A Little Maintenance

I chose not to ride today, which is often the case on Saturdays.  It is a time for rest, and to spend time with Lori.  That doesn’t mean that there aren’t things to do with the bike, and today it worked out that I could do some long overdue maintenance.

I de-greased  and cleaned my chain, re-lubing with some teflon lubricant to see how that works.  The oil-based lubricant has been picking up a lot of dirt and grime.  The teflon is supposed to be “dryer”, and not gather as much dirt.  I’ll see how it works.

I removed the rear wheel, and removed the tire and tube so that I could clean the wheel completely.  It had quite a bit of residual oil on it, making it pretty grimy.  While I had the tire off, I checked it carefully and found several cuts to the tire, one down to the cords.  I made a quick trip to the bike shop, but they didn’t have the tire in stock.  It is now on order.  I probably have between 500 & 1000 miles remaining tire life according to the wear indicators, but with these cuts, I’m going to err on the side of caution.  The tire has about 2000 miles on it.  I’ll at least replace it ahead of the Seagull Century.

I cleaned the bike.  It was pretty dirty underneath.

I adjusted the rear brake.  It was getting a little worn and the cable was stretched a bit.  This is a very simple adjustment and is only the second time in nearly 3000 miles that I’ve had to adjust it.

I adjusted the rear derailleur.  I now have the low gear!  I’m usually in a hurry after riding (and so hot and dripping sweat) that I don’t want to do adjustments after a ride.  Before a ride is just too “late”.

Now, with everything back on, the bike is ready to ride again.