My mechanical skills need a lot to be desired…..
9February 25, 2016 by welshcyclist
Cycling home from choir practise on Monday evening, I noticed my gears weren’t moving too well. So yesterday, late afternoon, I decided to check them over. I put the Pioneer up on my work stand, and tried to click through the gears on the rear derailleur, true enough they were slipping and not moving the way they should. First, I disconnected the adjuster barrel, because there was not enough play to adjust the gears, big mistake!! A nut fell out of the back of the derailleur, I found the nut OK, but could I get it back into position, a big fat no!
Genius that I am, I thought, if I take the complete rear derailleur off the bike, I would then have enough access to the back side, to attach said nut. Yet another big mistake, still failed miserably to attach said nut, so that I couldn’t get the barrel adjuster to do its job, adjust!! Consequently, I now had reduced my 27 speed bike to a single speed, and I needed help fast. This morning I rang round a few bicycle shops, Dare Cycles, Tredz and a couple more to see if I could book my Pioneer in for repairs. Yes, they could repair and service my Pioneer ( well she deserves some love and care after these last couple of years of my very poor maintenance skills ), but no one could turn it around, before the middle of next week. No way could I be without my Pioneer till then.
I rang Halfords, who said they could turn it round, repair and service by tomorrow! Now, anyone who has read my blog in the bleak past, will know my experiences with said bicycle shop has been bad, really bad! But, I decided to give them another chance. Checking out the sales there a couple of weeks ago, I noticed they had a new chap working on the bike repairs, not a lad as in the past but someone who seemed to know what they were about. My confidence in exactly what I’d let my Pioneer in for, took a nosedive, when I was booking her in. Let’s call him “Bike repairman” was busy, with other customers, so the store manager booked my bike in, first he checked this and that and came up with the conclusion there was a problem with the bottom bracket in the front wheel???? Fortunately, “Bike repairman” retrieved the situation by arriving on the scene to say that was actually the front axle, that there was nothing wrong with it or indeed the bottom bracket, PHEW!!
I explained to ” Bike repairman” how I’d managed to wreck the working order of my gears, he knew where the rogue nut belonged, and to leave it with him. I agreed to have a “silver service” at the same time, so I am putting my money where my trust is in “Bike repairman” also. He rang me that afternoon to say my Pioneer was ready, I am picking her up today. Fingers crossed, wish me luck my faithful reader.
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Good luck.
Cheers
I hope your bike made it home safe, sound and feeling like new!
I am glad to say, initial inspection has proved very positive, but I’ve yet to go on a proper ride. Cheers.
Update please 🙂
Hi Tim, I picked up my Pioneer next day, checked it out by riding round the car park. Only had one problem, the seat had been raised, apparently to accommodate putting her up on the work stand. It cost me £82 for a silver service and parts, new chain, gear and brake cables plus new brake blocks. The bike felt brand new, after the seat had been put back to its original position. Only problem since, is, I haven’t been able to ride her, work and choir commitments etc, have meant using the car. I am nights today, but yet again, I am committed to do something this afternoon for my sons, which won’t leave me enough time to commute by bike. It’s very frustrating, but hopefully my bike is in tip top condition. Cheers.
Fingers crossed for her
Your silky repair skills seem on a par with mine. On quite a few occasions I have tried to ‘repair’ a fault and eventually given in after I have managed to create further problems that weren’t there when I started.
Worse still, sometimes I have undertaken routine maintenance and managed to create a fault on a previously faultless part of the bike. This often results from losing nuts/bolt etc. but not exclusively. I am multi-talented when it comes to messing-up mechanical objects. The sad thing is my pride keeps me attempting the jobs even though my sense is telling me ‘take it to the bike shop.’
It’s reassuring to know I’m not alone and there is at least one other budding bike mechanic out there who tries and fails on a regular basis. I feel like I’m amongst friends!
Thanks, I think! Lol. One day, I am going to go on a bike mechanic course, and get my act together. The truth is, people like us, need to be doing bike mechanic type jobs regularly, but unfortunately, if one wants to hone such skills, bicycles are such reliable machines, it is only quite rare when we have to get our tools out. I am touching wood when I say this, but I cannot remember the last time I had to mend even a puncture! Tempting fate there I know.