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Unlike car maintenance bike maintenance is way more accessible. You need like one or two specialized tools to cover the majority of the work you'll do on your b

Unlike car maintenance bike maintenance is way more accessible. You need like one or two specialized tools to cover the majority of the work you'll do on your bike compared to a car. People are just lazy.

sidewndr46 2y ago
Exactly what specialized tools do you need to work on a car? Are you counting closed end wrenches and sockets as "specialized" or something?
- Ichthypresbyter 2y ago
  While it is technically a socket, an oil filter wrench is reasonably specialized in that you won't see it in a standard socket set. Same may be true of a spark plug socket depending on your car. Otherwise, doing routine/basic maintenance on a car, such as changing the oil, requires a means of getting under the car (ramps or jack and stands) and of handling large amounts of fluids (drain pan and funnel) neither of which you need to do the equivalent work on a bike. A torque wrench is much more important for car maintenance than for bike maintenance (and you'll need a bigger one!). Depending on the condition of your car you may want a breaker bar. Obviously doing anything with the suspension requires a spring compressor, and troubleshooting certain engine problems requires a compression tester, but those are needed infrequently enough that they can be rented or borrowed. And that's before getting into the model-specific specialized tools for something like a timing belt change, or anything electronic (though I recommend anyone with a car should get a cheap Bluetooth OBDII reader).
  - jessekv 2y ago
    I gave in and bought a torque wrench recently for my bikes... modern bike components sure are light but they are also really easy to over-tighten.
  - aidenn0 2y ago
    > jack and stands Manual for my latest car recommends against jacking up under the front axle, so a jack and stands are out for getting underneath it.
  - sidewndr46 2y ago
    You have a pretty odd definition of "specialized". A jack is a jack. Yes, I use a big one for my truck since it weighs many thousands of pounds. I use the same jack to lift small cars and anything else I want, within reason. A torque wrench is a specialized tool...for torquing a fastener. I use the torque wrench to torque fasteners on my truck, my motorcycle, some random piece of equipment I want to repair, etc. I have seal drivers for driving seals on my motorcycle. I also can use them on hydraulic cylinders, or any other random seal I want to drive in. The only truly specialized piece of auto repair tooling I have is a tool that is cast and machined specifically to fit inside the engine head to remove a portion of the valvetrain for maintenance. It's a very boring once you understand how it works, but I'm not using it for anything else. As for a spring compressor, I've been doing suspension work for about a decade now and used one zero times. You just don't need it for routine maintenance. I guess if a spring breaks, you would need it in some weird circumstance possibly.
    - ThrowawayTestr 2y ago
      I would consider jacks, seal drivers and oil filter wrenches specialized tools. The only specialized tool you need for a bike is a spoke wrench.
      - fnfjfk 2y ago
        Lockring tool for cassette Various BB tools, also for disc brake lockrings Chain whip Bleed kit You can force a missing link with other tools but the dedicated pliers are really much better
      - pandaman 2y ago
        > The only specialized tool you need for a bike is a spoke wrench. And a chain whip, and a lockring bit for brakes/cassette, and another bit for the bottom bracket, and some pin spanners maybe, a derailer alignment gauge, maybe crank puller, tire levers, chain breaker, and master link pliers. Hydraulic brakes? Bleed kit, piston press. Pneumatic suspension? Shock pump. Tubeless? Better get a syringe to refill sealant through valves (and don't forget the valve core wrench) or reset your tires every time you need new sealant.
- sleepybrett 2y ago
  I can't change the oil in my ancient '99 passat (very low miles, I barely drive) without a special wrench.
- jrmcauliffe 2y ago
  Had a mobile mechanic unable to change the timing belt on our 10 y/o Volkswagen Golf because the balancer is now secured with a proprietary lock-ring instead of four hex bolts. He said this sort of thing is getting more common and even if he did want to buy all of the required bits and bobs he wouldn't be able to fit them all in his van. Even in the 'good old days', you weren't getting very far working on your car without things like gear pullers, timing guns and feeler gauges. All things that technically you could be using for other things, but not exactly in the average toolbox of someone that doesn't work on cars.
taeric 2y ago
I think the reality of most people using bikes in rather low stakes situations also changes things heavily. That is, many are riding bikes that I would not trust down a hill going 30+mph. But, notably, most people are not going anywhere close to 30mph on a bicycle. To that end, you are correct that most people are just needing to clean their bike. Replace the occasional consumable part of it, maybe. Keep it clean, though, and you are unlikely to need to replace any parts anytime soon. Edit: And, again, limit this to ebikes and things change pretty rapidly. It is trivial to get an ebike to 25mph.

sidewndr46 2y ago

Exactly what specialized tools do you need to work on a car? Are you counting closed end wrenches and sockets as "specialized" or something?

Ichthypresbyter 2y ago
While it is technically a socket, an oil filter wrench is reasonably specialized in that you won't see it in a standard socket set. Same may be true of a spark plug socket depending on your car. Otherwise, doing routine/basic maintenance on a car, such as changing the oil, requires a means of getting under the car (ramps or jack and stands) and of handling large amounts of fluids (drain pan and funnel) neither of which you need to do the equivalent work on a bike. A torque wrench is much more important for car maintenance than for bike maintenance (and you'll need a bigger one!). Depending on the condition of your car you may want a breaker bar. Obviously doing anything with the suspension requires a spring compressor, and troubleshooting certain engine problems requires a compression tester, but those are needed infrequently enough that they can be rented or borrowed. And that's before getting into the model-specific specialized tools for something like a timing belt change, or anything electronic (though I recommend anyone with a car should get a cheap Bluetooth OBDII reader).
- jessekv 2y ago
  I gave in and bought a torque wrench recently for my bikes... modern bike components sure are light but they are also really easy to over-tighten.
- aidenn0 2y ago
  > jack and stands Manual for my latest car recommends against jacking up under the front axle, so a jack and stands are out for getting underneath it.
- sidewndr46 2y ago
  You have a pretty odd definition of "specialized". A jack is a jack. Yes, I use a big one for my truck since it weighs many thousands of pounds. I use the same jack to lift small cars and anything else I want, within reason. A torque wrench is a specialized tool...for torquing a fastener. I use the torque wrench to torque fasteners on my truck, my motorcycle, some random piece of equipment I want to repair, etc. I have seal drivers for driving seals on my motorcycle. I also can use them on hydraulic cylinders, or any other random seal I want to drive in. The only truly specialized piece of auto repair tooling I have is a tool that is cast and machined specifically to fit inside the engine head to remove a portion of the valvetrain for maintenance. It's a very boring once you understand how it works, but I'm not using it for anything else. As for a spring compressor, I've been doing suspension work for about a decade now and used one zero times. You just don't need it for routine maintenance. I guess if a spring breaks, you would need it in some weird circumstance possibly.
  - ThrowawayTestr 2y ago
    I would consider jacks, seal drivers and oil filter wrenches specialized tools. The only specialized tool you need for a bike is a spoke wrench.
    - fnfjfk 2y ago
      Lockring tool for cassette Various BB tools, also for disc brake lockrings Chain whip Bleed kit You can force a missing link with other tools but the dedicated pliers are really much better
    - pandaman 2y ago
      > The only specialized tool you need for a bike is a spoke wrench. And a chain whip, and a lockring bit for brakes/cassette, and another bit for the bottom bracket, and some pin spanners maybe, a derailer alignment gauge, maybe crank puller, tire levers, chain breaker, and master link pliers. Hydraulic brakes? Bleed kit, piston press. Pneumatic suspension? Shock pump. Tubeless? Better get a syringe to refill sealant through valves (and don't forget the valve core wrench) or reset your tires every time you need new sealant.
sleepybrett 2y ago
I can't change the oil in my ancient '99 passat (very low miles, I barely drive) without a special wrench.
jrmcauliffe 2y ago
Had a mobile mechanic unable to change the timing belt on our 10 y/o Volkswagen Golf because the balancer is now secured with a proprietary lock-ring instead of four hex bolts. He said this sort of thing is getting more common and even if he did want to buy all of the required bits and bobs he wouldn't be able to fit them all in his van. Even in the 'good old days', you weren't getting very far working on your car without things like gear pullers, timing guns and feeler gauges. All things that technically you could be using for other things, but not exactly in the average toolbox of someone that doesn't work on cars.

taeric 2y ago

I think the reality of most people using bikes in rather low stakes situations also changes things heavily. That is, many are riding bikes that I would not trust down a hill going 30+mph. But, notably, most people are not going anywhere close to 30mph on a bicycle. To that end, you are correct that most people are just needing to clean their bike. Replace the occasional consumable part of it, maybe. Keep it clean, though, and you are unlikely to need to replace any parts anytime soon. Edit: And, again, limit this to ebikes and things change pretty rapidly. It is trivial to get an ebike to 25mph.