Mountain bike questions

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
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While getting some continuing education credits in Hilton Head, I rented a bike to ride on the beach. I hadn’t ridden a bike in decades, and I forgot how much fun it could be. Coincidentally, when I got home I saw a used mountain bike for sale. It is a Mongoose D70x. I bought it. :smiley:

Well, I’ve never owned a bike like this. My last bike had 3 speeds. This one has 24! And front/rear suspension!

The “front gears” (is that what it is called?) are a little rough shifting. My son tells me the front brakes need adjusted. Do bike shops offer any kind of “tune up”? Any other tips?

My son took me on some trails. He told me that the next day my legs would be sore. He was close. Any hints on getting a comfortable seat? :frowning:

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Don’t get too comfortable.

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Was that meant to be a link to this… Sex with a bike? - Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share - Straight Dope Message Board

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I’m sure others will be here presently to weigh in, but here’s what I got for ya. Yep, bike shops will happily do tuneups, and although it can cost around $70 where I live, I think it’s worth it. They’ll clean and relube the chain, adjust both the front and rear derailleurs, adjust the tension of brake and shifter cables, and check everything over. If you mention specifically that the front derailleur seems out of whack, they should pay extra attention to that for you. My only warning would be to go to a shop that is just bikes, not a sporting goods store or the like - you want to deal with people who are dedicated to biking.

Getting a comfortable saddle is key to happy riding, as you’re finding out the hard way. I’d recommend two things. First, look for a saddle that has a cutout in the center, to keep your soft bits from getting smooshed. And get one that’s specific to your gender. One easy way to test different saddles at a bike shop is to test-ride a few different bike brands, then buy a saddle a la carte that is made by that company. It shouldn’t take too long for a saddle to feel wrong for you, if you know what I mean. Any saddle where you feel pressure on your nether parts, even slightly or during a short test ride, is going to lead to serious unhappy numbness in no time. All your weight should rest on your “sit bones”, the two (small) areas in the center of your buttcheeks. Also, the most padded saddle might not be the best - it all depends on whether the length, cutout, and back spread conform well to your body or not.

FWIW, bike shop employees will not be embarrassed to discuss your buttcheeks with you.

Also, what you wear can have a real impact on comfort. Jeans, for example, have all their leg seams meet in the center crotchal area, which forms a big bump. After a very short amount of time with that bump pressing into your sensitive areas, you’ll be hating life. Even if you’re not interested in hardcore riding and all the tight spandex that us high-mileage cyclists wear, I’d suggest getting some padded undershorts to wear under your regular clothes. They’re discreet, seamless in all the right places, and will make all your underbits much happier. REI makes these and I love em for when I’m not wearing the aforementioned silly* spandex shorts.

*of course they look cool, not silly! :cool:

Oh, and your essential investments are a good floor pump with a gauge for keeping those tires inflated (check at least once a week), and a helmet. Of course!

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Yes, any reputable bike shop can perform a tune up on your bike.

ETA: What Anaptyxis said.

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Yikes. The seat is long, skinny, and hard. Not what I want pushing against my butt. :smiley:

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Holy coiling fecal Jesus on a car hood did I fuck that up.

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Thanks for all the ideas/advice! I have found a bike shop nearby, (http://new.pghprobikes.com/index2.php) and my gf has offered to drop my ride off for a tune-up. My gf also told me she is getting me a pair of shorts the next time she is shopping.

Is the helmet thing really necessary? I made my kids wear them, but an adult?

I will be getting a new seat this weekend. :smiley:

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The safe answer is yes. But a helmet is necesary only if you plan on falling. Which I don’t. And haven’t. Doesn’t mean I never will fall though. But I still don’t wear a helmet. Does that answer your question? :wink:

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Its not necessary to have a cut out to have a comfortable saddle. Some people find it helps while others find that its a pain in the ass.

If you are looking for the ultimate in comfort, I know that there is at least one company that will take an impression of your ass and make a saddle out of it.

As for the helmet thing, wear one if you want to stay beautiful. Otherwise, its your choice. Also, don’t use one from the early 1990’s because you will look like a Fred, overheat, and the helmet won’t do much to soften a blow.

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I was about to say that any good bicycle shop will give you a tuneup with purchase, but then I saw that the OP bought a used bike.

I’m guessing the OP will want to spring for the “Major” tuneup now, just to be sure all the critical parts are in good shape and adjusted properly.

For the OP - how are you mechanically? Most stuff that needs periodic adjustment on a bike is pretty simple, once you know what you’re adjusting. eg: type and brand of brake calipers, shifters and derailleurs. The concepts are universal, but the location of adjustment screws is not! If you get into doing your own maintenance, you’ll soon find that a sluggish shift, for example, might be fixed by giving a screw one-half of a turn, and you’ll wonder why you ever suffered with it or paid someone to do it before.

The reason I bring this up is nearly everything on a bike is controlled by thin steel cables, and thin steel cables will stretch. Everything also gets a pretty good shaking, so the best way to keep a bike (and you!) happy is to know how to adjust things.

As for saddles, some of the absolutely strangest looking seats are the most comfortable. Springy upholstered “mattress” seats are all but a museum curiosity now. Don’t dismiss it until you’ve tried it. Your local bike shop seems as if they’re a good one (just going by the brands they carry) and they may even have “loaner” seats you can use for a day or two before laying down the cash for a new one.

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OK, I am going to give a helmet a try. My son just emailed me that he is getting me one for xmas. He has a BMX bike that he works on all the time, and he and I will work on my bike once it has had an initial tune-up.

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As already mentioned, you can get a tune up at any decent bike shop.

You can get all sorts of saddles, best to go shopping… and then purchase online (there is a Selle Italia that would have cost me $113 at my favorite bike shop here and I got it from nashbar.com on sale for $44.50). My saddle has the center cut-out, and gel rather than foam. My first outing on it was a 60k ride and I had not the slightest hint of saddle soreness, and the boys were happy (but not too happy, ifyaknowhwudImean).

A comfy saddle is crucial if you’re going to spend a lot of time on a bike. You want one that lines up well with your sit bones or else you’ll feel “pinched” in weird places. If you have a tough time finding a saddle, some bike shops have memory foam you can sit on so they can get a rough measurement of your sit bones and find you an appropriate saddle.

As for a helmet, it depends what you’re up to. Trail riding I’ve smacked my head several times. Not necessarily falling off, but also all the little stuff, like the guy ahead of me ended up shoving a branch that sprung back – BOING! – and slapped me upside the head.

A couple months ago, I pitted a pedestrian because she was yakking on a celphone and stepped into the bike lane, causing the guy ahead of me to wipe out in quite the nasty fashion. I managed to avoid the road rash, and my head didn’t bounce off the pavement or anything, but when I got home, I noticed that the side of my helmet was scraped to shit from the curb. That would have been my scalp.

If you’re hit by a bus, the helmet probably won’t save you, but for the day-to-day crap it comes in handy. Like when a dumptruck zips past and you get showered with gravel.

I have protective sunglasses too. You can changed the dark lenses for clear ones that I wear at night. Saves you from getting road grit in your eye, and those stupid June bugs from bouncing off your eyeball when you’re pedalling hard.

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Another thing about saddles; they’re all going to hurt for your first 5-10 rides. Only after that period will you be able to sit on a saddle and say to yourself, “hum, this one feels like crap, but that last one felt fine.”

I’ve been a serious cyclist for about 15 years, and even for me the first long ride of the year leaves me a little sore. Like anything else, you get used to it.

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I was just coming back to say it, but 50million beat me to it: yep, even with the bestest, most comfortable saddle, you’ll feel the first few rides. Kind of an achy thing the next day. But if you’re feeling any numbness, for any length of time, your saddle ain’t right.

True dat. I made the mistake of speaking from only my own experience, there.

And YES to what Swallowed My Cellphone says on helmets and glasses, too. (So glad I could pitch in on one of the cycling threads, woo!)

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Allow me to take this opportunity regarding bicycle helmets:

hell yes you should wear a bike helmet!

There are a very small people almost comparable to HIV-AIDS deniers that deny their health benefit, and a larger and more reasonable group that oppose mandatory bicycle helmet laws, but for yourself, the choice should always be to wear a bicycle helmet.

They are highly effective at reducing significant head injuries, by as much as 80%.

As the old saw goes, if you don’t want your mother or children dressing you for the rest of you life, you’ll want one. There are many modern helmet designs on the market that look and feel much cooler than older designs at a number of price levels.

If all that sciency numbers crap didn’t convince you:

Seriously, all three of these men could have been dead or in comas. With helmets, all of them managed to finish these Tours.

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:dubious:
I doubt that ever in the history of bicycling anyone has set out on a ride saying “Today I am going to fall, therefore I need a helmet.” This is like saying I am not going to wear a seat belt because I don’t plan on having an accident. :rolleyes: I know damn well I wasn’t planning on having an accident when I fell and broke my helmet in half. BTW I was only going about 5 mph and preparing to stop when it happened.

There is a technical term we use here in Southern California for mountain bikers that don’t wear helmets. We call them organ donors.

[true story]The guy that ran my local bike shop was an avid mountain biker. Damn good too. One day (in the days before helmets became popular) he did a long climb early on AM. When he got to the top he took off his sweater and tied it around his handlebars for the decent. About 1/2 down, the sweater came untied and got tangled into the spokes. :eek: The bike came to a halt and over the bars he went.
He lived, he had a broken jaw, broken cheek, one eye was out of the socket due to the broken bones. I am told they took a couple of tablespoons of dirt out of his eye socket. He had some brain damage that made it difficult to do fine motor tasks when he got back to work. It was painful to try and watch him and start a nut on a bolt after he got back to work.
He had some very gory pictures of his injuries posted in the shop, and you have never seen anyone that was such a staunch supporter of helmets as he was post accident.[/TS]

vetbridge to quote an old Bell helmet ad, if you have a $10 head, wear a $10 dollar helmet. Go to your LBS (local bike shop) and try a bunch on, you may find that one brand fits lots better than another. Bells fit me lots better than Giros. YMMV
When you wear it, make damn sure the straps are tight. With the straps fastened grab the helmet and try to pull it over your face, or to the back of your head. If you can move it, you need to refit it.
Also never forget, you helmet can’t protect you when it is sitting on a shelf in your garage.

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OK, I am sold on the whole helmet thing. My little brother hit a deer while going 60 on his motorcycle. He got banged up, as did his helmet, but he would never have survived without a helmet.

On another topic: can I take the kickstand off?

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Sure, you certainly don’t need the extra weight of a kickstand. I’ve never owned a bike with one. Bikes lean against things just fine.

And, always wear your helmet. I know you’re sold on the idea, but I just wanted to get my $.02 in.

20

This is most likely normal. The chain is shifted between gears by “derailleurs”. The derailleur must act on the chain as it goes onto the sprockets. On the rear, that is the lower run of chain, that is only under the tension supplied by the rear derailleur (the rear derailleur also has the job of taking up slack when you shift the chain to smaller gears). Since it is the low tension side of the chain you are moving, this usually works without problems.

The front derailleur, conversely, must move the top run of chain. This part of the chain is under all the tension supplied by your pedaling effort. To make matters worse, the front sprockets (AKA chainrings) have a much larger difference in size than the rear ones, so the chain has to navigate a much larger gap.

To insure easy front derailleur shifting, you need to turn the pedals a bit slower than needed to propel the bike…Turn them, but don’t really “pedal”. This provides the chain motion needed to cause the chain to jump between chainwheels, but not the tension that fights it.

So when you are approaching a steep (or steeper) uphill section, try to get your front gearing established before you need it. If you wait untill you are climbing that steep stretch, you may not be able to back off for a second without losing momentum. If you have to shift the front while “under power” just be grateful if it shifts at all, and never mind the noise.

Older bikes, and even many modern road bikes barely, if at all, shift the front gearing when under load…It is not so much a problem to “soft pedal” for a second to make a shift when on pavement. Modern mountain bikes have some devices (pins and ramps) on the inside faces of the larger chainwheels that help the chain climb to the next larger chainwheel even when under load.

Finally, it is perfectly normal for the chain to rub on the front derailleur in the “cross chain” positions: Big sprockets front and rear, or small sprockets front and rear. Often this can be stopped by making fine adjustments (“trimming”) to the front shift lever, but the real solution is not to use those combinations, as besides the noise, they rob a bit of power, and increase chain and sprocket wear.