What maintenance tasks...

[TwoPlusTen]

... would you expect different people to be able to do?

I can repair a p**ct**e no problem (amazing how many bike shops are prepared to make someone part with £5/£10 (!) just to put a patch on a tube...) but I just bought a new bike, took one look at the list of tasks to complete and thought "to hell with this!" (the original words were a bit stronger!) and took it straight to my LBS for them to build it up. It keeps em busy anyway.

So, when it comes to maintaining a bike, what tasks should different levels of people be able to do? Let's split this into four categories:

Novice: things like repair a p**ct**e
Generalist: Able to do a general service a bike and keep it in good running order, may be able to do basic running repairs on the road
Engineer: can strip-service a bike and can get a bike home from many different possibilities
Specialist: the REALLY complex stuff

Over to you...

[Ugly]

What is complex on a bike?

With the correct tools it is all quite easy compared with keeping motor cars and bikes running well. Like most clubmen I taught myself by watching others, asking questions and 'taking it apart to see how it works'.

Don't forget if you take your pride and joy into the bike shop for a service you don't know if an experienced mechanic or the saturday boy has worked on it.

[sevenhills]

Specialist: the REALLY complex stuff

Over to you...

I can do most stuff, with the right tools. But an expert wouldnt need youtube and would do it in half the time. I just replaced my chain, but I think it was pot luck that when I set the cable in gear seven, it didnt need anymore adjustment(well, perhaps a little tomorrow).

[meic]

I would use the term "fitter" where you have used "Engineer" as they dont actually make anything, we are just assembling and dis-assembling.

I would use the term Engineer where you have said "specialist".

There is some overlap, I am not sure that wheelbuilding is engineering so much as craftsmanship.

I would consider myself in the "fitter" class, as I have assembled all my bikes myself at some time or another to the level of everything that can be taken apart.
The Engineer can adapt and manufacture components as compared to just buying and assembling.
As a bit of an oversimplification they will also "understand" where as fitters are sometimes referred to as monkeys.

[sevenhills]

As a bit of an oversimplification they will also "understand" where as fitters are sometimes referred to as monkeys.

That is spot on. I have also built my own computer when given all the correct parts, but in no-way did I possess any expertise. But it does help to increase a persons understanding, so doing it yourself is always good.

[PBA]

I would use the term "fitter" where you have used "Engineer" as they dont actually make anything, we are just assembling and dis-assembling.

I would use the term Engineer where you have said "specialist".

There is some overlap, I am not sure that wheelbuilding is engineering so much as craftsmanship.

I would consider myself in the "fitter" class, as I have assembled all my bikes myself at some time or another to the level of everything that can be taken apart.
The Engineer can adapt and manufacture components as compared to just buying and assembling.
As a bit of an oversimplification they will also "understand" where as fitters are sometimes referred to as monkeys.

Just to over complicate things. I am an engineer but in bike terms I'd say I'm a fitter! I can take a bike apart and put it back together so it still works but I do so to my own standards - not those of a shop. If I were to take my bikes into a shop for a service, they would "fix" lots of things that I am perfectly happy with.

[TwoPlusTen]

What is complex on a bike?

With the correct tools it is all quite easy compared with keeping motor cars and bikes running well. Like most clubmen I taught myself by watching others, asking questions and 'taking it apart to see how it works'.

Don't forget if you take your pride and joy into the bike shop for a service you don't know if an experienced mechanic or the saturday boy has worked on it.

If you're not mechanically confident, a LOT can look complicated. Granted, a bike isn't a Boeing 747 or a massive server rack, but its' like most things - until you've done it a few times it can stil seem daunting.

[NUKe]

Don't forget if you take your pride and joy into the bike shop for a service you don't know if an experienced mechanic or the saturday boy has worked on it.

Not everyone likes getting dirty For some people it is easier to take the bike to a bike shop, modern Bike shops advertise that there mechanics are fully certified and you should expect proffesional service, you of course pay a premium for this service, but its not always about lowest cost.

[easyroller]

I like fixing/servicing my own cycles but I do understand how some people would rather have an expert do it. I have never taken any of my bikes, past or present, to a bike mechanic for any tasks. My dad taught me how to repair a puncture pretty much when he taught me to ride. I manage most other tasks. I'm no expert but I get the job done. Obviously a trained bike mechanic would get the job done slightly better and a lot faster.

These days anything on the bike I can't figure out I turn to YouTube!

[al_yrpal]

You might find an Engineer running a bicycle factory or designing an bridge or aero engine but the people in bike shops are properly termed mechanics. This continuous prostitution of the title Engineer wouldn't be tolerated many countries except Britain. It is also insulting to those of us who are actually trained Engineers. We live in a country where gas fitters are called Engineers! It's pathetic, no wonder our manufacturing industries are constantly short of the intelligent and gifted people we sorely lack.

Any bicycle maintenance task should be within the capability of anyone. Some specialist tools are necessary but the cost of these is soon recovered from bike shop charges that are avoided. The very best method of learning 'how to' is the huge number of YouTube videos which are often brand specific. Books are often useless because they will often only describe how to set up a Shimano deraiieur when you actually have a SRAM. On YouTube you will usually find exactly what you need.
That said, some folk are not practical or handy at all and building up knowledge can take some time. Approach the task in hand slowly and carefully well prepared by video and save a lot of money. You will also end up well prepared for any problems that develop on the road. It's certainly not rocket science.

Al

[Vorpal]

I *can* do any of it. I used to take my bikes all apart and rebuild them, or at least clean all the bearings and regrease them. I've never done wheelbuilding, but I'm sure I could learn, that too if I took the time to. But these days, time is hard to come by. So, most things that take more than 15 or 20 minutes get done by the LBS.

[jezer]

I think bike maintenance is a lot simpler these days. In the past I would completely strip my bikes every year and rebuild them with new bearings and grease. Nowadays wheel bearings, head sets and bottom brackets are sealed, and therefore only need attention when they fail. Servicing is reduced to checking tyres and brake blocks, and regular cleaning and lubrication. Change the chain and sprockets, and perhaps chainrings every 8,000 miles or so, and that's about it.

[meic]

What is complex on a bike?

With the correct tools it is all quite easy compared with keeping motor cars and bikes running well. Like most clubmen I taught myself by watching others, asking questions and 'taking it apart to see how it works'.

Don't forget if you take your pride and joy into the bike shop for a service you don't know if an experienced mechanic or the saturday boy has worked on it.

If you're not mechanically confident, a LOT can look complicated. Granted, a bike isn't a Boeing 747 or a massive server rack, but its' like most things - until you've done it a few times it can stil seem daunting.

Yes, I have recently started my daughter on a trailer bike with a Sturmey Archer hub and I am scared to tackle that as I dont know what to do. Simple as that.

[thirdcrank]

... This continuous prostitution of the title Engineer wouldn't be tolerated many countries except Britain. It is also insulting to those of us who are actually trained Engineers. ...

This takes me off at a tangent. I understand there is a designation "European Engineer" which entitles the holder to use the style Eur Ing. Whenever I see this used, it's at the front as in Eur Ing Al Yrpal. I'm interested to know how this works in terms of the form of address. Usually, if something goes at the front, it is the form of address, where anything going after means looking it up if you don't know eg John Smith PC would be a Privy Councillor who would be the Right Honourable John Smith, whereas PC John Smith would be plain PC Smith.

So, how do you address a Eur Ing? "Good morning Your 'Inge" sounds a bit familiar. (I'm rhyming it with "binge" because it's an abbreviation of ingénieur.) The authorising body sounds rather like fanny, depending on the native tongue of the speaker so I suppose anything is possible.

[al_yrpal]

... This continuous prostitution of the title Engineer wouldn't be tolerated many countries except Britain. It is also insulting to those of us who are actually trained Engineers. ...

This takes me off at a tangent. I understand there is a designation "European Engineer" which entitles the holder to use the style Eur Ing. Whenever I see this used, it's at the front as in Eur Ing Al Yrpal. I'm interested to know how this works in terms of the form of address. Usually, if something goes at the front, it is the form of address, where anything going after means looking it up if you don't know eg John Smith PC would be a Privy Councillor who would be the Right Honourable John Smith, whereas PC John Smith would be plain PC Smith.

So, how do you address a Eur Ing? "Good morning Your 'Inge" sounds a bit familiar. (I'm rhyming it with "binge" because it's an abbreviation of ingénieur.) The authorising body sounds rather like fanny, depending on the native tongue of the speaker so I suppose anything is possible.

You are quite right. As a British Chartered Engineer you can register and get to use this title. In Germany a qualified Engineer would always be addressed as Ing Muller ... But not being addressed like that doesn't bother me at all its the misconception that's worrying. I never sought that title although I was a Chartered Mechanical and Electrical Engineer. Personally I think such titles are rather pretentious, rather like addressing someone who has done a crumby Phd is some obscure field or other as Dr.
What winds Engineers up is the widespread public ignorance where washing machine mechanics, gas fitters and TV and other technicians are calling themselves Engineers. How can a trade that can be learnt in 6 months be equated to a Profession which now demands a good University Degree, many further years training and several further years experience and responsibility at a professional level ? It makes no sense at all and should constantly be challenged.

Going back to the OP, there are a couple of things on a few bikes that do need specialist knowledge, but they are still tasks for specialised mechanics. Stripping down and refurbishing complex hub gears, and servicing some types of hydraulic forks.

Al