Any Bicycle People Out There?

I bought an old bicycle that needs work. I don't want to pay bike shop prices for the repairs. So I'd appreciate links to bicycle sites that will show me how my bike works (the gear chain is not on right), how to change a tire, how to get some rust off of a spoke. Basicly a 'bicycles for dummies' site.

I know, the bike sounds like a real piece o' crud, but it is a Cannondale racing (or maybe road?) bike and it will lift my spirits considerably to get it into working order. Plus I need to lose a couple pounds and I remember how much I used to enjoy bicycling.

So, I appreciate any advice.

Originally Posted by lucille

I bought an old bicycle that needs work. I don't want to pay bike shop prices for the repairs. So I'd appreciate links to bicycle sites that will show me how my bike works (the gear chain is not on right), how to change a tire, how to get some rust off of a spoke. Basicly a 'bicycles for dummies' site.

I know, the bike sounds like a real piece o' crud, but it is a Cannondale racing (or maybe road?) bike and it will lift my spirits considerably to get it into working order. Plus I need to lose a couple pounds and I remember how much I used to enjoy bicycling.

So, I appreciate any advice.

Cannondale makes a very good bike. Worth fixing for sure. I have a Cannondale mountain bike that I bought like 15 years ago, and it was over 650 bucks back then. I'm sure there are bike sites out there. Did you try Google?

I spent about 2 hours just going to different sites and reading. I think my chain needs replacing and I'm going to do that myself. It's not a huge big deal but it is to me since I haven't done it before.

If I lived closer, I would come over and fix it for you. Replacing a chain isn't that hard. Just make sure you have it going through the derailers properly, and the length is right.

I use to live in Houston. Do you live near Ponderosa Elementary School? I lived in that area.

I live just south of Houston. I got the chain, may tackle it tomorrow. I chose the SRAM over the Shimano.
I went into a bicycle store and there were a bunch of clones, all hardbody yuppies. The guy who sold the chain to me asked if I was going to put it on myself, lol.
Is Florida any improvement over Houston?

Connie and I will buy new bikes every several years. We will ride them until we finally get our legs into shape, then something will come up and we'll set them aside. Next time we think about the bikes, the tires have been flat for so long that they have cracked and rust has sprouted on them. So we take them to Goodwill and buy new ones a few days later. Been doing it this way for quite a few years now... Of course, these are just Walmart specials, as we can't see sinking a lot of money into them, all things considered.

Originally Posted by lucille

I live just south of Houston. I got the chain, may tackle it tomorrow. I chose the SRAM over the Shimano.
I went into a bicycle store and there were a bunch of clones, all hardbody yuppies. The guy who sold the chain to me asked if I was going to put it on myself, lol.
Is Florida any improvement over Houston?

We didn't actually live in Houston. We were just North, not too far from George Bush International Airport. Although I'm thinking it had a different name when we were there. You can Google that school and it will show you where it's at. I lived there for two years, around 73,74. Florida can't be any better, we have one of the highest unemployment rates in the country. I got laid off in July of 2009, and I'm still unemployed.

Originally Posted by WebSlave

Connie and I will buy new bikes every several years. We will ride them until we finally get our legs into shape, then something will come up and we'll set them aside. Next time we think about the bikes, the tires have been flat for so long that they have cracked and rust has sprouted on them. So we take them to Goodwill and buy new ones a few days later. Been doing it this way for quite a few years now... Of course, these are just Walmart specials, as we can't see sinking a lot of money into them, all things considered.

I've always done similar, except in my case the kids were always willing to take a bicycle.

This time, I got an older bike to fix up and from what I've been reading upsale people put THOUSANDS into their rides. At the bike shop, there were bunches of bikes in the $2000 range. Since I am jobless as of last week I'm not going to do that but for some reason, the idea of having a really nice bike appealed to me, and the idea of learning how to do all that 'bicycle stuff' appealled as well. Hopefully that will translate into reality and not me wondering how the heck the chain loops around the derailleur after I get the old chain off. I'm actually thinking of running a piece of yarn to help me remember how it goes.

Originally Posted by brd7666

I'm still unemployed.

Me too. A toast to unemployment (raises glass of yummy Godiva chocolate vodka and Baileys).

Originally Posted by lucille

Me too. A toast to unemployment (raises glass of yummy Godiva chocolate vodka and Baileys).

That sounds good. I forgot to mention, there are some really good bicycle repair books out there. Some have good pics in them also.