Mountain Biking Maintenance
Cycling is fun. That’s a good start, but to further clarify, in the opinions of many, mountain biking can be more fun. Whether you are rolling the $150 special at the local sporting goods chain, or a $2,000 wonder of pedal-powered mechanization one of the most important things you can do for your bike is to take proper care of it. There is not a worse feeling than tackling a big incline, or ripping through a tough line only to have to chain snap or stick. What can be done to prevent this, you ask? The answer is quite simple. Being as inherently simple as bikes are, most problems that arise through them are from us not taking care of the right parts. You will rarely find a bike that will have a “randomly” caused problem like many cars on the road today have, instead of a user neglect caused error. In this article I will point you in the right direction so you can have a firm understanding on how to keep any bike problem free for years of trail-filled excitement.
Cleaning the Beast
Let’s face it, after a hard day on the course your bike is downright nasty. This dirt, mud, and the sticks and leaves stuck in your bike are some of the main causes of simple problems. To nip this problem before it starts, every week or so take a cloth and bucket of soapy water (automotive or bike soap will do) and wash down all the pieces: that’s frame, handle-bars, forks seat, gears, and the works. After you are done towel it dry. While you are at it, this might be a good time to use the same water and a small brush to work the the derailleurs, gears, and other moving parts. Make sure to rinse them afterwards.
Chain-Work
This is kind of like not doing oil changes, or some other vital maintenance to your cars performance. A bike’s chain is the drive shaft of your cycle and it can’t run without. The problem is compounded by the face that it takes the most abuse and moves the most out of all your bikes components. Dirty chains can cause frozen links meaning your bike will randomly grind to a halt, or shift erratically during a ride. I have found this to be the best general chain maintenance: First lay your bike on it’s seat and handle bars, it’s okay, your bike was made for this. Take a cloth and gently wrap it around the chain (in your hand!), you can use a product such as Simple Green on the towel to clean it. Now crank the pedals slowly and let the chain run through the cloth. This will clean it and prepare the chain for lubrication. You can use the same method for to lube the bike, but slowly drizzle oil into the cloth, over the chain, as you crank the pedals. Let the oil sit for a few minutes and repeat the process one final time to wipe off excess oil. You can also buy pre-made chain cleaners and have brushes and an area to drizzle in cleaner or lube, but this is cumbersome and more trouble than it is worth.
General Lube
The last thing to do on a regular basis (every time before you ride can’t hurt!) is, before you ride, get some spray lubricant and hit a spot on every moving part you can see. This will just help keep friction to a minimum and prevent unnecessary wear to the moving parts of your bike. When it comes down to a bike that you have spend almost as much on as your car, I think the extra half hour of work every week is something that we will all be able to cope with. This isn’t a compendium of mountain biking maintenance, just a few simple things that we can do to keep our friends moving in style.
