Comments on: Who Does Your Upgrade?

By: Capt Dan

Capt Dan — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 06:30:20 +0000

I’m a self-taught, trial and error hobbyist and love the satisfaction that comes from working on my bike, knowing it inside and out. I’ve built my last three bikes from the frame up. Now, I’m just about to start a comprehensive rebuild and for the first time in years I’m looking at taking it into a shop for at least some of the work. Somewhat reluctantly, I’m replacing a square taper bottom bracket with a GXP setup and I’ve been told I should have the frame chased and faced. Just don’t have the tools for something like that. Hate to break the pattern but c’est la vie.

By: John

John — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 18:00:04 +0000

I have everything i need except for the thread chasers.

By: Chexem

Chexem — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 01:31:58 +0000

I dink around with my rides. Tune ups, cleaning, changing out worn brakes, etc. I have found one guy who loves to take stuff apart and put it back together right. He is patient, kind, helpful, curteous, I dont know about brave and reverent, definately not too clean most of the time. He is currently rebuilding my brakes and replacing hoses; I used DOT 5.0 silicone based brake fluid. It kills the gaskets and hoses. Yet, I buy tools, take a crack at most stuff and if it costs me to have a pro go back and mend my messes, that’s the cost of education and I love to learn.

By: BikeLord

BikeLord — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 05:18:20 +0000

i actually went to barnetts and got certified, so ya of course i do all my own work. anyone else here taken classes at barnett’s?

By: Grant

Grant — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 02:51:48 +0000

I do all my own work, but what I didn’t learn from books I learned from my mechanic friends. Basically there were years of me attempting something I read about, screwing it up, then taking it to the shop where they steered me straight. So, while I take great pride in being the only hands on my bikes these days, I am thankful that I had some patient guys at the shop up the street to teach me, bit by bit.

I’m going to Amazon that Jobst Brandt book and learn wheel building. I figure lacing pattern, tension, dish…how hard can it be?

By: -dan

-dan — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 22:52:59 +0000

As a mechanic and bike shop service manager, I obviously do my own work and build my own wheels. Before I started working in shops I was leary of just anyone working on my bike, just like my car or house. I want someone I can trust that has a good reputation.

I agree with GhostRider, there are alot of hacks out there. It drives me crazy when people come in and want me to look at thier bike because another mechanic screwed it up. Hacks working on bikes are the fault of the manager/owner or the shop. I would suggest you take the time to find a mechanic that you trust, that has a good reputation and years of experience. Before I started doing my own work, I drove over an hour to another town for a certain mechanic.

…and building wheels is not hard if you are patient and methodical.

By: Bradly

Bradly — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:42:58 +0000

Depends what it is….if it doesn’t require special tools I do it and for now I have Ebby at ProVelo Cycle Sport do the hard stuff. Sometimes I just drag my bike in there, put it on the work stand and start to attempt it myself. Sometimes Ebby lets me have a go at it on my own but usually he just says “Hey let me do that” and then its done. But I’m learning how to do a lot of it too.

By: Quinn

Quinn — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 16:44:55 +0000

For the year after I got out of auto mechanic school, I didn’t care the $ I was sick of grease and grime, then just this past Christmas, I got a bunch of bike specific tools and now I do 90% of my own work.

By: Gunnar

Gunnar — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 14:24:17 +0000

Being one whose worked in the retail industry, I do my own work… except for wheels. It’s not that I can’t, and it’s not that I don’t have the basic tools for it. I just don’t like it. I’d rather just drop it off to someone I trust and pay them to do it.

By: joel

joel — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 16:05:52 +0000

Depends on what it is. I do most, but things like wheelbuilding that I just haven’t had the time to learn yet are handled by a not completely local shop. I’d rather make the 30-45 min trek to get to them than something closer because they are the only shop I’ve found with the greybeards my bikes (a ‘74 Schwinn Speedster 3 speed and a ‘76 Raleigh Super Course) require.