The following checklist has all the necessary bike maintenance items and also the recommended maintenance frequency that is designed to give a recreational cyclist or commuter an outlined care and maintenance schedule for their bikes.
Before every ride:
- Check tire air pressure: Make sure the pressure is at the recommended levels.
- Check brakes and cables: Ensure there are no faulty cables. The braking system should be checked if working properly.
- Be sure your crankset is tight: A crankset means great speeds, more efficiency, and a comfortable ride.
- Be sure quick release hubs are tight: This is important if you want to avoid any forms of hub misgiving and also accidents.
After Every Ride:
- Inspect tires: Look for glass, gravel shards, and cuts on the tread and also the sidewall.
- Check brakes: Make sure the brakes aren’t faulty, there are no loose nuts, and that their response time is on point.
- Clean the bike: It is important to clean and maintain mechanical parts. The recommended timeline is once a week or after every 200 miles.
- Lubricate chain: A smooth ride that won’t give you so much strain lies on lubricating the bikes movable parts and more importantly the chain.
Once a Month:
- Completely clean the bike
- Clean the drivetrain if necessary
- Inspect chain and freewheel
- Measure the chain for wear and check for tight links (replace the chain if necessary).
- Inspect and lubricate brake levers, derailleurs, and all cables
- Inspect pedals and lubricate SPD style cleats.
- Inspect tires for wear and replace if needed
- Make sure that the following parts are tight. Tighten any loose parts:
- Stem binder bolt
- Handlebar binder bolt,
- Seatpost binder bolt,
- Seat fixing bolt,
- Crank bolts,
- Chainring bolts,
- Derailleur mounting bolts,
- Bottle cage bolts,
- Rack mounting bolts,
- Brake and derailleur cable anchors,
- Brake and shifter lever mounting bolts, Brake mounting bolts.
Every three months:
Inspect frame and fork: You should look out for paint cracks or bulges. These might indicate damage. Also, pay particular attention to frame joints.
Inspect for bent components: Take a close look at the seat rails, handlebars, chainrings, seat post, stem, brake calipers, crankarms, and brake levers.
Every Six Months:
Inspect and readjust bearings: Take a look at the bearings in the headset, hubs, pedals, and also the bottom bracket and adjust or replace what is necessary.
Annually:
Do an overhaul: Disassemble and replace all bearings (if possible) and remove / if necessary replace brake and shift cables.
The maintenance schedule of any bike depends on how often it’s used and what condition it’s in. Constantly used bikes and off-road bikes will require more servicing.