Scary

Well it is nearing halloween! A bike we fixed today had no working front cable disk brake - it just stopped working apparently - and yes, it would have done - because the brake pads had dropped out somewhere. The pads are only held in place on this particular brake by a very small spring. This must have broken and allowed the pads to wiggle their way out under braking! It now has new pads and the owner had been advised to check the spring is still in place every ride!

Lots of jobs to do

Amongst today's work was a full bike check,fitting new tyres and bartape on a nice Giant in readiness for a customer's C2C ride next week. The tyres were Armadillos - great for not puncturing but they are a pain to fit as they are very tight and inflexible - I think I need three pairs of hands. Next job was fitting new bottom bracket cups, adjusting gears and disk brake pads on a well-used XT specced moutain bike. It's important to ensure the pistons are pushed back carefully when fitting the new pads to make sure the piston doesn't twist and jam as you do so. If you don't push them back then you prbably won't get the new pads in and certainly not the wheel. And for good measure started on bringing a bike back to life which has gathered dust for over 4 years in a customer's garage. It's a really nice bike made from 531 tubing and with Campagnolo kit on it so well worth the new tyres & tubes and re-greasing all the bearings which have dried out. Our only problem with it is the stem expander wedge is seized up in the fork tube at the moment - this is often a problem when bikes are left unserviced for a long time - so lots of penetrating lube overnight and we'll see if it will budge in the morning!

Annual Bike checks and clean bikes

Every year we do bike checks on fleet/pool bikes for a number of organisations to ensure their bikes are roadworthy for their employees/customers/students to use. It's an 'MOT' for a bike checking it from nose to tail. Today was the turn of the local hospital - and it passed with flying colours I'm pleased to say.
It is worth getting an annual check on any bike - it only costs £12 for that peace of mind - and if any jobs do need doing we'll give you a price up front.
Please remember to give your bike a clean before booking it in though - we will charge extra if we have to clean a bike before we can work on it - and if it is very bad we may decline to take it until it has been cleaned up. You don't really need fancy cleaners - warm soapy water, an old sponge and an old toothbrush (for the 'hard to get at' bits). If you use a hosepipe or pressure washer be really careful not to point this at hubs, bottom bracket bearings or suspension untis as you risk stripping out the essential grease!

Today's main job was converting a Claud Butler Leavante from a flat bar set up to a drop bar. The customer wanted to retain his existing 8 speed triple kit so we fitted some nice Shimano 2303 8 spd STI shifters - so no compatibility problems - and Ritchey drop bars with some white bar tape to match his saddle and paintwork. New cables through out and job done!
We also had a nice email from a customer thanking us for the work we did this summer on helping him restore a 1940s Dawes racing bike - apparently his Dad, whose bike it was, was delighted to see it almost back to its former glory.

Suspension servicing

Right now is a really good time to get forks and shocks serviced with quick turnaround times. Don't leave it until the Spring when everyone wants to get them done - you could wait 2-3 weeks.

Welcome!

Welcome to the new Wheelygood blog, okay its in development and next time may look totally different.
Anyway I thought it might be nice to have somewhere to post thoughts and suggestions so keep watching