[Closed] Love hate relationship with tinkering

why do you have to be out riding ? Why can't you have both ?

I like my tinkering time too.

Try doing it for a living, the last thing i want to do on my day off is tinker with my bike

Couldn't you have posted on [url= http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/bike-maintenance-fun-pastime-or-necessary-evil/page/3#post-8682364 ]here[/url] to get my thread over the 100 mark? 😉

I thought this was going to be about Tinker Juarez 😆

Sorry DezB should really pay more attention.

Weeksy - managed it with motor bikes by just having one, can't see that happening with bicycles though... think I need to rid myself of "spares" to reduce the temptation to tinker

I like tinkering when I don't have to do it but annoys me when it's necessary. I'm spending loads of time just now messing with my motorbike, which I haven't ridden for years, that's perfect tinkering

It doesn't affect my riding time at all though, it's 2 different things.

think I need to rid myself of "spares" to reduce the temptation to tinker

Yep. I now hardly do anything. I currently have a single bike, which is more-or-less spot-on. It gets some love and maintenance, but there's nothing it needs, I don't buy it things particularly and tinkering with it just doesn't happen.

Helps that my LBS does very quick turnarounds very reasonably, so most of the necessary work is outsourced. I never resented tinkering time, but the current state of things has reduced my mental clutter and surplus spending quite a bit.

🙂

I get frustrated when all my bikes are running perfectly and all servicing is up to date. All I have left at the moment is an oil change in one set of forks then I am back to this situation.

What can I tinker with then? I have a spare frame so might just do a frame swap for the fun of it

I even miss tinkering vee brakes up to stopping perfection.

My bikes don't need tinkering; both are perfect for the job and in first class order. Last tinker I did was changing the chain on the winter bike when I found it to be almost 12 1/16" long, therefore in need of replacement.

I've currently [i]only[/i] got two bikes, a CX/road bike and a full sus MTB, full sus only recently built, and does need the brakes sorted (squealing) but I'm not really inclined to ride at the moment anyway, and the CX bike is all up together.

I'm in the same 'like tinkering, but only when I want to, not when it's essential' category.

My rally car has got to the point that it needs constant attention to keep it as tidy as I'd like it, and I really can't be bothered, at all. I'd love to build a new one (finances permitting) though, which is much more work.

Try doing it for a living, the last thing i want to do on my day off is tinker with my bike

book it in; you can probably get mates rates 😉

I shot myself in the foot getting my lad into bikes.
Now as well as 2 of my own and 3 motorbikes I have his 3 bikes to sort and a Moto enduro I've just sorted for him. It's non stop.

I used to love [s]tinkering[/s] fettling years ago but now It's just a ballache.

Love, hence the username!

Can’t be bothered with my own stuff during the summer , this time of year Work is often quite enough to fit my own jobs in during my working day.

My own stuff never seems to go smoothly

I want to ride, not fettle.

I'm perfectly cable of virtually everything, including wheel building, fork servicing, and rear shock air cans. I'd have a go at the dampers too, if I had 300psi nitrogen kit, but anything over an hour and an easy win and it just becomes and annoying loss of time.

But, it's a ball ache and my work space is too small, but I have to do it because generally, shops are expensive and fall short of my standards.

TBH I find if I ride more I tinker less, partially because I just get less fussy over little things like a rough bearing (that'll probably do another few hundred miles before it actually needs maintenance) and partially because the weak parts die and what's left tends to be pretty bombproof.

Love it when have the clean dry space and organisation to do it. Hate it when I don't.

I love tinkering! Thats how you learn. I am never satisfied, always wanting something else, something different, to be able to rebuild something and understand it or rebuild it better than it was built.

The only thing I CBA to do and have no drive to learn is wheel building and truing.

Wheel truing was far easier than I ever thought it would be once I read the basics and understood the physics.
It’s been immensely smugtastic to true/build my own wheels ever since, and have others think it’s some sort of black art.

Fellas at work are regularly spending hundreds on bike serving, I cannot for the life of me understand why they wouldn’t want to fettle it themselves. Even if I could afford LBS rates, I’d always choose and trust my own skills.

I love a bit of tinkering even if it can sometimes be very frustrating.

I've now got so many tyres that the tyre shelf is overflowing. And I have too many wheels for all the hanging space in the workshop.

Nope I loves it TBH...

Double bonus tonight the missus even let me build a wheel indoors so I could watch telly and stay warm and tinker at the same time...

I can happily lose hours fettling my bikes. There's something appealing to me about it, especially in the dark winter months. In the Garage with my fleece, beanie and heater on for a bit of warmth, bike in the stand and nobody mithering me. A quick cycle up the lane to make sure that job is good and then onto the next task. Often been in there until midnight! Bliss.....

That said if my pro-active maintenance goes Pete Tong it really irritates me, especially if I need a part/component that I can't get hold of right now.....

This ... but with bikes. https://xkcd.com/349/

I hate fettling, Got some Pikes that have been halfway though a service for nearly 3 months now. Have just sorted the rigid SS out for winter though, which means the chain has been oiled 🙂