| When you're out on the trail, miles and miles from | | | | should do it periodically. It's really quite simple to do. |
| home, you don't want any serious mechanical | | | | Remove the cable from both the brake housing and |
| situations occurring with your bike. Pushing your bike up | | | | the levers and then remove the cable from the plastic |
| and down steep, slippery slopes is not what mountain | | | | covering and lubricate the whole length of the cable |
| biking is all about. You want a fun, exhilarating ride, and | | | | before putting it all back again. If your brakes feel |
| the best way to ensure this is by keeping your bike in | | | | sticky, then this may be all you need to do to fix it. |
| good mechanical order. Here we look at a few things | | | | Adjusting your brakes |
| you should do to keep your bike in shape. | | | | Your brakes can really come in handy when you're on |
| Clean your bike after each ride | | | | a big downhill ride, so the last thing you want is for |
| When you're out all day on the trail, you're bound to | | | | them not to be working properly. Before going on a |
| get dirty, and so is your bike. While you might not mind | | | | ride, always check your brakes are properly adjusted. |
| staying dirty for a while, your bike does. When you get | | | | Firstly, if you have cantilever or V-type brakes, check |
| back to camp or when you load your bike into your | | | | that your brake pads are not too worn and that they |
| car, give it a quick clean with some spare water. If | | | | are adjusted properly. If they need replacing, then do |
| your bike is caked in mud, clean the excess gunk with | | | | so. It may be a good idea to have some spares just in |
| a stick. When you get your bike home, give it a | | | | case. Alternatively, they may just need a little adjusting |
| thorough clean. Take particular care in getting all the | | | | which is a simple procedure. It may just be a little fiddly |
| mechanical parts as clean as a whistle. | | | | and may require some trial and error. Next, adjust the |
| Keeping your chain lubricated | | | | cable from the brake and then do the fine tuning from |
| Once you have cleaned all the crap off your mountain | | | | the handlebar brake levers. If you have disc brakes, |
| bike, then you need to lubricate the chain. A dry chain | | | | these will require a more complex service so you |
| will eventually lead to big problems, including kinks and | | | | should closely follow the directions in your owner's |
| broken links. And Murphy's Law clearly states that this | | | | manual. |
| will happen at the worst possible time, when you're | | | | You should do a full service on your mountain bike |
| miles from anywhere. Before you lubricate the chain, | | | | periodically. The length of time between services will |
| make sure that it is clean. Also, clean the gear | | | | depend on how often, and how hard you ride, and the |
| sprockets with a small brush. There are special chain | | | | conditions in which you're riding. If you enjoy spending |
| lubricants available specifically designed for the rigors | | | | time on your bike in the great outdoors, then you'll need |
| of mountain bike riding, so use these instead of a | | | | to be prepared to spend a little time with your bike in |
| general purpose lubricant. | | | | the garage as well. |
| Lubricating your brake cables | | | | For more information, reviews and tips on mountain |
| While we're on the subject of lubrication, every now | | | | bikes visit James Sanford's website at |
| and then you should lubricate your brake cables. You | | | | BikingHeadz.com, the complete online buyers guide on |
| don't need to do this as often as your chain, but you | | | | bikes and bicycles. |