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I am looking for a bike mechanic who is willing to teach me some rather in-depth bike maintenance.
The project:
I have a long wheelbase recumbent. After 5000 miles of riding, I started to feel a lot of resistance in the drive system, so I decided to try taking it apart. I have gotten it mostly dismantled, but I keep running into hurdles that I cannot get around and parts that will not come apart but are supposed to.
What I am needing is somebody who can teach, help me get around the hurdles, and help me evaluate the components to figure out which ones are worn out and which are together.
I'm willing to pay you for you time, and we can make arrangements as to when to meet. My ideal would be next Sunday starting midmorning, but the bike has been dismantled for months and I can go a bit longer with it in pieces.
I'm near the Mopac and William Cannon intersection. Bike accessible if you can brave Brodie or William Cannon (which I do regularly), but on the fringe of the city.
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I don't know that I'm really qualified to teach bike repair, or that I really even have time, but I live close and can loan you a book or two on bicycle repair and might be able to spend a little time helping. It would probably have been easier to start with an assembled bike, but I can't imagine it would take too long to figure out why the drive train was dragging (there's just not that many things to check -- hub, derailers, chain, bottom bracket -- that's about it. I guess on a recumbent you've also got to make sure the chain is routed properly, but that's easy too. Based solely on your description, hubs sound like the most likely culprit.)
None of the books specifically cover recumbents, but the differences seem to be pretty minor from a bike mechanic point of view. (I've got some recumbents too.)
In general, I've found that not being able to get parts apart often means I don't have the right tools. If you don't have much in the way of tools, I'd suggest buying this -- I've got it and have found it to be quite useful. It doesn't have everything, and doesn't always have the highest quality stuff (for example, I've found the pedal wrench to be inadequate, so I bought the big honking Park tool pedal wrench for $25 or so, well worth it), but it's got most of what you need and has saved me a lot of time looking for the right tool. The sale price listed right now ($110) is pretty close to the cheapest I've ever seen it as well (the price fluctuates considerably), and if you buy it on a Tuesday from 12-2 they knock another 10% off.
That said, most of the bike usually doesn't need to be taken apart to fix something.
Yellow Bike is indeed a good suggestion, a great suggestion, but you'll need to bring the bike (or at least the relevant parts) up there if you want somebody to help you with it. If you volunteer there, you will most certainly learn how to fix bikes along the way -- that's probably the best way to do it if you've got the time and a way to get there (it's on the other side of town.)
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I think Doug is giving you some of the best advice out there on your mechanics issue.
Try working it out and learning along the way, either with him or @ YBP (although you have to drive your recumbent across town to do so).
If you are stuck and just want your recumbent fixed and rolling a.s.a.p., please contact me via forum or email, bubmurf at me.com
I have a friend who is an outstanding bike mechanic and former bike shop owner who lives incredibly close to you from your description. He is just west of Brodie/east of MoPac, between Slaughter and William Cannon. He has much experience in most areas of the bicycle world, including recumbents, and has access to any parts or ordering system you might need.
I also agree with Doug that it is just an issue of having the specific tool for the job. I like using Park Tools website to find out the procedure and tools needed. Then go buy the tool at your Local Bike Store, having them order it for you if needed. Then you build up your knowledge base, skills, and your tools in order to tackle future mechanical issues.
Last edited by AusTexMurf (2013-03-18 09:45:54)
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And, Also.......
Yellow Bike Project is a very fun ride from your neck of the woods.
Old Paisano Trail or Harpers Ferry through Longview Park to Matthews Rd
Woodhue to Emerald Forest to Bannister to Garden Villa/S 5th to Lamar pedestrian bridge to Veloway to downtown
4th St to 5th St to Pedernales to Tillery to Webberville to YBP.
Volunteer or pre-planned upgrades to your bike.
Very Nice Ride through some of the best cycling zones in our city, IMHO.
One route to get there, although there are many options once you are on the east side including rosewood ave, rosewood park, and boggy creek trail.
18.28 mi Yellow Bike Project
Distance: 18.28 mi
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/183247532
Last edited by AusTexMurf (2013-03-20 14:12:12)
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