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What to do with a bicycle that has spent winter in a basement or a glove compartment? Piotr Mitko, the author of the blog piotrmitko.com, suggests how to prepare a bike for spring trips.

Clean, inspect, lubricate, inflate, take a ride, and if necessary, adjust and take another ride - here's what you need to do to start the cycling season right. This way, your bike will give you many years of use. Start your spring check-up by cleaning your bike. Use a soaked sponge or cloth for this. Do not wash with water under pressure, so as not to harm water-sensitive parts, e.g. hubs, bottom bracket or rudders. To clean the chain, cassette (set of rear sprockets), gears and cranks, you can use gasoline, e.g. gasoline, which you can buy at any industrial store, or another agent that dissolves grease well. Carefully clean internally lubricated parts, such as hubs, headsets (bearings that allow the steering wheel to turn), and pedals. The cloth should only be slightly damp so as not to wash out the solid lubricant between the moving parts. Use another clean cloth to wipe the entire bike, removing dust and mud.

Cycling and its benefits

Cleaning

It is best to remove the drive to clean it thoroughly. Remove the rear wheel and chain without any tools. This will allow you to clean mud from the gears using a cloth soaked in gasoline. If you want to do it perfectly, remove the cassette. Dip it in a container with gasoline, shake it several times and wait for the dirt to dissolve and sink to the bottom. To remove the cassette you will need tools: a cassette key and the so-called a stick that immobilizes the cassette while unscrewing it. Similarly, clean the chain: rinse it in gasoline. The front sprockets are much easier to reach, so you can clean them without taking them off.

Damage assessment

The cleaned drive will work differently. Sometimes it is worse - sometimes the mud masks to some extent that the system is heavily worn. To assess whether the chain is still good, check the degree of its extension with a meter that you can buy for a dozen or so zlotys, or ask for it at a bicycle service point. You won't pay for it. If you replace the chain before its extraction exceeds 1%, you will extend the life of the cassette. The stretching chain cuts the sprockets and the teeth become thinner over time. Sprocketsthey wear out at different rates because you use some of them more often. If the teeth on the sprockets are clearly different in shape, the cassette and the chain must be replaced. Again, if you do it early enough, you will prevent the replacement of the crank discs. Examine the cables for the brakes and gears. If they do not move smoothly, you can pour a drop of oil into the outer shells (external, usually plastic, cable protectors). It may be the same as the chain. If this does not improve their performance, they may be rusty or frayed. So they can be replaced together with armors.

Brake wear

Check the condition of the brake pads. The new pads have grooves on the rim brakes. Thanks to them, you can assess the degree of brake wear. If the grooves are gone, the pads must be replaced. If the braking force is too weak, turn the adjustment screw at the handle several times, and if it does not help, pull the cable up with pliers from the brake side. In the case of disc linings, their minimum thickness is specified by the manufacturer. If the brakes are not working properly and it is not the fault of worn pads, they need adjustment. The procedure depends on the manufacturer, so it's best to find the manual for your model on the Internet.

Lubrication

When the cleaned chain is dry of gasoline, lubricate it. Use a lubricant for the bicycle chain. Nothing else! I do not recommend a spray lubricant, because it will not only be on the chain, but everywhere around. Apply one drop of oil to each link. Allow a moment for grease to settle between the blades, then wipe the chain dry with a clean cloth. The chain should be lubricated on the inside, not on the outside, so that it does not stick to the sprockets, does not catch dirt and that the next cleaning of the bike takes you much less time. Lubricate the chain regularly, never let it squeak. Also, spray a few drops of oil between other moving parts: into the hinges of brake shoes, gears, pedal axles.

Inflating

If you have a pump with a pressure gauge, inflate the tire as recommended by the manufacturer. You will find information about the optimal pressure on the side of the tire. They are given in PSI units. When you pump by feel, do it quite hard. If you are flexing the tire with your thumb, it definitely needs to be pumped up. If you have inner tubes with car valves, you can drive to a gas station and inflate the tires with an automatic compressor. You will find out what its recommended hardness is. Tires are damaged by the passage of time. Check if the rubber is brittle, cracked or worn, because further driving on such tires can be dangerous.

Test drive

Finally, check that there is no buzzing when the bike is dropped froma few centimeters high on the wheels and tighten any slack. If the brakes work and the wheels are bolted on, take a test ride. Pay attention to any disturbing noise while driving. If gear shifting is not smooth, you still need to adjust the gears. Here you will find instructions on how to adjust the front and rear derailleur.

In case of problems …

A full bicycle inspection also includes checking the shock absorber, rudders, bearings, wheel centering. However, until you see problems with these parts, do not force the inspection. Besides, checking these elements requires skill and often special equipment. It is better to outsource some activities to specialists. It doesn't cost much and you will save time. Have a nice drive!

PARTNERSHIP ACTION (source: PZU Zdrowie press materials)

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