When choosing a wheel, you should know what you want and why you want it. Machines are built for special purposes, and any reliable dealer can help you in selecting a machine and will guarantee satisfaction. Bicycles wear out, of course, but with proper care they may be made to last a long time.

Careful examination of your wheel should always be made before starting for even a short ride; and on returning it is well to test gear and pedals, to look at spokes and tires. Any needed repair can be noted, and attended to at convenience. Always examine your bicycle thoroughly after a collision, for shocks are dangerous even to the toughest metal, and such precaution may prevent a serious accident.

On returning from a ride the wheel should have a thorough going over, the enamel dusted, and any mud washed off with a wet sponge. The chain, if your machine has one, should be taken off every two or three hundred miles of dusty road, and soaked in kerosene over night; the nickel or metal well dusted, rubbed with a chamois, and polished; and all the bearings, axles, and gear carefully wiped, and dust and grit removed. Then the chain should be replaced, oiled, graphited, and the bearings oiled.

The chain is a complicated mechanism, consisting of many repetitions of parts; it should be kept clean and well lubricated. To apply graphite, turn the wheel upside down, hold the graphite still against the chain, and turn the wheel. The oil is needed in the joints of the chain; the graphite where the chain engages the cogs. The other parts used for applying power need the usual care given to the best machines—absolute cleanliness, freedom from grit, and thorough lubrication.

The chain is at present a mechanical detail only, and the application of power to the wheel capable of a great variety of forms. The principle remains the same, the application of power; the mechanical contrivance for transmitting it is a detail of construction. The difference of individuality can be compensated for in the length of the lever, size and number of gear, size of wheel, diameter of wheel, and width of tread.

The ideal machine requires little adjustment. The less the screws, the nuts, and the bearings are wrenched, the more perfect is the machine, the more free from wear and dents and scratches. To apply a wrench is a serious responsibility that should not be undertaken lightly. It seems easy, and yet skilled men are employed just for that kind of work, for it is work requiring the precision of the trained mechanic.

After purchasing a watch, the owner does not at once investigate the machinery; yet many, because the tools are at hand, are tempted to experiment on a bicycle. A bicycle, like a watch, should be ready to run, and only require winding up to keep it going. It should be adjusted; and if it needs regulating, this should be done by people who understand the machine and have the requisite knowledge and responsibility to do well what is to be done. Two rules may be laid down for one who does not study mechanical details—never to touch the bicycle except to ride it; and never to let any one else touch it who has not skill and experience.

This practice will prove satisfactory until some day, miles from home, the bicycle will not go; you carry it more miles to the nearest conveyance, and send it home. There you have it examined, and find that a touch sets it free; just as sometimes, when your watch will not go, you take it to a watchmaker, and he examines it, winds it up, and hands it back, telling you there is no charge. After learning to wheel a bicycle, therefore, the next step should be to learn to care for it. Unless somewhat familiar with machinery, it is bewildering to contemplate taking the thing apart and putting all those parts together again; even more bewildering is it, having taken the thing apart, not to be able to put it together. In such case, there is nothing to do but to gather the pieces of the puzzle, and send them to be set up. If in this extremity a friend who knows all about a bicycle should offer assistance, it is well to hear what he has to say before he undertakes the work. “I do not think your wheel is just like mine,” perhaps, or “Where do these things belong?” is enough for the wise. Better send to the shop for a machinist at once. All the parts of the bicycle are made to go together in one way, and any attempt at experiment may injure the mechanism.

When you undertake to investigate a bicycle for the first time, take an old one as a subject, and endeavor to put it in perfect running order. If an old bicycle cannot be had, proceed with much circumspection. Go where you will be undisturbed, where there is plenty of room, and where a key may be turned if there is possibility of interruption. There is sure to be some oil and grease spattered about, in spite of the utmost care, and it is well to remember this while making preparations. Have ready a pile of old newspapers, some cups, plates, and boxes, and a painting apron if you possess one; if not an old skirt and apron, and sleeves well rolled up. For tools, a monkey-wrench, two or three screw-drivers, large as well as small, a hammer, one or two pieces of wood, the bicycle kit, oil, graphite, a can of kerosene, some cheesecloth and canton flannel, and a large wooden box.

Take two newspapers folded in half, and put them on the floor for the saddle and handle-bars; then turn the bicycle upside down, and arrange the newspapers under the saddle and handles. If there is a bell, take it off, or place a block under the opposite end of the bar to balance it. Before turning the bicycle over, remove the lantern, if there is one on the bicycle, as the oil will be spilled out if the lamp is turned upside down.

Begin by carefully removing all mud and grit from the bicycle. Wear old gloves, and remove mud with the hand when possible, finishing with a cheese-cloth duster and an old oily cloth. Go over all the joints where the wheels turn, and remove every particle of grit, then remove mud and dust.

An experienced worker, to save labor, cleans each piece as it comes off, but the beginner must work more slowly. Have ready a shallow box or tray to receive the parts as they are removed. Lay each part, as it is taken off, in the tray, with the oily side up, for a guide. First, remove the chain, turn it until the nut of the little screw-bolt is found. This little bolt forms one of the link-pins, and can be found quite readily. One end of the bolt has a screw-head notch, and the other a nut and thread. Use the small bicycle screw-wrench for this, a large screw-driver, and a small screw-driver to fit the screw. Turn the chain until the bolt is in a convenient position, then take the large screw-driver or a rod, and place through the spokes of the rear wheel, letting the bar rest on the frame. This will prevent the wheel from turning, and keep the pedals and sprocket-wheel in position; your fingers may be caught and badly cut if this precaution is not taken. Fasten the small wrench on the little nut, and hold it there with one hand, with the other unscrewing the little screw with a small screw-driver. Should the screw fail to yield easily, a drop or two of kerosene will soften the rust and grit, and help to start it.

Return the nut to the screw end, and place it on the tray. Take hold of one end of the chain, and remove the bar that steadies the rear wheel, then turn one of the pedal cranks, and the chain will come off in your hand. The chain should be placed in kerosene and left to soak.

The enamel of the frame should then be carefully rubbed and polished with canton flannel. A clean piece should be kept for the purpose, for if greasy it gives a dull look to the enamel. The plating should be first polished with a cloth, and then if dull with whiting. Nickel plating takes a beautiful polish with electro-silicon used on canton flannel.

Go carefully over each oil-cup, and be sure it is cleaned, and work around the ends of the axles. Ascertain if either wheel needs adjusting, and look carefully to see that the rims are true. A good way to do this is to hold a pencil-top on the frame against the rim of the wheel, and spin the wheel. If it touches evenly all around, the wheel is true; if uneven, take the bicycle to a repair shop and have the wheels trued as soon as possible.

After cleaning all the bearings, put oil in the oil-cups and replace the chain. It is well to leave the chain soaking in kerosene, and later hang it up to drip, and when dry, it will be found bright and clean; or keep a can of lubricating oil in which to soak the chain, and after draining it thoroughly, wipe clean before replacing on the machine. Take an oil-can, and oil each separate rivet. Start the chain on the sprocket, and pull it over the rear sprocket by turning a pedal crank, bringing the ends on the lower side. Place the bar across as before, to keep the sprocket from moving, and then replace the little screw-bolt, using a small wrench, and a screw-driver that fits the screw. Remove the bar, see that the chain is not too tight, and note if it requires any taking up, an adjustment that is done in the rear wheel.

Hold the stick of graphite on a convenient surface of the chain, and turn the cranks; then dust the chain to take off any small lumps of the lubricant, and the wheel is ready to be run. Examine the tires and valves, see that the tires are not too soft, and inflate them. See that the valves are in order, then set the wheel right side up. Replace bell and lantern, rub off any finger-marks, and the bicycle is ready.

If the bicycle has been running for some time, and in spite of the care bestowed on it, the chain runs a little heavy, the pedals don’t spin as they should, or the cranks revolve as often as they might, and the wheels are sluggish, there is no remedy but to take down the bicycle, clean it thoroughly, set it up and adjust it. It will require several hours’ hard work to do this, combined with a knowledge of machinery and a knowledge of bicycle working, or else enterprise, care, and common sense.

Begin work on a wheel perfectly free, as far as the outside can be made so, from sand, mud, and grit. Remove the chain and put it to soak. Have a pan of kerosene, and place each small part in that to soak, and any part that has friction surface or is notably oily or greasy.

Begin serious work on a pedal, which is small and easily handled. If the pedal is a removable one, take it off. If the spindle is stationary, take off the movable parts, first the nuts or screws, then loosen the cones, having a box placed underneath to catch the balls if any should fall out. Support the box well up under the pedal, as the balls bounce and jump about. Even if you have had the pedals off before, and know how it is done, it is well to have something to catch the balls, as otherwise you must atone for any mistake by a scramble. Place the balls in a separate dish of kerosene, and carefully count them. Wipe the movable parts of the pedals with a cloth wet in kerosene, and finish with a dry cloth.

In taking a pedal down, the place of each part should be carefully noted, so that it may be a simple matter to replace the parts. If, the first pedal being now apart, the novice is confused, there is the other pedal to afford comparison. Study that, then return the parts of the dismembered pedal to their proper places, and adjust them. The balls may prove troublesome; but a screw-driver dipped in vaseline will pick up any very small balls, and pliers can manage the larger ones. See that cones and washers are replaced, then add a few drops of oil, adjusting the pedal to spin easily without lateral play, and tighten cones and nuts. Spin the pedal for a final test, and then begin on the other pedal.

If after several hours’ work, but one pedal is finished, if that one pedal is in perfect order, there is much cause for congratulation. The other pedal may be done very much more easily and rapidly. Of course, it takes time to wipe all the balls and cones, and nuts and screws, and washers and spindles, and when the pedal is in your hand, a little time may be spent to give it an extra rub to brighten its polish. Wipe off any oil that may have shown in the joints of the bearings, and the pedals are finished.

The front wheel should next engage attention. Take a large wrench, and start the bearing cones, and take off the nuts at opposite sides of the ends of the forks. These nuts are screwed on the ends of the axle, and perhaps have metal washers under them. Place them in a box by themselves, and if the forks are notched, there will be nothing to do but to lift out the wheel. If the ends of the forks have only eyes, the forks must be sprung to take the wheel out.

When the wheel is in your hand, avoid letting any grease or oil touch the tire, for it will injure the rubber. Now proceed to work on the axles. Support the wheel on a large, empty wooden box. The axle is a spindle, and has cones to hold the balls in against the bearings. The cones must be removed and cleaned, and the socket of the hub made clean with an oily cloth followed by a clean one. The axle’s spindle should be replaced, and the balls and cones restored to their proper relative positions. Drop in a little oil, adjust and tighten the cones, then spring the wheel back between the forks, and true it; see that it runs even between the forks and that the cones are keyed up firm and even. Replace the nuts, and screw up firm. Wipe off any oil that may have worked out, and spin the wheel to try it. If it runs long and steadily, and has no lateral play, and everything is keyed up tight and true, this part of the work may be considered finished.

Some prefer to use a little pure graphite for the balls, and no oil; and again some bicycles are made without oil-cups. For the first work, oil is safer to handle; but remember that two or three drops are enough. Too much is worse than useless, for oil spreads over a large surface, and will cover all the surface of the bicycle with a thin film, which will need to be constantly wiped off.

The rear wheel may be removed without springing the frame. Unscrew the adjustment attachment, and the wheel will come out. Clean the rear wheel bearings in the same way you have cleaned those of the front wheel; replace the rear wheel, and put back the adjusting attachment.

Give the crank axle the same care and attention that the wheel axles have received. The pedal cranks are fastened on either end of the crank axle in such a way that the dead centre is avoided as much as possible. The large sprocket-wheel is on the crank axles, and sometimes not movable. The cranks are screwed or fastened with pins to the ends of the axles, and should not be disturbed. Take the large key-wrench from the kit, and start the bearing cones. If the crank must come off, see that the nut on the end of the crank-pin is flush with the end, and place a piece of wood on it before striking it with a hammer, as already explained, to start the bolt or pin. Or if you have some one to help, let a heavy hammer-head be held under the crank beside the bolt, at the other end; and the double shock and recoil from the heavy hammer as the blow is struck will jar the bolt loose.

Remove and clean the cones and balls, then replace and oil them, and adjust the cones tight, ready for adjustment when the cranks are in place. The only bearings left to attend to are those in the head of the frame. Take out the handle-bars, and wipe them and their socket very carefully; never allow any oil to remain there. The handles should never be immovably tight; yet grease, if any were introduced, would perhaps cause them to slip when they should remain in place. The crank axle-key usually fits the cone of the head of the frame, and that may be treated as any other set of ball bearings—loosened, removed, cleaned, replaced, oiled, adjusted, and tightened. Any dust may be removed from inside the frame-head while the bearings are off.

When the head bearings have been restored and the handle-bar replaced, put on the chain and adjust it. The rear wheel is arranged to move forward or back on the frame by the adjusting attachment. This allows the two sprocket-wheels to be placed nearer together or farther apart, and the chain may be stretched and held between them to any desired degree of rigidity or of slackness.

When the bicycle has been set up, the parts correctly replaced, before turning it right side up, go over the entire adjustment of the machine, to see that nothing has been forgotten. Have wrench and screw-driver at hand and a clean cloth. Begin with the bearings of the front wheel. See that the oil is not working out, and wipe them again. Take the key, and see that they are true and tight. Apply the screw-wrench to the nuts of the fork, and see that they are screwed home. Treat the rear wheel in the same way, and look that both wheels travel on the same line or plane; if they do not, it is because the bearings are out or the frame is bent. Go over the axle bearing, feel the chain, spin the pedals and wheels. A well-adjusted wheel will carry the weight of the valve around quickly and then swing back, showing how sensitive it is to so small a weight. If you are satisfied that everything is right, turn the bicycle right side up, and square the handle-bars. The only way to do this is to stand in front of the bicycle, and take the wheel between the knees while the handles are pulled into place.

The saddle-post and screw-nuts that hold it should be examined and removed and carefully wiped, as well as the socket where they belong. The screw that holds the saddle-post in place does its work by friction, and any oil would prevent it from acting properly, and the saddle would slip. Keep the oil-can carefully wiped, and see that the little spout has a clean round hole at the end that will allow only a drop at a time to escape; for oil travels and spreads in a marvellous manner, appearing where least expected or wanted. If there is a hand-brake on the bicycle, adjusted to alter with the handle-bars, examine it carefully, and wipe the rods. Oil here will allow the coupling to slip and the action of the brake to be impaired.

There are so many things to be carefully observed and accurately done in this kind of work that mistakes and omissions may be easily made by the inexperienced; but there need not be so many blunders, after all, if one works slowly and observingly, taking notes, in writing if necessary, as for instance how far the bearing cones are keyed in when in place, which is the reverse side of the crank and pedal pins, if they are interchangeable, or rights and lefts.

Screw threads are made rights and lefts, and threads are made to fit them in the sockets where they belong. That pedals may not work loose, the spindles are made right and left, with a reverse screw, so that forward pedaling drives them tighter. In the older constructions, the pedal sometimes became unscrewed and fell off, or the nut fell off and the pedal loosened. All such matters should be studied before taking down a machine. Usually the maker’s catalogue will describe and illustrate these details. Study that, and learn the names and uses of all the parts of the bicycle, and then you will be prepared to go to work by yourself, or with but little assistance.