Do you guys have suggestions for doing my own repairs? (Buying a book, online guides)

I've been trying to use parktool.com, but it's not so descriptive for some things. Any online guides that are really good?

you can try sheldon brown's website, if it is still up. Just do a search for his name he has quite a glossary. Also, I have Bicycling magazines, repair guide and a wheelbuilding book. It is something that can be done with practice and care.

I think the cycling world would sue if Sheldon's site went down. I think Harris Cyclery will keep it up for some time. I know I ordered stuff from Harris because of Sheldon's site.

But back to the original question, I have two bicycle-repair books: Bicycling Magazine's Guide to Bicycle Maintenance and Repair and an older copy of Sloane's (sorry, don't remember the rest of the title). Also, installation and maintenance guides for most components are available from the manufacturer's website.

I use Zinn and the Art of Road Bike Maintainence. The thing I like most about it is that it gives you "exploded" views of every part you're working with, so you don't just see where a part goes, you can kind of figure out how it works. Step-by-step instructions are great if everything works, but when something doesn't work you need a way to figure out why it didn't.

One thing I haven't found a resource for is how to tell if two parts are going to play nice together. Like when I replaced my crankset, I saw that my bottom bracket needed to be replaced too. At that point, I broke down and took it to the LBS, where a mechanic looked the crank up in some book to figure out which bottom bracket I needed. Then later he told me my old front derailer wasn't really right for the new crank either. What is that magic book? I guess I should have asked him.

There are several bike co-ops in Chicago that could use volunteers. Its a good way to learn fixing bikes, if you have the time, since you get to practice on other people's bikes first.

Bicycling Magazine's Complete Guide to Bicycle Maintenance and Repair, it's well worth the $20 or so bucks:
https://bmr.bicycling.com/uof/bicycli...tenancerepair/

I have Zinn's mountain bike book, and it's great.

+1

And you can get it for less than $14 at Amazon.

I second this. Really like this book.

Don't forget to check out the library... borrow a book on repair and return it when the jobs done.

This book is good, but you should look up factory spec sheets for certain parts. i.e. my Ultegra rear
dérailleur always confuses me until I look at the info from Shimano.

Actually, I've mirrored his site, just in case it does go down, it won't be down for long (though it may have a different URL). I'm sure others have too. It's too good to even have the possibility of losing that info.

I've learned most everything about fixing stuff (and everything about fixing bikes) by simply doing it. Bikes are simple enough that anyone with any mechanical aptitude should be able to fix pretty much anything almost intuitively.
I've looked for some bike repair manuals, but the ones I've seen so far only cover stuff that you can probably figure out for yourself. Anything else I just go online for.

I also figured that the cycling world might mirror it for future generations.

I second (or third?) the Zinn and the art of...books.
I have the art of Road bike maintenance book and I love it.
Plus we have Bicycling Magazine's Complete Guide to Bicycle Maintenance and Repair kicking around at my work and I find it extremely useful as a reference when something isn`t working the way it ought to.

have more than one bike. If it breaks, ride the other bike. then you can take longer to tinker with the broken one.

I find this site is great: https://bicycletutor.com/ It is an excellent supplement to one of the books already mentioned and/or the park tool and Sheldon Brown pages. Having video demonstrations is great. It helps a lot to actually see how something is done.

I borrowed a Haynes manual on general bike repair from the library. I didn't even known Haynes did bikes - I used their car manuals for years and always liked their layout. I'm going to scout around and see if I can find a copy to buy.

All the books and websites make a lot more sense once you've actually had a bike apart. Get in there, and you'll feel much more confident.

www.utahmountainbiking.com has a great how to section that is WAY better than Park Tools. I use it in conjunction with Park Tools to get a comprehensive understanding of what I'm attacking. Books are great, but 'net is easier for me.

BTW, it isn't solely for mountain biking. Most parts crossover.

I doubt they'll take it down, if for no other reason than your last statement. And I can say the same.

I'm sure they'd keep it anyway because they seem like good folks, but even absent that I'm sure the site drives sales.

But it's still good to know somebody has it mirrored.

Probably Sutherland's....I have a couple of old copies.

Aaron

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I got my copy for <$5 on Half.com..... They couldnt sell them all, and a bunch went to re-resellers as "remands". It has a black stripe on the page edge..... Thats it.

https://parktool.com/repair/

My favorite repair site. Great tutorials. I've built whole bikes based off of this site. When it comes to wheel building, I think that Sheldon Brown has the best tutorial.

Haynes has a bike manual? Sign me up!