Pinkbike Poll: How Mechanically Minded Are You?
As a responsible rider, it's always good to know a few mechanical basics, things like how to check that your bike is safe to ride, fix a flat, and straighten the handlebars after a crash. In reality, that will get you out on a ride and then back almost every time, outside of a catastrophic mechanical incident.
Like it or not, all bikes require maintenance, just like a car or any other piece of machinery. Weeks and months of riding through mud, sand, snow, or whatever Mother Nature has decided to deliver will take a toll on any bike, no matter how much the initial sticker price was. This is why a lot of riders do have a fairly comprehensive mechanical knowledge when it comes to their bikes. In addition to being able to get yourself and your friends out of the woods by piecing together a broken bike after a mechanical, it cuts down on the cost of having to pay someone else to do it.
So, how mechanically minded are you? Do you lace wheels and perform every bit of service yourself, do you drop off your bike at the local shop after every ride for someone else to maintain, or do you fall in the middle, leaving suspension overhauls and full builds to someone else but taking care of the day-to-day stuff yourself?
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Sincerely, instead of putting 200bucks into new lowers, and knowing that you don`t have to dismantle your breaks everyday, I would have used silicon to glue that fvcking bolt in these damaged threads and that was it. Russian way
One day I couldn’t figure out why my new specialized kept slipping, like the pawls were slipping. Brought it back to the shop I bought it from and they tightened up the rear axle that was hanging out, unattached to the threaded end.
Of course this after much bragging about how I do all my own servicing on my bikes. It still stings a little bit ever time I walk in there. The shame is real.
O.o
-_-
Hahahah, fuuuuuuuu......
One more: wanted to change the chainring. Installed isis crank remover. Crank came off but remover got stuck in the crank. So I screwed the crank back in to have better leverage to screw the remover it out. Came off. This time to remove the crank again I screwed the remover in just a bit . Started removing the crank with it and then the remover ripped the thread off the crank. With threads ripped off I couldn’t remove the crank. Couldn’t bash it out with a hammer, had to go to a workshosp where they used a spider remover...
Tighten it ‘til it strips and back it off a quarter turn.
Where’s the “I know enough not to wear flip flops in a workshop like the dude in the photo” option?
Now if you work in structural steel for example, I might not recommend Birkenstock’s...
Never going to bother doing a full service on a fork again lol
Of course it also depends on whether you like to spend time learning this kind of stuff. If you don't, fair enough then don't. It would help me loads if I would be only slightly proficient with a soldering iron to repair guitar cables and internal wiring and all that. But it just is too fiddly for me. I know loads of people like to work on their cars whereas I don't go beyond replacing wheels, lights, fuses and topping up liquids. I'm comfortable riding my own bike in the dirt aware that the consequences of a failure are mostly mine. But a car driven at speed in traffic is just a different story to me. I don't consider myself qualified and the process of trial and error doesn't quite make sense to me in that context.
edit: @dglass: It's fine. Just keep a bucket handy in case you're having too many beers. I personally prefer a cup of tea when building wheels though. Makes me feel really sophisticated.
I'll remove parts to bring them in for service (wheels/suspension) and maybe once a year get them to setup my drivetrain. The cost of that minimal amount of work is practically nothing.
Look at them as walking talking bonus monies.
A quarter of PB commenters are "wizard" level mechanics. Yeah. No.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
Edit: there are also a LOT of CRAP videos out there. Go to a reliable information source.
Nothing on a bike is all that complex, it’s all just bearings, shafts, seals, and fasteners. Oh and a couple cables and a chain, just for fun.
The things I work on are no different, just a bit more complex. And the reality is most of our customers, both yours and mine, can do a good portion of our jobs. People pay us because they don’t want to do a job, more often than they pay us because they can’t.
All that said, you could make it "easy", but sometimes you get what your elbow grease pays for.
In all these events, the bike shops didn't want any money though I can definitely see this as a possible business model. Kind of like a repair cafe. Most people in the sport (at least those I know) are fairly proficient concerning these basic tasks. They just might need some help with some small steps or just don't own the specific tools for the job. Of course I realize it may be challenging. Shop space is expensive and some customers may actually take more time and attention than if you'd do it yourself. But you can charge admission, you'll be selling spares, tools and drinks. People meet, vibe is good, I can definitely see myself be a customer if I for instance need to swap bearings I don't own the tools for.
You and I apparently get derailleur set up, but someone who wants to try it but doesn't want to think about what they're doing won't have much success. And for the record, I am no wizard.
Meh-chanic
Noun
Meh-chanic: someone who could fix it themselves, but finds it easier and cheaper to pay for it to be fixed.
They probably have the new guy wrench on it the second you leave the store.
Small business like happy customers for some reason?
I've never taken offense to not being the "chosen one", and in fact would rather defer to and learn from someone with more skill AND have a satisfied rider pick up their bike than me fudge it up and have a disappointed rider bring it back for the other tech anyway.
All this is a must in a multi-disciplinary shop or box store. I could sharpen a mean pair of skates, was good or better on bikes but if we needed something complex done with skis/board I'd have to schedule for when the shop manager was in because he was the snow shredder.
I've been burned/misdiagnosed by almost every bike shop I've been to, with the worst offense being a warrantied guide R lever (the 3rd time) bled by the shop only to find out the front brake had air in it hauling ass down black mountain in Pisgah, NC. I've always bled my own brakes but the one time I trust the shop I get burned. I only take my bike to the shop to warranty SRAM/RS stuff but whenever I do they always try to add on a service I never asked for. Bike shop incompetence necessitated I learn and get all the tools to do it myself, so no, I don't support my LBS.
You're Adeptus Mechanicus. Or Ad Mech.
What qualifies someone as “a professional bike mechanic” / Master mechanic etc, I think the Pink bike descriptions are off? The guy that flys round the world working for a big World Cup team - I’d say he is, he’ll be a far better mechanic than I am or the minimum wage shop kid who can barely assemble a part built new bike out the box - nope. I won’t even call them mechanics but I bet if you asked them what their job is they’d say bike mechanic. It’s entirely possible a lot of pink bikers are far more competent than the shop kids so rate them selves higher.
Not having $1000s into specialized tools for every new standard can make cheapskates invent new ways and things.
I think the Master and Wizard levels are for those who can do it all fast and correct, while your World Cup rider is hounding you to finish so that they have time to qualify
If i had a dollar for every "I work on my own bike" guy that comes in with an "unknown issue" and power washed the grease out of their bottom bracket I'd be a rich man
Huge caveat though; you have to find a good LBS. I bought my first bike from one of the larger LBS's, and after the ONE free tuneup I got that took them 2 weeks and they forgot to true my rear wheel, I almost wrote off LBS's for good. Thankfully I found my current one that is awesome.
Bottom line is, even pros are human! We all break parts!!! But customers sometimes never know, because shops assumed it and change parts for new if we screwed up! Good for Customers!
Look at how many hours it takes to call yourself an ase master mechanic. Bikes are different since there isn’t formal training like there is in the auto industry, but without YEARS in a shop, UCI license+years of experience, or running your own business, yalls have no place as qualifying as anything other than a home mechanic.
Fix aeroplanes for a living, been building bikes and fixing cars from birth!!
Watching people who can’t comprehend that you have to push and turn a screwdriver blows my mind!!
easy.
How to fix stripped treads on a titanium BB shell that I stripped out.
How to make a wheel into an s shape and then straight again.
How to tell a customer that it is possible to put a nexus hub in a 36” wheel and take years to complete.
Taking more than 2 ephedra pills is bad for your heart.
And of course underage drinking is okay if your boss gives it to you.
Now, I moved and need to find new mechanic;
Forks and shocks became more advanced, so you cannot do it trail side oil change for the 'bommber' anymore;
During the season I only swap tires / pads / grips as they wore out;
And even the tools that are bike specific can be found from other lesser named brands for much cheaper.
If you are doing work on your bike only occasionally it’s not worth buying all the tools. But if you have a few bikes and want to maintain them it’s def worth investing in the tools you need. They aren’t really all that expensive at the end of the day.
To be fair, I have used older models of Dag with absolutely no issues, and use the box ends happily with absolutely no issues. But the P handles, and the D2.2 failing so quickly put me off the Big Blue.
On the other hand, my Unior p handles have been working well with only cosmetic issues over the past 2 years. Others I work with use the same uniors, and have been for longer than I have owned mine. And all this, for (what I paid) less than the Park set.
Park offers a lot of the specialty tools for an ok price, and generally good quality. But for many of the super specialty tools you can get better quality, and the basic tools you can get better quality AND a better price.
Don't get me wrong. Bicycles aren't calculus or differential equations. But they can be just as annoying (with an emphasis on annoying) and frustrating. That being said I always managed to figure out the formulas for both. Sadly bikes pay less.
I can and have built anything. I've put stuff together that wasn't exactly meant to be and it has worked great. And my favorite/most used bike is 85% parts that were going to get recycled or thrown away but I knew how to fix/repair them to a fully functional and even better state.
Left some fresh “man loam” on the berm in the form of poo
My bet is the results would be vastly different to this poll !
Me:
Local small shop: “Jesus Christ, let me see the damn thing!”
Also unless you’re racing it’s hard to realize some times how much all the local shops give back to the community.
I think it’s a damn shame folks don’t do their own stunts, it’s really not hard, especially with the internet to guide ya.
I say to all the folks who don’t do their own work: just do it.
Being a mechanic is a knack, but with work it can be acquired. Most people are lazy when it comes to tinkering.
Still pretty funny to see the number of good mechanics on Pinkbike vs the number of non mechanics on the trail ....
But I am actually considering opening up my own shop. I still love the sport that literally saved my life. And I see a solid profit from offering quality repair services and a passion for the trade.
I started literally as a stockboy at our Magura, Mantis, Hutchinson and Hope distributor after school hours.
Then went on to one shop after another.
And frankly, I miss being the grumpy wrench in the backroom. Being kept away from all but the hoghest end customers or the nastiest ones. I took no shit from anyone. Not even our PD's escaped my cynicism.
I remember one fun incident.
I was building a wheel on the sidewalk outside the shop in a singlet.
Two bikecops roll up. Front rotor on one bike singing. And the contract we had with the local PD said that we'd drop everything for our friends in Blue.
Which I did. I kneeled down on the sidewalk, trued the rotor and tweaked the caliper a smidge.
Whiøe doing this the bigger of the two cops blurted out "Ain't those arms of yours to small for such a tattoo?"
Without missing a beat I look up at said officer and replied "Aren't you a tad fat to be riding a bike with no brakes?" While I put my cable cutters on the brake lines and grinned at him.
His paryner cracked up in a laughing fit like many of my other customers.
And no I didn't get booked. Haha