Fear of wrenching...

[Irulan]

I thought I'd post my experience learning to work on bikes, there was a comment on another thread,

And yes...I need to start learning to take care of my own bike! I am just so afraid i'll end up breaking something

I finally started to tentatively learn to wrench after an experience where I had some free work done by a friend to two bikes, that cost me $100 to have redone correctly on just one of them. Ahhhh!

I found a different friend who was very willing to walk me through my first "job". He had the stand and the tools, and basically handed me each tool, and stood at my shoulder and told me what to do next. That day I replaced a chain ring and a derailleur cable all by myself.

That encouraged me. I dug out DH's old bike tool box, bought a copy of Zinn and the Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance, and started to try different things. I changed some pedals. I put a new chain on. And then... I rebuilt my old very first mtb that had been collecting dust.

Now, you have to picture this. I find the directions, get out my highlighter, read them, read them again, go into the house and get a drink, stare at the bike for a bit and THEN cut the first cable. OMG, I was so sure I was going to break something!! Or that something would explode. But nothing bad happened.

Slowly I've added the tools I didn't have. I've also found that there are lots of knowledgeable people out there willing to give advice, or help with nuanced adjustments. I've cultivated the heck out my favorite LBS's with home baked goodies. I do buy all my small parts locally, support the LBS and all that.

Now, I maintain the fleet at our house. DH got me a Park stand for Xmas one year, complete with tech apron. He thought it was a crazy request but now that I detail his bike for him... different story. Sure, it takes me at least 3 to 5 times longer than a pro but so what.

Moral is, you can't break anything. Worst case scenario is that you have to drag your bike to the LBS ( cookies in tow) and say, "guys, what did I mess up here". That hasn't happened yet, but I have need help with some old v-brake spring adjustments.

Go for it!

[Becky]

+ a bajillion!

Working on your own bikes is empowering, and can garner you a lot of respect.

[Irulan]

I want to add that it is immensely satisfying, and soothing too. There are days when being out in the shop and detailing a dirty mountain bike is just the best thing to do.

My most recent project was converting a nice old Ti hardtail to a singlespeed...whee.....

[Fujichants]

Hey, that's my comment!

Irulan, can you come over to LA and show me how it is done?

[Irulan]

you can get group long distance support here.

Seriously, I was so freaked out about getting started, but then I decided to just DO IT. Worst case scenario is I'd have to pay someone to put it back together, which hasn't happened yet.

[blueskies]

Thanks for the encouragement on this, Irulan.

Yesterday, I did my very first tiny adjustment on my own bike-- I adjusted the pedals to release my cleats more easily on my new-to-me cross bike. It was a simple small adjustment, but I felt great doing it myself.

[OakLeaf]

Way to go Irulan!

I've done a lot of maintenance in past years, but it's been a while for a lot of it, and one thing I've never done was install a derailleur.

So, it TOTALLY freaked me out to have to remove my rear derailleur to put my bike in the shipping crate. (Didn't even know which side the wrench went until I looked at it closely )

We'll see how it goes when I have to re-install it in Dallas Worst case, my sister says she's got a great mechanic

[jobob]

Great post, Irulan!

[SadieKate]

Now, you have to picture this. I find the directions, get out my highlighter, read them, read them again, go into the house and get a drink,

Sure, it takes me at least 3 to 5 times longer than a pro but so what.

Isn't that the point of the drink?

Excellent post.

[arielmoon]

Kudos!

I am so inspired by your post!

[kermit]

I'm glad I'm not the only one that enjoys working on bikes. I am jealous you have an apron. Christmas is coming.

[dachshund]

Now, I maintain the fleet at our house. DH got me a Park stand for Xmas one year, complete with tech apron.

I was thinking about getting the Park stand... How do you like it? Is it pretty sturdy?

Yes, good post and good work!

[Irulan]

I was thinking about getting the Park stand... How do you like it? Is it pretty sturdy?

Yes, good post and good work!

I'm not sure which one it is, one of the nicer ones but yeah it's great.

[Gidiup]

Very inspiring post. I've been day dreaming for a couple of years about riding coast to coast. Lately, I've been thinking about buying a used steel bike and rebuilding it and getting it ready for my big ride. This way I could take care of some maintenance and repairs on my big ride. I know very little about working on my bike. So far, I've changed tubes/tires, cleaned chain and rear cassette. I'd love to learn more. My husband recently bought me a Park Tool bike stand. I take care of our 3 bikes (what little I know).

[pardes]

I have to say that "fear of wrenching" has to be one of the funniest titles for a post that I've seen.

Bravo with learning to tinker with your bike. It's commendable to say the least.

For the moment I'm taking a different approach.

I learned to strip a car down to a pile of nuts and bolts and put it back together again. Once I learned this, I decided to let someone else do it. I could afford it and wanted to spend my time elsewhere.

Now that I have a bike, I am totally not interested in working on it. I take this into account about when and where I bike so that I'm always within reach of a bus or a bike shop. The trade-off is worth it to me. There is too much else I want to be doing and there are only so many hours in the day. Bike mechanics doesn't make the list.

For those who work on their bikes...much applause.
For those who don't....much applause.