First 100 Bicycle Repairs: What I Learned
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 12 มิ.ย. 2024
- Find us at gograva.com
Hey everyone! Aaron here from Go Grava. After repairing 100 bicycles in just two and a half months at the Go Grava shop, I've learned some valuable lessons. Whether you're a seasoned mechanic or just starting out, these insights might surprise you. From the unexpected amount of tooling required to the challenges with over-torqued parts and the joys of customizing BMX bikes, there's a lot to share. Plus, I'll dive into the issues with Walmart bikes, the complexities of e-bikes, and much more. Join me as I recount the top things I've learned from this bike repair journey. Don't forget to check out our online store for all your biking needs!
#BikeRepair #GoGravis #BikeMechanic #CyclingTips #BMX #EBikes #BikeShop #DIYBicycle #BicycleMaintenance #CyclingLife
Great observations well presented dude. Keep up your good work. Greetings Copenhagen.
Thank you!
Thanks for doing these. As someone that would love to open a shop one day it's very helpful.
It’s excited and terrifying at the same time. I’ll do another video on marketing because it has been extremely important
I think you're conflating torque specs vs seized bolts & nuts. They may have been torqued correctly originally, but without grease, some rust, and a few years later, it takes a lot more effort to losen.
True
I'm sure that is a significant part or even most of the reason but atleast i haven't met a cyclist that even uses a torque wrench for stuff rather than the classic "twist it untill it feels like an eight of a turn will break the bolt". Except for one or two who were mechanics of some sort allready.
@@ThePassiton it depends. With aluminum nuts/bolts and carbon fiber torque wrenches are pretty much required. With old school bikes or BMX - which isn't carbon torque wrenches aren't really necessary but modern lightweight/carbon road/gravel/MTB/cyclocross... torque wrenches are pretty much required. I've wrenched bikes for 22 years and I wouldn't trust myself to estimate proper torque for a carbon everything road bike without a torque wrench. I've seen plenty of failed carbon stuff which was obviously overtightened. That said you just might have that special magic but I wouldn't trust my own bikes (or recommend a mechanic to a friend) who didn't make extensive use of a torque wrench. Most bike mechanics with a few years of experience will agree. Bikes are relatively simple but surprisingly easy to do crappy wrenching on. In fact about 40% of my actual time spent wrenching (not cleaning, answering phones, talking to customers, writing up repair tickets, cleaning bikes... but turning wrenches was redoing someone else's bad repairs or doing something which should have been done before the bike made it onto the sales floor such as adjusting headsets or hub cones. This applies to both amateur as well as other "professional" mechanics.
@@mikekrasovec6390 oh yeah i definetely agree with you that especially with carbon but other materials aswell you should always use a torque wrench and look at the specs. To be fair most of my experience is in circles where the average bike doesn't cost over 400€ so people are more rough with them :D but still seen plenty of people just tighten everything as tight as humanly possible even on more expensive bikes.
Nice to see a fresh view on the job. Have you got a lot of people asking to borrow tools to do it them selves outside your shop? We seem to get plenty in our city center shop and very few in the suburbs one.
No, I haven't had any requests to borrow tools. I'm not really in a position to loan out tools yet. Not enough backup tools since I just started.
Excellent points. Hope it goes really well to reach 10k+ bikes as you pursue your dream. Wish you were a bit closer than 3k miles to me. You've got the skills, but more importantly the passion for bikes and bike craft.
Thank you! I am enjoying this journey.
If I were you, I would be very particular on what bicycles and which Evil-peds that I agree to repair.
Better to disappoint a customer before you become obligated yourself by touching their junk bicycle.
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Intresting insight video. Torque specs for a reason. If you are doing what you love, it never becomes a job, it's a passion at that point. That's the reason I'm still working on airplanes. Another will be that your toolbox is always too small 😂 Bmx is just simple. I miss my 90 GT Pro Performer.
My toolbox may never be big enough. 😂
Glad I could contribute to the content for this video. 😅
@@tcslonaker177 your bolt was enjoyable because it came out fairly quickly.
I wouldn't dream of taking my diy frankenstiens monster of a 60mph ebike to a bike shop lol I built it so I'll fix it
Everything is over torqued, except quill stems (aka, goose necks).
Ughhhhh its funny you mention "real ebikes" then list manufacturers that don't regularly build or sell class 3 bikes. The elitism in the bike industry/scene is bewildering; the large spike in people buying cheap fat tire bikes to get around suburbia is because the cost of owning a car is so high. I have less sympathy for Surron type bikes due to the lack of pedals and the large pricetag but even then I don't think banning them or saying they shouldn't be road legal is a good idea.
Do you live in suburbia? Is your area car-centric? How many people in your bike shop commute by bike? If you experience these variables you quickly understand why so many people want to ride an emoped style of bike. I think this is a huge opportunity because all of the benefits surrounding ebikes easily transfer over to these style of vehicles. I just wish people who are in the scene would be more accepting of the new, interesting and USEFUL bikes that are coming out.
I’m not discounting all e-bikes. The problem I see is my ability to support all the different variations of e-bikes. I had a customer come in today and the e-bike or e-moped was amazing. It’s using all bicycle parts and I can fix it. 75% of the other e-bikes that come in are very difficult or impossible to get parts for. Making an e-bike is one thing, having the supply chain to allow me to fix them is the real obstacle. Also, the law states that anything going over 28mph needs a license plate. Many of these e-bikes I see from Amazon go over 28 mph. The companies are not following the law and just dumping e-bikes in the USA. Next, I have people wanting me to take their old batteries. My insurance won’t allow it. Lastly, a lot of these e-bikes don’t have UL certification, so it’s another risk I take with my insurance company if the battery catches fire. My insurance won’t cover me. I am pro e-bike, it’s just the wild Wild West right now.