EVENTS! And Canceled Events.

First up, the EVENTS!:

If you like food and bikes, we're hosting the Dinner and Bikes crew at our NEW (and currently unoccupied) shop space. June 8, 7pm. Tickets here.

We're going to be back at the Red Bones Bike Party for the third year in a row (hat trick!).  We'll be closing up shop at 4pm to head over. Stop by for some BBQ and say 'hi'!


And now for Canceled Events:

So speaking of our new shop space.... we're kicking the prep work to get this space ready into high gear! Due to this, we're going to postpone all Basic Maintenance Clinics until the fall. We'll be bringing them back (as well as some new clinic offerings!) in October.

Salty

Ahh, winter. This winter has been cold and snowy, as expected, but also extra salty. I do appreciate that the extra attention paid to roads has made them safer to ride and drive, but it takes a toll on the machines that ride and drive on them.

Bicycles don't require a ton of regular maintenance. I didn't say they require NO maintenance, just a little bit. If you've been riding through this winter, there are two things you should do.

One- LUBE YOUR CHAIN.

I've gone over this before, but to review:

                   1. Coat the entire length of the chain with a bicycle-specific chain lube. We're using Pedro's in the shop these days.
                   2. Back pedal a bit to let the lube work itself into the chain. Or let it sit for a while (15min- 1hr). Or both.
                   3. Wipe off the extra with a rag.

Two- WIPE DOWN THE FRAME.

Bikes made of all types of materials are subject to corrosion. The chemicals used to treat winter roads speeds up that corrosion. You want to get that stuff off your bike.

A bike specific cleaner would be best- something that's going to be safe on all of the parts of the bike (we use Green Fizz in the shop). If you don't have that handy, a couple drops of mild dish soap in warm water will work. Either way- be careful around brakes and braking surfaces. No bike cleaner, and you don't like soap? At the very least, brush the salt off when it dries with a dry rag.

  

Just doing those two things, should take 10-15 minutes, tops, and will make your ride last longer, and pedal smoother.

Hey Ladies

This stuck in your head now? Yeah, me too.


Anyway- this Thursday is the Team Luna Chix Mountain Bike Boston Second Annual Season Kick-Off Maintenance Clinic (T.L.C.M.B.B.S.A.S.K.O.M.C.)! Come if you want to learn some basic maintenance, hang out with some bike riding ladies, and learn which wines pair best with Peanut Honey Pretzel. 

7pm at Hub Bicycle World HQ, $20 suggested donation to be given to the Breast Cancer Fund.

Check Your Brakes

We've been working on a ton of brakes in the last couple of weeks. All of the sand and salt that's been on the streets really does a number on brake pads. Mix that with rain and slush and you've got a perfect slurry for wearing out brake pads. If you've noticed that your brake levers take a little more pull to engage, you're in good company.

If you want your bike to stop better (and you probably do), your bike needs either a brake adjustment or brake pad replacement. Here's how to tell if your pads need replacing-

You don't need any tools, or even to remove the wheels to see if you need new pads. Just take a look. Brake pads have grooves that run top to bottom. This allows for water and junk to be cleared from the rim while braking, and they also provide wear indication. If you don't see those grooves- the pad is worn out and needs replacement.

You can see that the two "Partially worn" guys in the picture are more worn out on one end than the other. That's not uncommon to find (brake pads often need to be angled to stop brake chatter and squeaking). In that case you'd want to think about replacing those pads when any one of the grooves disappears.

Don't be alarmed if it seems like you're blowing through brake pads this time of year. It's (probably) not your fault (I don't know... maybe you're brake crazy or something). It's the weather. Just replace those pads and remember that spring starts on March 20.

Your Bike is Cold

It's really, really cold out. If you've ridden your bike today give yourself a pat on the back. Really, you can talk up being a hard core, year-round cyclist all you want, but you can't say that riding a bike into -6 deg. headwinds doesn't suck. You may have also noticed that your bike isn't working to it's fullest potential.

There are a number of things that can freeze on your bike. Grease, lube and water all freeze. Biking in Heels has a nice post about her adventures in frozen shift cables.

I've talked to a number of folks today (that number is 4) who described a problem as "I'm pedaling and then all of the sudden the bike stops moving forward. Like it's not 'catching'." What's happening there is that the pawls inside either the freewheel or freehub body are getting stuck in frozen grease, and not able to catch, they can't help push the wheel forward. Here's the inside guts from an old freewheel:

 

 That little guy is stuck down because of grime, not frozen grease, but it's the same idea.

Ok. So what do you do about stuck pawls? The easiest thing to do is warm it up a little. Just bring it inside for a bit. It won't take long, and it doesn't need to be in the warmest room in your house. Just wheel it in to an entryway for a couple of minutes before you roll out. It'll really help.

craigslist Buyer's Guide

Craigslist- a place for finding all kinds stuff (except weapons, food stamps, and body parts), bikes included. If you're patient. Really patient. And you keep a few these four things in mind:

One!
Know what you're buying. Some bikes come from bike shops. Those bikes hold up better over time (and multiple owners). Other bikes- mostly from department/big box stores- don't hold up as well. These brands are department store bikes:
Magna
Free Spirit
Huffy
Murray
Next
Ross
Genesis
Pacific
 Royce Union
Roadmaster
(newer) Schwinn
(newer) Mongoose

This means they weren't originally assembled by trained bicycle mechanics. They were originally assembled by the guy (I assume) who's also responsible for assembling grills, flat pack furniture, and baby cribs. They have 'entry level' (read: cheap) components, that don't last as long as their 'mid level' counter parts. Many of the components I've seen on these bikes aren't serviceable- so when they go outta whack you're looking at replacement, not adjustment. Bottom line- they may not be 'bad' bikes, per se, but they have a short working lifespan. If you're buying one used it's short life is even shorter. I won't say don't buy one of these bikes, but......... don't buy one of these bikes.

Two! 
The guy who posted his used bike is 5'10", and so are you, but that doesn't mean his bike is going to fit you. Maybe he's been riding a bike that's too big or too small for him this whole time. Maybe he has oddly short legs, or long arms. Maybe you have oddly long legs and/or arms. Bring a multi tool with you so you can adjust the seat when you take it for a test ride.You were going to test ride it, right?

Three!
Test ride it.  Make sure there's air in the tires, that the brakes work, and that the quick releases are tight. Put your helmet on. Then take it for a spin. Keep an ear out of creaking, squeaking, clunking, etc. Noises don't mean you shouldn't buy it, but it will be helpful information to pass along to the mechanic when you bring it in for a check over.

Four! 
Bring it in to your LBS to get it checked out. Even if the posting claims that it's been "recently tuned up".  "Recently tuned up" is a relative term that can mean anywhere from 'tuned up at an actual bike shop' to a 'buddy of mine (who knows alot about bikes) looked at it'. At the very least you want a trained set of eyes to make sure it's safe and worth the money.

If you don't want to wait around for your dream bike (in the right size) to pop up on craigslist, you can always check out what the fellas at Cambridge Used Bikes/ Metonomy Used Bicycles or support the good work being done at Bikes Not Bombs by buying a used bike from those folks.

Now this is happening

This is what happens when you lose your lock keys.

Bungee of Death

I'm all for making your bike work for you. Whether you use a front or rear rack/basket you'll probably need to tie your stuff down at some point. I see a good number of folks using bungee cords to do this. I think this not a great idea for a couple of reasons. One- Bungees store up an explosive amount of energy when you tension them. Two- They have sharp metal hooks on the end. When the bungee lets go it sends that hook flying- into spokes, eyeballs, freewheels/cassettes, around hubs. The motivation for this post was a Hub Hall-of-Famer who came in last week after getting a bungee all wrapped up in his spokes, and had a slow motion crash situation. I'm not a fan in general, but especially not on rear racks, because you can't keep any eye on that deadly bungee.

What else are you suppose to use to tie stuff down, then? I have two better options. One costs a little bit of money, the other is basically free. Let's talk the money option first.

Toe straps. Those little guys you use on your sweet old school toe clips (or cages, if you must). They're made of nylon webbing, or leather, with a metal clasp at one end. The clasp has some little teeth that help hold the strap in place after you've cinched it down.


They hold nice 'n tight, without being elastic/explosive. The down side to using these guys is that they're pretty short. They're really designed just to go around your foot and a pedal, which doesn't take much material. You can attach a couple of them together, but there is a limit to what you can hold down. Surly fixed that problem by making Junk Straps- extra long toe straps for carrying junk.



Toe straps cost $5-10 for a pair, and the Surly Junk Strap costs $8. Super useful and versatile. If you want something for cheap. Super cheap. And you like recycling/reusing, you should think about using a dead tube. They're stretchy without being snappy. You can cut them to be whatever length you need (within reason). You probably have one laying around, if you've ever fixed your own flat tire. If not, you can come to the shop and take as many as you'd like (within reason).


To use the tube, cut it so it's no longer a circle. I personally like to cut the valve out, for convenience. Wrap it around your cargo/rack and tie a knot or two. Piece of cake. You can then either untie that knot or just cut the tube to free your cargo. No crashing or losing eyeballs.

How to lock your bike

1. Get a good lock. That means a U lock. I don't have any peer reviewed scientific study results, but I can tell you that as of today 100% of the people who've told me they've had a bike stolen in the Greater Boston Area either didn't have it locked at all, or they had it locked with a cable lock. Cables can be easily cut with something as simple as diagonal side cutters. (Of course, now that I've said that, someone will tell me about losing a bike locked with a U lock...). This is my lock:


This one is the smallest lock Kryptonite offers- The Evolution Mini- 5. I got it because I don't like carrying more than I have to. In the summer (when I'm not carrying an extra pair of gloves, rain pants, an extra set of lights, a thermos of hot coffee, a emergency blanket, an avalanche beacon, dog treats for my rescue dog, one extra hoodie for warmth, and two days of food & water- just in case) I don't want to have to carry a bag if my lock is going to be the only thing in it and this little guy fits nicely in a back pocket. In the past 6 years I've had this lock (that's why it looks beat up), there have only be a couple of times I've had trouble finding a place to lock up because of it's tiny stature. There are plenty of other larger sizes available, including one that I say is a 'medium', that Kryptonite calls the Series 2 Mini- 7.

On a side-ish note, Kryptonite has new skins for the mini locks. Good if you find yourself living with two housemates with 17 bikes and three identical locks between you, and maybe you're sick of accidentally grabbing someone else's lock and not realizing it until you get all the way to work. For example. Also good if you just want to add a little color.



2. Find something to lock it to. Bike rack, sign post, what have you. Really a bike rack is the best, because, well, that's what it's for. Therefore it's usually placed in way that protects the bikes from parking cars, and keeps them out of the way of side walks. Usually.

Got a place that you think could use a bike rack (in Cambridge, at least)? Tell the city here.


3. Now that you have your lock and a place to lock up, start with the most expensive parts of the bike and work your way down. That means start with the frame, then the rear wheel. Then, if you can manage (see below), the front wheel.

Frame, rear wheel, bike rack. All with a mini lock.

The front wheel can be removed and locked up with the frame and rear wheel, but remember that leaves your fork resting on the ground.

Frame, front wheel, rear wheel, bike rack.

Or you can add a cable to your U for added front wheel security. I know I just said cables are easily cut, and they are, but most thieves won't want to be bothered with two locks. What ever isn't locked, cabled or bolted down is vulnerable to being 'impulse stolen'. If it's easy to take, then it's more likely to be taken.

Front wheel, cabled, for thief inconvenience.

3a. Remember where you left your bike. So that you don't end up like my pal (you know who you are) who filed a police report about his 'stolen' bike, only to find it locked up on the other side of his apartment building. Right where he left it.