Shop Manual

OCBC Shop Manual

This manual is designed to help you have a better time volunteering at the co-op. It's much easier to have a good time if the job you're doing is easier, and we hope to make it easier by providing explanations that you can use to learn new tasks or remember how to do ones you've done before. There are entries here for most of the things we do in the shop, but some basic bicycle repair tasks that are hard to learn without taking a class are left out (for example, there's no article on how to adjust brakes). Enjoy!

Shop Jobs

Each article below will teach you how to do a specific job at the co-op. Each covers what you need to know to begin, and gives instructions on how to proceed with the task. The tasks are divided by how much you need to know to attempt each task.

Beginner

• Despoking Wheels - Despoking wheels
• Inflating Tubes - Inflating tubes / tires
• Wheel Care - Cleaning and lubing wheels

Intermediate

• Checking Tubes - Checking innertubes for leaks
• Tired Wheels - The OCBC procedure for handling wheels with tires on them
• Removing Tires - How to remove a tire

Advanced

• Wheel Evaluation - How to determine whether a wheel is good or worth fixing
• Bike Evaluation - How to evaluate a bike and decide its fate
• Tuning for sale - How to prepare a bike to be sold

General information on parts and using tools

Parts

• Handlebars - Types of Handlebars and how to sort them
• Tube Valves - The two types of valves commonly seen on tubes
• Wheel Sizes - The different sizes of wheels and tires

Tools

• Using Calipers - How to measure using calipers
• Measuring Spokes - How to measure the length of a spoke
• Spoke Wrenches - How to know which one you need
• Truing Stand - How to place a wheel into the truing stand correctly

Sorting and Evaluating Parts

• Evaluating Saddles - Saddles are either good, free, or ruined
• Evaluating Handlebars - How to tell whether handlebars are usable
• Evaluating Pedals - Which things are ok, and which can't be fixed
• Evaluating Stems - How to know that they have their parts and aren't cracked
• Evaluating Brake Levers - Making sure they are ready to be used
• Evaluating Hubs - Our standards for keeping hubs
• Evaluating Front Derailleurs - All of the important parts
• Evaluating Derailleurs - The important parts for rear derailleurs
• Evaluating Helmets - How to sort helmets by condition

• Sorting Spokes - Measuring length and width, and how to use the motel
• Sorting Saddles - Sorting saddles by width and construction
• Sorting Handlebars - Separating road from mountain and good from free
• Sorting Pedals - Sorting pedals by size and type, and pairing them
• Sorting Stems - Sorting quill stems by length and diameter
• Sorting Brake Levers - Sorting flat bar levers from road levers
• Sorting Brake Calipers - Telling caliper from cantilever, and sorting caliper brakes
• Sorting Cranks - Different kinds of cranks and what to do with them
• Sorting Derailleurs - Separating front from rear
• Sorting Front Derailleurs - Sorting doubles from triples
• Sorting Rear Derailleurs - Sorting the four categories of rear derailleurs