Bike Works 201 Union St., Saint John

Some simple tips with regards to maintenance is sometimes the difference between your bike working, or your bike failing at the worst time, resulting in injury to you and costly repairs. Cleaning and regualr tune ups are a must if you ride your bike more then you dont. Keeping your bike well maintained is the way to be. There is no substitute!

Ride Time	1 hour/week	3 hours/week	Get off your bike???
Road	Basic tune up once a year, lube chain every month, inflate tires before every ride.	wet tune up once a year followed by a basic dry tune in the middle of the season, check chain every 3 months, inflate tires every week and lube chain once per week, wheels tensioned once a season.	wet tune up once a year, followed by two dry tune ups when bike feels sloppy. Check chain every month and inflate tires every week, lube chain every 3 rides, have wheels tensioned at least twice a year
Cross Country	Dry tune once a year, tires checked every other week, change chain every year, lube chain every month	Wet tune up once a year followed by a dry tune in middle of season, check chain every 3 months and lube once a week. Fork service at beginning of season. Have wheels tensioned and trued at beginning of season.	Wet tune up at beginning and middle of season with a dry tune if necessary. Fork service done every 3 months, inflate wheels every other week, wheels tensioned and trued at beggining of season and once after when nessesary. Check chain every month and lube every week.
Urban/Dirt Jump	dry tune once a year, inflate tires every week, change chain every year, fork service every year.	Wet tune every year followed by a dry tune when necessary, check chain every 3 months, clean and lube chain once a week, fork service every 6 months, wheels trued and tensioned 2 times per season, tires inflated every week. Expect to have to change a few parts here and there as you progress within the sport and go bigger and bigger.	Wet tune at beginning and middle of season with a dry tune when necessary, Fork service every 3 months, check chain every month, clean and lubricate every week, check tire presure every week, have wheels tensioned and trued 3 times a year. Parts may break on a regular basis due to the nature of this riding. Expect to shell out some cash if you hope to keep your bike safe.
freeride	Same as Dirt jump/Urban	Same as Dirt jump/Urban, if full suspension is used, have berrings over hauled once a year or have bushings relubricated and rotated.	Same as Dirt jump/Urban, and Freeride "3 hours/week", But, have wheels trued and tensioned 4 times per year and have disc brakes bled every season. Again. Expect to have to replace a part or two if you plan on being serious about this sport.
Extreme Freeride	All matenance from Freeride is the same.	Expect to have to replace some broken parts, even though you buy the best quality for the money, no part is indestructible. When broken parts are riden, your chances of getting hurt are increased. Have broken or damaged parts replaced or repaired before your end up in the hospital.	Your definatly going to be spending some cash more often to keep your bike on the trail, or jumping off the cliff, or whatever it is your doing that makes you and "extreme Freerider". Just keep that in mind.
Down Hill	DH refers to racing and is going to demand lots of work to keep your DH rig competetive with other racers. Bike should have cables changed every month, new tires every year, new chain every year and bike should be broken down and checked after every race and then lubed and put back together. Fork service should be done every year, and all parts should be replaced every two years.	The previous schedule can be maintained if you ride for 3 hours a week, hours = races in the category. Keep in mind that you will need to replace parts, as DH racing can be very hard on a bike.	Same as previous

Proper lubrication of your chain is key. A properly lubricated chain will last twice as long as an unlubricated chain. Most people understand this concept, but what most people dont understand is how to apply lube to their chain. There are five basic steps to get it right every time.

Step 1:	Apply some bicycle grade degreaser from any major bicycle manufacture, we recomend Pedros, Park tool, Shimano or Finishline. Automotive degreasers will be too pwerfull and can be very corosive on rubber seals or disc brake parts, so stick with bicycle grade to be on the safe side.
Step 2:	The next step is to wipe the chain clean by using a more or less clean rag and by holding it to the chain and rolling the pedals backwards for about 20 turns, making sure to use a new part of the rag every 4 turns to make sure as much dirt and old lube is removed.
Step 3:	The third step is the step that most people begin with. You want to apply your fresh lube after letting the chain dry for a few minutes. Apply the lube to the chain while peddaling backwards and letting the lube drip from the bottle. Two drops per link is a safe amount, one drop per link is the very minimum and you can always add more then recomended if you so choose to.
Step 4:	This step is to allow the lube to work its way into the pins and between the links. Pedal backwards for about 20 turns and let the chain sit, go fill your water bottle up if your about to go for a ride, or make sure you have all your gear together while you wait.
Step 5:	The final step seems odd, but once explained seems obvious. Wipe the exccess lube from the chain with the same cloth you used in step two. Rotate the pedals back about 20 turns and move the rag every 4 turns to make sure you remove as much lube from the out side of the chain as possible. Chain lube on the outside of the chain will only attract dirt and will only make your bike harder to clean. You only want a very thin film of lube on the outside of your chain to protect from water, most of the lube on the chain should be between the plates and links of the chain, keeping everything smooth and rust free.

The previous table is only a guide line to properly keeping your bike in good mechanical order. Failing to follow this table exactly as stated will not mean your bike is going to explode or fall apart, however; your bike may become worn out faster and parts may need to be replaced at an earlier date then if they were taken better care of.

In order to check your chain, you must either buy a chain checking tool or take your bike to your local shop where your chain wear can be determined. If a chain is not changed in time, and is allowed to wear past 4%, then the freewheel or cassette must also be replaced in order to maintain proper chain mesh. Failure to replace the cassette/freewheel with a very worn out chain will only cause your drivetrain to skip and ghost shift and will wear a new chain out faster then normal.

Tensioning your wheelset is a must if you hope to keep them for more then a season. Wheel trueing however is also needed, but is only needed if the wheels have been knocked out of true by large impacts of crashes. Wheels will naturally lose their tension and must be retensioned as part of normal upkeep, but wheel trueings are only needed to "repair" wheels.

It depends what kind of fork you have to determine what kind of upkeep they require. It also depends on riding style. A good rule of thumb is every 6 months at least, 3 months for higher end forks or anything that uses an open oil bath system.


Zeus, our tool dog says, "There's a proper tool for every job", using the right tool is the best way to make sure the job gets done right. Proper tools and lubreicants are the tools nessesary to keep your bike clean and working properly. Knowing when to use these is the difference between a good attempt ending in failure, or a properly working bike that will last you for years to come.
LUBES. Lubricants are like the blood that exists between moving parts on your bike. The right lube and anti lubes can help keep your bike from prematurely failing and will keep it riding better longer. Knowing where different kinds of lubes are used and how to apply them is critical to performance.
Basic chain lube is a must and in a pinch can be used to lubricate other parts of the bike if need be. There is a choice for chain lube. Most people go with the tireless all purpose waterproof synthetic lubricant, like Pedros Syn Lube or finishline Cross country. These are good choices for most people who ride in a variety of conditions and weather.
Dry lubes are something that have been around for a long time. Waxes are used in dry lubes mostly. In the past these have been time consuming to apply to the chain and have been messy as well. Manufacturers now have a quicker and cleaner way of offfering the benefits of wax. Pedros Ice wax and extra dry lubes are wax based and offer the same protection as synthetic lubricant but must be applied more often. Wax is cleaner and is "dry" to the touch. Wax is brittle and will flake off as the chain is used and the wax becomes dirty. As the wax falls off, it will need to be re-applied. The action of reapplication ensures that the chain will always have clean lube on it and will ensure its long life as well.
Spray on lubricants have become very popular in the past few years beacause they are easily applied and are clean and quick. Most spray on lubes are in the same category as wax lubes and will dry on the chain and wil need to be reapplied often to keep them working to their fullest potential.
Before reapplying lubricants, the old lubricant must be removed first in order to allow the new lube to properly protect the parts being treated. A good bicycle degreaser will be the best choice for removing lubricants from chains and drivetrain pieces. Degreasers should always be used with caution around rubber seals or disc brakes, as degreaser can be corrosive to seals and can ruin disc brake pads for good. Follow the degreaser with light scrubbing of the parts with a tooth brush, followed by a quick rinse with warm soapy water. Don't blast a presure washer over your bike, or you'll only force the dirt that you have just scrubbed free, into your hubs and other parts that it shouldnt be. Finishline bikewash is a good all purpose cleaner that is safe on seals and can be used as a final step in cleaning your parts in the preparation for lubricants.

There are basic tools that no serious rider should ever be without. These tools can make the difference between a long ride, or a long walk. I'd rather get my exercise from the long ride. The tools ou see on the right are some of the most basic and compact tools you can buy. If you are in the market for good quality tools, We suggest looking at a tool that will fit your needs and one that has a good waranty. The tools we use in the shop are all made by Park Tool or Pedros, with a few exceptions. We use these tools every day and we still havent worn them out or broken them. These tools tend to be more costly at first, but if you ever break a Park Tool or a Pedros tool you can send them back for a full warranty, no questions asked!. The tools on the right are "Y" wrenches and folding allen key sets.
Other tools that you could keep at home would be a good set of metric wrenches ranging in size from 7mm to 15mm. This range will suit every need of the home mechanic. Also a set of good screw drivers will bail you out of more jams then you will be able to count.
So far we have said things about tools that the home mechanic should have at their disposal, now we are going to talk about tools that only experienced persons should have. If you are unsure at any time about using these tools then don't buy or use them! These tools include the Crank puller and the Bottom Bracket tool. These tools have the ability to fix a problem, but when used improperly can lead to ruined parts, so we dont recomend them in every tool box. We do sell them, but user discretion is advised.
The next set of tools that will be discussed represent only a small fraction of a group of specialty tools that are too costly and should not be owned by the home mechanic. Thee tools like the ones above are able to aid in the repair of very broken bikes, but at the same time are able to destroy them without proper training. The tools displayed are a Park Tool derailleur hanger straightener and a Part Headset press. There are several other tools in this category, however, the home mechanic should never need any of them at any time. If you do need the service of these tools, let the professionals do it for you. It might cost you some bucks, but it will be done right. But for that realy "hard core" home mechainc out there, we do offer thee tools upon request. If this is you, you better get out your check book, with prices starting at 300 bucks for the headset press and 130 for the hanger tool.
There are other tools as well that basicly require common sense and good judgement. These tools include a hammer or maybe a hack saw. If you find yourself using these tools alot for the repairs you do, then you might want to think about bringing you bike by the shop for a safety evaluation. These tools are available to everyone at fairly low prices, so the only thing we can tell you is to use your head! Dont be a dumbass!