Maintenance spreadsheet?

[cycle tramp]

Some of us have rather a lot of bikes and it can be pretty tough remembering when you last did a job on one - changed casette/chain etc serviced wheel bearings etc.

I stress that I have no intention of recording mileage - a step too far for me.

I used to record mileage, but stopped ages ago.

(The three or so miles to my local large independent shop uses minor lanes which are covered in mud from farm vehicles leaving fields, whereas the six or seven miles to the nearest town uses cleaner lanes and then follows a footpath by the side of a dual carriage way which is mud free. I suspect the mileage to the independent shop causes more wear than the ride into town)

Generally speaking i just mark it on my calendar. Chains are rotated every other month and the pedals get a shot or two of fresh grease from my grease gun.
Tyres are rotated every year, and this year I'll actually be cleaning my bike and painting any chips.
Freewheels are changed when they stop working, and if possible are rebuilt.

[Redvee]

Not so much a maintenance spreadsheet but I keep a note of component mileage with an Excel spreadsheet using SUMIF or SUM formula depending on wether the component was fitted mid month or not.

[Sweep]

Some of us have rather a lot of bikes and it can be pretty tough remembering when you last did a job on one - changed casette/chain etc serviced wheel bearings etc.

I don't particularly enjoy maintaining wheel bearings for instance so don't want to do it unnecessarily.

Anyone use a spreadsheet or have a template for one?

At the moment I have a motley collection of freeform notes but tbink it would be a good idea to use a spreadsheet - I use a chromebook which has its own "sheets" prog but it will import Msoft Excel.

I stress that I have no intention of recording mileage - a step too far for me.


(I did look on the excellent Park Tools site - thought they might have one to encourage folk to wield/buy tools, but couldn't find anything)

For goodness sake........

Replace the chain before it wrecks the cassette....do this when the wear gauge tells you to.... then you can get 10 years out of a cassette viewtopic.php?t=116834&hilit=reverse+we ... e&start=45

Service the pedal and wheel bearings etc annually.....I maintain the "summer" bikes in the winter, and vice versa. You don't need to do the headset every year on a bike with mudguards, but then theres not much lost if you do a headset and it didn't need doing?

If you use road STIs maybe replace the cables annually to be on the safe side?

Tyres/brake blocks as needed, shirley?....BB unit when they get play.

A bike used daily for commuting will need more attention than my (now) wholly recreational bikes.

sorry to fry your head colin and I see where you are coming from, but I suppose I'm thinking about preventative maintenance rather than stuff that I can just see/feel needs changing - chains/cassettes/chainrings/cables etc - stuff with bearings in etc and I do have a lot of bikes.

I need to keep a good record or I'll be taking pedals, wheel hubs etc apart for no good reason on the kitchen floor when I could be out and about on the bike. Anything with bearings is quite a job for me.

I think I'll just knock something up from scratch on Google sheets (excel lookalike) as suggested upthread - it's not as if it has to look pretty/be presented to an arena of execs.

(By the by, I guess I partly got thinking about this after some tinkering with pre-done spreadsheets on an entirely separate non cycling non family friendly subject - won't boggle your mind with that

all the best

[st599_uk]

I know it's not a spreadsheet, but I have an add-on for Strava that knows which parts are on my bike and warns me when they're coming up to service points and life-expectancy.

[hoogerbooger]

When I was a nipper I had one bike and it was frequently and comprehensively serviced......more often than actually needed. Now I'm an old codger and me and me missus have a shed load of bikes... I'm in the same situation as you, I think.

A spreadsheet seems sensible for me too. Probably should be a mix of scheduled and adhoc maintenance with dates. Won't have mileage as I've lost interest in it. If I don't put a schedule in I'll just carry on leaving it a bit too late probably also need to schedule in reminders in my phone calendar !

The Hooger Booger is dismantled & in a basket at the moment & I'm current feeling a bit of negligent owner. Might have to be sent on some parenting classes.

[ChrisP100]

I carry out maintenance on condition.

I commute Monday to Friday, so I generally wash my one and only bike once a week. I give it a once over before and after every ride. If it's particularly wet or dirty when I get home I'll whack a generous spray of MO94 on a rag and give the mucky bits a wipe down. The front and rear mech's get a quick blast, as do the brake levers. SPD's (sealed bearings) get a blast and wipe, and a quick blast around the headset to drive any moisture out. I tend to keep it away from the v-brake pivots as I use copper grease in there which is fairly resilient to the weather. The chain gets a quick wash and re-lube on a Friday/Saturday, or sooner if it starts getting noisy or mis-shifts. I also stick the chain checker in once every couple of weeks.

Apart from that it falls to my pre/post use checks or niggles when riding to pick up any issues. Brake pads on a visual inspection post ride, brake centring adjustment pre ride, bottom bracket is checked for play when I clean my chain, brake cables are checked for damage post ride, and replaced as necessary, gear cables are adjusted/replaced if they start giving me shifting issues but cleaned and lubed on a Friday/Saturday.

The only components I change on a yearly basis are brake cables, and that will usually just be the inner cables. I might also do the headset bearings after a particularly heavy/wet winter, but I'm not strict on that. I'm also going to give my wheel bearings and cassette freehub a quick clean and re-grease/lube in the next few weeks or so, as it has been quite wet recently.

[cycle tramp]

Some of us have rather a lot of bikes and it can be pretty tough remembering when you last did a job on one - changed casette/chain etc serviced wheel bearings etc.

I need to keep a good record or I'll be taking pedals, wheel hubs etc apart for no good reason on the kitchen floor when I could be out and about on the bike. Anything with bearings is quite a job for me.

all the best

When it comes to bearing hub refurbishment you could mark a monthly date on your calendar and carry out two checks to see if the bearings need work
Turn the bike upside down and check for bearing play, like can the wheel hubs or pedals be pushed so they rock on their axle or spindle?
If its a yes then it's time for a strip down and bearings yo be replaced or reset.
If it's a no then the next test is to put the handle of a screwdriver to your ear and the spade of the screwdriver against the wheel axle or pedal spindle... then gently spin the wheel or pedal making sure your hair and beard are clear of the part which is in motion. If through the screwdriver you hear a series of pops, crackles or snaps then the bearing grease is contaminated and should be replaced, if you just get a constant rolling noise, then the grease is fine, and you don't have to do anything until you carry out the checks next month.
If after 12 months of checking the bearing still has not been re-greased then you might want to do that then.

Or fit a grease port Personally I'm a grease port person.

[Sweep]

another thing i intend to start logging more - when BB's taken out for checking for contamination of threads/regreasing - many of my bikes have square taper BBs - a good idea to take them out every so often but don't want to do that more than necessary - a bit of a job - have to be careful not to crossthread when putting back in which can, in my experience, be surprisingly easy to do.

[Audax67]

I wrote my own prog years ago - in VB6, which was relatively young at the time. I've expanded it over the years - I keep a machine running XP for the purpose - until now I can read in a GPX file from my Garmin and it updates my log and my maintenance schedule, and does a few other things Strava thinketh not of.

Right now it's telling me to get over to the workshop and swap my chain over.

[gazza_d]

Surprised no one else has mentioned that you can do this with Strava.
When you add your bikes, you can add components and it will tot up the mileage for you.
When you replace, you can retire the component.
What would be really good would be the ability to set alarms to do things like check chain wear etc..

[Jdsk]

Surprised no one else has mentioned that you can do this with Strava.
When you add your bikes, you can add components and it will tot up the mileage for you.
When you replace, you can retire the component.
What would be really good would be the ability to set alarms to do things like check chain wear etc..

6 posts back...

: - )

Jonathan

[scottg]

Surprised no one else has mentioned that you can do this with Strava.
When you add your bikes, you can add components and it will tot up the mileage for you.
When you replace, you can retire the component.
What would be really good would be the ability to set alarms to do things like check chain wear etc..

You don't need alarms, you will automatically get shipments of parts from Amazon.
Each new BB standard automatically comes with tools too.
Strava will even suggest extra long rides, if you order too many chocolate biscuits from Amazon.