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Running out of time this morning, I couldn’t shoot this from the best angle. This was what I could come up

Not a good sound to hear. I was riding the loop on a pre-work morning ride, riding it backwards because… you know that’s how I roll. haha. As I stood up to climb a short steep hill, I hear a loud snap. I immediately stop, which I’ve learned normally limits the damage, and check my chain. What I saw caused me to do a double take: half the cage, the jockey wheel suspended on the chain. Ouch.

It was funny how this piece was on the chain, but not attached to the rest of the derailleur

I turned around and got to the bottom of the hill without pedaling. I removed the SRAM powerlink, why I love SRAM chains, and removed the bottom half of the derailleur cage. I then rode my Single Speed Full Suspension 29er back to my car, walking the uphills, though.

Again, out of time and working with a P & S camera. This was the best I could get.

Quick perusal of pricepoint.com, which I use for much of my buying needs, netted me last year’s x9 rear derailleur (no changes from last year to this year) for $35 less than this year’s x9. To top it off, because I live in So. Cal, I could order it now and get it tomorrow. The bike will be back in action really soon.

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Ok this letter is directed to some of you people that are STILL taking your bikes to you the LBS. Sure there’s valid reasons why you need to take a bike to the LBS for some repairs or services such as “I like to get reamed when paying for a tune up.” People also take their bikes to get their wallets emptied to “change a flat.”

In reality, if you have a set of these…

and these…then you’re pretty much going the right direction.

Here’s the thing, about 85-90% of all mechanical problems that occur with your bike, you can fix! Seriously, there’s no need to spend your cashola just to have some teen age kid or a guy that still lives at home to fix your bike.

All you need are some basic tools such as a set of allen wrenches, bottom bracket tool, cotter less crank remover, diagonal cutters, pliers, chain whip, cassette remover and a bottle opener, that’s for the beer!

You can actually get a decent home mechanic tool set from places like Pricepoint.com or Nashbar.com

The best thing to do is get one of those kits that I mentioned from either retailer, just consider it as an investment. Then watch or read some of our Tech Tips, or get a buddy to show you how to fix things, better yet, get a DVD that shows you how to repair bikes. Fixing bikes isn’t rocket science. You’d have to be really We Todd Did if you can’t figure out how to tune a derailleur, its really simple. Just like with anything, the first time can be apprehensive, but with a bit more practice, you can start saving some major dough and start socking that money away for your kids college fund or towards your dreams…a Monkey Space Ship!

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