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When do I need to overhaul the loose bearings in my wheel?
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If your wheel has side-to-side play even when the skewer or axle nuts are tight, or after a hub has seen its fair share of use, it is time to overhaul the bearings and adjust the hubs.
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- Cone wrenches (usually 13mm for the front and 15mm for the rear)
- Open-ended wrench (usually 17mm)
- Plenty of grease
- Replacement bearings (usually twenty 3/16” bearings for the front, eighteen 1/4 “ bearings for the rear)
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How do I know when to true the wheels on my bike?
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Lift your wheel off the ground and give it a spin. If the wheel wobbles back and forth or up and down, it’s time to true it. Wheels come out of true through regular use. The rim is held at the correct angle to the hub by the pull of the spokes in equal directions. Hopping curbs, hitting rocks and the general punishment a bicycle endures is enough to knock a wheel out of true.
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What kind of brakes do I have?
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The easiest way to differentiate between a caliper brake and its counterpart, the cantilever brake, is to look where the brake is attached to the frame of your bicycle. If the brake is attached at two points, you have a cantilever brake. If the brake is attached by a single, centered bolt, you have a caliper brake. This article will discuss adjustments of the caliper brake.
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What does the front derailleur do?
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The front derailleur pushes the chain from one chainring to another. It works very similarly to the rear derailleur by shifting the chain so that it falls onto a smaller chainring, or so that is pushes against a larger chainring and eventually catches the teeth. A properly adjusted front derailleur will shift between chainrings without allowing the chain to slip off in either direction.
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When do I need to replace the cable housings on my bike?
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If your cable housing is stiff, shows signs of damage, such as a kink, or is getting old, it may be a good idea to install replacements. Working on cable housings is not particularly difficult but does require the proper tools.
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- Cable Cutters
- Wire Snips
- Awl or Similar Pointed Tool
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When do I need to lubricate the cables on my bike?
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Before the advent of plastic-lined cables, it was necessary to regularly use heavy oil or grease to lubricate the cables inside brake and derailleur cable housings. Thanks to plastic-lined cables, this procedure is largely obsolete. There are however a few points on the modern bicycle that can use an occasional oiling. The small section of cable near the rear derailleur and the sharp bends in cantilever brakes are two points on the bicycle that merit some attention to lubrication.
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What kind of headset do I have?
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A threaded headset gets its name from the threaded steerer tube at the top of a fork. The steerer tube is attached to the inside head tube on a frame with an adjustable race. A threaded headset can be identified easily by the quil ...
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What kind of headset do I have?
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A threadless headset gets its name from the lack of a threaded steerer tube at the top of a fork. It can be easily identified by the two external pinch bolts that hold a threadless compatible stem in place. On a threaded headset, ...
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When do I need to clean and lubricate my chain?
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Keeping your chain clean is essential, especially if you ride in the rain or other adverse weather conditions. Regular chain maintenance prevents rust and chain stiffness.
There are two camps in the debate over c ...
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When do I need to lubricate the cables on my bike?
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Before the advent of plastic-lined cables, it was necessary to regularly use heavy oil or grease to lubricate the cables inside brake and derailleur cable housings. Thanks to plastic-lined cables, this procedure is largely obsole ...
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When do I need to overhaul the loose bearings in my wheel?
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If your wheel has side-to-side play even when the skewer or axle nuts are tight, or after a hub has seen its fair share of use, it is time to overhaul the bearings and adjust the hubs. ...
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San Francisco, CA
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Temp:
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18°C
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Wind Chill:
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18°C
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Humidity:
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65%
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Speed:
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37 km/h
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Direct.:
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290°
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Barom.:
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1013.2 mb
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WNW
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Weather Details
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Provided by:
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