Dumb bike maintenance question (gears not aligned maybe?)

Scam · 10 Aug 2006 at 20:19

So i've had my wonderful Gary Fisher Gitch Gumee for years now and have just started riding it again, to my new job. Problem is the gears are kinda.. out. Meaning when i ride there's a rattle that is probably the chain rubbing against *something*, because the chains not quite in the right place for the gear -- probably. Possibly become mis-aligned since i havent ridden it for ages. It comes and goes, but is pretty annoying.

It's been years since i've been into bikes and have forgotton what everything is called etc.. so dont really have the first clue how to fix this!! What do i need to move, how do i do it, and can i have a guide with pictures preferably?

Thanks.

tonym · 10 Aug 2006 at 21:14

Try Here:

Park Tools

Scam · 10 Aug 2006 at 22:47

Thanks for the link. I had a fiddle and i think i made it worse

If i were to go to my local bike shop do you think they'd sort it out for free (/studentmode

). If not -- how much would fixing that, or maybe a general tune-up cost?

"andy" · 12 Aug 2006 at 01:29

could always try the

"im looking to buy a new super expensive top of the range bike from here next month but till the re-mortgage i need to buy it is sorted i need my gers fixing"

might work

my local bike shop charge about 30 quid for a full service and stuff wich i personally think is a rip off.

i reckon about a tenner tops to align some gears it should only take them ten minutes

hsp70 · 12 Aug 2006 at 05:53

not trying to hijack the post but i'm a bike newbie that just bought a bike for short commutes and wanted to ask about bike maintenance too.

My question is, what sort of routine maintenance do i need to do? I heard it's a good idea to clean/degrease the chain and relube it regularly?

If so how do i remove the chain/put it back on the bike again? (i'm a little unsure do i need to put it back on the specific gear that the "gear shifter" is on? )

mctrials23 · 12 Aug 2006 at 13:16

Yeah basically you want to make sure that you degrease and re-oil the chain regularly. When you do this you want to make sure that you oil the chain so the whole of it is coated in the oil and then get a cloth and take off most of the oil.

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You only really want the oil coating the O's as that is the part that needs to be lubed. (poor representation of a chain i know). If you have too much oil then it will attract dirt and decrease the life of the chain.

You can either clean it on the bike itself or you can get a chain breaker. Some chains have a magic link in them that you sqeeze together and it will come apart like that but its not too common to be honest.

To the OP your best bet is to fiddle with the hi and low screws on the front deraileuer ( if thats where its rubbing) to try and sort it. Have a look on the interweb for so tips and a guide to this. If you cant sort it after trying then take to a shop and get them to do it. Might as well try to do it yourself though.

Scam · 13 Aug 2006 at 00:39

mctrials23 said:
To the OP your best bet is to fiddle with the hi and low screws on the front deraileuer ( if thats where its rubbing) to try and sort it. Have a look on the interweb for so tips and a guide to this. If you cant sort it after trying then take to a shop and get them to do it. Might as well try to do it yourself though.

Yup. This is my plan for tomorrow, so expect a new post at about 5pm entitled 'Help -- i've broken my bike!'