Bicycle Mechanics - For the perfectionist

I am a new and very happy owner of a Terratrike Cruiser. Like any new machine I go over it tooth and nail. One minor thing I did notice was the LH kingpin had a little more clearance than it should have. I purchased brass shim stock, and made a .005 washer that I put on the bottom of the kingpin bearing. This eliminated a small knocking noise when going over some bumps. Was this necessary, not really. But as a life long technician, I like things as perfect as possible.

If your fix quieted a knocking noise and the steering doesn't bind, you improved the bearing fit and reduced the slop. That's good. Necessary? Maybe not but it sure didn't hurt matters.

Fine toothed comb.

Tooth and nail = extreme violence.

Any extra noise or slight malfunction cannot be tolerated on ones own bikes :o
For new bikes, the first thing to do is to take the bike apart and check everything, unless said bike has been put together by someone you would trust with your dear life. F.ex. yesterday I changed the front chainrings, and checked the bottom bracket at the same time - this was a pretty new bike and I think I did not check the BB originally - and it was so loose I could almost thread it out with bare fingers...

Everything must work exactly as supposed and perfectly.

The only exception is while riding - it is acceptable to have noise from drivetrain, for example, if at the moment you are riding along a muddy trail and have a couple of kilos of mud and debris sticking to said drivetrain. When you get back home, you of course painstakingly clean, adjust and lube everything again, ready for tomorrow.

Tooth and nail = extreme violence.


Appropriate for a Terrortrike.

I guess I should explain that I have been an electronic and mechanical maintence technician all my life. Machines will work as good as they are maintained. Things are either right or wrong. If you make everything right before a ride the bike will not leave you stranded. I have never been. Flats sure, but I carry tubes boots patches and tools to make a flat a very temp thing.

I live in the snow belt, and hate riding in the cold, so the bikes are in the basement. Along about Feb once again I will go completely over the bikes, clean adj grease and oil them. All nuts bolts and screws will be checked for tightness. Then I again expect to ride trouble free next summer.