Whether you are a person traveling on a bicycle, or a commuter who bikes to work, knows the following 8 must-learn basic bike repair skills will make your ride more smoothly and save a lots bike repair cost! If you want to make more advanced adjustments or all-around improve the smoothness of cycling, but you don’t understand the basics, it is better to take your bike over to a professional bicycle repair shop to handle it, and regular bicycle safety checking (bike maintenance) , it must be more at ease once every 6 months or once a year!
8 basic bicycle repairs you need to know.
1. Fix a flat.
Among the 8 basic bike repairs, I personally think that the most important skill to learn is to replace the inner tube. Once it happens in a place where there is no bicycle shop, You need to save yourself and learn how to fix bicycle tires.
There are common reasons for a flat tire:
- Puncture by Sharp Object
- Incorrect Tyre Pressure
- Old Tyres
Learn the most important of basic bike repair skills: bicycle tire replacement, and also know the causes of the tire puncture, so as to avoid change a new inner tube or tire and breaking it again.
In addition, as a special condition is that need to patch inner tubes when the new inner tube is used up. Because it takes longer to wait for the glue to dry, or it takes longer to deal with the broken tire, and rate of failure to make up is actually very high. If the problem can be solved quickly by changing the tires, we suggest that it is better to have 1-2 inner tubes on your way at any time for short-distance cycling trips.
Necessary tools for replacing bicycle inner tubes:
- Spare inner tubes
- tire levers
- mini pump
- CO2 cartridge
The following is what we think is a very good understanding of video teaching:
Read More: 公路車保養教學，掌握單車保養 10 大基本功！
2. Adjust the brake tightness
5 common bicycle brake systems
- Disc Brakes:
- Caliper Brakes:
- V-Brakes
- Cantilever Brakes
- Drum Brakes
Since the brake is very important to your personal safety, the adjustment principle and timing can be judged according to brake pads wearing thin. Regularly adjust the brake spacing to maintain the braking force, and when the grooves of the brake pads disappear completely, it is time to be replaced.
The C-Brake, V-Brake, and Cantilever Brakes are rim brakes that use “brake pads” to touch the rim to decelerate or stop. Depending on the material, brand and functionality of the brake pads, the price of most bicycle shops (including work and materials) is between 200-500 NTD per wheel.
碟剎與鼓剎安裝於車圈軸心上，碟剎的剎車皮叫做「來令片」，而鼓剎有個大圓盤與卡鉗，藉由鋼索拉動產生制剎力，屬於框剎。其中以鼓剎更換技術最為困難，建議到腳踏車行請老闆協助。來令片有 (連工帶料) 500-1000元。
[ Adjust Brake Spacing ] – Quickly adjust the brake tightness without tools.
When you don’t have tools, you can adjust the brake barrel adjuster to quickly adjust the tension of the brake cable.
3. Change your brake pads.
You would not wait until the car’s brake pads have been wear-and-tear before you change it, and the same is true for bicycles. When the brake pads are about to grind flat, any brake adjustment you done, or the brake noise appears, PLEASE for your pensonal safety, change new them!
若是您屬於鼓剎或是更少見的蘿拉剎，因為更換技術較高且需調整的地方很多，建議您直接到店家去做更換。
According to the brake system you have, we will choose the brake pad type that belongs to him.
The following video is a teaching of replacing the brake pads and adjusting the brake tightness of the C-brake on a road bike:
4. Inspect and clean your chain.
This is a easiest basic bike repair you can handle it immediately. In order to keep the chain running smoothly, we will drop a little chain oil and let the oil enter the chain axises for lubrication. Too much oil is easy to stick to dirty, but it is not possible without oil, so we can check or clean the chain at every fixed time, even after each rain.
Checking chain tools: purpose-built chain checker
Cleaning chain tool: Toothbrush
Use a toothbrush to brush off the grit on the chain and drop chain oil regularly to slow down wear and tear. This is a Ideal you should at least wipe off the dirt from the chain after each ride, especially when you are riding on a muddy, dirt road, it is better to wipe it off as soon as you get home. When the chain begins to dry, even though you can usually hear the noise sound from the chain, and it can be quickly improved by add oil ing quickly.
5. Fix a drop chain.
Due to bumps in the road, loose shift cables, or hanger crooked and so on, which may cause the chain to drop. It is very easy to put the chain back to the chainwheel, just wear gloves (to avoid dirty hands) and put it back by hand. But if it falls into the groove of the BB or between the chainwheel and the hub set, you will need to go to the bicycle shop to ask them for help. If we frequently drop the chain, probably it’s time to change it. We remind you that you need to go to the bicycle repair shop for a safety check of your bicycle.
6. Fix a broken chain.
When your gear shifting parts are severely worn or incorrectly controlled, the chain may break. As a method to prevent chain breakage, it is recommended to use a chain checker to measure regularly.
維修斷鏈的必備工具：快扣 (變速 or 單速之分)、打鏈器、鏈條。快扣要配合您的飛輪齒片來準備，例如：8速飛輪要準備8速快扣或8速鏈條。一般來說緊急狀況發生，可先使用鏈條快扣修復，而一條鏈條最多使用2個快扣 (其中一個是原本就存在的)，故若是本身已有兩條快扣的鏈條再度斷鏈，則考慮是否要更換全新鏈條。
The following video is the teaching of broken chain repair:
7. Adjust derailleurs.
The correct shift gears should work smoothly and avoid chain friction. When they are misaligned, you will find it more difficult to change gears. There are many reasons for this: the transmission cable is loose, rusty, old, crooked lifting lugs, bad transmission, etc., which can cause chain drop and chain breakage.
Maintain regularly and only need to go through with small adjustments can keep good condition.
Park Tool has a lot of videos about before and after adjustments for reference.
8. Stem tightening correction
The stem screw is also a important of the items that we must confirm every ride we rent a bicycle. Because this position is easily rust by sweat or cause loose by crashing. After a long time, we even do a full-checking or replacing. Therefore, it is recommended to visit a bike maintenance on average once a year by bike shop, but for those with much sweating, it is recommended to maintain it every six months.
Carry the right tools.
Carrying the right tools for the job is a skill unto itself. Depending how far you’ll be riding (and how far from help you’ll be, how many days you would do), the basic bike repair kit you’ll need to carry varies, but there are a few essentials you’ll never be sorry to have.
For example, if I leave my gears in a hotel and go for a day ride in the city or street, I don’t have all the equipment in my kit. Those are the basics.
Likewise, if my riding for a week, I will bring more equipment, but not everything.
List of essential tools for short cycling trips
- Basic Bike Repair Tire Tools：3 x tire levers,Spare tubes, patch kit, a hand pump, several CO2 cartridges
- Nipper (In order to remove the metal objects or small chips stuck on the tire)
- 多功能組合工具 (包含2、3、4、5、6、8、10號內六角扳手、十字起子、一字起子、打鏈器、鋼絲調整器)
Read More: Best Cycling Equipment List: What To Bring On Bike Tour?
In MathewBike, whether it is touring bike rental or electric bike rental, we will prepare all the tools you need for bicycles. Or if you want to rent, you can refer to our bicycle equipment rental price.
How can I confirm the safety of my bicycle in the event of a crash?
Better not to have a car accident. If the injury is not serious, you can first confirm whether the bicycle can continue to ride. It is best to go to a bicycle shop to assess the bike repair cost so that you can claim compensation from the perpetrator, or go to the hospital to issue an inspection form and apply for compensation from your personal life insurance.
After the crash, we must confirm the safety of the bicycle. The parts that need to be checked are:
- Bent Wheel Rim
- Flat or Broken Tire
- Brake and Shift function
- The Chain is broken or drop
- The Stem Bent
- The frame is cracked or broken
Basic Bike Repair Costs
Bike repair costs be divided into material cost + salary. If you have learned the 8 basic bike repair skills, you only need to purchase “materials” from a bicycle shop or online. That you can save a lot of money, but if what you want to save is “trouble”, you can also seek help from a bicycle shop.
Bike Repair Cost List
| Self-prepared materials, pure salary. | |||
| No. | Services | Time | Costs |
| 1 | Change The Handlebar (excluding the handlebar strap, routing) | 1 hr | 500 up |
| 2 | Change The Brake or Shift Lever (excluding the handle strap, routing) | 1hr | 500 up |
| 3 | Change Stem | 15 min | 200 up |
| 4 | Change Head Parts | 30 min | 500 up |
| 5 | Change The Saddle | 10 min | 150 up |
| 6 | Change The Bar-Tape | 30 min | 300 up |
| 7 | Change The Seat Tube | 10 min | 150 up |
| 8 | Change A Tire | 10 min | 150 up |
| 9 | Change A inner tube | 10 min | 150 up |
| 10 | Change A inner tube for Speacial Bike | 15 min | 200 up |
| 11 | Change The Cable Housing (non-hidden) | 30 min | 500 up |
| 12 | Change the Inner Cable (non-hidden) | 15 min | 200 up |
| 13 | Change pedals | 10 min | 100 up |
| 14 | Fix A Wheel | 30 min | 450 up |
| 15 | Fix The Bottom Bracket | 30 min | 500 up |
| 16 | Fix The Hub Bearing | 30 min | 500 up |
| 17 | 鎖鞋底板 | 10 min | 100 up |
| 18 | Replacement frame (including removal and installation) | 3 hrs | 3000 up |
| 19 | bicycle Assembly (without materials) | 2 hrs | 2000 up |
| 20 | bicycle Disassembly (remove all parts) | 1 hr | 1200 up |
| 21 | Chainwheel disassembly | 20 min | 300 up |
| 22 | Chainwheel Assembly | 20 min | 300 up |
| 23 | Chainweel Disassembly and Assembly | 30 min | 500 up |
| 24 | Change A sprocket | 30 min | 200 up |
| 25 | Change BB | 30 min | 500 up |
| 26 | Change A Chain | 15 min | 200 up |
| 27 | Change A Freewheel / Cassette | 20 min | 300 up |
| 28 | Change A Brake pad | 15 min | 200 up |
| 29 | Bike Maintenance | 1 hr | 800 up |
| 30 | Wheels Maintenance | 1 hr | 800 up |
| 31 | BB Maintenance | 30 min | 500 up |
| 32 | Change the front fork | 1 hr | 1000 up |
