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sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works ⁨15⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

I do my own bicycle and auto repair, and the bicycle is way easier. Maintenance is:

clean chain every so often (500 miles or start of the season) - get a chain cleaner tool thing ($10-20) and 50/50 Simple Green ($10 will last many years) and water, and then rinse, dry, and lube ($10 lasts years) - total process, 10 min?
replace chain - $20 or so, plus a tool for $10 or so; do every 2k miles or so
replace brake pads - $10-20
tires ($50 for a fancy fire) and tubes ($10) - replace tires when bald, tubes when flat (or patch them), and get some tire levers ($5-10) to make it easier

For tools, you need a wrench set, and probably only like 2-3 sizes.

My yearly maintenance costs for all of our bikes (1 adult, two kids) combined is about $50. If that. You could also go to your local bike shop instead for about double that.

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infinitesunrise@slrpnk.net ⁨14⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
Also this is a healthy maintence regime. In my experience most cyclists only do nothing on that list except swapping flat tubes and their bikes still ride just fine, if not merely sub-optimally.

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- TwanHE@lemmy.world ⁨14⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  Honestly have never done preventative maintenance on my bikes, only necessary repairs. Still thinking about repairing the shifter since I’ve been missing 1st gear for about 7-8? years now.
  
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- sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works ⁨14⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  True. If you’re just riding casually, you don’t really need any maintenance.
  
  But if you’re relying on it every day, keeping up on maintenance can reduce costs long term. Dirty chains destroy the cogs (inexpensive) and drive train (expensive), stretched chains cause gear slippage and inefficient power delivery, worn tires increase chances of flats and reduce grip, and worn pads reduce stopping ability, which could result in nastier accidents.
  
  If you’re riding a lot, keep up on maintenance, just like you would with a car. If it’s just occasionally like once or twice/month, you can probably get away with some neglect.
  
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  - Krik@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨11⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
    A bit of easy maintenance should be possible for everyone. Just clean and lube the chain every month. Check tire pressure every two to four weeks (depending on how fast they lose air).
    And once a year do a complete checkup either by yourself or by a bike shop.
    
    You should easily get 10 years of life out of your bike. 20 years might be possible too.
    
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- Anivia@feddit.org ⁨6⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  I wouldn’t call 500 miles between cleaning your chain as “healthy” maintenance.
  
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Betty_Boopie@lemmy.world ⁨12⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
A quick tip on bike chains; if you are using lubricant you should never use heavy degreaser on the chain. The factory oil is the best lubricant and normal lubes don’t penetrate between links enough.

However, if you are going to degrease you chains, you should use paraffin wax instead of lube. I have an 11 speed chain with 3000+ miles and it’s only showing around 1% stretch. I don’t even use fancy bike specific wax, just food grade gulf wax. Another plus is the whole drive train is dry; doesn’t get your hands dirty if you need to remove a wheel, cassette, or derailleur.

Admittedly waxing the chain is a pain in the ass, but some of my chains are like $70 a pop so getting as much life from them is more important.

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- Krik@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨11⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  Wax can flake off leaving that space unprotected. You have to check it more regularly than a lubed chain and dry it off after rain. It’s not uncommon for a waxed chain to rust. But a big pro is cleanness of the chain and you won’t get greasy hands.
  
  Personally I keep using (eco-friendly) lube. Yes the chain gets dirty fast but I don’t care. :D
  
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  - Anivia@feddit.org ⁨6⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
    Or just go for a belt instead of a chain and never worry about that again
    
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  - Betty_Boopie@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
    The roller links are what you want lubricated and protected, and wax stays in those places much better than liquid lubes. While some chunks will flake off there is a thin layer left behind, I ride near the ocean pretty frequently and had worse rust problems when I was using lube. Ofc whatever works for you is the best practice but wax has been very easy for me. I track my rides, after about 150 miles I re-wax the chain. I’ve never found that I have to check it more often, but I also ride steel frames so I don’t ride in the rain anyways.
    
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    Krik@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨9⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
    
    I don’t ride in the rain
    
    That’s probably the difference between us. I ride all-year all-weather.
    
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- sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works ⁨12⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  
  I have an 11 speed chain with 3000+ miles and it’s only showing around 1% stretch.
  
  Wow, that’s a solid chain. I usually need to replace mine around 2000-3000, but my chains are like $20-30, and I don’t treat them very well (I stay on high gears on short climbs a bit too long).
  
  I haven’t bothered with wax, maybe I should. I just do a decent job lubing everything a few times per year. I degrease (chain only, I’m careful around the derailleur and hub), rinse thoroughly, dry thoroughly, and then lube and wipe 2x. I don’t get any squeaks and it rides smoother after a cleaning, so I think I’m doing a decent job.
  
  But I’ve heard wax is more of a one and done thing. Maybe I’ll try it the next time I replace my chain.
  
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  - Betty_Boopie@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
    Oh I’m sure you’re doing a decent job and wax isn’t a perfect solution for everyone. I’m just saying that one of the reasons you may only get 2k miles out of a chain is the degreaser takes away the factory oil. When I was on lube I was getting about 1% stretch per 1k miles, but it also depends a lot on the drivetrain and what kind of riding you do.
    
    I would definitely consider wax though, especially if you move up into 10, 11, or 12 speed drivetrains. Everything is so damn expensive on them that wax is well worth the extra work, not just the chain but my cassettes look almost new still.
    
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dipcart@lemmy.world ⁨8⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
This was one of the things that surprised me the most about getting a bike. Parts are cheap. The work is easy. Knowing how to do it is valuable.

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Soup@lemmy.world ⁨14⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
Exactly!

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- sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works ⁨14⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  People over-state bicycle maintenance.
  
  $50 and a couple YouTube videos gets you everything you need for the first few years of maintenance. You can get fancy with a bike rack thing, but I never bothered and I’ve been fine.
  
  If you screw up, go to a bike shop and they’ll get you sorted for $50 or so, and they’ll probably teach you how to do it right if you ask nicely. If you have a bike coop, it might be free.
  
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  - kbotc@lemmy.world ⁨8⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
    Bike maintenance is a matter of what kind of equipment you’re riding, how far, what conditions, how much you weigh and how strong you are. When I was putting 40 miles a day commuting, my cheap bike needed maintenance about once every 2-4 weeks depending on the weather and taught me that I fucking hate cleaning and repacking my bottom bracket.
    
    The proliferation of Ebike caliber equipment changed a lot at least for durability and comfort.
    
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    sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works ⁨6⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
    I have never once touched my bottom bracket, what kind of weather you riding in?
    
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Jesus_666@lemmy.world ⁨13⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
And if you have a bike with a belt you can replace all chain-related maintenance with “check if the belt looks weird maybe once a year”.

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- sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works ⁨13⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  Yup. I recommend taking it in if it looks weird, it’s not worth learning to replace a belt since they’re usually good for many many years.
  
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