Expert tips to resurrect your rusty old bike

Now that it’s finally spring, many of us will be pulling rusty old bikes out of the shed.

There are an estimated 16 million bicycles in Britain gathering dust in storage and 20 million in regular use.

But getting that two-wheeler back on the road could put you in a deadly trap if you didn’t do some basic checks and maintenance first.

We’re asking cycling expert Phil Hollins, from the pop-up repair shop Cycle Positive in Hertfordshire, to share his secrets to getting your bike roadworthy, without having to spend £50 on bike shop repairs or hundreds on a new machine.

All of these steps should be easy to do at home, but if you need help, finding an expert is money well spent.

Inspect your tires

The most common problem with bikes left in storage is their tires – and the trusty Dawes Galaxy I’ve owned for the past three decades is no exception.

Phil is not impressed when I proudly take him out of hibernation. The pressure in my tires is sadly low.

I need a £10 pump with a pressure gauge to do the job properly. Checking the pressure with a thumb is imprecise and not good enough, says Phil. The required pressure level can be found on the sidewall of the tyre.

I have to wipe dirt off the rim to find “70psi” written on the side. This means I have to inflate the tire to a rock hard 70 pounds-force per square inch on the pump gauge – not the ten I thought was enough. Low tire pressure means cycling is much harder, bad for the wheel and more likely to get a flat tire.

Fully inflating the tire reveals cracks in the sidewalls that are dangerous because hitting a pothole can lead to a blowout, which can cause you to fall off the bike. You can buy a new tire for as little as £10, but Phil warns against skimping.

Use teaspoons as leverage to get the tire off. Place them under the tire and slide them around the metal rim of the wheel – take care not to snag the inner tube, which can also be removed if it is punctured.

Fortunately I have no flat tires. But if you find one, you need a bucket of water. By submerging the inflated tire you can see where the holes are because air bubbles will rise.

A standard £3 tire repair kit is always worth it. Phil says people often misapply the plasters — and that before you apply the glue and plaster, you should scrub the rubber around the puncture with sandpaper to make sure the glue sticks.

Fix wobbly wheels

While checking the tires, also make sure that none of the spokes are loose or broken by spinning them by hand.

If they are loose a £2 ‘nipple wrench’ can tighten them. A new spoke costs £1 and is easy to replace once the tire is off.

Bent wheels are noticed by spinning the wheel and seeing if it stays in a straight line or rubs against the brake pads. Often a buckle can be fixed with spoke adjustments.

Also check the wheel hub, which holds the bolts that secure the forks to the wheel. There’s a little play in the hub when I try to push the wheel back and forth with the forks clamped tight in the bike stand Phil brought – it moves a few millimeters.

He shakes his head when I admit I’m not prepared to buy a new wheel as it can cost £60. Phil says if it gets worse I can get new bearings from a professional wheel service for £30.

Clean the chain

My idea of ​​maintenance used to be to spray oil on the chain and hubs. Phil says this is the opposite of what should happen and I should clean it all with water.

Just a light spray with the garden hose or plant sprayer is all it takes to remove gunk and grime from around the main gear and sprockets. A degreaser such as £8 Muc-Off should then be used to loosen any remaining grime.

But just threading the chain through a tightly held old rag works for me and costs nothing. Once cleaned, a light oil around the links of the chain is required. A lubricant such as TF2 is best, but an inexpensive bottle of 3-in-1 oil will also work. WD-40 should be avoided as it removes lubricant.

This washing also allows me to look at the gears. They rather ‘clicked’ when I changed gears – Phil tells me it was just because they were dirty from too much oil and they didn’t need to be adjusted. He then pulls out a fancy £10 ‘chain checker’ tool to gauge whether the chain has stretched and needs to be replaced.

With gloves on I could also have pulled the chain around the sprocket to see if I could see daylight between the chain and sprocket teeth. If so, it might be time to bite the bullet and buy a new £10 chain.

You may also need a £5 ‘chain link pliers’ to remove extra links and knot the chain together. Videos on websites such as YouTube and Cycle UK have guidelines.

Scrub brakes

Cleaning the bike is often all that is needed to solve problems.

Mud often collects around bicycle brake pads, causing them to rub against the wheel. Scrubbing with an old brush and water may solve the problem.

If the brake pads had worn out I could have bought a new set for £5 on the internet.

Cabling is another issue. Rusting or fraying ends of wires sounds serious, but is a simple fix, with two meters of cable available for just £2 from a specialist sporting goods store such as Wiggle (wiggle.com).

Again, tools are required, including £5 pliers to pull cables through, plus a £3 multifunction bike wrench to make sure it’s tight at both ends.

Check the controls

With bikes that are rusting, there’s a danger of nuts and bolts seizing up or loosening over time, and Phil suggests going around the bike with a multi-tool wrench to make sure they’re tight before heading out.

A big problem is loose steering with the steering wheel – this means that if you turn the steering wheel, the wheels may not follow.

With the front tire firmly between my knees, I try to move the handlebars.

If they were loose, I would have had to tighten the bolts holding the handlebars to the front steering column stem using the multi-tool wrench.

• Halfords offers a ‘free 32-point bike health check’. Action group Cycle Confident is promoting Dr Bike pop-up events across London for free bike checks and adjustments. Visit cycleconfident.com/courses/dr-bike for a list of events. See alsofietspositief.nl