Tips for Maintenance of the Bike

1. Tires and Wheels
Before you get on your bike, check your tires to make sure they are properly inflated. Take a quick look all the way around for places where the rubber might be cracked, gouged or worn.

Also, check the nuts or quick release mechanisms that hold your wheels in place. Verify that your wheels are securely fastened so they don’t come out while riding. You don’t really want to play stuntman, and fly over the handlebars, right?

2. Brakes
Squeeze your brake levers to make sure that they apply enough pressure to stop your bike and that you don’t have any problems with fraying or stretched cables.

Also eyeball the brake pads in the front and back to be sure they are hitting only the rims and not the tires. If your brake pads are squeezing the tires when applied, not only can it wear or damage your sidewalls, but can also result in you being bucked over the handlebars, offering yet another way to play Evel Knievel, because rubber hitting rubber grips very well. You only want the brake pads on the rims, because that allows a gentler, more consistent stop.

3. Seat Post and Handle Bar Stem
Next, check to make sure that your handle bar stem is fastened tightly and that your seat is set at the correct height. You want to be sure that both are secure, as there are fewer things more exciting than realizing that you can’t control your bike as you go zipping down the street because the handlebars are loose in your hands.

4. Helmet
As you get ready to put on your helmet, look it over once to make sure there are no cracks on the outer shell or inner surface. Check too, that the straps are adjusted so that the helmet fits snugly, and sits down on your forehead, hitting somewhere above your eyebrows. A common mistake is to wear a helmet that rides up too high, which won’t protect your forehead in the event of a wipeout.

5. Chain and Gears
Your chain turns cleanly through your front and rear sprockets and doesn't rub against the derailleurs. You can do this as you pedal when you first set off. At the same time, quickly run your bike through its range of gears to make sure there are no problems with rough shifting, chain slippage etc., and that the drive train is free from excessive grime and doesn’t need lubrication.

6. Frame & Paint
Try to never lean your bike or park it in a bike rack in such a way that the frame is touching something (even if the other bikes are parked that way). Bicycle frame tubes have thin walls and they’re easily dented. Plus it’s very easy to chip the paint job, which will lead to corrosion. If you have to lean a bike, rest it against the seat and handlebars.

7. Chainstay
Place a piece of electrical tape on the right chainstay (the frame tube that runs from the bottom bracket to the dropout where the rear derailleur is attached). The chain hits this tube frequently. Tape will prevent paint chips and help silence the noise

8. Riding in Rain
Riding in the rain is fine, but be sure to dry the bike off as soon as you get home and then apply lube to the chain and brake and derailleur pivots. If you don’t, the water will rust the parts.

9. Check the Pressure on your tires
One of the simplest things you can do is the one that can have the greatest effect, and that surprisingly, people most often overlook.

Paying attention to keeping the proper level of air pressure in your tires accomplishes many things:
- Makes pedaling easier
- Protects your rims from damage
- Prolongs the life of your tires
- Makes it much less likely that you'll get flats.
 
10. Check your quick releases
Your hubs should be tight in the frame and the quick release should engage at 90 degrees. You hub quick release should point back to insure that nothing catches on it. Inspect your brake quick releases to insure that they have been re-engaged if you have removed your wheel.