stapfam

I have a regular maintenance program- that I keep to if I remember it.

Used to be after every ride but now about every 100 miles and I check the chain for cleanliness- If the cassette is showing grease then clean the chain- clean the jockey wheels and Check the deraillers are in line, Same time check for cable fraying and line up of brakes. Little bit of lube on the Pivot points on the brakes and the inner cables get detensioned and oiled. I use Dry chain lube for this. This includes the brifter pivot points aswell. Chain is lubed on virtually every ride.

When the bike is dirty (May be every ride) then it is cleaned and all bolts etc. are checked for tightness.

Every 3 months then all the above and headset checked for tightness and any noise. I use Sealed bearings so not many problems on grit ingress. Wheels and check for true by spinning in the frame and checking against a brake block. Wheel bearings checked for any looseness by straining them by pulling on the rim. Chain is measured for wear and Cassette and chainrings checked visually for wear. Saddle and bar position checked just in case they have moved.

Then once a year the whole frame is stripped- parts checked and cleaned and re-assembled with new parts where necessary.

But most maintenance checks are done on a ride. That RD that has decided not to change smoothly- The saddle that has become uncomfortable- the noise that has suddenly appeared on braking----Any thing out of the usual and once I get home I check out why. Perhaps that is why I don't have to stick to the maintenance program as those tiny little faults are the start of a bigger problem that would only get worse on the next ride if not sorted ASAP.