Worknomore

40 years as an industrial engineer, machine, tool, die builder, fabricator, welder. I do my own work on everything.

bbattle

Ironic, given your forum name.

congrats on the retirement!

Jiggle

Today I watched a bicycle shop mechanic spray down a chain with lube and rub the grit into the rollers with a dirty rag. *shudder*. Then he checked the chain condition with a tool that checked roller spacing. *shudder*

goldfinch

I do all the maintenance for our family of bikes myself. I true wheels at the local co-op in the winter in Arizona. I often true wheels for other people in our rv park who will ride wheels until they are so out of true that their brakes don't work. In the summer I have the nearest bike shop true a wheel, replace a spoke, if necessary (once, when a spoke broke). I have built up one new bike, my husband's. I have tried to put together an old bike from miscellaneous parts with less than satisfactory results. I have taken apart my well used bikes and replaced bearings and lubed everything. I have done this for scavenged bikes. I trust my work partly because if something doesn't seem right I get help. The Mechanics Forum is my friend. As is Youtube. And the Tucson bike co-op.

Never have built a wheel. Maybe someday. I enjoy all of this. It is an unexpected old age hobby. Now I need to go change the flat I got today. Not my favorite job, bad rim/tire combination makes it hard as heck to get the tires on and off.

cycledogg

I do it, because I know that I'm damn good at it!
Cheers

lopek77

Bad LBS experience + some new tools + some YouTube videos and bunch of online resources = happy DIY for the last few years. And like @cycledogg said above - "I'm damn good at it".

Eljot

I seem to be the only cyclist who is incapable of doing bike maintenance. I just don't like doing nor do I have the patience. Oddly I work in animation and you need to do ultra precise
work and have extreme patience. I don't get why I have the patience for my work but can't seem to bring it up for my bikes. In the day an age of the Internet and Youtube vids I bet it's much easier
to learn and I get why most cyclists do it.
Obviously it's better to rely on yourself than on a shop. Having said that, I can imagine that certain work regarding a bike is better done by someone who has the experience.

link0

I do 99% of it because I'm cheap and too lazy to bring my bikes to the shop. Compared to cars, bikes are ridiculously simple.

EnsitMike

Everything is really straight forward on a bike. The only thing I’ve had an LBS do is true my wheels and I have since learned to do that myself.

It started by respecting the guys who knew their stuff. It always separated what I saw as the avid cyclist from the recreational cyclist. I wanted to know my stuff too.

Not only that, I don’t like being someone who has to rely on others, but would rather be the one doing the helping. Really do enjoy free beer with my buddies while I fix their rides.

WheresWaldo

There is no magical art to doing bike maintenance and repair. If you have any level of mechanical skills and can follow simple instructions, you can repair anything on a bike. Repair is also not a good description, it is usually replace and adjust, rarely is a part "repaired". I do all my own bike builds and rebuilds, I don't trust the teens and 20 somethings my local shops hire just because they are trying to save money. Not every kid that walks into a bike shop saying they do all their own work should be trusted on someone else's bike. I certainly wouldn't trust them. Back when I was young and foolish I would routinely descend the eastern side of the Cascades at 60 mph +, I would not trust anyone but myself to keep my bike in safe working order.

roadiejorge 

I've had mixed experiences with shops which is why I decided to learn how to perform my own maintenance and parts replacement. It's also good knowledge to have in case something goes wrong while you're on the road.

Leinster

By the same rationale, there's not much "repair" to cars, except the occasional bit of bodywork. I would say that if a bottom bracket is creaking, and you take it apart, regrease the bearings, reassemble it, and the creak is gone, you've repaired your BB. If your shifting is out of index, and you get it back in by adjusting your barrel screws, or your cable bolt, or your limiting screws, then you've done a repair.

UnfilteredDregs

Looks like orthopedic surgery! Ouch! Good job.

UnfilteredDregs

I count myself lucky. I've got a great shop and they run maintenance classes. The various mechanics have Shimano certifications, one guy is a Campy specialist, a few others come from various higher end manufacturer's shops... I have military aircraft maintenance experience and "the right tools according to spec..." is a mantra for me. I do most of my own work and double check what I've had done by the shop. I usually work hand in hand with someone there if it's something I haven't done before, or it's something I don't have the tools to do. If anything every cyclist should know how to make derailleur adjustments, know how to inspect for safety and adjust their brakes, as well as basic wheel maintenance.

tinrobot

A couple of bad experiences with shops made me do more an more of my own work. I'm a maker at heart, so building and maintaining bikes is very fun and rewarding.

My wife got me a truing stand for the holidays. Now that I can do wheels, there is no reason to go to a bike shop for repairs.

WheresWaldo

Some parts on cars can be 'rebuilt' but unless yo are a Campy user nothing from Shimano/SRAM/FSA/etc. can be rebuilt or repaired. Adjustment is adjusting not repairing, and should be an integral part of normal bike maintenance.

fstshrk

I do all maintenance on our bikes (5 bikes in the family). Saves money and I know the job was done right. If not, I know who to blame.

Doge

Probably the best skill I have is figuring out who else knows what they are doing.
I like to buy stuff on the edge and try new things and with that - things go wrong. I have a hard time turning a Torx 20 Ti screw that should take 4NM max over to my LBS.

TCR Rider

I've learned to do all my own maintenance with the exception of wheel building. I do true the wheels and I have rebuilt the rear hub in a Mavic K10 but never built a set from scratch. The first time I tackle a job it never goes totally smoothly but it's a learning experience. I stressed out over replacing the BB on my TCR but that job was a lot easier than I expected.
I just couldn't deal with the turn around time on service. Not to mention the LBS is over 30 miles away and the local shop has really sub par wrenches. I've invested in tools and with the web and forums there's a lot of info if you choose to look for it. Besides like others have said it's a good feeling to be able to keep the ride humming. My new bike has DI2 so that's another learning curve to deal with. Fortunately they're pretty much maintenance free.

StanSeven

I'm fortunate with two exceptionally good LBS nearby. If I have a complicated issue, I drop the bike off. They can fix, and I know it's done completly right, in a fraction of the time I can.

If cycles are as simple as some believe, we wouldn't have extensive threads of creaking BB30s, noises that are hard to find, etc.

Plus I've got a lot of other hobbies and interest and a job where I put in around 60 hours per week. I'm mechanically skilled and built up cars when I was younger, did all my work on my boats, and major home projects. But instead of buying more specialized tools and worrying about whether I have all the parts on hand, I just drop the bike off. The LBS always asks if I want to wait but I usually just come back another time.

stevemtbr

I find working on my bikes very relaxing. Been working on my own rides since the late eighties and have built many a bike from the ground up to include a good amount of wheel building. So far the only thing I don't do is press in head sets. It's cheaper to let the shop take care of it. All the BB's I deal with are threaded and if I every went to a press in type system then yes I would let a good shop take care of it.

VNA

The best way is to lay a new chain next to the old one and see how much the old one will stretch by going back and forth without lifting any links--it is better to change a chain then having to put new cogs, chain rings and a new chain!

If it does not require a PHD I will do it and a bicycle maintenance does not require 8 years of education--besides it is fun and rewarding and if you make a mistake there is only one person you can blame!

Bearonabike

I do a LOT of my own work and have only 1 wrench that I trust. I've known him for some years and I chose to use him as my parts source because he has researched/experienced what does and does not work. He basically taught me 80-90% of what I know about working on bicycles and if I can't tackle the problem (usually lack of proper tools), I have absolutely NO issues with dropping my bike off at his shop. My words are usually, "do what you would do if it were yours and don't worry about the total cost." I have come in over $100 one time and he made the right call on the repair.

EvilWeasel

Yes and no. I'm a mechanic by trade but I'm also lazy. Some days i do it myself, some days. I take it in.

jbenkert111

Apparently, SOMEONE (don't know who) doesn't know as much as they think they know, that's why bike mech's will always be around.