THIS IS ALL YOU NEED to TUNE UP your BICYCLE yourself! Basic household items you likely already own!

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My favorite TOOLS and JUICES and stuff!

[johntyler]

Wow, Andy I have been a bike mechanic for several years and you have distilled down what is really required to tune up a bike plus a lot of the tricks and shortcuts into 11:57 min. You truly are building the bike community with extremely well done Youtube video productions that are concise and professionally produced. In Canada we do not have access to Harbour freight
so I improvise with rag in box, isopropyl alcohol and nitrile gloves from Costco. I use Dawn PowerWash to clean the whole bike and then clean the whole house Lol 😂. Highly encourage every mechanic to use nitrile gloves to prevent harmful chemicals was a mechanic for 45 years. Saluda.

[Quizmate]

I'm watching from the UK. Great advice. Off the top of my head, I'd add an accurate chain wear tool, chain whip and lockring tool. Love the focus on basic mineral lube. Of course, someone from the chain waxing Illuminati with their expensive strippers, croc pots and wax products will be along at any moment to tell you you're doing it stay strong my friend 😊 👍

[arden]

I remember in one video a while ago you talked about wearing gloves, you went on about petroleum products and cognitive decline and the type of people who may or may not understand what a term like that means. Ever since, that moment pops into my head often, and makes me laugh and smile every time. I'm not sure if you intended it but that lives on in my memories as a benchmark of pure comedic genius. As with a lot of the best comedy, I'm not even sure exactly what made it so funny to me. Anyway, thank you Mr. BikeFarmer!

[billwilliams]

To do a perfect job cutting cable casings, I use a handheld grinder with a
cutting (thin cut off) wheel.
I have a hole drilled in a scrap wood 4 x 4. I insert the cable casing into the hole and out to the other side where I use the grinding wheel to cut it flush with the wood scrap.
It makes a nice, clean cut, and there’s no chance of crushing the cable

[VickiKech]

I will stay tuned. My bike, not so much. But I'll give it a shot.

[TahoeRealm]

"Good Job Andy" will sail right over a lot of heads on this one 😂 Bravo

[GEKKO_Archery]

Easy as that, what a great summary!
Two things I would add, from my experience of decades using more or less the same tools.
I stopped using an adjustable wrench when I found the Pliers Wrench by Knipex, yes they are expensive, but they last a lifetime and are far better to use.
Second thing I wish I had bought far earlier is a ultrasonic bath, makes cleaning of disassembled parts far easier.

[emilycs]

Car instant detailer/spray wax is nice, cheaper than bike brand stuff, and odds are its probably the same. A big gallon jug of orange colored Zep degreaser from whatever box store or amazon is very useful to have. I like to use a garden pump sprayer for washing bikes since it produces a soft mist that won't force water into bearings, and uses very little water which is nice in winter when you don't have a hose spigot. I.e apartment dwellers. Toilet brushes (only used on a bike) are useful for cleaning grimy drive trains. Some kind of larger, soft brush is nice for knocking dust or dirt off areas like bottom bracket.

[jamesianv]

That Power wash is a game changer in the kitchen as well. no need for dishwashers. they should sponsor your channel

[madmax]

That dawn power wash is something else, i use it to clean a lot of things around the house. Yeah, I've mixed IPA and Dawn dish soap together before, its quite good.

I bought a cheap bike tool kit for $14 from Walmart that comes with 2 3 ways (one hex with an adapter to give it 4 sizes, and the other with socket style ends), a chain breaker, a screwdriver, a 15mm pedal tool, two tire levers, and a box of patches and glue.

[jessmurphy]

Thank you so much for your video on essential tools!

[liam]

Thank you for being a simple reasonable man. Enjoy your future bike rides!

[turntabillist]

Yeah, another fan of Dawn PowerWash thanks to you! I noticed you using it frequently in your videos and it looked so dang convenient. It works great, too, on super dried caked-on concrete-like mud that adheres to my mountain bike frame. I don't really like using a hose and dousing the bike in water. Instead, simply spray on some Powerwash and it softens the mud right up and then easily wipes away.

[davekalec]

You are interesting - you span many generations with your outlook on the industry and common issues, always spot on point!...

[fiets]

I'm really enjoying your content. I get the Bob Ross homage especially when you are tuning up bikes. We use to have a great bike shop here similar to what you are doing but Trek took it over and pretty much killed it. Now that bike shop is closed. Keep it simple and keep up the good work!

[BruceChastain]

I like how specific you are with your tools, I have all that but my stuff is just a random mess of stuff, I don't even know what some of it is, like so many random tire levers I have.

[TJEvans-bz]

I have had a pair of FELCO cable cutters for over 30 years. Great tool.

[geezers]

Old spoke spanning your stand lock jaw is helpful when sizing a replacement chain. I hang the new and old chain together by their inner plate ends to match their lengths. Plus, it really gives you a second view of chain stretch and weather the cassette should be binned or not.

[ktmorimoto]

The round handle tools are made by Vessel. The quality is excellent.

[npxmnpxm]

I will do this because the last $100 tune-up I got didn't even include a simple wipe-down of the frame. Thanks!