How to know when your bike needs a tune-up
It doesn’t seem like anything should happen to a machine when it’s just been sitting around for a few months, but to this thought I would like to add one word: gravity. And if that’s not enough, here are three more: moisture, heat, and fungus. I get an insecure feeling when it seems like I’m pedaling a noisy collection of bolts and cables whose slight acquaintance with each other might end at any moment when they decide to head for destinations other than my own.
My 3-speed was purchased at a flea market, so let’s just say it’s not a silent machine. But there’s noise and there’s noise.
Before getting on a bicycle that has been sitting around all winter, it’s a good idea to look it over carefully.
The most important things to look at are the tires, and the brakes.
Cables stretch with use, and they rust. If there’s any rust on cables, they should be replaced immediately. When brakes are fully engaged, the levers should be about an inch away from the handlebar. It’s easy to tighten brake cables if they’re just a little bit loose.
For brakes to grip the wheel efficiently, the rubber pads are adjusted so they toe in toward the front. This makes them wear down unevenly. When they start looking triangular, they should be replaced.
Rubber rots, especially when it’s not in use. If a tire has dry rot hgh human growth, it looks cracked. When it’s inflated, or beneath the weight of the rider, a rotted tire could pull off the rim, and the bike will just slide out from under the rider.
Tires wear out. When a tire is no longer looking round, but flattened on the part that comes in contact with the road, it should probably be replaced. If the casing cord, the backing that makes a rubber tire hold its shape, is visible, the tire needs to be replaced.
My bicycle was made in 1969. I found this out reading Sheldon Brown’s entertaining and encyclopedic site, where I learned that Sturmey-Archer hubs have the date of manufacture stamped on them. I think this bike must have sat in someone’s garage for 35 years or so because it was in such good condition, even its fine green paint hardly scratched. Alas, no longer!
Since I use it every day, one by one, its original parts are being replaced. I think the seat is going to be the next thing to go.
A couple weeks ago I noticed one of the brake shoes sliding out of its clip, not a good thing at all. When I put it back in I discovered “JOHN BULL” spelled out in molded raised rubber letters on the sides of the shoe.
It’s going to kill me to replace those.
Bicycle parts models courtesy of Red Lantern Bicycles
