The title of this video should be "Don't mountain bike unless your an unemployed mechanic" Here's a summary: EVERY RIDE: Lube chain and check bolts every ride WEEKLY: Remove and check brake pads and check lever pressures Bolt Check MONTHLY: Check your chain Check your spokes and tires Check/Clean/Lube Dropper, Fork, Shock 3-6 MONTHS: Shock and Fork Service Inspect Frame Bearings 6 MONTHS: Regrease and clean rear hub Regrease/replace and clean headset bearings ANNUAL: (100 hours) Bleed Brakes Full service Dropper, Shock and Fork Replace Suspension Bearings GMBN is a great source of knowledge, but this is crazy
Whenever I think about getting back into mountain biking I just watch vids like this and remember that all this is exactly what I don’t want to do after working all week.
Top Tip... measure chain wear on a fully cleaned and degreased chain, or you can get a false reading. Dirt, wax and lube can stop a chain showing its true 'stretch' as they fill the slack in the rollers. My chain was not .75 worn when clean but lubed, I deep cleaned (degreased all lube off) then re-checked and found it was .75 worn!! 😬
.75 what?! .75 millimeter? Chains are measured to the inch; meaning each full link (both the inner and outer segments together) are one inch long. And was that a measurement of how short it was over a full foot long section; which is how it’s recommended to be checked (i.e., if a full foot long section of chain is longer than a foot pin to pin, then it should be replaced). Your advice is excellent, but it would help to specify what measurements you’re talking about. Thanks.
These are my favorite videos you guys produce. I continually love how you gents teach and thoroughly explain why its important to maintain everything. Thank you again and keep making a diffrence, Cheers!
Dont worry about throwing away opened DOT 4/5 brake fluid. Just screw the top on firmly and keep it in a relatively dry (and not humid) place. I've been rebuilding and bleeding my own motorbike brakes for decades and have never had an issue.
8:22 man you really nailed it. I immediately went to my bike, cleaned and lubricated the dropper post and it`s working so much better. thanks for pointing
Yesterday I change rubbers for winter-friendly and accidentally locate two broken spokes on hook connected with hub. So yeah I recommend - check your spokes once a while..
Fo shizzle - I'd think this is especially true for AL rims - unless you got DH wheels on a cross country bike, chances are, these will need to be adjusted/trued at some point of time.
I think you guys should do a "how to set up DVO suspension" since you've done Fox and rockshox, and I think it should go for Formula and Ohlins as well!
Great info as always Doddy 👍😎 Professional bike mechanics can fix and maintain my mtb when it's needed to be done. Got to keep the local bike shop up and running 💯🍻
Thanks a lot for these guidelines! We know that there is no need to take the timeline as mandatory, but consider it as an average period basing on the experience of the bikers. Just done great one more time Doddy 🤙
when it comes to all my sealed bearings whether they are head set or suspension pivot or hub i service them all myself by removing them and carfully removing the seal and flushing them before repacking with fresh grease they will last for years and saves a fortune
I think i'll do everything thats suggest here, but just once per year lol. My old bike i gave it some love just once in its life, I stripped it to parts and fully serviced it, this was in year 14 of ownership LOL. Still runs great now. My new bike this year ill service once per years as it looks quite fun to do :-)
Spinning your suspension bearings fully round, to redistribute the grease, as normally they have very limited rotation so the grease becomes pushed to one side.
I think they are supposed to be packed with grease from factory, as in all the empty space between the seals should be filled with grease. I might be wrong though, I'm not an expert on sealed bearings.
Lubing chain after cleaning drive train after each ride. Do the lube wipe off before heading out. Every ride, wiping down stanchions with lint free cloth, every month, a little light weight oil added to sit for a bit after cycling the suspension. Remember with rear wheel spoke checks - drive side spokes will be under more tension than the opposite. Every time one needs to tighten up pivots, give the outer bearings a clean and a little grease then re-tightening them. Other than that, all pivots and bearings then 6 months, check and clean with more grease. Love working on the bike but tyres can be a bit of a PITA. When you do headset, time it with suspension servicing ))
Just ordered 200hr fork service kit....looking forward to doing lowers, seals and air spring service (damper unit is new so not required). Plus a full sus bearings service.... and new chain....lots of workshop time for me!
Bikes are such simple things to maintain. I do all my own building and servicing and will never pay those rip off prices that some bike shops charge for small simple jobs.
You pay for the convenience and knowledge of those specific tasks. For example the only task I don't do myself on my bikes is truing the wheel. Not because I can't but because I hate doing it. Also not everyone has tools and space to work on their bike.
Monolithic Juggernaut and you’re not forced to ride a bike. Perhaps if the price of a fork rebuild is the difference between you living on the streets or not then your priorities are out of order. Also, even your small local shop employs 4-6 people and I’ve never met a rich bike shop owner, so they’re not in it for the money, those folks are supporting themselves too. Life and Death as you say.
@@trugearreviewmtb2226 Exactly couldn't agree more. People will spend money on the dumbest things like alcohol, cigarettes, weed, new clothes and shoes they don't need, going out to eat bc theyre too lazy to cook at home, BUT when it comes time to pay once a year or so on servicing their suspension, the part of their bike that arguably does the most work and keeps them the safest and having the most fun, all of a sudden its "too expensive." Even though they're supporting their local bike shop and to a greater degree the sport of cycling in their area, its too expensive. Even though its saving them time and its guaranteed to be done correctly, nope...too expensive. People are ridiculous sometimes in the way they think. Funny part is most of them are absolutely convinced they're right and see no flaw in their logic, its sad but true. Ive also seen guys who just have too much pride and refuse to "pay another man to do something I can do myself." These type of people are typically the ones that have to learn the hard way that no matter how much they think they're better than everyone at everything, thats not true and subject matter experts who do something everyday for a living will complete the task quicker and more efficiently than they'll ever be able to. These type of people are ironically also the ones I mentioned above who don't want to pay someone to do something they can do themselves, yet won't hesitate to spend several hundred dollars over the course of a year eating out, paying someone to cook for them, something they could do themselves. People can be huge hypocrites.
I also do all my own building and servicing because I’m passionate about engineering and mechanics. For me, servicing my bike represents half of the fun of riding one. I don’t consider local shops to be a rip-off, actually I’m asking myself how they survive. It is actually cheaper to go to a bike shop for servicing than doing your own, at least short-term and mid-term. I’m saying this because buying bike tools costs as well. Overall, I think I obtain a better quality on my own as I am very passionate and I take all the time I need for proper documentation and the actual repair while a local shop have far less time for your bike. Just to make things clear regarding bike shops being a rip-off: I’m so passionate about bikes that I’d like to have my own shop/service one day, but looking at the prices, the margins, the costs and given that it is a seasonal activity (people repair bikes and buy parts from…let’s say March to October), I cannot imagine how I’d survive in the market. Most of the shops in my city have profits less than my salary. Some of them have the entire net income less than my salary. Imagine paying rent the entire year, paying salaries the entire year and having clients from March to October. Imagine paying half of what you make to government taxes. This already makes the price 4x higher just to obtain the amount you wanted initially for the same operation. If the profits would be so high, I’m so passionate that I’d be starting tomorrow, but they are not. Support your local bike shop, if not with servicing, at least with buying tools, consumables, parts from them.
Your tips are great if you ride an expensive bike. Some of us ride $700 hardtails. So many of these tips do not apply. Especially if we always ride our forks locked out.
Some (most) lubes need leaving for 1-24hrs (including your sponsor mucoffs cermamics!). Plus to help prevent corrosion, always lube after washing and drying.... corrosion can occur inside rollers where u dont see it otherwise...lubing after that is not much use.
I bled the front brakes on my first mountain bike after 10 years and the rear brakes after 14. Like Doddy said most of this is common sense and need to be addressed when parts start to get sticky.
You should bleed mineral oil brakes just as often. The oil doesn't absorb moisture like DOT, but that just means any water in the system pools together, usually in the caliper, where it can get hot and potentially boil at a much lower temp than even very dirty DOT fluid. Also not sure how moisture in the system automatically means air in the system. Moisture in DOT fluid just lowers the boiling temp slightly, but that boiling point is still much higher than most riders will ever generate.
I take good care of my transmission, or at least I try to. My 3rd chain is on it's way out and my NX cassette is losing it's black finish sure, but it hardly shows any noticeable burring or other wear signs. I've had to change the chainring the last time I changed the chain, but the cassette is still going strong and it shifts like a dream.
I recently sent my forks off for a full service, TFTuning and what a service, they come back like brand new, simple collection and delivery service didn't even need to leave home
Also great to learn to do yourself...but some specific tools needed (buy once tho), and full service kits an be hard to get for some forks at the mo, covid supply impact.
I have a newest bike. Rode it probably 30 times many cross country. Not serviced or checked anything once 😅 will wait till something breaks then get a nicer bike and then actually look after it.
it's very easy. i went to school for bike mech (yeah holland) and i hardly feel like its a specialty thing. It's not as hard as you think. Just watch YT videos on that specific fork until you're sure you understand all steps involved.
Just do it yourself. Its cheap, and you know the work is actually being done. Bike shops (2 i have been to) just take shortcuts, and really cant be trusted (unfortunately).
Like the others said get the tools and parts you need for the job and watch a bunch of YT vids until you find the one that helps you out the best. The shops by me were swamped with work so I decided to do mine by myself. I bought a used lyrik and swapped the Rct3 in my yari into the lyrik. It was all pretty straight forward just make sure you have plenty of alcohol spray and lots of paper towels. I got most of the things I needed from The Lost Company.
a typical fork service is $70 in the US. you'll spend less than half that much just once on the tools you'll need to perform the service whenever you want - a mallet and possibly the seal installation tool? the oil will last you a year at least
I can attest to the importance of checking your chain. I left a chain on so long it wore my cassette and chain ring so badly it made them unusable. I had to replace the lot. It's not just as simple as buying a new chain.
Thanks, Doddy. Great vid! 👍 I SO needed to be reminded of these things, especially as I’m trying to get my model year 2018 bike to last as long as possible. 👌
Great video Doddy! However, what about the bottom bracket? I found that after 6-12 months of smashing through mud and then cleaning my bike with a high powered washer each time, the grease washes out and I end up with a squeaky bottom bracket. Always good to pull it out, give it some love and it’s good to go for another 6 months.
I was looking for this. Your timing is correct. BB should be every 6 months assuming you ride year round ... A neglected but extremely important maintenance routine that really does make a difference.
I've had my new bike for over seven months now and in all that time I have only had chance to go out on it just the once for about an hour round the local woods in total due to life (work, family, other commitments) Thinking I may change your advice for months to years (6 years instead of 6 months) more chance my new bike will become outdated before it gets worn out. I rekon most of this advice isn't aimed at us that aren't fortunate to live, eat, breath, sleep a mountain biking.
I needed this video 9 days ago. I got lax on bolt checks and now I have a horstlink bolt somewhere on my local trail and my bike in the garage waiting on back ordered bolt kits. A simple check would have saved me the headache and I’d be riding this week
Most of the maintenance on my bike I can meanwhile do myself but I'm neither touching my suspension units nor the bearings. Still, if I would follow Doddy's advice of service intervals, I'd be broke soon.
I'd recommend trying it yourself! I did a fork lower leg service recently and it was pretty easy. Bearings shouldn't be hard either, really. And then you can save all the money you would have to pay a shop for service
@@evanbarnes9984 Agree if you can do basic maintenance then front fork lowers should be doable. I don't even have a stand, I just flip the bike upside down when needed.
Nice - I'd love to see a long term test vid on how long the components will last if you don't maintain them - from what I can tell, few people are this meticulous about service. Overall good advice and good disclaimer to use common sense - for my riding new bearings every year and hub work is a bit of an overkill. On the brakes - I'd be more concerned with all the dirt that gets in the line vs the water absorption in DOT - I don't think I'd be able to tell the difference between old and new fluid if my life depended on it...
Could you guys do a video on removing and replacing bearings (since you recommend replacing them yearly)? I always resort to smashing them out with a mallet and wooden dowel as I’ll be replacing them anyway; surely there is a better way that doesn’t cost the Park Tool Tax?!?
I absolutely would not oil my chain without cleaning it first, especially in winter. Well, I would do it every time if I was advertising Muc-off ;) For shock services, I use Garmin/Komoot to track the hours I've used them and do the services on the 50 and 200 hour marks.
What is a good tool kit to have to be able to do most if not all work on bike? Switching out the groupset and also want to be able to take components apart for maintenance! Thanks guys love your stuff
Considering that a Sram Eagle cassette is $450.00 these days, I would highly recommend that people buy 2 or 3 extra chains and rotate them every couple of weeks to every couple of months (depending on how often you ride), to prevent the chain “mating” with the cassette. If you run a single chain on a drive train too long, it will get to where a new chain will skip and not shift correctly; especially if the old chain stretches and isn’t swapped out in time (a stretched chain will wear the teeth on cogs and chainrings more and make it not work with a new, proper length chain). Don’t get complacent if you’re riding a lot.
I recently purchased my first half decent mountain bike. I grabbed a boardman 8.8Mtr 21 through ride to work. Halfords did an appalling job assembling the bike so ive gone round and adjusted all the bolts to the correct torque that have the torque written on them....but for example I don't know what the torque is for the bolts that hold the rear suspension etc...halfords don't even know what it is and I've contacted Boardman and they're not entirely sure either !....wtf?...
I bought used and It’s fine but I cant wait in some months I guess to have a new bike with everything modern but specially start servicing right away Buy the bikes save money a couple of months and buy to service suspension drivetrain and brakes
Just had a thought. When putting your nukeproof reactor on a bike rack what do you do? Surely it would scratch up the shock loads. I’m talking about the ones that strap on from the boot just for clarification. Or might it clamp on the seatstay. Thanks
As usually the service is depended on usage hours and you guy are also using Garmin they know the hours of usage. My idea is to have more detail to my gear in Garmin. I can only add my stuff like bike or running shoes. I'd love to be able to add more to my gear. Underneath the bike to be able to add all parts and service interval. That then the system would raise messages which maintenance task or replacement needs to be done. Because I track all activities all that would fit perfectly together. What do you guys think about this idea?
Another good video! What water bottle cage is that on your bike and is that a multitool attached to it? I've seen a topeak one but I haven't seen one with a 'side entry' bottle cage like yours. Cheers.
It occurs to me that the service intervals on mountain bikes are insane. I might do a fork service every 60,000km or 5 years on my Ducati motorcycle, which gets much more of a beating than a MTB.
i check bolts after every other ride, have never had one work itself loose but better safe than sorry. i clean the bike after each ride and i lube the chain directly after cleaning it and before i start the next ride do i wipe the exess off and be out on my marry way
What if I were to tell you that service intervals are fake? Service as regularly as you need to. I personally strip and repack grease in every bearing the moment one bearing feels a little off. My shocks get seen to when they feel off. The drive chain gets sorted when it stops working properly. Most of the time this is way after the reccomended time frame but I've not encountered any issues. If it looks like shit then chances are it needs replacing, things don't usually get nasty without getting knackered.
Doddy, when you say lube each ride is that assuming you wash your bike after each ride? I don’t, mainly because I can’t be bothered and my trails are mainly dry, so do I still need to lube every time, only after a wash or if the chain is noisy? I’m worried about creating a sludgy chain that will be a pain to degrease and clean when I do wash the bike.
Have had the same bike for 9 years, never done any of this except wash and lube chain. Are new bikes builder poorer than olders that need this much service all the time?
Same or more often than headset. Really depends on your trail conditions and how you clean your bike. I rarely use water on my bikes because it’s trashed my bottom brackets and headsets in the past, but I am in the southwest USA. If in muddy conditions regularly, pull that bottom bracket monthly, check bearing smoothness in hand, grease, and reinstall.
@@reedmccleve21 right on! I am up in Prescott and trying to shoot videos all over the state. Check out the channel and subscribe if you like the content.
@Monolithic Juggernaut it depends less on the quality and more on the conditions. Trust me. I’ve ruined some of the best bearings just because I rode in muddy conditions every week. Now that I live in the dusty, dry, southwest, bearings last a lot longer, but still need maintenance.
@Monolithic Juggernaut bearing quality is important, but as Doddy described with the pivot bearings, they can easily be replaced or even upgraded. Buying replacement sealed bearings from Enduro Bearings or other high quality manufacturers is more of an upgrade than buying it from Hope instead of RaceFace. The quality of the aluminum shell is important for tolerances, but bearing quality is where I would focus more of my money for durability and functional gains.
I have a pretty good idea of all the servicing I do on my bike and I ride out in the southwest so I know after every ride I clean my chain real quick and then I'll wipe my frame and all of my other components down but just recently I had finished a ride and I took a slam and for some reason my rear cassette I've only have access to my five middle gears and I don't have access to my two highest and my two lowest at the moment does anybody have any solutions for that my wheels still rolls perfectly fine I just don't have access to those gears
Preventive maintenance is meant to be done before part failure not after. It's not maintenance if you are fixing broken parts that's called repairs. Maintenance happens before it's needed, that's the point.
@@xx-----------xx873 and then spend $1000 on a new fork because you ran it dry and the stanchions are destroyed, when you could have just spend about $40 and done a few lower leg services yourself over several years
@@evanbarnes9984 Or spend £100 on the bare minimum and run it 5 years. I'm doing that with a U-Turn Pike, and I haven't touched it once. If your fork costs that much, you are a sheep; bike parts does not equal skill. Bikes are meant to be ridden, not loved.
@@xx-----------xx873 ok. So until last year, I was riding pretty intense trails (ie, the Downieville Downhill) on a 1996 Litespeed Obed FS, a really early full suspension bike with 80mm travel front and rear. I had rebuilt it with new parts, including a $250 rockshox 30 Gold fork. I kept up with my friend who was on a DH bike, so I feel reasonably confident in my skills at this point. But last year, I spent $3000 on a Chromag Rootdown aggressive hardtail with a 160mm rockshox Lyrik, which is something like a $900 fork. The difference is absolutely ridiculous. The small bump compliance, the ability to maintain traction and control through big hits, the stiffness of the stanchions: it all makes for a much better fork and ride. The bike doesn't make the rider, but a good bike absolutely makes a difference for a good rider. So no, I'm not being a sheep. I do still ride the Litespeed though, I turned it into my gravel grinder.
I bleed my brakes once a month I change my shifter cables once a month I change my chain every 2 months Service my hubs every 2 months Change my bottom bracket and headset bearing every 2 months Service my fork every 6 months
I have Fox 36 Rhythm (2020) and the service manual does not mention about the lower leg service. It says check sag and clean stanchions regularly and fork rebuild every year. I live in Ireland, so I pretty much ride in wet conditions. Do I need a lower leg service?
is it possible to service my dropper post? it got alot more play left and right over time but a new one is expensive. So u are the expert.. is there a way to do anything against that wobble?
and the price tag for annual service at the lbs..550 quid..actually more expensive than service my bmw motorbike...so do i do the service me self..yepp
The title of this video should be "Don't mountain bike unless your an unemployed mechanic"
Here's a summary:
EVERY RIDE:
Lube chain and check bolts every ride
WEEKLY:
Remove and check brake pads and check lever pressures
Bolt Check
MONTHLY:
Check your chain
Check your spokes and tires
Check/Clean/Lube Dropper, Fork, Shock
3-6 MONTHS:
Shock and Fork Service
Inspect Frame Bearings
6 MONTHS:
Regrease and clean rear hub
Regrease/replace and clean headset bearings
ANNUAL: (100 hours)
Bleed Brakes
Full service Dropper, Shock and Fork
Replace Suspension Bearings
GMBN is a great source of knowledge, but this is crazy
That a ton of work. 100 hours of riding is only a few months
I move all the daily and weekly steps to monthly and everything else is as needed, but I like the summary. Thanks
Good job!
And here I am thinking cleaning and lubing the chain every two weeks of daily riding is too much work.
I wanna see Doddy go through one of Blake’s bikes that he rides daily I think that would be pretty funny
I have a friend who's seat can do a 360 spin. He really needs to service his dropper.
Gotta love hardtails for their versatility and simplicity
Whenever I think about getting back into mountain biking I just watch vids like this and remember that all this is exactly what I don’t want to do after working all week.
Something you need to like doing tbh. I enjoy taking my bike apart and put it back together afterwards.
@@pawel7196 i like taking my bike apart then realising idk how to put it back together
Truee 😂
Most people don't bother, and ride it into the ground. You're not making enough money, or your spending priorities are wrong.
@@spedon2wheels267 😆
Me after never servicing my bike: "why the hell is my bike making noises..."
Hahaha! Lazy at servicing your lift?
F
I'll add to this and it's kind of important, every ride check your tire pressure.
Yes, and also sometimes different tire pressures work better depending on the terrain.
Top Tip... measure chain wear on a fully cleaned and degreased chain, or you can get a false reading. Dirt, wax and lube can stop a chain showing its true 'stretch' as they fill the slack in the rollers.
My chain was not .75 worn when clean but lubed, I deep cleaned (degreased all lube off) then re-checked and found it was .75 worn!! 😬
.75 what?! .75 millimeter? Chains are measured to the inch; meaning each full link (both the inner and outer segments together) are one inch long. And was that a measurement of how short it was over a full foot long section; which is how it’s recommended to be checked (i.e., if a full foot long section of chain is longer than a foot pin to pin, then it should be replaced). Your advice is excellent, but it would help to specify what measurements you’re talking about. Thanks.
@@keirfarnum6811 %
Just leaving some time stamps for later. 5:50 monthly. 10:15 3-6 months. 16:21 annually.
These are my favorite videos you guys produce. I continually love how you gents teach and thoroughly explain why its important to maintain everything. Thank you again and keep making a diffrence, Cheers!
Dont worry about throwing away opened DOT 4/5 brake fluid. Just screw the top on firmly and keep it in a relatively dry (and not humid) place. I've been rebuilding and bleeding my own motorbike brakes for decades and have never had an issue.
8:22 man you really nailed it. I immediately went to my bike, cleaned and lubricated the dropper post and it`s working so much better. thanks for pointing
Yesterday I change rubbers for winter-friendly and accidentally locate two broken spokes on hook connected with hub. So yeah I recommend - check your spokes once a while..
Fo shizzle - I'd think this is especially true for AL rims - unless you got DH wheels on a cross country bike, chances are, these will need to be adjusted/trued at some point of time.
I think you guys should do a "how to set up DVO suspension" since you've done Fox and rockshox, and I think it should go for Formula and Ohlins as well!
i will do it for Ohlins!!
Great info as always Doddy 👍😎
Professional bike mechanics can fix and maintain my mtb when it's needed to be done. Got to keep the local bike shop up and running 💯🍻
This video was sorely needed. Thanks, Doddy!
Thanks a lot for these guidelines! We know that there is no need to take the timeline as mandatory, but consider it as an average period basing on the experience of the bikers. Just done great one more time Doddy 🤙
Tutorial for a coil shock service would be much appriciated
when it comes to all my sealed bearings whether they are head set or suspension pivot or hub i service them all myself by removing them and carfully removing the seal and flushing them before repacking with fresh grease they will last for years and saves a fortune
Check the derailleur cable at least weekly for fraying.
I think i'll do everything thats suggest here, but just once per year lol. My old bike i gave it some love just once in its life, I stripped it to parts and fully serviced it, this was in year 14 of ownership LOL. Still runs great now. My new bike this year ill service once per years as it looks quite fun to do :-)
I’ve been going through all these videos and just wanted to say thank you!
Spinning your suspension bearings fully round, to redistribute the grease, as normally they have very limited rotation so the grease becomes pushed to one side.
I think they are supposed to be packed with grease from factory, as in all the empty space between the seals should be filled with grease. I might be wrong though, I'm not an expert on sealed bearings.
Lubing chain after cleaning drive train after each ride. Do the lube wipe off before heading out.
Every ride, wiping down stanchions with lint free cloth, every month, a little light weight oil added to sit for a bit after cycling the suspension.
Remember with rear wheel spoke checks - drive side spokes will be under more tension than the opposite.
Every time one needs to tighten up pivots, give the outer bearings a clean and a little grease then re-tightening them. Other than that, all pivots and bearings then 6 months, check and clean with more grease.
Love working on the bike but tyres can be a bit of a PITA.
When you do headset, time it with suspension servicing ))
Just ordered 200hr fork service kit....looking forward to doing lowers, seals and air spring service (damper unit is new so not required).
Plus a full sus bearings service.... and new chain....lots of workshop time for me!
Bikes are such simple things to maintain. I do all my own building and servicing and will never pay those rip off prices that some bike shops charge for small simple jobs.
You obviously never ran a business, open your bike shop and “charge” half the price, lets see how long will it take you before you bankrupt.
You pay for the convenience and knowledge of those specific tasks. For example the only task I don't do myself on my bikes is truing the wheel. Not because I can't but because I hate doing it. Also not everyone has tools and space to work on their bike.
Monolithic Juggernaut and you’re not forced to ride a bike. Perhaps if the price of a fork rebuild is the difference between you living on the streets or not then your priorities are out of order. Also, even your small local shop employs 4-6 people and I’ve never met a rich bike shop owner, so they’re not in it for the money, those folks are supporting themselves too. Life and Death as you say.
@@trugearreviewmtb2226 Exactly couldn't agree more. People will spend money on the dumbest things like alcohol, cigarettes, weed, new clothes and shoes they don't need, going out to eat bc theyre too lazy to cook at home, BUT when it comes time to pay once a year or so on servicing their suspension, the part of their bike that arguably does the most work and keeps them the safest and having the most fun, all of a sudden its "too expensive." Even though they're supporting their local bike shop and to a greater degree the sport of cycling in their area, its too expensive. Even though its saving them time and its guaranteed to be done correctly, nope...too expensive. People are ridiculous sometimes in the way they think. Funny part is most of them are absolutely convinced they're right and see no flaw in their logic, its sad but true. Ive also seen guys who just have too much pride and refuse to "pay another man to do something I can do myself." These type of people are typically the ones that have to learn the hard way that no matter how much they think they're better than everyone at everything, thats not true and subject matter experts who do something everyday for a living will complete the task quicker and more efficiently than they'll ever be able to. These type of people are ironically also the ones I mentioned above who don't want to pay someone to do something they can do themselves, yet won't hesitate to spend several hundred dollars over the course of a year eating out, paying someone to cook for them, something they could do themselves. People can be huge hypocrites.
I also do all my own building and servicing because I’m passionate about engineering and mechanics. For me, servicing my bike represents half of the fun of riding one. I don’t consider local shops to be a rip-off, actually I’m asking myself how they survive. It is actually cheaper to go to a bike shop for servicing than doing your own, at least short-term and mid-term. I’m saying this because buying bike tools costs as well. Overall, I think I obtain a better quality on my own as I am very passionate and I take all the time I need for proper documentation and the actual repair while a local shop have far less time for your bike.
Just to make things clear regarding bike shops being a rip-off: I’m so passionate about bikes that I’d like to have my own shop/service one day, but looking at the prices, the margins, the costs and given that it is a seasonal activity (people repair bikes and buy parts from…let’s say March to October), I cannot imagine how I’d survive in the market. Most of the shops in my city have profits less than my salary. Some of them have the entire net income less than my salary. Imagine paying rent the entire year, paying salaries the entire year and having clients from March to October. Imagine paying half of what you make to government taxes. This already makes the price 4x higher just to obtain the amount you wanted initially for the same operation. If the profits would be so high, I’m so passionate that I’d be starting tomorrow, but they are not. Support your local bike shop, if not with servicing, at least with buying tools, consumables, parts from them.
Your tips are great if you ride an expensive bike. Some of us ride $700 hardtails. So many of these tips do not apply. Especially if we always ride our forks locked out.
Yeah lol
I don't know why don't we have a budget bike maintenance video
Some (most) lubes need leaving for 1-24hrs (including your sponsor mucoffs cermamics!).
Plus to help prevent corrosion, always lube after washing and drying.... corrosion can occur inside rollers where u dont see it otherwise...lubing after that is not much use.
I bled the front brakes on my first mountain bike after 10 years and the rear brakes after 14. Like Doddy said most of this is common sense and need to be addressed when parts start to get sticky.
Yeah I'm super rough on my bike, it must be screwed... takes it apart - *everything in perfect condition* oh...
Far out, that is so much suggested maintenance I'd end up divorced
True....I'm heard from multiple sources that lubing your chain every ride will prematurely wear out your chain.
Yea I find that I usually lube after a few rides and I usually delay all of those a couple weeks
Keeping it clean is much more important than lubricating. If you dont clean just lube, it remains still dirty.
@@MTBMOR ball and chain!
That might also happen if you need to buy new gear every six months. Just choose one of the two. :)
thanks doddy!! i don’t know if you already have a video on this but, could you do one on the tools every mountain biker needs?
An eye-opener!! Will be giving my bikes some TLC.
You should bleed mineral oil brakes just as often. The oil doesn't absorb moisture like DOT, but that just means any water in the system pools together, usually in the caliper, where it can get hot and potentially boil at a much lower temp than even very dirty DOT fluid.
Also not sure how moisture in the system automatically means air in the system. Moisture in DOT fluid just lowers the boiling temp slightly, but that boiling point is still much higher than most riders will ever generate.
Great video ,I just asked about the service intervals the other day.
Always on point Iceman 🧊👑🙏🔥
This video really helped us to service our mtbs
Thank you doodddy !!!
Excellent guidance and advice Doddy. I'll be sure to keep this and many others as saved go-to instruction videos from the GMBN boffins. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 🇬🇧
I use gx eagle 12sp and i can get 5 chain to one casette then its time to change everything😊✌🏻 but love maintanace 🤩 love your show doddy👊🏻
I take good care of my transmission, or at least I try to. My 3rd chain is on it's way out and my NX cassette is losing it's black finish sure, but it hardly shows any noticeable burring or other wear signs. I've had to change the chainring the last time I changed the chain, but the cassette is still going strong and it shifts like a dream.
Thank you very much for the awesome video highlighting all the steps in taking care of your MTB. Fantastic content
I recently sent my forks off for a full service, TFTuning and what a service, they come back like brand new, simple collection and delivery service didn't even need to leave home
Also great to learn to do yourself...but some specific tools needed (buy once tho), and full service kits an be hard to get for some forks at the mo, covid supply impact.
One episode to be remember. Many thanks for a good job.
I have a newest bike. Rode it probably 30 times many cross country. Not serviced or checked anything once 😅 will wait till something breaks then get a nicer bike and then actually look after it.
I absolutely love the colour of that bike
Imagine being able to afford a fork service every 3-6 months
it's very easy. i went to school for bike mech (yeah holland) and i hardly feel like its a specialty thing. It's not as hard as you think. Just watch YT videos on that specific fork until you're sure you understand all steps involved.
Just do it yourself. Its cheap, and you know the work is actually being done. Bike shops (2 i have been to) just take shortcuts, and really cant be trusted (unfortunately).
Like the others said get the tools and parts you need for the job and watch a bunch of YT vids until you find the one that helps you out the best. The shops by me were swamped with work so I decided to do mine by myself. I bought a used lyrik and swapped the Rct3 in my yari into the lyrik. It was all pretty straight forward just make sure you have plenty of alcohol spray and lots of paper towels. I got most of the things I needed from The Lost Company.
a typical fork service is $70 in the US. you'll spend less than half that much just once on the tools you'll need to perform the service whenever you want - a mallet and possibly the seal installation tool? the oil will last you a year at least
Go to Special Dynamics Suspension they are the cheapest I have found
I can attest to the importance of checking your chain. I left a chain on so long it wore my cassette and chain ring so badly it made them unusable. I had to replace the lot. It's not just as simple as buying a new chain.
Thanks, Doddy. Great vid! 👍 I SO needed to be reminded of these things, especially as I’m trying to get my model year 2018 bike to last as long as possible. 👌
Some fantastic information there doddy.
Great video Doddy! However, what about the bottom bracket? I found that after 6-12 months of smashing through mud and then cleaning my bike with a high powered washer each time, the grease washes out and I end up with a squeaky bottom bracket. Always good to pull it out, give it some love and it’s good to go for another 6 months.
I was looking for this. Your timing is correct. BB should be every 6 months assuming you ride year round ... A neglected but extremely important maintenance routine that really does make a difference.
'Off Season Bike Set up Tips from WC Mechanics' - give those pit legends some shout outs after a mad season!
I've had my new bike for over seven months now and in all that time I have only had chance to go out on it just the once for about an hour round the local woods in total due to life (work, family, other commitments) Thinking I may change your advice for months to years (6 years instead of 6 months) more chance my new bike will become outdated before it gets worn out. I rekon most of this advice isn't aimed at us that aren't fortunate to live, eat, breath, sleep a mountain biking.
I was in this scenario, decided to watch less youtube and cycle more!
Very practical tips thanks Doddy
Well done, great info, thanks!!
I needed this video 9 days ago. I got lax on bolt checks and now I have a horstlink bolt somewhere on my local trail and my bike in the garage waiting on back ordered bolt kits. A simple check would have saved me the headache and I’d be riding this week
Most of the maintenance on my bike I can meanwhile do myself but I'm neither touching my suspension units nor the bearings. Still, if I would follow Doddy's advice of service intervals, I'd be broke soon.
I'd recommend trying it yourself! I did a fork lower leg service recently and it was pretty easy. Bearings shouldn't be hard either, really. And then you can save all the money you would have to pay a shop for service
@@evanbarnes9984 Agree if you can do basic maintenance then front fork lowers should be doable. I don't even have a stand, I just flip the bike upside down when needed.
Silicone spray is your friend. Pressure washer your enemy. My bearing advice in a nutshell.
Nice - I'd love to see a long term test vid on how long the components will last if you don't maintain them - from what I can tell, few people are this meticulous about service. Overall good advice and good disclaimer to use common sense - for my riding new bearings every year and hub work is a bit of an overkill. On the brakes - I'd be more concerned with all the dirt that gets in the line vs the water absorption in DOT - I don't think I'd be able to tell the difference between old and new fluid if my life depended on it...
You can tell when there is moisture in them. Suddenly you have 1/3 of the brake force.
Great vid Doddy....I bet lots dont do regular maintenance.
Wow! When can you find time to ride bro?!
Could you guys do a video on removing and replacing bearings (since you recommend replacing them yearly)? I always resort to smashing them out with a mallet and wooden dowel as I’ll be replacing them anyway; surely there is a better way that doesn’t cost the Park Tool Tax?!?
Perform your own bearing service and lube them yourself. You have options besides replacement.
I absolutely would not oil my chain without cleaning it first, especially in winter. Well, I would do it every time if I was advertising Muc-off ;)
For shock services, I use Garmin/Komoot to track the hours I've used them and do the services on the 50 and 200 hour marks.
@@MD.media01 Rockshox advise doing a service on the wipe seals and general clean at 50 and at 200 a complete service.
Most people (casual ones) never ever do a service their bike and they buy a new bike when after 10 years the chain breaks
Excellent video. Very detailed. Saved.
What is a good tool kit to have to be able to do most if not all work on bike? Switching out the groupset and also want to be able to take components apart for maintenance! Thanks guys love your stuff
Great video and really good info
Considering that a Sram Eagle cassette is $450.00 these days, I would highly recommend that people buy 2 or 3 extra chains and rotate them every couple of weeks to every couple of months (depending on how often you ride), to prevent the chain “mating” with the cassette. If you run a single chain on a drive train too long, it will get to where a new chain will skip and not shift correctly; especially if the old chain stretches and isn’t swapped out in time (a stretched chain will wear the teeth on cogs and chainrings more and make it not work with a new, proper length chain). Don’t get complacent if you’re riding a lot.
This also means you can forensically clean the chain before it goes back on the bike.
Yeah snapping a chain hurts esp when you doing a stand up wheelie and it snaps that really hurts 😁
tf is a stand up wheelie
Manual lol
Hi, What is the brand of the shoe that has been shown on 11:33? Thanks!
I recently purchased my first half decent mountain bike. I grabbed a boardman 8.8Mtr 21 through ride to work. Halfords did an appalling job assembling the bike so ive gone round and adjusted all the bolts to the correct torque that have the torque written on them....but for example I don't know what the torque is for the bolts that hold the rear suspension etc...halfords don't even know what it is and I've contacted Boardman and they're not entirely sure either !....wtf?...
I bought used and It’s fine but I cant wait in some months I guess to have a new bike with everything modern but specially start servicing right away Buy the bikes save money a couple of months and buy to service suspension drivetrain and brakes
Just had a thought. When putting your nukeproof reactor on a bike rack what do you do? Surely it would scratch up the shock loads. I’m talking about the ones that strap on from the boot just for clarification. Or might it clamp on the seatstay. Thanks
As usually the service is depended on usage hours and you guy are also using Garmin they know the hours of usage. My idea is to have more detail to my gear in Garmin. I can only add my stuff like bike or running shoes. I'd love to be able to add more to my gear. Underneath the bike to be able to add all parts and service interval. That then the system would raise messages which maintenance task or replacement needs to be done. Because I track all activities all that would fit perfectly together. What do you guys think about this idea?
Another good video! What water bottle cage is that on your bike and is that a multitool attached to it? I've seen a topeak one but I haven't seen one with a 'side entry' bottle cage like yours. Cheers.
Very helpful video doddy cheers
Great tips, thank you!
Good info as always, thanks Doddy!
It occurs to me that the service intervals on mountain bikes are insane. I might do a fork service every 60,000km or 5 years on my Ducati motorcycle, which gets much more of a beating than a MTB.
Yup, mountain bikes are for deep pockets
i check bolts after every other ride, have never had one work itself loose but better safe than sorry.
i clean the bike after each ride and i lube the chain directly after cleaning it and before i start the next ride do i wipe the exess off and be out on my marry way
What if I were to tell you that service intervals are fake? Service as regularly as you need to. I personally strip and repack grease in every bearing the moment one bearing feels a little off. My shocks get seen to when they feel off. The drive chain gets sorted when it stops working properly. Most of the time this is way after the reccomended time frame but I've not encountered any issues. If it looks like shit then chances are it needs replacing, things don't usually get nasty without getting knackered.
Very informative, thanks!
Hey Doddy, nice video! What's that side loading bottle cage on your bike there? :)
Have you any links to suspension tuners ? Thanks
I thought the muc off dry lasted many miles before reapplication?
Thanks mate very informative
Where did you get the Fox service at 30hours? I see 125.... is this a different maintenance task?
What about tubeless sealant? How often... and how much?
Whats your thoughts on removing tires and selent for winter storage
Doddy, when you say lube each ride is that assuming you wash your bike after each ride? I don’t, mainly because I can’t be bothered and my trails are mainly dry, so do I still need to lube every time, only after a wash or if the chain is noisy? I’m worried about creating a sludgy chain that will be a pain to degrease and clean when I do wash the bike.
I just lube the chain when its making noises or when there isnt any on there.
I just lube the chain when its making noises or when there isnt any on there.
Have had the same bike for 9 years, never done any of this except wash and lube chain. Are new bikes builder poorer than olders that need this much service all the time?
Great video! Very helpful. What about the bottom bracket? How often does that need to be greased and serviced?
Same or more often than headset. Really depends on your trail conditions and how you clean your bike. I rarely use water on my bikes because it’s trashed my bottom brackets and headsets in the past, but I am in the southwest USA. If in muddy conditions regularly, pull that bottom bracket monthly, check bearing smoothness in hand, grease, and reinstall.
@@RideAlongside thanks! Yeah I live in Arizona and mostly just dry clean my bike so not too often I guess.
@@reedmccleve21 right on! I am up in Prescott and trying to shoot videos all over the state. Check out the channel and subscribe if you like the content.
@Monolithic Juggernaut it depends less on the quality and more on the conditions. Trust me. I’ve ruined some of the best bearings just because I rode in muddy conditions every week. Now that I live in the dusty, dry, southwest, bearings last a lot longer, but still need maintenance.
@Monolithic Juggernaut bearing quality is important, but as Doddy described with the pivot bearings, they can easily be replaced or even upgraded. Buying replacement sealed bearings from Enduro Bearings or other high quality manufacturers is more of an upgrade than buying it from Hope instead of RaceFace. The quality of the aluminum shell is important for tolerances, but bearing quality is where I would focus more of my money for durability and functional gains.
I have a pretty good idea of all the servicing I do on my bike and I ride out in the southwest so I know after every ride I clean my chain real quick and then I'll wipe my frame and all of my other components down but just recently I had finished a ride and I took a slam and for some reason my rear cassette I've only have access to my five middle gears and I don't have access to my two highest and my two lowest at the moment does anybody have any solutions for that my wheels still rolls perfectly fine I just don't have access to those gears
Is it ok to clamp the bike by the dropper post?? It hurts the eye a bit
As often as its needed...
Preventive maintenance is meant to be done before part failure not after. It's not maintenance if you are fixing broken parts that's called repairs. Maintenance happens before it's needed, that's the point.
@@scwirpeo Or you could just ride, ride and ride until it fails, instead of worrying about the condition of the bike.
@@xx-----------xx873 and then spend $1000 on a new fork because you ran it dry and the stanchions are destroyed, when you could have just spend about $40 and done a few lower leg services yourself over several years
@@evanbarnes9984 Or spend £100 on the bare minimum and run it 5 years. I'm doing that with a U-Turn Pike, and I haven't touched it once. If your fork costs that much, you are a sheep; bike parts does not equal skill. Bikes are meant to be ridden, not loved.
@@xx-----------xx873 ok. So until last year, I was riding pretty intense trails (ie, the Downieville Downhill) on a 1996 Litespeed Obed FS, a really early full suspension bike with 80mm travel front and rear. I had rebuilt it with new parts, including a $250 rockshox 30 Gold fork. I kept up with my friend who was on a DH bike, so I feel reasonably confident in my skills at this point. But last year, I spent $3000 on a Chromag Rootdown aggressive hardtail with a 160mm rockshox Lyrik, which is something like a $900 fork. The difference is absolutely ridiculous. The small bump compliance, the ability to maintain traction and control through big hits, the stiffness of the stanchions: it all makes for a much better fork and ride. The bike doesn't make the rider, but a good bike absolutely makes a difference for a good rider. So no, I'm not being a sheep. I do still ride the Litespeed though, I turned it into my gravel grinder.
I bleed my brakes once a month
I change my shifter cables once a month
I change my chain every 2 months
Service my hubs every 2 months
Change my bottom bracket and headset bearing every 2 months
Service my fork every 6 months
I've lubed my chain twice in three years :)
Probably around 3000km on every part by now.
I have Fox 36 Rhythm (2020) and the service manual does not mention about the lower leg service. It says check sag and clean stanchions regularly and fork rebuild every year. I live in Ireland, so I pretty much ride in wet conditions. Do I need a lower leg service?
Doddy got a new watch I see
I noticed too. Always wondered what that square piece was.
@@emilchandran546 the old oakley metal watch I should have gotten one back in like 2005
@@Montblanc1986 ty
Also changing your bike and shoes mid ride by the look of it ;)
is it possible to service my dropper post? it got alot more play left and right over time but a new one is expensive. So u are the expert.. is there a way to do anything against that wobble?
and the price tag for annual service at the lbs..550 quid..actually more expensive than service my bmw motorbike...so do i do the service me self..yepp
Question : Can we use nail polish remover to clean the disc brake rotor and disc brake pads since its basically isopropyl alchohol.
#askgmbntech
Nail polish remover is acetone, NOT isopropyl. DO NOT USE. Also has other chemicals, never pure acetone.
Get proper brake cleaner or isopropyl.
I had a hard tail for 12 years and all I did was put oil on the chain once a year. It was fine until it was stolen.