I acquired a couple of months ago a 8 months old 2nd hand bicycle, an Ammaco Madeira.
It was just 50 pounds, and even if it was not in the best of conditions, I thought that just by changing the brake pads, inner tubes and one wheel cover would be OK.
It was indeed OK for a while after making those fixes, but now the bike is getting worse each time I use it. I try to commute to work with it but it's getting harder and more annoying every day (4 miles to and out of central London).
First, the sprocket -pedals block (forget my lack of proper terminology, I'm a noob when it comes to bike mechanics, but trying to learn!) is a bit loose, and getting looser every day. This is very annoying (feels unstable) when pedalling, makes the chain skip sometimes and in fact snapped my chain recently, which I had to replace. This is a video to make it clear:
http://yfrog.us/28dsc00085z
Is there a way I can fix this by myself? I have basic tools only, but I could buy some new ones if they are not too expensive and completely necessary.
Second, the handlebar is also getting loose at the T-joint. This is due to the metal itself getting dented with the use, as the screws are already tightened to their maximum. I suppose that adding some kind of rubber layer between the metal pieces would fix it, but I don't know if I can buy a special cut exactly for this or should I do it by myself MacGyver style. Again, a little illustrative video:
http://yfrog.us/5mdsc00087z
I would take it to a mechanic if really necessary, but given that:
1) The two bike shops around my area are closed in the morning when I go to work, and closed again by the time I'm back home, and closed during weekends.
2) I work in central London so the mechanics in that area are very expensive.
3) This bike costs new around 180 pounds, and with the fixes I have done to it the 50 pounds that I paid initally are quickly getting close to those 180 pounds. It makes me feel a bit like a moron
so I want to fix it for as little as possible.
I would prefer to do this by myself. It's educational too
Thank you very much for any help!