Essential Bike Maintenace Skills For Bikepacking And Cycle Touring

Essential bike maintenance for bikepacking and cycle touring

By David Hanney

Bikes are tough and modern components mean you can take them through extreme conditions. However, the chances are your bike will need some routine maintenance on any multi-day adventure. Give your bike some TLC and it will look after you in return.

Mastering a few basic skills and taking an essential repair kit on any ride will help avoid significant mechanicals and get you to safety if something more serious does go wrong. We'll cover:

  1. What To Carry In Your Bike Repair Kit For Bikepacking And Cycle Touring
  2. What Are Essential Bike Maintenance And Repair Skills?
  3. What Routine Bike Maintenance Checks Should I Carry Out?
Cycle Touring Essential Bike Skills

What To Carry In Your Bike Repair Kit For Bikepacking And Cycle Touring

For many, the repair kit starts and ends with a phone and credit card. But knowing you can get yourself out of most situations without needing help means you can take on adventures into wilder and more remote areas.

The actual tools we take depends on the journey – you'd need very different tools and spares for a round-the-world trip to a long weekend in your home country. As a starting point, our repair kit checklist for longer journeys includes:

Tools

Spares

Repairs/Maintenance

  • Chain lube/oil
  • Puncture repair kit/instant patches
  • Tubeless repair kit (for tubeless tyres)
  • Cable zip ties
  • Duct tape
Essential Bike Skills Alpkit

What Are Essential Bike Maintenance And Repair Skills?

There's a joy to knowing your bike and how to maintain it. The riding experience changes and you hear how the bike is getting on and what various creaks, cracks, jolts and noises mean.

You don't need to be a Cytech qualified mechanic to undertake a multi-day ride but there are a few basic skills that will help you on your journey.

We've partnered with Bicycle Maintenance App to give you a free bike maintenance guide. Together these form an online bike maintenance course that gives you the information to master:

The less common skills that you may need but are less likely are:

  • How to bleed a hydraulic brake system
  • Wheel repair including freehub servicing
  • Maintaining and changing a bottom bracket, headset and other bearings
Routine maintenance bike checks - Alpkit

What Routine Bike Maintenance Checks Should I Carry Out?

Carrying out the following routine bike checks will keep your bike in tip-top condition and help prevent major mechanicals.

  • Wash it regularly to stop dirt and grit making its way into bike components.
  • Keep the tyres inflated to the right level and check the tread and walls for damage.
  • Clean the chain regularly and lubricate it with chain lube.
  • Apply a small amount of lubricant to any moving parts (levers, derailleurs, brakes) to stop them rusting or seizing.
  • Check and clean the brakes and change brake pads if necessary. Cleaning your rotors with a rag stops squeaky brakes and grit contaminating your pads.
  • Check gear and brake cables for damage.

Bike Tools & Pumps

8pc multi tool perfect for small tweaks or minor repairs on the road or trail.
€14,99 €17,49
20pc 2 part multi-tool and chain link extractor/tyre lever
€24,99 €29,99
Lightweight 16 in 1 multi-tool for your emergency trailside repairs
€19,99 €24,99
Pack of 3 tyre levers
€4,99 €5,99
High / Low volume switchable track pump with clever valve
€54,99 €64,99
160 psi bike track pump with Presta and Schrader valve head
€14,99 €17,49
Aluminium bike hand pump with pressure gauge
€29,99 €34,99
Fold-out saddle tool roll: storage for the "every ride" essentials
€27,49 €34,99
Core remover for both Schrader and Presta valves
€9,99 €12,49
Tubeless tyre plugger to make fixing your tyre as simple and easy as possible.
€27,49 €29,99
9m roll of tubeless rim tape. Available in 3 widths.
€19,99

Leave a comment

Please note, comments must be approved before they are published

=