Permanently Deleted

  • FUCKTHEPAINTUP [any]
    ·
    edit-2
    4 years ago

    speaking as a petit-bourgeois person who owns a good bike and basically lives on it rn

    bicycles are not as cheap as people think. this might be because my parents bought me a cheap bike from Walmart and I barely rode it.

    A full DIY toolkit is usually a $400+ expenditure (that can be shared) and portable repair tools for long trips are an added expense. People also underestimate maintenance costs. Lots of bike parts have to be replaced at ~5K km and if you’re hitting 30km/h regularly for extended periods you’ll be spending a decent amount of cash on tires and chains and brake pads several times a year

    all of this is microscopic compared to the maintenance expense and environmental impact of trying to use a car in the same way, however, and bike maintenance can be kind of zen

  • ComradeSankara [he/him]
    ·
    4 years ago

    I could see a DIY or Fixit/Home Improvements sub working out well. Piracy too honestly.

  • sic_semper_chuds [he/him]
    ·
    4 years ago

    cycling (and public transport that accommodates cyclists e.g. bike racks on buses, bike space on trains) is truly the transport of the proletariat but the bougie freaks in their lycra have appropriated it and turned it into a bullshit industry to sell shit that nobody needs for ridiculously inflated prices

    bicycle co-ops where you can use the spare parts and tools are the best, they should be everywhere

    • danisth [he/him]
      ·
      edit-2
      4 years ago

      Bike coops are the shit, but the one near me has had their DIY stands closed since covid, which is understandable but frustrating.

      • sic_semper_chuds [he/him]
        ·
        4 years ago

        the bullshit that allows sporting matches to continue so huge corporations can keep buying ads, but can't subsidise a single guy, a clipboard and a spray bottle of sanitiser to keep people's bikes running

    • doublepepperoni [none/use name]
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      4 years ago

      Surly 40-year-old architect looking douchebags in tiny shorts on their ludicrously expensive Tour de France-looking bikes, zooming along at 35kmh, never stopping and scaring grandmas are a scourge on the planet

    • pumpchilienthusiast [comrade/them, any]
      ·
      4 years ago

      but riding centuries in street clothes is bad times, man. yeah, there's a lot of fucking MAMILs riding dentist bikes, but long rides are a great way to get exercise and fresh air (when the country is isn't on fire) and see the country (again, when it isn't on fire). it's pretty meditative. and you only have to compete against yourself.

  • Steel_Wool [none/use name]
    ·
    4 years ago

    You should only need cone wrenches and a freewheel tool. Lithiun grease and maybe new ball bearings. Unless its fancy sealed bearings then idk

        • mrkymarxfunkybrunch [they/them]
          ·
          4 years ago

          Buying tools and DIY is always the correct choice if you don't have access to them any other way via friends or co-ops. You can also call around and just say you're poor and don't want a full service. I've gotten things fixed for 10-$20 that way.