What maintenance do you do?
 

After reading the thread about patching your own flats I started to wonder what things others do.

These are the ones I do.

I have tried to place them in increasing order of difficulty:

[x] Pump the tyres
[x] Fix a flat
[x] Change tyres
[x] Change brake pads
[x] Replace brake cables and cable housings
[x] Service front hub
[x] Replace gear cables and housings
[x] Replace rear cassette
[x] Replcace chain
[x] Service rear derailleur
[x] Service rear hubs
[-] Service front/rear suspension
[-] True wheels

As you can see, I dont true wheels, I get somebody who knows what they are doing to do this. I have never serviced my front suspension.

Please add others that I missed.

z

I do all of those things, plus repacking pedal bearings occasionally, repacking headset bearings, straightening frames (if needed), and making sure everything works smoothly. Most internal gear hubs are sealed, but I've worked on a few before.

I do all of the above to my bikes, except that my bikes don't have "suspension", so I don't have to worry about that.

I also clean and repack my BB when necessary (on my old cup & cone styles); retape my bars; adjust brakes; adjust derailleurs & cables; clean and repack headsets...

I do pretty much all of my own servicing.

Everything but straighten and true wheels. The MAVIC Crossmax wheels are really hard to thrash.

I do everything except build my own frames and press my own headsets. I can't justify the price of a headset press for something I'd use so infrequently.

Everything but build the frames. I haven't built wheels yet, but I'm looking forward to my first set. I had never replaced cables until recently, but it proved simple enough.

I made a headset press out of a long bolt and some metal spacers/washers I turned up on the lathe. Works super.

Everything except replace headsets.

Wheels aren't so hard. Just give it a try. I don't know why there is such an aura about this being difficult.

Building bad wheels is easy.
Building a proper, evenly tensioned wheel that doesn't go out of true the first time you ride it is a little more difficult. It's not as much of the dark art that so many people make it out to be, but there's equal parts art and science to doing it well.

I tried servicing a rear hub once, but I think I just made it worse. Anything much more complicated than changing tires and cleaning/lubing chains, I take my bikes to someone who works on bikes for living.

When something breaks, I fix it. Hopefully it doesn't keep me from riding. I pump up tires and stuff, but I have no checklist. I just do things when I think they might need doing. It's all rather organic.

I wouldn't know a headset press from my own anus.

I changed brake pads once!

Adjusting brakes and derailleurs, servicing my hubs and bb's, replacing the freewheel and fixing flats, of course. Can't say I've successfully trued a wheel yet, but again, it was my son's department store bicycle and I've been quite unsatisfied with it. I didn't expect much, but he's gotten practically nothing from it.

I true my wheels, but I haven't built one yet. I don't think it would be that hard, I just haven't had the need. I do everything else on your list though plus a few other things. Basically, I feel comfortable stripping my bike to its frame and building it back up again.

Pretty much everything, though I've only built up a few wheels and would hardly consider myself skilled at it.

Framebuilding is next :)

I do 1-4 and 9.
Not sure what "service rear derailleur" means, I had to adjust it sometimes if it didn't shift right.

I yet have to do anything to my brake cable, doesn't seem to hard, though. How do you know that it is time to service front/rear hub?

It' easier to list what I can't do:

[X] Nothing

;)

I feel comfortable stripping my bike to its frame painting it and building it back up again. I haven't built or trued wheels or made a frame. Just about everything else on a derailleur equipped bike. No experience with IGH though.

Everything.

The bike shop doesn't do repairs while I wait, and how would I get to work if I dropped off the bike? It's just less hassle to do it myself.

As far as headsets are concerned, I haven't used it but this looks useful: http://www.bikecommuters.com/2007/09...llation-tools/

That's more complex than what I've used, but I've only pressed in a couple sets of cups. I just use a threaded rod, two big washers and a nut on top and bottom. Works great, cheap as dirt.

I know it's stupid to respond to one's own posts, but I have an addendum to what I wrote above. I was just at Sixty Fiver's shop this afternoon to pick up a rebuilt wheel and get a derailleur swapped on my MTB, and he gave me $#!% for having a grungy chain and for using a crummy lubricant. So apparently, I even suck at lubing my chains. :)