Maintence Poll

[Crankin]

I can change a tire/flat, but I've never had to on the road (luck). I live in fear of the day it happens. I clean my chain, but mostly my husband does it. He does all of the bike repairs; we have a complete bike shop, tools, etc which came about from when my son was racing and it was a lot less money for my husband to do the upkeep on his bikes. The only thing my husband doesn't do is work on the hydraulic brakes on the mtbs. We don't have the tools for that and since we don't use the mtbs that often, we just bring it to the shop.
I am in awe of anyone who can do more than fix a flat. To me, it's like I'm trying to do something new everytime I do it.
Well, I did put new tires on my wheels last spring, but i think it took me 2 hours!

[ibcycling]

So far all I've done is replace a tube. I need to get a good maintenance book so I can learn to do more and not feel helpless when something goes wrong. I'm sure my neighbor would help but he can be hard to catch at home.

Lora

[boy in a kilt]

I can take a bunch of parts and make them into a bike. Partly because I used to it in high school.

However. There are certain things I don't like to do. I'll take it to the shop for pressing in headset races. I'm not really good at adjusting bearings, hence the reason all the bearings on my bike are cartridge bearings.

I like to build wheels but I can't do it very quickly. I just learned how to get wheels in round and set the dish properly.

One of these days, I want to learn how to weld and build my own frame.

[Pax]

I can do the basic stuff but one it gets to the derailleurs I'm done, off to the shop.

[Melalvai]

I sure have come a long way. I know what a derailleur is and how to spell it!

Other big accomplishments were learning to change a tire IN THE FIELD and clean my drivetrain.

I'd changed tires before but never on the spot, I always called for a ride, bought the new inner tube when the store opened the next day, bike was out of commission for days before it was done. When I started commuting regulary, I started carrying a spare tube, tire levers & CO2 cartridge, but I also got kevlar tires and quit having flats, until finally 1 1/2 years later I did get a flat--and changed it right there!

My parents stopped by on their way through town, and they had their bikes with them, so I cleaned their drivetrains just for fun.

[DebW]

I can strip a frame bare and replace anything, but haven't dealt with facing the headtube or bb of a brand new frame. I can change headset races except I don't have the expensive tool to remove the fork crown race, so I take the fork to the lbs for that. I'm very good at adjusting bearings but have never tried to replace a sealed cartridge bottom bracket. I build and true wheels - not as fast as a pro, but maybe within a factor of two.