Are You Guys Mechanical?

Carrera

I had a really tough couple of days. I was attempting to remove a brake cable but found it tougher than I imagined. I loosened the cable from the rear brake and then tried to push the wire through the sleeve so it would emerge through the shifter. It was stuck fast.
Horror of horrors, the next door neighbour lent me a hand and tried to pull the cable out from the shifter with a set of pliars. He succeeded in pulling out some tape from within the mechanism and I really thought he'd screwed my shifter up. I was so pissed off I spent the night drinking wine as I was sure I'd have to order a new shifter.
Turns out it was some kind of computer tape.
Finally I managed to get the cable out and refit a new sleeve and cables. But I'm still having trouble getting my front derailier set up (with regard to height, cable tension and angle).
So, how many of you guys struggle like me? Do people go to a mechanic when these problems take place of have a go DIY style? How many of you people swear like I do, get covered in grease or become frustrated by mechanics?

darkboong

That was the most difficult bit of the bike-setup for me too, but I'm running a Racing-T on the front of a custom-built frame. I found that just reading the instructions and then tweaking the result over a couple of weeks was the best way forward.



The only jobs I go to mechanics for are wheel building/truing. Bikes are still just about end-user fixable which is a nice thing.

Carrera

For me, it's been a long hard slog. My first bike was an old, heavy Raleigh designed to get me to work and back. As I was nearing work one night, I got a puncture and my spirits sank as I heard the hiss. I walked the rest of the way and then set to taking the wheel off with a spanner (no quick-release leavers on that model).
Somehow I managed to repair the puncture but could I figure out how to put the wheel back on No way Jose!
I cursed and cussed, got covered in oil and I couldn't figure it out. It took me 2 solid hours to figure out how to pull the derailer back and push the wheel into place. I was exhausted after so much effort.
Slowly I have improved and own 2 decent racing bikes. I can fix punctures, change a cassette, fit pedals, change brake pads and (finally fit gear-shifter and brake cables). The hardest point I'm at though is the front derailier since, so far, I can't get the adjustment right.
It's been a long and winding road to competency but I'm improving.

Carrera

Any ladies out there who may be reading this thread....
I wonder whether the girls also do O.K. with mechanical stuff? I don't want to get myself shot here (as a sexist pig (which I'm not ) but every time I watch Melrose Place, I can't imagine any of the ladies (such as Amanda) with a spanner in hand and a pump.
I don't know where it has been dictated but somehow it's always been the guys who set to work with spanners, while the ladies simply have their hubbies do mechanical work on their bikes.
I asked a female friend who lives in L.A. and she said:
"Well, if my bike breaks down I just have my hubby fix it and that's the end of the matter!"
But I'm sure there must be ladies on this forum who can fix punctures, fit cables and wield spanners. But do they find it as hard as I do?

adapa

I try really hard to get my husband to do it but he's taken to refusing these days. Mostly due to the fact I use to work as a stage hand & was (still am shh...) good with tools. And you guys have to admite, if your GF/wife was a good mechanic you'd do the same.

On the other hand, I don't see how a person can ride a bike alone without learning how to fix a flat tire or use a pump.

Carrera

The funniest thing I ever saw was a lady stroll into the cycle shop carrying a bike, the tyre of which was pancake flat. She offered the mechanic money to put air in the tyre
If I had a girlfriend who was mechanical, I'd just let her do all the repairs and enjoy a less stressful life. I spent the entire day today with no food at all, due to changing cables and trying to get my gears lined up. When I work had I don't eat.
In the end, I managed to change all the cables and fit one or two components but I couldn't get the gears lined up right. I had to find a mechanic who did it for me.

spacefuzz

I try to do all my own repairs, sometimes i see a mechanic for wheel truing. I started by taking apart a $5 bike from good will and figuring out how it all fits together. now i dont feel so nervous working on my racing bike.

Carrera

With me it's nostalgia. My very first Carrera bike came cheap second hand but I've been working on it all day. I want to keep that bike in good shape as it was my first proper road bike.
I have another far better bike I take out on sunny days but the old Carrera has seen me through wind, rain and sleet, as well as getting me to work and back.
So today, I greased my cable sleeves, refitted brake and gear cables and added a new cable-tightener.
No way could I get the front derailier right, though, and even the mechanic found it a bit tough initially.
Today I was looking at a 10,000 dollar road bike someone had - incomparable to my training bike. But, like I say, some of it's nostalgia.

p38lightning

You might want to look at some of conniebiker's postings. She has formidable knowledge of bike maintenance, and bike products and parts, and is I think also an aircraft maintenance technician.