Took Rear Wheel Off & Did "Maintenance"!

So I bought my bike in October and although I've taken classes on how to change flats and they actually had us practice on an upside down bike on the back wheel, I've never actually had the occasion to do it. I did my bike event on the 18th, which involved riding 30 miles in the pouring rain (sideways) out in the rural roads of Oregon. I noticed since I've been back that there's a scraping sort of noise when I break, particularly in the back. I cleaned the rims which helped but it didn't solve the sound. I put my bike in the stand, shifted to the smallest cogs front/back and removed the rear wheel. Sure enough there were minute pieces of metal??? in the fairly new pads. With my handy tweezers I got them out, took the time to wash the wheel, clean the cassette, clean/lube the chain. Once it was back together I saw that the wheel must not have been centered because I couldn't pedal due to brake pad pushed to one side of the rim. I examined the front situation to make sure that I had put the back brakes back together. Finally I took the bike out of the stand and onto the floor, loosened the quick release and re-engaged the back wheel into the drop outs (isn't gravity great?), and all is well!
Now I'm going for a ride. I feel so accomplished.
So...thanks for all the encouragement.

Good for you!

That's excellent. It's really a good feeling to learn how to take care of your bike.

What a great feeling when you accomplish such an awesome task!

feels good to do maintenance yourself, huh? I love the satisfaction of doing my own work.

Well I'm back from my ride and the brakes are nice and quiet.....and nothing fell off! Lol.

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Originally Posted by Velocivixen

Well I'm back from my ride and the brakes are nice and quiet.....and nothing fell off! Lol.

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Wooot! This is the way to go! I am always a little concerned about this when I have, ahem, "committed maintenance" :o

Good job! :)

I've been terrified by the thought of my front wheel coming loose ever since I crashed and broke out 2 front teeth as a teenager, so I always use gravity and rock the fork a little back and forth to make sure the wheel is properly centered and set before closing the skewer. It's a bit more hassle especially if I'm working on the bike on a stand, but worth the peace of mind.

Good for you VV! I am the worst about this. My Husband is great with bikes, he has restored and completely rebuilt several just for fun. So it is very easy to just leve it all to him. I promised myself when I started riding again this year that I would become better at taking care of my own bikes. I need to follow your example!

My disk brakes on the utopia were making a horrible noise on this morning's ride. You have inspired me to try and figure it out myself before I ask him.

@lph, sorry to hear about your teenage crash-sounds scary. I have that same fear and I have not had any crashes. It's a phobia that I envision my front wheel coming off, especially if I'm going fast down a hill.

@ Orange, you can do it. I don't have disc brakes, but DH does and I've watched hom adjust them & change the pads. I'm confident you can figure it out.

Great job! Working on my own bike not only gives me a feeling of accomplishment but I think it makes me a better rider because I have a better understanding of how the bike works.