) frame and skinny "slick" tires than with a knobby-tired mountain bike. An older rider, a rider with back problems, or a rider who mainly plans to take easy rides along bike paths may find the stretched-out, aerodynamic riding position of a road/racing bike uncomfortable and unnecessary; a hybrid bike, "townie," or beach cruiser with a relatively upright riding position may be a better choice for such a rider.

Cost

Frame Materials

Carbon Fiber
Titanium
Aluminum
Carbon/Aluminum Hybrids
Steel
Special or "Alternative" materials

This includes things like bamboo, which Calfee uses for one of their frames.