Book of the Week: Zinn & The Art of Road Bike Maintenance
22 Feb 2016
If you’re planning to ride your bike across america, you should know how to repair and maintain your road bike. This week I read Zinn & The Art of Road Bike Maintenance By Lennard Zinn. I already have the Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair from Park Tool, but I wanted to expand my knowledge from a non-branded book. This isn’t a book that you read cover to cover. You read the first few chapters on basic stuff and emergency repairs and skim the rest of the hefty book. That way when it comes to fix things, you have a map of where to go. Knowing how to repair and maintain your road bike can be fun and rewarding.
The bicycle is one of our greatest inventions
General Guide to Performing Mechanical Work If something is threaded, you need to prep it before tightening. I totally ignore this. For lubricated threads, use grease or oil. For locked threads, use Loctite to keep them in place. For antiseize threads, use anti-seize compound and avoid threading a titanium bolt into a titanium part, because it will bind up and gall. You also need to properly torque stuff so what’s tight is supposed to be tight and you don’t over tighten enough to damage things. People tend to use too much lube. Lube attracts dirt. Wipe off excess lube. Tools Bikes tend to require specialized tools to repair. Zinn describes the difficulty of different repairs as 3 levels and specifies the tool kit for each level. Instead of buying the tools individually, I bought the Park Tool Advanced Mechanic Tool Kit, which roughly puts you at Level 2. You’re not going to have access to your home workshop on a ride, so for daily riding Zinn recommends carrying:
- spare inner tube - for flats
- tire pump - for flats
- patch kit - for punctures
- small screwdriver - for adjusting derailleurs
- hex keys
- Torx T25
- taillight
- identification
- cash
- cell phone
For long trips add in
- spare tire and second spare tube
- spoke wrench - for adjusting spokes
- combo wrench and chain tool
- spare chain links
- spare spokes
- sealant-filled compressed-air tire inflates
- grease
- duct tape
- wire
- zip ties
- 15mm pedal wrench
- headlight
- matches
- emergency mylar blanket
The most common problems you’ll face while riding are flat tires, punctured tires, broken spokes and chain issues. I carry a spare tube, a patch kit, tire levers and a multitool. Resources
- Fat Guy Across America
- How much do you need to know about bike repairs and maintenance before biking across america?
- Bike Touring - Packing List
- How Much do I Need to Know About Fixing Bikes?
- What Should I Pack?
Purchase Zinn & The Art of Road bike Maintenance on Amazon.com or check it out from your local library.