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Tech Tips

Potholes in Your Tires?

 
Do my tires need to be replaced? This is a question I hear often in the Tech Center. So this article is going to help you determine if your tires do, in fact, need replacing. Depending on your specific tire, it may be slightly different to determine.
 
Today we will focus on a road bike, but this guide applies to most tire sizes and styles. The tires of a typical road bike are measured as 700x23. 23 designated the width of the tire on millimeters. It is not uncommon to see 700x25 or 700x20. This number is located on the sidewall of the tire.
 
These pictures show 2 possible ways the size will be printed on the tire.

This shows the size embossed into the rubber on the sidewall of the tire.


This shows the size printed on a label on the sidewall of the tire.


You will want to have this number in hand before going in to the bike shop.
 
Now we need to perform a close visual inspection of the tire. There will be 2 areas we will pay attention to, tread and sidewall.  I will start with the tread. This is the rubber part of tire, the part that contacts the road. We will want to do a slow, visual inspection, and we will want to be sure to look at the entire tire circumference. You can do this by putting your bike in a stand or by simply lifting the bike and rotating the wheel an eighth of a turn at a time.
 
What we are looking for is 2 things: Wear and cuts. First thing we can do is simply look at the profile of the tire; we want to determine if there is a flat spot on the tire. It will be relatively easy to see. We want the tire to have a nice round profile, but as the tire wears, especially the rear, it will develop a clear flat spot. You can look at it or run your finger across the top of the tire from left to right to feel for a flat spot.


This tire has a clear flat spot on the top.


A pronounced flat spot poses 2 potential problems, the first being the remaining rubber in the tread is very thin and this area and makes it more susceptible to flats from small road debris. The other concern is that the flat spot creates a noticeable transition from upright to leaning. When vertical, there is more of the tire on the ground, and when you lean into a turn, then the tire must transition from the flat spot over to the rounded section on the side. This can be actually felt when turning. A new tire will lean and turn more consistently and smoothly.
 
The other thing we want to check is the quality of tread. This is a visual check and must be performed along the full circumference of the tread. We are looking for any holes, cuts, or slices in the tread. Depending on how many and the severity of them, we may want to replace the tire.
 
Below are some pictures with examples of the various types of cuts in a tire.

A tire with all the major symptoms: wear, cuts, and a slice.


A small slice in the side of a tire.


A hole in the tread of a tire.
 

If your tread is pockmarked with holes and cuts, and you have a nice flat spot on the top of the tread, it may be a good time to head down to the Trek Bicycle Store for a replacement! It is always helpful to bring the bike, the wheel, the tire, or if none of that is possible, bring in a sticky note with the tire size, brand, and model on it!
 
Next I will talk about how to inspect the sidewall of the tire. This generally is the area of the tire with the label printed on it. They are usually tan, white, or black, but may be any color of the rainbow! The inspection of the sidewall is similar to the tread, we will be looking for wear and cuts or slices.
 
Below is a picture of a very bad sidewall. Under pressure, this tire could be very surprising!


 


Wash Your Bike! 


This month''s tech tip will focus on how to properly wash your
bicycle.   

You may be wondering, is their really a correct way to wash a bicycle?  Well, yes. I have been around and raced in the professional mountain bike ranks, and have learned from the best on how to properly clean a bicycle. Couple these instructions with the instructions I supplied for maintaining your drivetrain in the last article, (see below) and you can have a long, pleasant relationship with your bicycle and reduce costly repairs or replacements.

Washing your bicycle is an important step that should be completed

when:

  • You have ridden on a particularly wet ride, whether it is in the rain or on wet roads.

  • The weather has been 90 degrees plus and you sweated all over your bike.

  • You sweat like you’re in a sauna on every ride you go on.

  • You don’t think you have ever put soap and water to your bicycle.

  • You’re sure your bike was a color other than black at some point.

In order to be effective and efficient, you will want to gather a few

things:

  •  Towels: Gather some towels you don’t mind getting dirty. It’s a good idea to have one bath towel that is cut in half (for final drying large areas) and the other half cut into a few strips (for getting into hard-to-reach areas).
  • Soft Bristle Brush. Find one that has a nice handle and soft bristles that will work well with soap and water.

  • A bucket with a handle.

  • Dawn liquid dish soap: Or whatever April-fresh scent liquid dish soap you prefer.

  • A Hose that will reach from the spigot to the bicycle. No need for a sprayer attachment, that is why we have thumbs. That and we do not want to pressure wash our bicycle, but lovingly clean it. It’s good to have grease in the bearings anyway, so let’s be gentle. Thumbs.

  • Clean Streak: This is a White Lightning product and comes in a spray can. This is a very powerful and easy to use cleaner. It is safe on most any part of the bike, including brakes and rims, has little smell, and dries quickly. (Available at the shop)

  • A spot to work on the bicycle that you can get dirty and wet. A spot in front of your garage or parking it a nice wheel stand is fine.


So, here we go, time to clean wash your bicycle!

 

  • Fill your bucket with a nice mixture of Dawn soap and water. Use enough dish soap to have a nice froth built up on the top of the water. It’s your choice whether to use warm water from the tap or cold water from the hose. Remember, if you are going to use hose water, you will need to get your bicycle positioned and the hose hooked up first!

  • Throw the brush and a couple of the small towel strips in the bucket with the soapy water.

  • If you haven’t already, position your bicycle where you are going to wash it and hook up the hose.

  • Turn on the hose water to about half force. Then using your thumb on the end of the hose, spray your bike down thoroughly. Try to spray off as much debris as possible.

  • Grab the brush from the water and now wash every part of your bicycle. Be sure to dip into the water often to keep from spreading dirty water around, remember our purpose is to take it off, not put it on!

  • After the first complete pass, rinse your bicycle lightly with the hose water and wash again with the brush, being sure to get to all those corners and crevices. Use the brush to wash the rims of the wheels, get all the spokes and in between the spokes on the rims.

  • Rinse again and grab the towel out of the bucket and get to all those tight areas like around the brakes, under the fork crown, and under the cable stops. This should be your final washing, so be throrough and detailed.

  • Rinse a final time, being sure to get all the suds off.

  • Use your dry towel section to dry your bicycle.

  • Clean up the washing supplies and then continue to cleaning the drivetrain (see below).

 


Proper Drivetrain Maintenance

What is your drivetrain? On your bicycle, this will encompass the chainrings on the front crank, the chain, and the rear cogs or cassette. The front derailleur and rear derailleur are also part of the drivetrain, but do not usually require regular maintenance.

If you ride your bicycle 3 times a week or more, then there is a good chance you do not get your bicycle into the shop often enough to be sure your drivetrain is well taken care of.  A properly cleaned and lubed drivetrain will shift better, ride quieter, and last longer.

It is a good idea at this rate of riding to clean and lubricate the drivetrain each week. In order to perform this maintenance, you will need a few things:

Clean Streak and Park CL-1 Lube

  • Clean rags: These can be whatever you don’t mind getting greasy and ruined. Old T-shirts, microfiber rags, or shop rags all work fine. Costco has both red shop rags and yellow microfiber cloths available, and I would recommend getting a bag of each. The red shop towels work great for the dirty work, and the microfiber cloths are good for final cleaning.

  • Clean Streak: This is a White Lightning product and comes in a spray can. This is a very powerful and easy to use cleaner. It is safe on most any part of the bike, including brakes and rims, has little smell, and dries quickly. 
    Available Here

  • Park CL-1: This is a nice medium-weight drip chain lube. I prefer this in the shop and on my personal bike. This is because it has good tack, applies easily, and tends to last better than some other lubes. You are free to use whatever chain lube you prefer, but I would discourage any spray lube, as this can be too messy.
    Available Here

  • A spot to work on the bicycle that you can get dirty and allows you to pedal the cranks completely backwards. This can be simply leaning the bike against the wall, using a storage rack or bike rack for the car, or a dedicated repair stand.

So, here we go, time to clean and lube your chain.

  • Shift your bicycle into the big chainring in the front and the smallest (hardest) gear in the back. We are basically going to move the chain the farthest away from the frame and wheels of the bike we can.

  • Lean your bicycle in the spot you will be working or put your bicycle on the repair stand.

  • Choose a good clean rag. Choose a rag that has a decent textural surface. Some materials are too slippery and will not be able to scrub away the dirt and grit from the chain, so choose a rag that has some texture. Red shop rags are great as are microfiber towels.


  • Put the clean section of rag in your hand and have the clean section on your palm. Liberally spray the Clean Streak in the palm of your hand the size of your palm.

  • With the rag still in your palm, wrap your hand and the rag around the bottom section of the chain.

  • Pedal backwards with your free hand while applying pressure on the chain. At this point we need to move the chain and use the rag to pull the old lube, dirt, and grit from the chain. Pedal backward a few revolutions and look at the rag. At this point it should be relatively black, go ahead and flip the rag over using the section soaked with Clean Streak and clean again while pedaling backwards.

  • Depending on how dirty your chain is, you may need to repeat this process more than once. We are not looking for brand-new clean, just getting the majority of the stuff off the chain before we lube. Your chain should be clean and dry to the touch when ready to lube.

  • Prepare your chain lube by shaking it up. Remove the cap and do not use any kind of straw. Hold the lube at an angle that is downward and toward the rear of the bike. Slightly squeeze the lube on the bottom section of the chain with one hand and pedal backwards with the other. Be sure that the lube is getting on each roller of the chain as the chain is moving.

  • Continue pedaling for 7 or 8 revolutions of the crank while applying the lube.

  • Allow the lube to settle into the chain rollers for 30 seconds.

  • If you lube while the bike is leaning and on the floor, use a clean, dry section of the rag to lightly wipe the access lube off the chain.

  • If you have the bike in a repair stand, then shift through all the gears to distribute the lube and then use a clean, dry section of the rag to lightly wipe the access lube off the chain.

  • Go Ride!