Basic Maintenance Guide For Your MTB

Do it yourself. A good cleaning, adjustment, and greasing newspapers will make your MTB last much longer and with better. The time has come to put on your work gloves and start with this basic maintenance guide. At MTBpro, we know that the importance of the professional mechanic is essential for our MTB to always function as the first day. The mechanic of our trusted store is basic to repair everything that we cannot carry out. But if the mechanic takes care of almost everything so that you go out to enjoy the bike without worries, there are a few very simple maintenance and repair tips that will help you, on the one hand, your MTB has a better performance and that, on the other hand, do not stay on the mountain at the first change.

It Is Not Necessary To Be A Handyman To Perform Basic Maintenance Of Your MTB

Besides, good maintenance ensures more exceptional durability of each of the components of your bike. And these are not exactly cheap. In this essential guide that we offer below, we give you some fundamental tips on how to maintain some of the most important points of your bike without having to have very specific tools and with the premise that cleaning and good greasing are keys to a Better overall performance of your MTB. With the basic tools, a degreaser, quality oil, and a hose, you will have it done. Do we start.

The Basic Tools For Proper Maintenance

The first thing is to have a small toolkit. It will not be worth anything to buy low-quality tools. You will buy it twice. So clear. If you buy a wrong tool, it may ruin any of the screws or other parts of your bike, and you know that many of them are not exactly cheap. It is imperative that you gradually gather an excellent tool kit to have at home and do the maintenance in the best possible way and, on the other hand, another kit that you can take with you at your exits.

1. For Proper Maintenance, Avoid Wrong Or Inappropriate Tools, The Result Can Not Be Good

In this sense, from MTBpro, we encourage you to include in your “budget” for your MTB from time to time some tool in your shopping cart. The essential tools are an Allen wrench set, a cable cutter, two screwdrivers (one flat and one star), a T25 Torx wrench and a torque wrench with interchangeable adjustment and measurements. These are the most basic. Over time you can get more specific ones such as the bottom bracket or a bearing extractor.

2. The Cables And Covers Of The Change, The Critical Elements Of The Maintenance Of The Transmission Of Your MTB

One of the most basic tasks for the communication of your bike to work correctly. Very economical whether you do it in a workshop or if you do it at home. If you live in an area with a lot of mud and water accumulation, it is recommended that you do this task at least twice a year, or more if you notice that the cable friction is increasing. Today and because most of the mid-high-end models come with a single plate, you will only have to change the cable and the case of the rear derailleur. If you have the limit screws adequately adjusted on the rear derailleur (H for the small sprocket and L for the large sprocket), it is as simple as cutting the covers to the same size, changing the cable and cleaning and greasing the friction points of the same. With the adjustment of the tension of the buttons and change, you can fine-tune the change of speeds. If your frame is internally guided and does not go with full cover privately, it may take time to insert the new cable. An easel to hold the bike in different positions can help you a lot, as well as using the old cable as a guide to introduce the new one.

3. Good Transmission Cleaning Is Essential For Proper Maintenance

Ideally, the transmission should be cleaned after each departure, that is, plates, cassette, rear derailleur (especially the rollers or casters), and your bike chain. The oil dirt and accumulation of particles such as sand, cause the wear of all the components thereof is accelerated significantly. We recommend applying degreaser, wait a few minutes, and clean with hot water and a brush so that all traces of dirt and oil are gone. If you have pressurized air, it can help you a lot to eliminate, especially the remains of sand in the links of the chain. With a rag, you can finish the cleaning (remember to clean also between the sprockets of the cassette). Once everything is clean and dry, apply oil on the chain (a drop at each turning point of each link), run the chain through all speeds and wipe off the excess fat with a clean cloth. It is better to use a lubricant for dry climates of low density and apply it more often, than a very dense rain that accumulates more dirt. The degreaser and oil must be specific to bicycles and of good quality. Above all, do not apply layers and layers of oil on the chain without having cleaned it before. On the other hand, check the stretching of the chain from time to time with a specific tool (digital or manual), to assess when you should change it. It not only depends on the kilometers you do but on the conditions of the area you are pedaling, the optimal lubrication, and the transmission system you have. In 1X systems, the chain is spent faster than in double or triple plate systems.

4. Check And Keep The Screws Tight

Very easy and fast, checking and tightening your bike’s screws can avoid more than one problem. With a torque or torque wrench that indicates the tightening torque (today there are many very economical models), you can check the tightening torque of both the components and the pivot points and the through axes of your swingarm in the case of an MTB double suspension. There are also factory preset wrenches with tightening torque 4-5Nm that are very common for handlebars and powers that are economical, small, and very useful. It is essential, above all, to check the power and handlebars, the connecting rod bolts, pivot points, change pin, and wheel axles if they are not lever-type closures. It is something you can do before each departure, and it will take you a couple of minutes.