How to tune your brakes and gears

[@MrGlennhumphreys]

ive been "self adjusting" for years and taught myself everything i know.. but with starting to watch these videos, one always picks up little hints and tricks that you never thought of...thanks for posting.... funny how i called them "limiting"screws too.. nobody ever taught me that name!

[@bikeradar]

Glad that this helped. We have a full maintenance playlist (road and MTB) which you can view via a link in the description. Happy riding.

[@bikeradar]

That makes a lot of sense! There's been loads of debate about this on one of our other videos

[@bikeradar]

Glad to hear it, keep watching!

[@dguzmics]

As Scott said that the most clearest understanding bit of maintenance DIY advice I've seen on here. Thanks for sharing.

[@Beardboost]

Finally a tutorial which shows and is explained properly, good job!

[@cjtupman]

Really good video, I've been mucking about with my gears for days now trying to stop this random click from the front derailer and this has sorted it for me in 20 mins. Cheers.

[@08Ultrasonic]

Adjusting the brakes is so much easier than what he explained. Instead of resetting the adjustment screw back to the bottom. Adjust it so it's slightly away from the bottom. Hold the brakes against the rim and tighten the clamp on the wire. You'll notice that the brakes are stopping/slowing the wheel immediately without applying the brakes. Kind of what is shown when he first adjusted the brakes. Now reset the the adjustment screw to the bottom. Now you should notice that there is a small gap between the brake pads and rim. Job done! Perfect adjustment with simplicity! :)

[@bikeradar]

Thanks! Have you seen the rest of our maintenance series? There's a link in the description.

[@leqin]

Great video and superb advice, especially the bit about placing your chain in the middle of the cassette and then tuning it for that position - never heard that before and I can think of lots of things I would far sooner do than setup a rear derailleur, but seeing as I had to do that today this video was at the right time in and in a few minutes I had it done and was really happy with the result and took the bike for a spin and - much later - arrived back home even happier because I had other things on a new bike build to tweak but the gears were well sorted. Thanks a bazillion

[@GeetarAdam]

Thanks for this amazingly informative video! I'm a noob to biking and I've watched a ton of videos trying to figure things out, but not many are explained this well.

[@sheilamorrison7547]

Thanks for the instruction! I have a really inexpensive bike and the local shops don't like to tune it up or adjust anything for me. This is just what I needed!

[@bikeradar]

Sounds like you need a very slight adjustment. Try turning the barrel adjuster on the derailleur if there is one/ or on the shifters. Very small tweak at a time and re test. Make sure you count how many you turn so you can reset if needed.

[@bikeradar]

Ace thanks. Spike, the mechanic has many years experience as one of the top mechanics for the Team GB cycle squads. Have you watched the rest if the videos in the series?

[@bikeradar]

Hard to say without hearing the noises. Worth trying to tune up yourself (a link to all of our maintenance videos is in the description above). Failing that, always worth taking your bike to the bike shop for a refresh. Nothing like a perfectly working bike eh!

[@smmaniam]

Agree with Mr. Cameroon, best bike video I have seen. Very clear and simple, as said. Very well done. Please keep it up.

[@carlose6010]

The easiest to follow with no beating around the bush! Superb !

[@melbman43]

Thanks for this one, the best and easiest description I have ever seen, off i go right now to the bike shop, and not to get them to do my pads, but to buy some. Guess what, that was sooooooooooooo easy Thanks guys

[@0026028977]

Best explanation and showhow I've found. Clear and easy to follow

[@RuiGranito]

great video! I bought a new rear Shimano "S" (that's the name we use here to describe the rear gear selector) and i didn't tuned yet 'cause there are still missing parts brakes and pedals, but i didn't knew how to tune correctly high and lower gear screw limiter... Thank you very much :)

[@SirL96alex]

Great video for someone buying their first road bike :D might watch this again in the future. Thanks!

[@CaptHigdawg]

awesome video. answered a ton of questions I had about my new bike. thanks guys

[@f1sk8mm]

Thanks for posting this; I'm relatively new to biking. I started biking to work and I noticed that my chain was catching on one of the derailers.

[@2_Wheeled_Wolf]

Gear adjustments are a pain & you explained them so well

[@ChrisDalynJMichael]

Just got a new mountain bike yesterday. I should have watched this video 2 years ago...so I could have still used my old one today :(....Well anyway thanks for this video, like all the other top comments it was very easy to understand! Adding this video to my bookmarks :D

[@alien4fish]

Thank You for the tips! It really helped me get my 1st bike build dialed in!

[@BigMonkeyG]

Really helpfully video guys. Simple to follow and will save a few £'s for a lot of people. A good reference to go back to. Well done.

[@gcbzzzz]

there are better derraileur videos... but this one was the best, most straigh forward break adjustment i've ever seen. thanks!

[@tecnik2]

About the left and right hand braking points, I believe it relates to the danger severity when making a signal to turn across a lane of traffic and that the "safest" brake to pull with one hand on the bar is the rear brake. So at worst you skid, not flip over the bars. I.e. UK/AUS/JAP riders, traffic drives on the left, signaling right to turn from major to minor road takes the right hand off the bar. Left hand is able to apply rear brake. Opposite is true for US and EUR riders.

[@Eatmecheap]

Excellent vid. Great camera definition and angles all explained in a really easy and concise way. Thanks a lot. Wonder if you have one to explain V brake adjustment as I find it a real pain! When it comes to braking I tend to use the front brake first & then the rear. Don't know if that's cos I'm right handed or it was because Sheldon Brown recommended it - but works for me. And haven't skidded or gone over the bars for a long time. Cheers

[@naxoxz]

Thanks for the explanation, this helped me a lot to tune my brakes like a boss.

[@ALL4HIMWHOSAVEDME]

Beautifully explained and shown! Thank you

[@sjmclean0]

Amazingly helpful. Thanks very much, fixed alot of problems for me without needing to go to the shop and pay.

[@nilesable]

Precise detailed instructions,great video.

[@wallykav1516]

Great vid man,thanks for the info,saves me leaving my bike into the shop now.

[@PowerALTube]

thank you for taking the time to do this

[@bikeradar]

@adamhockey50 We run the brakes this way in the UK...

[@PanzerIV88]

Definitely the best video out there for ajustements. Finaly I'll feel confident enough in doing it myself and will save money from having someone do it for me! :)

[@chicoh22a]

VERY VERY HELPFUL,THANKS BIERADAR

[@kevinocta9716]

Hey the background music is the same as the Vsauce background music. One of my fave channels. nice choice. and nice video

[@krozareq]

(CONTINUED) If that doesn't work to allow the derailleur to move easily between all sprockets then someone may have adjusted the cable incorrectly (possibly the store) with the nut. If that's the case then you may want to loosen the nut with a ratchet and loosen the cable slightly. Then re-tighten the nut and use the barrel screw behind it to make fine adjustments. Hope that helps.

[@krazy4baja]

Great vid, now I'll know what what to do. Just 1 question, do you need to release the tension of the gear cables before making these adjustments. Some other vids suggest to do that

[@anferny8]

This was a super helpful video, thank you for posting it!

[@robbiegreen769]

excellent, solved my problems, saved me money.

[@Fatchom]

This is really useful - thanks. Stands in background of video mention bike maintenance workshops. Do you still run these? Any idea how I can get on to one in the UK? If not, any chance you could recommend somewhere?

[@rovyelt]

interesting, instructive, illustrative, super

[@adamdrmorris]

Thank you very much. Not the most mechanical guy butyour video really helped. I might not lose my cgain everytime I hit the big ring. :)

[@bikeradar]

Sounds good, let us know when you've switched.

[@bikeradar]

Usually easy enough to swap round

[@spircix]

Such a great and helpful video! Keep up the good work, guys! I love your videos :) Def worth subbing.

[@paulstevens2839]

Thanks for this helpful video.

[@MrJlynch7]

great video..made it soo simple for me

[@rajab333]

Great video. Thanks for posting

[@360GamerJP]

I would try taking the cover off the shifter (2 screw on top one on bottom i think) (and spraying fluid like gt85 of wd40 on it as it may be slightly seized. Also try changing the gear cable, and checking the outer as if the cable bends inside and outer it may be difficult or not shift at all.

[@lawncraft3868]

Hey, I am not a bike expert or anything, but when you adjust the brakes at 2:22 don't press the brake lever in all the way, just press it until the brake pads touch the rim, that way you don't have to adjust the brake cable.

[@ks1622]

Thank you so much! BTW, Should I tune the back one first or the front one first? Is it still the same in SRAM RIVAL(back) & SRAM APEX(front) ? Thanks :)

[@Kingstonvale]

Good explanation.

[@MiaBostic]

I understand how to do this but I don't have any of these tools! Do they sell these toolkits at typical bikestore or do I need something in particular? Thank you!

[@patmartin008]

Very helpful video. Thanks.

[@legendray2008]

Thank you very much. Helped a lot.

[@Tim316]

Really helpful, thanks!

[@MrRichardkidd]

It is to ensure that you don't go over your handlebars when you are in the middle of two lanes of traffic. In the UK we drive on the left. The most vulnerable manoeuvre a cyclist can make is the right turn. When signalling we must take our right hand from the handlebar to indicate a right turn. If at this point we have to make an emergency stop, we are left holding the back brake, which is less likely to ping you over the handlebars leaving you lying on the road with cars coming both directions

[@diogomorato]

Wondering if you can help me. My shifter lever for the front derailleur is really hard to change from the 2nd to 3rd gear. I have to use my whole hand to change the gear. I have a Scott scale 60 (2006) and it uses Shimano Deore 530 Dual-Control as both shifter and brake. Is there any way to make it smoother to change the front gear?

[@marcoponce85]

where can we get more videos from this guy?

[@shahabmarawat]

Thanks for this it was really helpful

[@diogomorato]

cheers mate will give it a try

[@Areyouduckingserious]

I completely agree

[@abyg5781]

Good job buddy,thank you for ur vid

[@vasupanicker]

Great video

[@illusionism1245]

thanks a lot. this is really helpful.

[@DynamicEmpireInc]

what brakes are those not the pads but the brand of brakes or can you point me to one that has a active and de active switch like that one has?

[@coryschneider5429]

Hi i have a vintage sekine road bike made in the 70's and i'm not sure when i need a tune up.. My bike makes little noises when pedalling and braking... what does that indicate and do i need a tune up??

[@Mr420rush]

Wooow, you made it so simple thank you!!! :D

[@kk933000]

In case of using a brazed on front mech, how do u make it parallel to the chain rings?

[@TheLondonCyclist]

I'm British and the bike was bought from Evans Cycles... the front break has always been on the left... it's probably because it was imported from Swiss.

[@mlbody1234]

Thanks - very useful

[@prestige2fool]

Brilliant !! crystal clear advice thank you ! :)

[@helmimeswan]

Hi, i have a problem with my bike's rear brake. It often touch the brake wall even i didn't press the brake. It cannot sit at the center between the tyre and will touch either on the right or left side of the tyre's brake wall. Any ideas on how i can fix this? Thank you.

[@bikeradar]

Sounds to us like you might need to replace your freewheel. As always, unless you're sure you know what the problem is then we'd suggest taking the bike to your local shop for advice.

[@Newtttton]

you're awesome. thanks. everything i needed.

[@jakubwojcik628]

Thanks very much it really helped

[@13628194]

Awesome! Thank you Sir very much!

[@SashKaLakers]

Thanks, sir!

[@Burgattti]

Hi i have learnt to properly adjust brakes and sorts and know how to adjust gears, yet on my mountain bike (21 gears), i have always had this problem and can never get it perfect Front derailleur goes into gear 1 and 2, but not 3 (big one), and if i adjust it so it gets to 3 wont go into 1. And rear derailleur goes 1,2,3,4,5-7, it misses out 6, so when i go through the gears, clicking to 6 does not do anything and then clicking 7 jumps 2 gears from 5 Any help much appreciated!!

[@DeoxyRibbon]

Great vid

[@XinfinitywardxXx]

When I coast and pedal backwards on my road bike it downshifts, is that common or a problem?

[@YassidMartinez]

What wheel set is that? If they are custom wheels what type of hubs are they?

[@curcubeucristalic8190]

Mavic ksyrium rims on some mavic hubs not sure of the model but i guess is smth cool :) to know spokes i need to be a prophet :D

[@YassidMartinez]

Thanks! I liked that wheel set, so I might get it

[@curcubeucristalic8190]

Of course all mavic components are good.

[@abdulrazzaq3841]

How much does the bike that is bieng used to show to repairs costs

[@tinglydingle]

It's not the brand of bike (in this case Swiss,) it's where it's set up (British riders GENERALLY have their bikes set up so the right hand lever operates the front brake)

[@brendanseesall]

what kind of lube should i use for my gears?

[@protoZ3r]

When should i tune the gear?

[@malata6987]

You are the best bro'' thanks

[@klaxonian]

He speaks the truth! My breaks are TAYT!

[@JZampogna11]

When I try to line up my brake pads the pad is lined up but only the left side actually makes contact while the right side of the pad doesn't touch anything, how do I fix that?

[@boldstar69]

whats the song and bike ?

[@benbraceletspurple9108]

What about other type of brakes? U, disk, etc.

[@krozareq]

Sounds like you have your cable tension too tight. It will easily go to the lower gears which require cable tension but it's the derailleur's spring that moves it in the direction of your higher gears. It sounds like the cable is preventing the spring from naturally moving outward to the higher gears. That is adjusted by the black barrel screw which is located where the cable reaches the derailleur assembly. Try loosening that and see if it naturally moves outward easier to those high gears.

[@lewisbailey5385]

Check the other videos then as this was helpful thanks

[@evangossell1980]

Thanks!

[@SaltCreep45]

Just saved me 60 dollars U.S. for 10 min job Thank You