It is important to give your bicycle some love, aka. 'bike care,' regularly. Regular maintenance of your bike not only reduces wear and tear and defects, but it is also an important safety factor (keyword: brakes!).
Overall, good bike care guarantees a longer-lasting, better functioning frame and components. In this post, we provide you with helpful tips, you'll learn what matters in bike maintenance and which care products should not be missing.
Attention! Before bike care, cleaning comes first, you can also find the instructions in the Bike Blog. With a thorough cleaning of your bicycle, you've already taken a big step towards an optimally functioning bike, but you shouldn't neglect the subsequent care, because especially during a thorough wash, important lubricants are washed away.
A good chain oil or chain spray is essential for flawless operation of the drive. However, there are some aspects you should consider when oiling your chain.
The Bike Dryer: Compressed Air as Help Against Moisture
You've cleaned your bike... and now it's soaking wet. Here is our secret tip right at the beginning: If you have a compressed air compressor at hand, you can use it to remove the remaining moisture from your drive and all the bearings on the frame. This way, your bike dries faster and no water spots form on your frame or rust on the chain. Overall, this significantly shortens the waiting time, as drying can take a few hours depending on the temperature. This way, you can quickly proceed with the next care steps (like paint care, finish, etc.) and get back on the road.
Bike Care Tips – An Overview of Care and Lubricants for Your Bike
The bike is clean and dry, now what? There are many care products for bikes, but which ones do you really need?
Care of the Bike Chain
After cleaning, you should check your chain for adequate lubrication. If there is still enough chain oil present, it is sufficient to roughly dry the chain with a lint-free cloth. However, if the chain is dry and too degreased, you should apply a special chain oil or chain spray.
If your bike chain is too oily or greasy, it is advisable to completely degrease the lubrication with chain cleaner so that it can be lubricated again.
> Chain Spray , Chain Wax and Chain Oil buy online
- Make sure to wipe the outer sides of the chain with a cloth afterward, as excess oil attracts dirt like a magnet.
- You can also apply a drop of oil to the derailleur rollers. It is particularly important to ensure that no oil gets on the brake discs or brake pads as otherwise the braking performance is no longer guaranteed.
- Completely dirty chains, where oil and dirt together glue the chain links, urgently need a bit more care. With a special chain cleaner, you can temporarily remove dirt and grease and thus clean the chain. However, you must then apply sufficient lubrication again, because without grease, the drive is quickly ruined.
> Do you want to know more about the different bicycle greases? In the Blog Post “Bicycle Greases Explained” you will find a lot of information about assembly lubrication, screw securing, etc. We examine Carbon Assembly Paste in another post.
Bicycle Paint Care – Protect the paint of your bike frame with good care
In this step, your bike gets some shine… looks good and protects against new dirt!
A bike care spray or spray wax provides fresh shine and ensures that new dirt does not adhere to your bike as quickly.
Bike Protect Sprays for Plenty of Shine
The paint care is an important point because it seals the surface. Thus, it not only serves as a protective layer, but also guarantees a radiant appearance of your bike.
- In the next step of bike care, a Bike Protect Spray is applied to your bike frame
- Then you can polish the spray with a soft and dry microfiber cloth.
- The spray makes your bike shine and additionally ensures that no new dirt settles.
- Additionally, it protects your bike from weather influences, as it repels moisture and allows raindrops to bead off better.
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The spray mist of the Bicycle Protection Polish should not land in your lungs or on your brake discs and brake pads. |
Frame protection films ensure scratch-free frames even after long and hard use with the bike. They also protect the frame from unsightly stone chips.
❗ The BMO team recommends this bike maintenance ❗
Bike Cleaner | Bike Care | Carbon Care | Corrosion Protection
Protect vulnerable areas: Frame protection films against scratches and stone chips
Especially on mountain bikes, unsightly scratches and stone chips on the bike frame are hardly avoidable. Here, frame protection films are a simple, quick, and cost-effective solution that can prevent major paint repairs. The robust plastic films are equipped with a very adhesive film and can be easily applied to the frame or bike parts without additional tools.
- To ensure good adhesion, the corresponding areas on the bike should be clean and grease-free.
- Right after washing the bike and before applying protective polish is a good time to apply protection films.
- You should additionally use brake cleaner and a clean cloth to thoroughly degrease all areas before you apply the protection film.
Frame protection films are available in different colors and designs, and there is guaranteed to be a suitable motif for your bike.
To avoid suddenly standing with a fallen pedal in the middle of Wald, you should always perform a short function test during bike maintenance.
The right place to park the bike
You should park your freshly cleaned and maintained bike in a place with room temperature for final drying. Especially in winter with sub-zero temperatures, uninsulated garages and basement rooms are not the optimal place – and let's be honest, the freshly cleaned bike looks much better in the living room anyway!
After bike maintenance comes the quick check
The bike is cleaned and maintained, and finally, a short function test is part of the maintenance to detect and fix any potential problems early.
The following points/assemblies are particularly important during the bicycle check:
Cranks and Pedals
- Can the crank and pedals rotate smoothly and silently?
- Are the threads tight?
➔ If something is not in order, most high-quality pedals can be disassembled into their components. A little assembly paste on the pedal axle and pedal thread (before screwing the pedal back onto the crank) usually ensures a silent and smooth operation.
Can the handlebars move silently?
The cockpit also connects you to your bicycle and should always function flawlessly accordingly.
- Are the handlebars and stem aligned correctly?
- Are all screws tightened?
- Can the headset rotate easily and silently?
- You should also check the headset play. To do this, hold the headset cups with your thumb and forefinger, pull the front brake, and move the bicycle back and forth. The headset cups should not move back and forth. If they do, you need to loosen the stem screws and tighten the Ahead screw from above. Then retighten the stem screws.
➔ Especially in wet and cold seasons, dirt and moisture in the headset often lead to unpleasant noises or malfunctions. You then need to disassemble the headset, clean it, and apply sufficient grease to all parts before reassembly.
Other Bicycle Parts in the Test
Pedals and cockpit are half the battle, but while you're at it, it's worth checking other bicycle parts. Maybe cleaning, maintenance, or care is needed here?
- Are your spokes too loose?
- Is the telescopic seat post easily mobile?
- Can the brake levers be moved without resistance?
- How do the typical wear parts look? Check the brake pads, cassette, chainrings, and chain. You can usually repair very little here; often, replacing is the better solution
Read more in the Bike Blog
Cleaning the Bicycle | Cleaning and Maintaining the Bicycle in Winter | Bicycle Care by F100 in Test
