Bike Repair
After my latest and bike shop experience I will do everything to not bring my bike there ever again. It was €147 and an absolute waste of money. €30 was for the Bosch firmware update. I do not like that I cannot do this on my own.
But the real reason was that the chain of my e-bike jumped down. I did put it back, but it jumped down again.
I decided to bring it to a bike shop to let a "pro" do the work. Also, I missed a Warranty maintenance interval.
E-bikes have a bracket that should prevent chains from jumping. The manufacturer used a stripped screw for screwing the bracket. I pointed the bike shop to the screw that I wanted this replaced within the maintenance. I needed to lose the crank to be able to change the screw. Because I did not have the tool I decided to bring it to the shop.
Result: Chain was on but jumped off again. Why? The shop did not change the screw, so it was not screwed down correctly. Within the maintenance they did not recognize that the cassette and chain has worn out after 3000 km (1850 mi). Did they even do a maintenance?
I do not know. After that I decided to gear up my bike tools and do everything on my own. I used my Dremel to carefully cut a slot into the screw so that I can use it with a flathead.
Tools at Home
I finally decided to get a torque wrench. But I did not find a wrench that was capable of 3-40 Nm, so I decided to get two: A Proxxon MC15 and a MC60. I also have a 1/4 (23080) and a 3/8 (23112) wrench set from them. They are sadly not "Made in Germany" but are high quality tools from Taiwan Tengtools. I also use my Proxxon Ring Wrench set (23821) and my "Wera HexPlus HF" for bike repairs.
Over time, I collected some very special tools:
- Shimano HG for cassette and a chain whip
- Shimano TLFC32 for center lock and bottom bracket (this I sadly cannot use with my torque wrench)
- Bosch Lockring Tool and a crank puller for Bosch
- 3D printed Chain Wear Indicator
The only thing I still miss, despite a mineral oil set, is a proper stand. I will keep an eye for special offers for a "Park Tool PCS 9.3 or 10.3".
Bike Bag
Last year I got an "Ortlib Commuter-Daypack" Urban from my parents to my birthday, which I absolutely love. I always carry my sailing stuff including a lighter for ropes and a Leatherman for everything. I decided to add a "Topeak MINI 20 PRO Multitool" for bikes. Remember to carry always a chain pin. Within this order I also got a basic tube repair kit. As a very small pump I got a "Lezyne CNC Pocket". Multitool + tube repair + Pump was €50 and everything I need in a repair emergency. The best is it fits into the small compartment bag within my backpack.
Conclusion
A big Investment in tools, but I hate bad quality tools. Maybe they will last long and used for other things than just bikes. It is cheaper and way faster to do bike maintenance on my own. To drop the Bike at the shop and collect it later cost me around 90 Min in total. DIYing the repair is more time efficient and faster done, and I do not have to miss my bike log. To be without my e-bike also cost me a lot of time.