#bike-maintenance

#bike-maintenance

Mountain bikers are notoriously hard to shop for. There are many different standards and preferences to consider when shopping for the mountain biker in your life. It can be a headache to decide precisely what to get someone who has such a particular taste or preference in riding, so I wanted to put together a quick list of some items that any mountain biker or cyclist, in general, would be stoked to receive. There is no need to consult Reddit, ask Siri, or Chat GPT.

We've all had it happen. You need to remove the fork from your bike, and as you loosen the top cap and stem bolts, everything falls apart. The fork drops, tugging hard on the front brake hydraulic line. Headset parts and stem spacers, once held by the steerer tube, are now scattered on the floor. And, now, the handlebars and stem are just dangling by the hoses and cables, mainly in the way.

After riding more than 150,000 miles, I've picked up a few lessons the hard way. Some came from near misses in traffic, others from my own mistakes. I can tell you this: these rules aren't written by a cycling committee. They're written on the road, in sweat and sometimes blood. Take them seriously, and you'll ride longer, safer, and with a little more joy.

I've been cycling for decades, and one of the smartest purchases I ever made wasn't a bike or a set of wheels - it was a simple repair stand. Mine folds up and lives in the corner of my garage. I use it all the time: to clean my bike, add Stan's to my tubeless tires, clean and lube my chain, and take care of the little tweaks that keep a bike quiet and safe. Every cyclist should have a repair stand.

Local bike shops often provide personalized services and quicker turnaround times for repairs, ensuring that riders receive care tailored to their specific needs.

This kit contains 41 of the most commonly used tools for most mountain bike maintenance, including a cassette tool, chain breaker, Allen wrenches, crank puller, bottom bracket remover, and most other tools needed for keeping your mountain bike out of the shop and on the trails.