A Rant on Repairing a Bicycle
I love cycling and carry very fond memories of running a Hero Ranger into the ground when I was a teenager, riding it everywhere I could. No gears, no money in my pocket, just the burning desire to conquer every road, field, and hill.
But every time I took it for repairs (mostly punctures, but also creaks, tire wobbles, and whatnot), I came back unsatisfied. I wanted perfection — true rotation, absolutely no bearing noise, perfectly centered brakes that would not touch the rim, and so on — but the local cycle mechanics that I could afford just wanted to be done with the work.
That is how I started repairing my cycle myself. I got the minimal set of tools that I could afford (two tire levers, a set of Allen keys, a box of grease, a bottle of oil), and borrowed as much as I could from my dad's little toolset (thereby ensuring that he could never find what he was looking for), and set to work, trying to achieve the perfection that I wanted. After many failed attempts to keep a mudguard with a failed clamp from rubbing on the tire, I embraced minimalism and hung both mudguards on the lower branches of a mango tree (which provided the canopy for my budding garage), where they remained for years. I cannot claim to have done any better than the mechanic I sought to replace, even after spending hours dismantling every part I could and putting them back together, but I did learn a thing or two about how bicycles worked.
Fast forward a decade, after discarding the cycle and growing into jobs, motorcycles, marriage, and my own money, I wanted to rediscover cycling and fulfilled one of my biggest teenage dreams — a bicycle with gears, a BSA Mach X (forgot the model number). I mostly rode from home to the office on good roads once or twice a week, and the cycle stayed with me for 4-5 years, during which it did not give me much trouble. I also found decent repair shops that did not disappoint me (they charged much more than what I paid as a teenager, of course).
A few major life events later, I was running my own firm, and there was no time for anything other than work. The cycle started rusting and was donated after my dad's constant admonitions about how I was letting resources go to waste while there were many in need.
Then, another decade went by, and I was back on a job, and by this time, cycling had become a glamorous adult hobby and a fitness tool. My itch reared its head again, and I decided to splurge on a nice modern bicycle. I realized that these bicycles were very different from what I was used to. Super-smooth gear shifts, aluminum frames and rims, sealed bearings, and a huge range of expensive accessories. I also heard of new concepts like posture adjustments and riding techniques — which were ages beyond what I learned from the "get on the cycle and push the pedal hard" school. I fell in love with a Schwinn Searcher 2 the first time I tried it and brought it home.
The Schwinn is now 9 years old and has remained almost perfect mechanically. I had to change the tube and brake pads once — this was in Bangalore — and it was fairly easy to get things done. The repair cost was much higher than what I had seen before, and I was a little suspicious about the quality of replacement parts, but things just went fine.
Then, I relocated to Cochin.
By this time, Cochin had also seen a big boom in cycling communities and specialized stores with integrated repair shops. Decathlon was doing very well in this space too. But my Schwinn did not give me a chance to try even a single repair shop (though my usage was also not very high either) — just fill it (air), forget it, and ride it. Cycling also developed as a nice shared hobby for me and my 9-year-old daughter — we would wait for weekends to mount our bikes on the car (yay, I got a bicycle mount now!) and go around hunting for the many nice routes in and around Cochin.
Everything went great until Covid. We lost our cycling habit for a couple of years, and it was early 2022 when we thought we would start again. After just 2-3 trips, Schwinn started to lose air from the rear tire. It was like a slow puncture, with the tube going empty overnight. I was not surprised, given how little the cycle was used over the Covid time. In fact, I was surprised that the original Schwinn tire was still looking pretty good.
I took the cycle to one of the specialized repair shops, which was also known to conduct cycling programs, etc. Only the best for my Schwinn! They said they would service the cycle and replace the tube given its age. I said fine. After a couple of days, I got the cycle back, rode it 3km back home, and in the morning, no air in the rear tire!
I took the cycle back to the shop. They checked the tube, found a small puncture on the seam of the tube, and fixed it. There was no damage to the tire, so they also checked inside the tire very carefully and ensured that there were no burrs or sand that could cause punctures. I rode back, took the cycle on a few short trips over the next week, and then, the puncture came back again. Back to the store again, and this time, the puncture was in another place on the seam. I asked them about the quality of the tube — they looked offended, said they only use the best parts, and offered to change the tube at no cost. I was a little embarrassed at suspecting them.
Two days later, the cycle was ready with the new tube. This time, they showed me the tube before filling up air — it was a Panaracer, and they assured me that it was an excellent product used by the best in the field of cycling. I googled on the sly and was satisfied. They also told me that they were not charging me anything for this fabulous upgrade — anything for great customer service!
I rode back home on my new Panaracer tube. Three days later, the puncture appeared again. I was furious and took it back to the shop. This time, they looked genuinely puzzled. They said it was probably the rim tape. The rim tape of the Schwinn rim was looking silky smooth, and I tried to argue with them. But they are professionals and could not be argued with — apparently, they had seen similar failures in the past. They replaced the rim tape — the new tape and the way it was fixed did not look anywhere as good as the original tape. They also fixed the puncture on the tube. My only consolation was that I took the old tape back home as a souvenir.
One more week, a few short rides, and the puncture came back like clockwork. By this time, I was fed up. I was spending more time dropping the cycle at the store and waiting than on riding it. And the quality of rides had gone — I was always worried that I was going to get a puncture in the middle of a ride. I called up the store, and this time, finally, they gave up — it felt like they had spent too much time on this, and there was only a casual mention that they could fix the puncture if I brought the cycle to them.
As a last try, I went to Decathlon and pleaded with them to take a look at the wheel as a goodwill gesture, given everything else (including my daughter's bicycle) that I had purchased from them. But they were very clear that they would not offer repair services to bicycles that were not purchased from them. Why would they? Reliable service is their differentiator compared to these other stores.
Then, life intervened again, and I got busy with other things. Repairing the Schwinn became an item buried somewhere deep in a long task list. A year went by, then two. The cycle was sitting on my porch, and every time I looked at it, it seemed to look back at me with doleful eyes (or so it seemed). I would still fill air and rotate the wheels once in a while, but that was it.
Finally, April 2024 came, and my daughter was now big enough to get a larger bicycle. She wanted to start cycling to school from June, and I had no doubt in my mind. I was not going to get any fancy imported brand from these specialty stores, despite the excellent quality of my Schwinn. I just went to Decathlon and got her a Riverside (which is a decent bicycle), all because they provide great service for their bicycles.
Now that she got the new cycle, she wanted to go on rides like we used to. "Couldn't we repair our Schwinn, after all? One more try? Or should we sell it and get another one?". That reference to selling the bicycle struck me like lightning. Why would I sell a mechanically perfect bicycle just because of an invisible agent puncturing its tubes? What were my options? And then came my next brainwave. Why can't I repair my bicycles myself? It would not be the first time.
After surviving some strange stares and giggles from my wife and daughter, I resolved to set up a garage. I need to be efficient, though, otherwise, this would not scale, given other time commitments. But I do not have to scrounge like when I was a teenager. I researched a little and found that high-quality parts can be ordered directly from vendors without going through local shops. A little bit of planning, and I got my first set of equipment:
1. A BTWIN 500 bicycle repair stand from Decathlon.
2. A plastic footstool, which I can sit on (leveraged as a footstool when I have to clean my car's roof).
3. A set of tire levers (Decathlon has decent ones).
4. A good set of Allen keys (which I already had).
5. Some good lube.
6. A degreaser.
7. A new bottle of WD-40.
8. Screwdrivers and spanners of typical sizes (which I already had).
I decided that I would get more tools if I sustained with self-repair. Now, the Schwinn's tires. The tires were still looking good, though the rubber had become harder, and a few cracks had appeared. I ordered a new pair of Vittoria Terrano Zero tires anyway. I dismantled the tires and looked at the tubes, and this was a revelation. The tubes had naturally gone bad, but upon close inspection, it was very clear that the 'Panaracer' tube the shop had put in was a fake. The quality of rubber was very bad, and even the printing on the tube looked fake — looks like they put in a bad tube first, and then replaced it with a 'better' fake one. I examined inside the tire, no burrs, examined rim tape, all good (new rim tape they put is nowhere as good as the Schwinn original). I examined around the valve, all good. Still, I did not want to take a risk. I zeroed in on a tube from Decathlon, and Schwalbe Airplus, and after a little thought, decided on the Airplus, since I thought it would be more robust given the thicker wall (just in case that additional thickness helped against the invisible puncturer).
Finally, I had everything I needed. I replaced both tubes and filled them up without changing the tires. The Schwinn original tires were looking good, so I left them on and put the Terranos in storage — will come back to them at a later date. I put the wheels back on, and I could see a tiny bit of wobble on the rear wheel. I left it like that for the time being, and over the next few days, went on a few short rides (6-10kms) with my daughter. Everything looked good, and today morning, we went on a 25-km ride. Absolutely no issues, and the tubes are holding air quite well with zero drop in pressure. I think that finally, I have solved that problem. My only regret is not having taken this step earlier instead of wasting time with the shop. I was lucky too — an older bicycle with a steel frame and rims would have rusted by now.
I should have called upon my teenage self who learned that bicycles are simple machines. A little attention and love, the right spares, some timely maintenance, and they will survive, and provide great function and joy.
Need to check that little wobble now!