Excessive wear & tear?

[MarkyMark292]

I commute to work on my bike and try to achieve it 5 days a week. Over the past year however it has only been about 2-3 days. The total mileage per day is appx. 17 miles.

In one year, I have had to replace my pedal crank, pedals (grips worn off), brake discs front and back (as well as about 4 sets of brake pads over the year), Rear cog and new chain and two spokes.

My route is road in the morning and then an old converted railway line back home. Both journeys include hills and each include a very steep one too.

I cycle in all conditions, hot, cold, wet and dry!

Am I being ripped off by my bike store, or is this normal wear and tear for a bike?

Is there something I am not doing to maintain the parts so they last longer?

The bike is kept in an outside brick shed that is mildly damp (no other choice at present).

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Mark

 

[Beebo]

Commuting does wear a bike out quicker than normal riding.
What bike are you using? Cheaper bikes wear out quicker than more expensive ones, but parts are cheaper to replace.
The best form of maintanance is to keep the bike clean, especially the drive train.
I sometimes wonder if it would make sense to buy a £300 bike every year, run it into the ground and just write it off. I spend about £300 of bits and bob over the course of a year.

 

[screenman]

I would say if the bike is made of monkey metal and the bits the shop are selling you are the same, well to be honest it still sounds a bit excessive.

 

[ianrauk]

4 sets of disc brake pads? Blimey. I do 35 miles a day in all weathers on my commute and a pair of disc brake pads last well over a year, and that's without them really wearing down to nothing. (@Beebo has the same bike as me)

In a year I expect to have to change a pair of tyres and a chain at least.

 

[Bodhbh]

What are you riding?

It does sound a bit OTT. In 6-7years I've yet to replace pedals, worn thru discs - tho to be fair not hammered them down on a single bike - pads, I don't keep track, but it's nowhere near a year. If one spoke goes, often more follow, so it's worth getting your wheel rebuilt or a new one if it keeps happening - then it tends not to happen again. Drivetrain stuff tho, I do get thru fairly regularly. Not quite made it thru winter on a chain this time.

 

[MarkyMark292]

Commuting does wear a bike out quicker than normal riding.
What bike are you using? Cheaper bikes wear out quicker than more expensive ones, but parts are cheaper to replace.
The best form of maintanance is to keep the bike clean, especially the drive train.
I sometimes wonder if it would make sense to buy a £300 bike every year, run it into the ground and just write it off. I spend about £300 of bits and bob over the course of a year.

My bike cost me about £550 new. It is a Specialized Cross trail (Hybrid)

I agree, buying a cheaper bike each year does seem feasible compared to the expense of wear and tear.

I do try my best to keep my bike as clean as I can with the limited time I have to complete the task.

The reason I posted is, my brother said he knew of cyclists that did more miles than Mr and dust go through as many parts as I do. I have no idea the cist of their bikes or the kind of cycling they do.

Hence I wondered if I was on my own in the need for replacements more often.

 

[vickster]

I did 2.5k on rubbish roads on my giant and replaced nothing apart from the tyres and that was choice rather than necessity!

 

[Beebo]

My bike cost me about £550 new. It is a Specialized Cross trail (Hybrid)
.

That is a perfect comutting machine.
Over the course of a year you can expect to replace a chain and cassette, plus a few spokes here and there maybe. The brake pads shouldnt wear that quickly.
Learn to fit all the stuff yourself and save a fortune.

 

[vickster]

Specialized bikes don't seem to have a very good rep for longevity (personally I just find them utterly uninspiring )

The advice about learning to do stuff yourself is a good one if you are even slightly interested or mechanically inclined!

 

[MarkyMark292]

I spoke to the guy at the store who fixed and serviced my bike and advised me that for the level of useage, he'd expect a chain and cartridge replacement at least in a year. Grit is a factor for my brake pads getting worn down so quickly. If I spent an hour each week stripping it down and greasing everything, he says I probably won't need to replace as much as often. If only I had that amount of time to do it each week. It'd be at 23:00 at night!

 

[MarkyMark292]

Specialized bikes don't seem to have a very good rep for longevity (personally I just find them utterly uninspiring )

The advice about learning to do stuff yourself is a good one if you are even slightly interested or mechanically inclined!

I was wondering about the quality of the Specialized to be honest.

I have learnt how to replace brakes and how to re-align my chain. I guess I need to learn more. :-)

 

[vickster]

Wiping rims and pads regularly with baby wipes is quite quick and easy pampers from pound land do the job

 

[gbb]

I commute to work on my bike and try to achieve it 5 days a week. Over the past year however it has only been about 2-3 days. The total mileage per day is appx. 17 miles.

In one year, I have had to replace my pedal crank, pedals (grips worn off), brake discs front and back (as well as about 4 sets of brake pads over the year), Rear cog and new chain and two spokes.

My route is road in the morning and then an old converted railway line back home. Both journeys include hills and each include a very steep one too.

I cycle in all conditions, hot, cold, wet and dry!

Am I being ripped off by my bike store, or is this normal wear and tear for a bike?

Is there something I am not doing to maintain the parts so they last longer?

The bike is kept in an outside brick shed that is mildly damp (no other choice at present).

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Mark

How old is the bike Mark ?
Trying to break it down, Why did the crank get replaced ?...if it had come loose it'd soon damage it. Regular checking of components helps, not every day but just a once over once in a while helps prevent wear and damage getting worse.
Pedals, TBH, many bikes have cheap pedals fitted.
Discs...no experience but are they fitting inferior or cheap pads ? You get what you pay for, pads aren't any different. Perhaps its just the amount of braking you do...it may be normal.
Rear cog and chain ?..again, how old is the bike ? if its two or three years old, that may be reasonable. Do you oil the chain regularly ?
Spokes...I read all the time (well moderately regularly) that the wheels on Spesh's aren't that good.

Kept in the shed ?..I don't really see that as a problem, not ideal, but not a bike breaker.

Regular cleaning and maintenance helps a lot.
Perhaps you've just had a bad year where it all came together.

 

[Blurb]

My daily commuter, entry level Merida Speeder S1 has done just shy of 4000 miles from new in all weathers and I have had to:

Change the (cheap) rim pads at least 3 times front and back. Regular adjustment required.
Replaced chain twice (still on original cassette). Chain wiped down/lubed after wet rides otherwise weekly.
One of the original pedal's bearings went so they were replaced with more sturdy items.
Rear derailluer cable replaced as it wore out at the shifter (at about 3500 miles).
Both mudguard stays snapped. Potholes!
One freak allen key induced puncture (Marathon+).
Tighten cranks once. No apparent damage as I realised and fixed it within a few miles of noticing it.
Rear rim has maybe another 500 miles of wear left before needing replacement.

Sounds bad when listed out, but the only thing I was miffed about was the rim wear. I do try to wipe down the rims post wet ride, but 11 wet miles in urban traffic must take it's toll.
Only had to use the LBS for the cable as I would probably have borked the shifter and wasted a morning taking it to them anyway.
LBS also said that if I'm changing the chain as often as I have, then the cassette should last for a very long time. I have a spare, so the moment a new chain skips it'll get swapped out.
I do try to be mechanically sympathetic and keep on top of any issues.

Regular general cleaning and inspection should help, but the bottom line is that if you use your bike heavily in all weathers, bits are going to wear out.

Hope my experience helps you judge for your own situation.

 

[Custom24]

What is the surface like on the railway line? How much grit and muck is being thrown up on to your bike?
I have also found I wear out stuff quite quickly, but I have found the road to be much kinder on the bike than the mucky trails I was using previously. My plan now is road during winter and trails during the summer.