It’s been a good few years since I attempted any maintenance on a bike, other than pumping up the tyres. But on Saturday, I bit the bullet, and splashed out on some “proper” kit and did the deed.

From my “LBS” (Local Bike Shop) sold me some degreaser and chain lube, and Halfords (I know, I know) supplied me with a chain cleaner and a Park Tools gear cleaning tool. Pretty much everything worked well - the chain cleaner was a bit fiddly, but once I’d figured it out it did a fairly good job.

Then I set about adjusting my rear mech. Now - with my previous bike I had attempted this a number of times, with no real success. But it turns out I was missing 1 really important piece of information - at the point where the gear cable meets the derailleur there is a barrel adjuster. This is for adjusting the indexing (ie making sure that the gear lever (or in my case twist-shifter) selects the cog correctly). I wish I’d known this before - credit to Cycling Plus

So - now everything is working nicely. Happiness abounds, etc. Well - until the next rainy day, in which case it will probably need doing again….

mrBen