Tires, tubes and brake pads are just part of the running costs for any bike and shouldn't really factor into the "is it worth fixing" question - any bike used as intended will need those things doing after long enough. To my mind it's absolutely worth keeping a bike like this running, after all - it's good enough for who it's for.
Exactly. I'd guess most people get a new bike if they want something different or new. If the person likes their bike, then needing a tuneup, tires and tubes is obviously not a reason to just replace it with some other used bike.
@@robatkins6432 Bikes should be for everyone - the more the merrier regardless of technical ability. Roads would become safer and people would get fitter. Win-Win.🥳
I think it is hard to find another bike for only 50-100 euro more then fixing this up, which is worth that investment. Meaning, it has better upgradability then this bike.
If it feels safer then it is safer. If you don't like it anymore and want something different, go ahead finding another one. Besides that, if it's easily fixable and you like it as it is, why get a new one, what's the motivation?
Andy, I just want you to know, you are such a blessing to me! Your content has given me so much stress relief and encouragement. I've been commuting to work by bike for about a month now. I have a gen-1 Schwinn Boundary 29er. It is what it is, a big-box bike. And it definitely shows. BUT...because of what I've learned watching you, and the inspiration you've given me, I actually have rebuilt almost the entire thing. I've changed my bottom bracket, completely reworked and tuned up my derailleurs and brakes. I've replaced my tires and more. You are such a God-sent man. I'm a teacher and pastor of a small country church in rural Louisiana, husband of 10 years and father of a little girl. Your videos are such a relaxing relief for me. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate you! Please keep on keepin' on dude, you're awesome!!
I can totally understand your customer that wanted to keep that bike. That's a really cool looking frame, the geometry, the color, it's absolutely beautiful. I would want that bike.
i have 3 $10k bikes. but i also have a super old giant mtb that looks very similar to this one in the vid. and i will never get rid of it. too many great memories on it.
My bike is my mechanical friend. It's been with me on many rides, thousands of miles, through thick and thin. Tossing it one day for something newer will never happen.
Hey man, Thanks for the videos! I'm a fancy bike guy, but have learned a lot about fixing bikes from your video! this is the least I can do for all the money you have saved me from having to take my bike to the "corporate" bike shops!! for example they charged me $125 to remove a BB from an old hybrid bike. That and the fact that its an 1:30 drive to the nearest bike shop, it just makes sense to learn how to DIY. BIKE FARMER IS AWESOME!!!
Bought that exact same bike for 25 at a yard sale. Threw some new tures and a tune up. Rode amazingly well. Gave it to a friend from church. I see it being worth it.
Definitely worth a "repair". Although new tyres, tubes, brake pads, and a general service doesn't really sound like a repair to me. Just some running costs. Ps, your daughter's top with the lighthouse on it looked really cool. Bike geek and lighthouse geek typing this comment!
Been sober for a few years. Struggled back and forth for the last 30. I can say that cycling and keeping a tuned bike has helped enormously. I enjoy your videos so much. Thinking of super thanks, wife just lost job. If she found out, might be a little brew-ha-ha.
I think that’s the beauty of owning a bicycle. Bringing back one of your favorite rides only cost $200 to get back in working order? I knew friends in college who would spend more than that on weekend drinks at the club for a girl whose number always seemed to be incorrectly written. My winter bike is a target special Schwinn Loop. But I love how it rides and have tons of miles on it. I do most of the work myself, but have been working tons of hours these last few years. There’s a really cool bike shop in Brooklyn called harvest cyclery that’s staffed by guys you could grab a beer with and do really good work. From an economical standpoint it’s a horrible idea, but from a “hey this is only $200 bucks to get my bike up and running again and it’ll run like new again for thousands of miles as long as I make sure to keep the engine topped off with coffee?”. Easy choice, plus any profit they make is going towards cool guys keeping people’s bikes on the road. As somebody who puts thousands of miles on his bike per year, does that sand paper stuff cut into the life of the rim, or it really doesn’t matter and helps for improved braking? Also, well worth $200 bucks to have my bike made into a video on TH-cam. That alone is worth it lol
@@billincolumbia I’ve twice had rims fail because the pads ate through the wall of the rim. There’s plenty of sand and grit to get picked up and onto your rims on any road, especially if you ride in the rain.
I agree. I would take any chromoly framed bike from the early 90s over just about any new bike offered in the last 15 years. Then, find a cheap, low mileage "donor bike" somewhere that has nicer parts and do a swap-over...and voila, you have a bike that's far better than 90% of the craptastic offerings you see today.
I have the giant Inova cross almost the same bike but from about 1991, I just keep putting money in to it and it keeps getting better, it's now got dropbars, sora brifters, a mtb wheelset, and a 1x8 drive train with 40 upfront and 11-40 on the rear, with 32 road tyre's, fender and rack it's the most amazing bike ever. Oh and the purple color is amazing.
Sounds like a nice bike. You made a gravel bike before they were invented :). I did a similar thing with a Jamis MTB in the early 90’s, put cinelli drop bars on it, a 2x stronglight crank, toe clips and straps, and 1.5” specialized nimbus slicks.
I'm late to watching this and to read the comments, but I'm impressed with the near unanimous agreement on fixing it. That says a lot about the future for your local bike shop, and says a lot about peoples' shift in being careful with your money, and careful with your nostalgia and devotion.
I've been fixing and upgrading my old hybrid for 30 years. It's almost a decent bike now. I'm sure I've spent enough to buy two really good bikes, but it's a good fit and as simple as they get. (because v-brakes AND, a shiny metal Dork Disk.)
I shouldn't be watching this on my day off. But there's something really chill about seeing fixes happen without actually doing them yourself. The most straightforward content is always the best
I was in the bicycle industry from fourteen until my thirties when i needed more money snd benefits for my young family. Your channel lets me relive that part of my life from long ago. Thank you.
Especially over a pair of tires and brake pads. I see the monetary aspect, but getting rid of a whole bike over that just seems kind of wasteful to me.
I buy motorcycles and cars with 0 intention of getting rid of it. Vehicles have sort of soul. Surely youve seen someone give their dash a belly rub for climbing a mountain, shielding you from the store. Absolutely no way I would do tires without tubes, rim inspection. Repurpose, recycle, re use.
It does and old wrench twister's heart good to see you take the time to line up the tire label with the stem hole on the rims! For me, that was a sign that the mechanic who had did so cared about their work and made an effort. Good video and keep them coming! Love those snappy brakes!
I love "dork discs", esp the aluminum ones that you used to see on 70s-80s road bikes. They looked so great on those old bikes, and they should come back.
When I got in to riding again in adulthood I spent way too much (over £1000) upgrading an old clapped out old road bike which only cost £170. Sure it's a massive waste of money especially when you aren't rolling in dough but when you like a bike the value of it is higher to me than it will ever be to anyone else so why not give it a nice snazzy new paint job and components and show it some love. I will never get my money back and I'll never sell it either. But it makes me happy. Sometimes we do irrational things. When you have something you love rationale goes out the window. Damn best Raleigh airlite you're ever gunna see tho 😄
I kept the dork disk on my 80’s Tempo. Put the chain hard into it. With a fair amount of grunting and groaning, I was able to get back rolling and had no damage to the spokes. I’m a believer…
Been using dork discs for years. Decided to take it off my new 12 Speed Xt Epic to save a few grams. Sure enough I laid the bike down slightly bending the derailleur hangar. Next thing I know I'm shifting into the spokes😂 Luckily caught it before it did too much damage.
I have a similar set up on an old Roland Packsaddle CX. Those GS100 shifters weren't to difficult to rebuild. I lucked out and they had no broken or extremely worn parts in them, just gummed up. If I can get a couple of years out of it, I'll be happy. Appreciate the vid.
Pro tip on wheel adjusting, I always, before doing any adjusting, pluck all the spokes to hear the tension and adjust any that are over tight or under tight to get them to sound all the same, then adjust from there. The reason is often you will find a super loose or super tight spoke, the loose is from years of neglect, the tight is from some dork not knowing what they are doing and messing with it. Just an FYI from one old wrench to younger one.
The funny thing to me about golf is what my late mom used to say. She called golf clubs "idiot sticks" and would say "hit the ball a mile and fetch it " 😅.
Yes, but you aren't paying for your own labor. Bike shops in his area get $90/hr for labor. I don't know if they charge in 1 hr minimums, or maybe 30min blocks. But that gives you some idea why taking the shortcut gives the majority of the benefit for zero additional cost to the customer.
Yes very good idea. If grit or water have worked their way into your bearings, you definitely want to get that out. Just shooting new grease on top of it doesn’t do it.
sometimes a bike has sentimental memories that you just don't want to loose....It is possible to develop a relationship with a machine...just ask Han Solo.
In Italy I can buy two kenda tires for 25€ including tubes, and two sets of jagwire pads for 8. Of course there are more expensive tires and tubes out there but there is also plenty of choice of budget tires that would be good enough for a commuter bike. The prices mentioned in this video probably refer to mid-range products that would better fit a more expensive bike or an entry level road bike.
Brings back memories when I used to work assembling bikes for a major high street retailer… the more expensive bikes were a doddle as they’d been built by people who put effort into every component.. the cheapest ones were a nightmare to setup as everything was just thrown into the box. That being said, it make us all experience bike techs as we soon learnt all the tricks to get pretty much anything sorted and fit for the road. Often surprises people how much work can go into setting up/servicing a bike.
Dude you and your wife getting into old trucker movies is funny as heck because i'm a millennial and find those movies fascinating and hilarious. 10-4, this is the rubber duck. Such classics.
Not sure if you will see this. But I recently purchased my first bike so I can start riding with me 10 year old daughter. Came across your videos and love them man! You seem like a laid bike and cool guy and love the content! Btw, first bike, trek fx1 gen 3. Opted for disk brake because was all that was readily available.
That video and its companion were one the first bicycle videos I watched when I started getting back into bicycling. I still continue watching. One of my first bikes was an eggplant-colored Giant that I bought in a university town. I loved it and rode it for years. Then one day it was stolen...from my patio that was right by that same campus.
Dude really is the Bob Ross of bike repair. No one gave a shit about painting, Bob Ross come along and everyone is painting in their living rooms. No one fixes their bikes. Now, here I am fixing a barbie tricycle thinking I'm the fucking Bike Farmer! Convinced you can make videos about tea kettles and I'd probably watch.
90s steel hybrids like this make great all purpose bikes.. I have an old Trek Multitrack that I picked up used for $75.. I put a Brooks saddle on it and Nitto Bullhorn bars in it is very nice to ride around town. 700c are much netter than 26 inch wheels. Plan to make upgrades once the parts need it.
Coors Beer has been around for quite a long time but not all over the country. We took a trip in 1968 to Colorado and Wyoming and my Father drank Coors Beer and he enjoyed it. Back Home it was Miller High Life. Nice Job on the bike. I can't really speak to road bikes but the new mountain bikes are far better than they were 25 to 30 years ago. Thank You!
I have just got back to riding my approx 15 year old bike, mainly for some exercise, air and mentally it helps lots 🙂I have contemplated buying myself a new bike but looked at it and it really is serving the purpose I need it for at the moment. It had been sat in a garage for most of it's life and should have been perfect, but I soon realised it had been a bit abused by my partners brother who 'borrowed' it. Needless to say, I had to do a fair bit of work to sort it out. What makes me most happy is that I have been watching your videos since and can see that I did most things right! Now off to adjust my gears a bit more, although I think I am up against a wobbly freehub/wheelhub. I took apart and regreased/adjusted the hub but it wasn't a whole lot better and wobbles a bit when not pedalling. But anyway... i works for now!
Love that eventhough you didn’t agree, you still fixed up your customers ride. Also…cantilever brakes. A new level of hell is working on Diacompe cantilever brakes…such a pain in the butt, but work great once dialed in.
Funny, I have the opposite experience. I love the cantis on my Kona (Avid shorties). Just as strong as discs when dry. Whereas I hate so called v brakes with a passion, struggle for a half hour to get them adjusted, and tomorrow they’re already out of adjustment again.
@@PRH123 I like the cnc made v brakes sold for folding bikes. The springs are internal and have good bushings, and long slots for brake adjustment. A lot of bikes can take 700c x35 tires for a 26in frame. With 26 or 650b they have super power and work with cheap v levers
@@PRH123 try changing the pin hole used for the brake bushing springs, so they are harder to compress. This makes them release the wheel easier and makes fine adjustments easier. Make sure nothing is in the way of the last run of cable. Clamp the brake with the lever to hold the pads to wheel, snug the pad nuts a little, hold the pad with a small crescent and tighten the nut to final torque. A piece of old business card or guitar pick under last cm of pads gives easy toe-in adjustments when setting up the pads.
@@ThisTimeTheWorld sure, did all that stuff, still a pain in the a, and still have to repeat it again in a couple of days Found the best solution for me, just don’t have any bikes with v brakes :)
As a business, you have to look at it monetarily. But the customer does. Maybe it has sentimental value, or they just like the bike, or they're trying to be eco friendly. I ride a 25 year old Trek 930 and for as long as it is repairable, it's getting fixed. I love how it feels, how it rides, and the conversations it starts up with old school mountain bikers.
I have an old Trek 4300 . Bought it new in 2012 . I have road the crap out of it . Got a ton of miles . I’ve but more money into reinventing it over the last two years than I paid for it . Early next year I will be reinventing it again the front shock I guess what they call it froze up years ago. I’m gonna replace the front fork new seat maybe some gravel tires after winter here . I have other bikes I just like this bike it’s my go to bike when I’m just running around or a quick peddle . Anyhow probably just stupid rider . Congrats on being sober . ❤ keep up tthe great content love the chat. How about an update on the golf e-bike .
Just wanted to say thank you for your videos! I’ve used a lot of your advice to get my Trek Elance 400D in some great running order and it’s been a lot of fun. Always will come back for the Bob Ross of bikes vibe as well!
I just love to listen to you explaining what you are doing and how it feels like and what u r thinking. Because as i am repairing bikes myself since the90s I do feel you when you are speaking. And i like you humor too. greetings from germany
I did the tire massage thing, too. Until I discovered it's much quicker to inflate the new tire to about 1bar and let the shell bump on the ground while rotating. Does a great job of evenly aligning the the tire along the rim and is way more fun and less exhausting. ;-)
The way we always did it was to stand over the wheel, push down on it hard onto the floor, while squeezing the tire with both hands, and repeating like 5 times as you work your way around the rim for one rotation.
The frame is sweet, no way would i sell that for $40 are you kidding??? Red bike is great for urban areas, it just looks great in that setting and its semi-hi vis for traffic. Matching stem too!! They don't make them like that any more, wow! Steel is real, its our duty to keep them going!
We have glacial drumlins here in County Down, Northern Ireland. You get free interval training… blast uphill, recover downhill and practice your descending skill, rinse and repeat until you are well and truly cooked.
@bkefrmr what kind of flooring are you working on? Looks like carpet, but I was wondering since you often spray lubes, cleaners and degreasers. Thanks for the reassurance of enjoying just simple bicycling.
@Bikefarmer I’m also 14 years sober. I served under a different era in our USAF POL and it bit me later in life when I became a DOD contractor/reservist. (I also live in N.E. Italy 🇮🇹 and am blessed with beautiful Italian roads like the ones you rode on this summer!!)
I had an ‘83 diamond back trail streak. Lived on it. Used it to see my kids when broke, rebuilt it to bulletproof commuter with hard mtb and 14 x spoking to survive 14” curbs in LA commute. It had to never fail. Never. There were wonderful things about that bike: hapless crown, lax frame, the ability to take damn near any wheel you wanted, way high bottom bracket, bulletproof gear. I built the back wheel, swapped to randoneur bars ans a lot more. My son took it to college. Still has it You never know what people will love, or why. It’s enough to do what you do so others can,or they can honor what they’ve done. So hence you get a frankenbike the guy just looks like he loves and you work it, don’t feel like you need to explain it. We already know. It is not worth it. Still, it is. Best regards, Ed .
With my Surly's, I used to have a $300 bill every time I went In, mainly because I always insisted on a full bike inspection and replacement of any worn parts. That's probably not unreasonable seeing as they're new mid level bikes, however I also went for the same level of maintenance on my 81' Miyata 1000. I have since learned to do 90% of maintenance myself. I still won't service Air suspension forks myself though.
It is always worth it to me to put money into my old beaters. I like them, so it is worth it to me. That is the only value that matters. Theoretical market value is what average trades are going for, but the only real value is between the seller and the buyer. The more you actually care about what you have, the more market value doesn't mean a thing to you, personally.
So happy to have found your channel a couple of weeks ago. It's calming effects are working and the edu-tainment level is high! I've been exploring the archives and digging the new content, too.
I've had to do this same job on my bike (that I don't really even like riding). Replace both inner tubes and tires. It's the cheapest way to get the bike going... but I'd much rather just get a different bike... but it always comes down to the cost vs. benefits. In my case cost is cheaper... but I gotta do the work.
I use tube talc powder when working with tubes & tires. drop the tube in a large plastic bag & sprinkle a little talc powder and shake. like a dry lube the talc powder helps the wheel assembly and sometimes the talc powder helps new tires that stick in the rim resulting in non-concentric low spots while inflating .
That's why you do this kind of simple maintenance yourself unless you don't care about the cost. People like their bikes, maybe it was a gift? It's fun to watch your old bike come back to life.
Hello Bike Farmer. In my old age I am using tubless tyres now that I have started biking again. In the 70s I remember finding bubbles in my older tubes. They used to bubble out in places and over time it would damage the tyres and the steel ring would separate from the tyres. Have tubes improved to the point where they dont bubble so one can use older tubes? Or were my tubes so old that they were useless anyway? Mark
Replacing the pads on cantilever brakes involves a lot of jiggery-pokery, but I figured out a way to do it conveniently and repeatably. 1. Make a note of how the pad bracket parts go together. Remove and discard the old pads, clean and lubricate the remaining parts as appropriate. 2. Back out the barrel adjusters on the brake handles as far as they will go. If they come completely unscrewed, thread them back in one turn. 3. Loosen the cable clamp on the cantilever that has the clamp, and adjust the cable so that the lower part of the cantilever arms are parallel, and tighten the cable. 4. Use the spring adjusting screw on the other cantilever to center the brakes so the cantilevers point straight up. 5. Assemble the pad brackets with the new pads. If the pad has an arrow, point the arrow to the front of the bike. 6. Hold the pad flat against the rim. Make sure the pad is centered up and down on the rim, and is parallel to the rim. 7. Optionally, insert a folded business card or small piece of plastic between the front of the pad and the rim, to give it a rake to prevent brake squeal. Note: some pads have a bump or a flange on the front, so you don't have to do this manually. 8. Once the pad is adjusted optimally, use your hex tool and a wrench to tighten the pad bracket. 9. When all the pads are securely tightened, screw in the barrel adjusters in until you have about 2 to 3 mm of gap between the pads and the wheel. 10 You're all done, without the trial and error and gnashing of teeth. Give the wheel a spin. If it's true, it should not drag on the brakes. Tweak the barrel adjusters for rider preference. I usually give the brake handle travel about 1/4 to 1/3 of the way to the handlebars.
I remember back in the 90s, my cousin gave me a Giant. I think it was a Nutra, but it may have been a Sedona...I gave it to a friend because I owned 2 Bianchi road bikes. I remember that Giant being a pretty good hybrid bike. I have a Shimano wheelset, the kind with the minimal spoke count. It has a dork disc, but it actually makes the rear wheel look real nice, because it's black. It doesn't turn yellow.
That's why I could never work on bikes for a living. If I was rejuvenating a 40+ year old bike, which may never have had its hubs cleaned out of old grease and debris, I would have to thoroughly clean AND THEN regrease the hubs. I would also have had to install a new, crystal clear spoke protector.
The shop I work at regularly has customers coming in wanting to put more money into their bike than it's worth - and we're talking box store bikes, not vintage steel. We like to talk to the customer about pros and cons of spending that much, maybe upsell them to one of our used bikes if it sounds like it fits their needs, but most folks like the bike they have and think it's worth investing in even if they'll never see a return on it beyond basic rideability. Anything that keeps a bike out of the scrapyard is worth it to me - usually!
Tires, tubes and brake pads are just part of the running costs for any bike and shouldn't really factor into the "is it worth fixing" question - any bike used as intended will need those things doing after long enough.
To my mind it's absolutely worth keeping a bike like this running, after all - it's good enough for who it's for.
For the owner, yes. For a shop trying to turn a profit, no. I would have fixed it too, but I'm not trying to make money, just cover my costs ;-)
Exactly. I'd guess most people get a new bike if they want something different or new. If the person likes their bike, then needing a tuneup, tires and tubes is obviously not a reason to just replace it with some other used bike.
Why wouldnt you just replace the tyres, tubes and brakes yourself. if u cant do that basic maintenance should you even own a bike? WOW!!
@@robatkins6432 Bikes should be for everyone - the more the merrier regardless of technical ability. Roads would become safer and people would get fitter. Win-Win.🥳
@@bigangus3590 I agree, but go watch a GCN vid on how to change a tyre or inner tube, my dad taught me at age 10....
Sometimes fixing an old familiar bike feels safer then a new used bike
I think it is hard to find another bike for only 50-100 euro more then fixing this up, which is worth that investment. Meaning, it has better upgradability then this bike.
$200 for a used bike or $350 for a used bike
The devil you know is better than the one you don’t.
If it feels safer then it is safer.
If you don't like it anymore and want something different, go ahead finding another one.
Besides that, if it's easily fixable and you like it as it is, why get a new one, what's the motivation?
A used bike from the bike farm.
I agree with the customer on this one. Once you finished, the bike was great again and the customer got his beloved bike back and saved $140.00.
Andy,
I just want you to know, you are such a blessing to me! Your content has given me so much stress relief and encouragement. I've been commuting to work by bike for about a month now. I have a gen-1 Schwinn Boundary 29er. It is what it is, a big-box bike. And it definitely shows. BUT...because of what I've learned watching you, and the inspiration you've given me, I actually have rebuilt almost the entire thing. I've changed my bottom bracket, completely reworked and tuned up my derailleurs and brakes. I've replaced my tires and more. You are such a God-sent man. I'm a teacher and pastor of a small country church in rural Louisiana, husband of 10 years and father of a little girl.
Your videos are such a relaxing relief for me. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate you! Please keep on keepin' on dude, you're awesome!!
I can totally understand your customer that wanted to keep that bike. That's a really cool looking frame, the geometry, the color, it's absolutely beautiful. I would want that bike.
i have 3 $10k bikes. but i also have a super old giant mtb that looks very similar to this one in the vid. and i will never get rid of it. too many great memories on it.
This channel has inspired me to start riding my old 1995 specialized rockhopper. Thanks for the channel.
Great bike!
I had a 2001. Was a fantastic bike, sold in good condition.
My bike is my mechanical friend. It's been with me on many rides, thousands of miles, through thick and thin. Tossing it one day for something newer will never happen.
This one's just for being funny, smart, and show-me-all at the same time. Trucks? Well, it's a culture. I'll buy that book too.
Thanks hey!!
Hey man, Thanks for the videos! I'm a fancy bike guy, but have learned a lot about fixing bikes from your video! this is the least I can do for all the money you have saved me from having to take my bike to the "corporate" bike shops!! for example they charged me $125 to remove a BB from an old hybrid bike. That and the fact that its an 1:30 drive to the nearest bike shop, it just makes sense to learn how to DIY. BIKE FARMER IS AWESOME!!!
Thanks hey!!
Bought that exact same bike for 25 at a yard sale. Threw some new tures and a tune up. Rode amazingly well. Gave it to a friend from church. I see it being worth it.
Thanks! Fun banter while I get a refresher on bicycle maintenance.
Thanks hey!!
Looking forward to reading the next book. I loved "Still True" (Jake having a truing stand was a nice touch)
Thanks hey! I’ll let Maggie know!
Thanks! Love your frank and candid talk about all things bike.
Thanks again, loved the video and love listening to your stories❤
Definitely worth a "repair". Although new tyres, tubes, brake pads, and a general service doesn't really sound like a repair to me. Just some running costs. Ps, your daughter's top with the lighthouse on it looked really cool. Bike geek and lighthouse geek typing this comment!
Been sober for a few years. Struggled back and forth for the last 30. I can say that cycling and keeping a tuned bike has helped enormously. I enjoy your videos so much. Thinking of super thanks, wife just lost job. If she found out, might be a little brew-ha-ha.
Congrats and one day at a time ❤
I think that’s the beauty of owning a bicycle. Bringing back one of your favorite rides only cost $200 to get back in working order? I knew friends in college who would spend more than that on weekend drinks at the club for a girl whose number always seemed to be incorrectly written. My winter bike is a target special Schwinn Loop. But I love how it rides and have tons of miles on it. I do most of the work myself, but have been working tons of hours these last few years. There’s a really cool bike shop in Brooklyn called harvest cyclery that’s staffed by guys you could grab a beer with and do really good work. From an economical standpoint it’s a horrible idea, but from a “hey this is only $200 bucks to get my bike up and running again and it’ll run like new again for thousands of miles as long as I make sure to keep the engine topped off with coffee?”. Easy choice, plus any profit they make is going towards cool guys keeping people’s bikes on the road.
As somebody who puts thousands of miles on his bike per year, does that sand paper stuff cut into the life of the rim, or it really doesn’t matter and helps for improved braking?
Also, well worth $200 bucks to have my bike made into a video on TH-cam. That alone is worth it lol
the sandpaper is going to shorten the life of the rim. but, most people won't ride enough miles to wear out a rim, even with the sanding.
You don't have to sand very much to de glaze rims. I do it to mine with a fine grit paper.
@@billincolumbia I’ve twice had rims fail because the pads ate through the wall of the rim. There’s plenty of sand and grit to get picked up and onto your rims on any road, especially if you ride in the rain.
@@PRH123 Yep! But you are not a typical BikeFarmer customer...
Giant from the 90s used great quality tange tubes. Even the low level bikes have some butted tubes. Good choice by the customer
I agree. I would take any chromoly framed bike from the early 90s over just about any new bike offered in the last 15 years. Then, find a cheap, low mileage "donor bike" somewhere that has nicer parts and do a swap-over...and voila, you have a bike that's far better than 90% of the craptastic offerings you see today.
@@-RM- best way to do it!
Thanks for stopping by, Ruby. :) Congrats on 13 years sober, Andy. And Coors is awful.
Thanks! I feel like I’ve learned a lot from you!
Thanks hey!
TH-cam says "Hi", back to the BikeFarmer offspring
You don’t speak for TH-cam!
The kids so adorable I had to send a thanks a buy her a taco! Thanks Andy for great videos!
Thanks for today's half-hour of zen!
Thanks Bruce!
I have the giant Inova cross almost the same bike but from about 1991, I just keep putting money in to it and it keeps getting better, it's now got dropbars, sora brifters, a mtb wheelset, and a 1x8 drive train with 40 upfront and 11-40 on the rear, with 32 road tyre's, fender and rack it's the most amazing bike ever. Oh and the purple color is amazing.
Sounds like a nice bike. You made a gravel bike before they were invented :). I did a similar thing with a Jamis MTB in the early 90’s, put cinelli drop bars on it, a 2x stronglight crank, toe clips and straps, and 1.5” specialized nimbus slicks.
The bike heart wants what the bike heart wants. 🚴🏻♂️❤
Thanks hey!!
"You can own it and I can judge you for that, that is freedom!" GREEEEAAAAATTTT!!! I agree!
Thanks!
I'm late to watching this and to read the comments, but I'm impressed with the near unanimous agreement on fixing it. That says a lot about the future for your local bike shop, and says a lot about peoples' shift in being careful with your money, and careful with your nostalgia and devotion.
$200 to keep a perfectly fine bike frame and fork going is absolutely worth it. Everything else on a bike is a wear part at some point.
25:35 it's not the frame, it's the wheel that needs a bit dishing. Maybe untrue due to the cone adjustment?
The “money shot” at 9:30 is priceless! 😂😂
Thanks
Thanks hey!
I've been fixing and upgrading my old hybrid for 30 years. It's almost a decent bike now. I'm sure I've spent enough to buy two really good bikes, but it's a good fit and as simple as they get.
(because v-brakes AND, a shiny metal Dork Disk.)
I shouldn't be watching this on my day off. But there's something really chill about seeing fixes happen without actually doing them yourself. The most straightforward content is always the best
At least you don't watch this stuff on your lunch break. Working on a Norco after lunch
If it were me I would have wanted my old one I already knew. It doesn't always make sense to work on some of these older bikes but it gives me joy.
I was in the bicycle industry from fourteen until my thirties when i needed more money snd benefits for my young family. Your channel lets me relive that part of my life from long ago. Thank you.
Bedankt
Choose to fix my old bike? I bought it. I like it. We have history. I don't want new shit. There's a time and place to replace.
Especially over a pair of tires and brake pads. I see the monetary aspect, but getting rid of a whole bike over that just seems kind of wasteful to me.
I buy motorcycles and cars with 0 intention of getting rid of it. Vehicles have sort of soul. Surely youve seen someone give their dash a belly rub for climbing a mountain, shielding you from the store. Absolutely no way I would do tires without tubes, rim inspection. Repurpose, recycle, re use.
Throwing away a bike for need of service items is ridiculous.Some people know the price of everything and the value of nothing.
It does and old wrench twister's heart good to see you take the time to line up the tire label with the stem hole on the rims! For me, that was a sign that the mechanic who had did so cared about their work and made an effort. Good video and keep them coming! Love those snappy brakes!
I love "dork discs", esp the aluminum ones that you used to see on 70s-80s road bikes. They looked so great on those old bikes, and they should come back.
I love a dork disc, I prefer the aluminum shiny ones. I'm weird, I like kickstands too.
Function over form 👌
When I got in to riding again in adulthood I spent way too much (over £1000) upgrading an old clapped out old road bike which only cost £170.
Sure it's a massive waste of money especially when you aren't rolling in dough but when you like a bike the value of it is higher to me than it will ever be to anyone else so why not give it a nice snazzy new paint job and components and show it some love.
I will never get my money back and I'll never sell it either.
But it makes me happy.
Sometimes we do irrational things.
When you have something you love rationale goes out the window.
Damn best Raleigh airlite you're ever gunna see tho 😄
"You can own it, and I can judge you for it. That's... freedom."
Amen.
@27:11 Did you check the dish of the wheel?
I kept the dork disk on my 80’s Tempo. Put the chain hard into it. With a fair amount of grunting and groaning, I was able to get back rolling and had no damage to the spokes. I’m a believer…
Been using dork discs for years. Decided to take it off my new 12 Speed Xt Epic to save a few grams. Sure enough I laid the bike down slightly bending the derailleur hangar. Next thing I know I'm shifting into the spokes😂
Luckily caught it before it did too much damage.
haha that opening was adorable!
I have a similar set up on an old Roland Packsaddle CX. Those GS100 shifters weren't to difficult to rebuild. I lucked out and they had no broken or extremely worn parts in them, just gummed up. If I can get a couple of years out of it, I'll be happy. Appreciate the vid.
Pro tip on wheel adjusting, I always, before doing any adjusting, pluck all the spokes to hear the tension and adjust any that are over tight or under tight to get them to sound all the same, then adjust from there. The reason is often you will find a super loose or super tight spoke, the loose is from years of neglect, the tight is from some dork not knowing what they are doing and messing with it. Just an FYI from one old wrench to younger one.
You could use a spoke tension gauge too :) But yes, most people won’t have one of those.
Tip for you Bike Farmer. CRC freeze off has de-gummed sticky non working shifters better than anything else Ive tried. Follow, up with tri-flow.
I'm here for the running commentary while you work.
The funny thing to me about golf is what my late mom used to say. She called golf clubs "idiot sticks" and would say "hit the ball a mile and fetch it " 😅.
I call it "cow pasture pool"
In this instance, the customer is 💯 right. Nice old bike. Love is a strange thing ❤
I worked at shops for about 15?years and this makes me flash back in good ways
I always clean wheel bearings, cups & cones before regreasing. Good idea no?
Yes, but you aren't paying for your own labor. Bike shops in his area get $90/hr for labor. I don't know if they charge in 1 hr minimums, or maybe 30min blocks. But that gives you some idea why taking the shortcut gives the majority of the benefit for zero additional cost to the customer.
Yes very good idea. If grit or water have worked their way into your bearings, you definitely want to get that out. Just shooting new grease on top of it doesn’t do it.
sometimes a bike has sentimental memories that you just don't want to loose....It is possible to develop a relationship with a machine...just ask Han Solo.
I just restored and flipped a Giant Nutra. Pretty decent hybrid!
Totally worth the 250 to keep this bike. Nice work
In Italy I can buy two kenda tires for 25€ including tubes, and two sets of jagwire pads for 8. Of course there are more expensive tires and tubes out there but there is also plenty of choice of budget tires that would be good enough for a commuter bike. The prices mentioned in this video probably refer to mid-range products that would better fit a more expensive bike or an entry level road bike.
Brings back memories when I used to work assembling bikes for a major high street retailer… the more expensive bikes were a doddle as they’d been built by people who put effort into every component.. the cheapest ones were a nightmare to setup as everything was just thrown into the box. That being said, it make us all experience bike techs as we soon learnt all the tricks to get pretty much anything sorted and fit for the road. Often surprises people how much work can go into setting up/servicing a bike.
Dude you and your wife getting into old trucker movies is funny as heck because i'm a millennial and find those movies fascinating and hilarious. 10-4, this is the rubber duck. Such classics.
Not sure if you will see this. But I recently purchased my first bike so I can start riding with me 10 year old daughter. Came across your videos and love them man! You seem like a laid bike and cool guy and love the content! Btw, first bike, trek fx1 gen 3. Opted for disk brake because was all that was readily available.
Superchats go directly to the creator ..... That's what they say at church when they pass the plate around. ;)
That video and its companion were one the first bicycle videos I watched when I started getting back into bicycling. I still continue watching.
One of my first bikes was an eggplant-colored Giant that I bought in a university town. I loved it and rode it for years. Then one day it was stolen...from my patio that was right by that same campus.
Dude really is the Bob Ross of bike repair. No one gave a shit about painting, Bob Ross come along and everyone is painting in their living rooms. No one fixes their bikes. Now, here I am fixing a barbie tricycle thinking I'm the fucking Bike Farmer! Convinced you can make videos about tea kettles and I'd probably watch.
90s steel hybrids like this make great all purpose bikes.. I have an old Trek Multitrack that I picked up used for $75.. I put a Brooks saddle on it and Nitto Bullhorn bars in it is very nice to ride around town. 700c are much netter than 26 inch wheels. Plan to make upgrades once the parts need it.
@@GNMi79its fun because we can go on and off road with 26x2.1 😁
Coors Beer has been around for quite a long time but not all over the country. We took a trip in 1968 to Colorado and Wyoming and my Father drank Coors Beer and he enjoyed it. Back Home it was Miller High Life. Nice Job on the bike. I can't really speak to road bikes but the new mountain bikes are far better than they were 25 to 30 years ago. Thank You!
I have just got back to riding my approx 15 year old bike, mainly for some exercise, air and mentally it helps lots 🙂I have contemplated buying myself a new bike but looked at it and it really is serving the purpose I need it for at the moment. It had been sat in a garage for most of it's life and should have been perfect, but I soon realised it had been a bit abused by my partners brother who 'borrowed' it. Needless to say, I had to do a fair bit of work to sort it out. What makes me most happy is that I have been watching your videos since and can see that I did most things right! Now off to adjust my gears a bit more, although I think I am up against a wobbly freehub/wheelhub. I took apart and regreased/adjusted the hub but it wasn't a whole lot better and wobbles a bit when not pedalling. But anyway... i works for now!
Love that eventhough you didn’t agree, you still fixed up your customers ride. Also…cantilever brakes. A new level of hell is working on Diacompe cantilever brakes…such a pain in the butt, but work great once dialed in.
I hate old canti brakes. Even low end fleabay or junkyard v brake and lever set with good pads is a huge improvement
.
Funny, I have the opposite experience. I love the cantis on my Kona (Avid shorties). Just as strong as discs when dry. Whereas I hate so called v brakes with a passion, struggle for a half hour to get them adjusted, and tomorrow they’re already out of adjustment again.
@@PRH123 I like the cnc made v brakes sold for folding bikes. The springs are internal and have good bushings, and long slots for brake adjustment. A lot of bikes can take 700c x35 tires for a 26in frame. With 26 or 650b they have super power and work with cheap v levers
@@PRH123 try changing the pin hole used for the brake bushing springs, so they are harder to compress. This makes them release the wheel easier and makes fine adjustments easier. Make sure nothing is in the way of the last run of cable. Clamp the brake with the lever to hold the pads to wheel, snug the pad nuts a little, hold the pad with a small crescent and tighten the nut to final torque. A piece of old business card or guitar pick under last cm of pads gives easy toe-in adjustments when setting up the pads.
@@ThisTimeTheWorld sure, did all that stuff, still a pain in the a, and still have to repeat it again in a couple of days
Found the best solution for me, just don’t have any bikes with v brakes :)
Glad all is well with you and the family. Really enjoy your videos and learning from them all the time.
As a business, you have to look at it monetarily. But the customer does. Maybe it has sentimental value, or they just like the bike, or they're trying to be eco friendly. I ride a 25 year old Trek 930 and for as long as it is repairable, it's getting fixed. I love how it feels, how it rides, and the conversations it starts up with old school mountain bikers.
I have an old Trek 4300 . Bought it new in 2012 . I have road the crap out of it . Got a ton of miles . I’ve but more money into reinventing it over the last two years than I paid for it . Early next year I will be reinventing it again the front shock I guess what they call it froze up years ago. I’m gonna replace the front fork new seat maybe some gravel tires after winter here . I have other bikes I just like this bike it’s my go to bike when I’m just running around or a quick peddle . Anyhow probably just stupid rider . Congrats on being sober . ❤ keep up tthe great content love the chat. How about an update on the golf e-bike .
Just wanted to say thank you for your videos! I’ve used a lot of your advice to get my Trek Elance 400D in some great running order and it’s been a lot of fun. Always will come back for the Bob Ross of bikes vibe as well!
love seeing a bike rehabbed. The owner is correct - for a loved bike, it is not always about the $$.
I just love to listen to you explaining what you are doing and how it feels like and what u r thinking. Because as i am repairing bikes myself since the90s I do feel you when you are speaking. And i like you humor too.
greetings from germany
I did the tire massage thing, too. Until I discovered it's much quicker to inflate the new tire to about 1bar and let the shell bump on the ground while rotating. Does a great job of evenly aligning the the tire along the rim and is way more fun and less exhausting. ;-)
Shell was supposed to be wheel. Autocorrect.
The way we always did it was to stand over the wheel, push down on it hard onto the floor, while squeezing the tire with both hands, and repeating like 5 times as you work your way around the rim for one rotation.
The frame is sweet, no way would i sell that for $40 are you kidding??? Red bike is great for urban areas, it just looks great in that setting and its semi-hi vis for traffic. Matching stem too!! They don't make them like that any more, wow! Steel is real, its our duty to keep them going!
^ Coming from a guy that just put over $500 into my '91 Giant... Its art, not business!
Cromoly ftw! The compliance in steel vs rigid aluminium especially on a rigid bike without suspension can't be overstated.
White Line Fever and Thunder Run are also good trucker movies in my mind.
We have glacial drumlins here in County Down, Northern Ireland. You get free interval training… blast uphill, recover downhill and practice your descending skill, rinse and repeat until you are well and truly cooked.
That works with any hill.
@bkefrmr what kind of flooring are you working on? Looks like carpet, but I was wondering since you often spray lubes, cleaners and degreasers. Thanks for the reassurance of enjoying just simple bicycling.
Yellowing dork disks are the bicycle equivalent of old crust yellow headlights on a car.
@Bikefarmer I’m also 14 years sober. I served under a different era in our USAF POL and it bit me later in life when I became a DOD contractor/reservist. (I also live in N.E. Italy 🇮🇹 and am blessed with beautiful Italian roads like the ones you rode on this summer!!)
I had an ‘83 diamond back trail streak. Lived on it. Used it to see my kids when broke, rebuilt it to bulletproof commuter with hard mtb and 14 x spoking to survive 14” curbs in LA commute. It had to never fail. Never.
There were wonderful things about that bike: hapless crown, lax frame, the ability to take damn near any wheel you wanted, way high bottom bracket, bulletproof gear.
I built the back wheel, swapped to randoneur bars ans a lot more. My son took it to college. Still has it
You never know what people will love, or why. It’s enough to do what you do so others can,or they can honor what they’ve done.
So hence you get a frankenbike the guy just looks like he loves and you work it, don’t feel like you need to explain it. We already know. It is not worth it. Still, it is.
Best regards,
Ed .
With my Surly's, I used to have a $300 bill every time I went In, mainly because I always insisted on a full bike inspection and replacement of any worn parts.
That's probably not unreasonable seeing as they're new mid level bikes, however I also went for the same level of maintenance on my 81' Miyata 1000.
I have since learned to do 90% of maintenance myself. I still won't service Air suspension forks myself though.
Agreed about the suspension. I don't touch anything that's under high pressure!
I always loved working on late 80s to early 90s bikes when I was a young bike wrench. Hated Wallyworld bikes though.
It is always worth it to me to put money into my old beaters. I like them, so it is worth it to me. That is the only value that matters. Theoretical market value is what average trades are going for, but the only real value is between the seller and the buyer. The more you actually care about what you have, the more market value doesn't mean a thing to you, personally.
So happy to have found your channel a couple of weeks ago. It's calming effects are working and the edu-tainment level is high! I've been exploring the archives and digging the new content, too.
And I meant to add "Nice Job, Mr. Kefrmr!"
I've had to do this same job on my bike (that I don't really even like riding). Replace both inner tubes and tires. It's the cheapest way to get the bike going... but I'd much rather just get a different bike... but it always comes down to the cost vs. benefits. In my case cost is cheaper... but I gotta do the work.
Sober, sarcastic AF, and super into everything about bikes. Same here! If I’m ever up that way, let’s get tacos!
power washer is amazing. 5$ a pop spray let it sit a very little mess. i just overhauled someones back hub now its feel new. apperciate the uploads..
I use tube talc powder when working with tubes & tires. drop the tube in a large plastic bag & sprinkle a little talc powder and shake. like a dry lube the talc powder helps the wheel assembly and sometimes the talc powder helps new tires that stick in the rim resulting in non-concentric low spots while inflating .
Rants. Reminds me of old time barber shop talk. Bar talk? Just a bit of everything.
That's why you do this kind of simple maintenance yourself unless you don't care about the cost. People like their bikes, maybe it was a gift? It's fun to watch your old bike come back to life.
I'm regularly frustrated by my grease "gun," too, lol.
Hello Bike Farmer. In my old age I am using tubless tyres now that I have started biking again. In the 70s I remember finding bubbles in my older tubes. They used to bubble out in places and over time it would damage the tyres and the steel ring would separate from the tyres. Have tubes improved to the point where they dont bubble so one can use older tubes? Or were my tubes so old that they were useless anyway? Mark
I love your stance on big pickup trucks. Rock on 🤘🏿 🚵🏿♂️🍻
Replacing the pads on cantilever brakes involves a lot of jiggery-pokery, but I figured out a way to do it conveniently and repeatably.
1. Make a note of how the pad bracket parts go together. Remove and discard the old pads, clean and lubricate the remaining parts as appropriate.
2. Back out the barrel adjusters on the brake handles as far as they will go. If they come completely unscrewed, thread them back in one turn.
3. Loosen the cable clamp on the cantilever that has the clamp, and adjust the cable so that the lower part of the cantilever arms are parallel, and tighten the cable.
4. Use the spring adjusting screw on the other cantilever to center the brakes so the cantilevers point straight up.
5. Assemble the pad brackets with the new pads. If the pad has an arrow, point the arrow to the front of the bike.
6. Hold the pad flat against the rim. Make sure the pad is centered up and down on the rim, and is parallel to the rim.
7. Optionally, insert a folded business card or small piece of plastic between the front of the pad and the rim, to give it a rake to prevent brake squeal. Note: some pads have a bump or a flange on the front, so you don't have to do this manually.
8. Once the pad is adjusted optimally, use your hex tool and a wrench to tighten the pad bracket.
9. When all the pads are securely tightened, screw in the barrel adjusters in until you have about 2 to 3 mm of gap between the pads and the wheel.
10 You're all done, without the trial and error and gnashing of teeth. Give the wheel a spin. If it's true, it should not drag on the brakes.
Tweak the barrel adjusters for rider preference. I usually give the brake handle travel about 1/4 to 1/3 of the way to the handlebars.
I remember back in the 90s, my cousin gave me a Giant. I think it was a Nutra, but it may have been a Sedona...I gave it to a friend because I owned 2 Bianchi road bikes. I remember that Giant being a pretty good hybrid bike.
I have a Shimano wheelset, the kind with the minimal spoke count. It has a dork disc, but it actually makes the rear wheel look real nice, because it's black. It doesn't turn yellow.
Nice tune-up. Like another person said, they may have an attachment to it. So, they’d rather fix it up and keep it😊
I do like that you show how to do some of the repairs.
That's why I could never work on bikes for a living. If I was rejuvenating a 40+ year old bike, which may never have had its hubs cleaned out of old grease and debris, I would have to thoroughly clean AND THEN regrease the hubs. I would also have had to install a new, crystal clear spoke protector.
The shimano black ones are flexible and last longer.
The shop I work at regularly has customers coming in wanting to put more money into their bike than it's worth - and we're talking box store bikes, not vintage steel. We like to talk to the customer about pros and cons of spending that much, maybe upsell them to one of our used bikes if it sounds like it fits their needs, but most folks like the bike they have and think it's worth investing in even if they'll never see a return on it beyond basic rideability. Anything that keeps a bike out of the scrapyard is worth it to me - usually!