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Service Series: Why Tuneup?
We truly believe that a quality bike shop bike can last a lifetime — with proper maintenance! That’s why we recommend a tune-up every season.
To put it simply, a tune-up checks and adjusts every moving part of your bicycle. Here’s what we get into:
Brakes: Do your brake levers need to be sqeezed more than halfway before the brakes apply? Do they feel “sluggish?” They need adjusting! We do that during a tune-up.
If anything else is not right — like your brake cables &/or housing are frayed or gunked up — we would notice it at this point and let you know if additional service or parts are recommended.
Gears/Drivetrain: Do your gears transition smoothly or do they feel sluggish? Does the chain come off when shifting? Can the bike shift into all the gears? Do you hear any clicks, rattles, or rubs? Yes to any of those questions means you need a gear adjustment! We’ll also tighten your crankarm and lube your chain.
If your cables &/or housing are frayed or gunked up and/or your chain, chain ring &/or cassette are worn, we would notice it at this point and let you know if additional service or parts are recommended.
Wheels: When spokes on a wheel loosen over time, your wheel can become “out of true” causing your brakes to rub and, over time, leading to a total wheel failure. As part of your tune-up, the mechanic will perform a “minor true” meaning they will loosen and tighten spokes while the wheel is still attached to the bicycle.
If a wheel requires adjustment than a minor true, the wheel will need to be removed from the bicycle and placed into a special truing stand. If that additional service is necessary, we would let you know at this point.
Cleaning: While the bike is up in the repair stand, we wipe the frame and wheels down, removing dust and gunk.
If you ride a lot, plan on starting out in Spring with a fresh tune and possibly a second one near the end of summer. The good news is that if you bring it in for that possibly-second-tune, we’ll for sure tell you if it just needs a couple of smaller adjustments and save you some dough. But better safe then sorry.
What say you? “But I haven’t ridden all year!” You, dear friend, need a tune-up for sure. Your poor bike has been accumulating rust and dust, the enemies of smooth shifting and safe braking. Let us get her back into dependable riding shape.
Standard tune-ups cost $75; we adjust brakes, gears + derailleur; perform a minor (on-bike) wheel true; lube and check chain; check and tighten crank & headset; and wipe down the frame and wheels. If your bike needs more or less love than that, we are very honest and transparent about what needs to be done.
Early and peak season, the turn-around on tune-ups can be a week or more. Late in the season, we can usualy turn one around by the next day.
Late-Season Tour Update
Iron Belle Trail, Belle Isle
Fall is here, with its beautiful skies and lovely riding temps. We are here for it! As our 2022 season winds down, we have just a handful of tours with open spots remaining, including:
Architecture, 9/24 & 10/15 | One of our most popular tours; truly a schooling in one of our city’s greatest assets.
Auto Heritage, 9/25 & 10/9 | You will walk away from this tour understanding how Detroit became the center of the auto industry. Bonus on 9/25: At the “highlight” stop, the Ford Piquette Plant, there will be a celebration for the 114th birthday of the Model T!
Public Art, 10/1 | With a focus on various types of sculpture — decoration, commemoration, and integration — this tour will having you see the world around you differently.
Corktown, 10/2 | This is a deep dive into Detroit’s oldest neighborhood covering demographics, baseball, parking lots, urban renewal, and so much more — including a stop for a pint at The Gaelic League!
Belle Isle, 10/9 | The history, ecology, and architecture of our Island Gem are all touched upon on this ride. Whether you haven’t been in some time or are a regular visitor, you’re bound to learn something of interest.
We wrap up our season each year with our Haunted Detroit Tour; all four editions are sold out. But have no fear! If you’re set on participating in this tour, you still have time to book a private outing. They start at $250 weekdays and $300 weekends for up to 6 participants, bikes included, then an additional per-person rate for riders seven to 15. If you’re interested head HERE for more info and to begin the booking process.
CLOSED Saturday, September 17 for Tour de Troit
The Wheelhouse crew is helping out at the 20th Annual Tour de Troit on Saturday, 9/17. We apologize for any inconvenience, but we love being a part of such a legacy cycling event in Detroit.
We’ll be back in action on Sunday, 9/18.
Service Series: Using an Air Pump
The very best way to prevent flats is by keeping your tires properly inflated, which we covered in the very first installment of our Service Series. But now you’ve gotta pump your tires up to their proper PSI.
If you don’t know how to properly use an air pump, you are not alone. Keep reading for a step-by-step instructional and GET PUMPED!
If you’re a video learner, this one from Park Tools is helpful. Please note you will more-than-likely be using the consumer head type of lever that they reference. In fact, the pump used in this video is the very one we have to loan out at the shop!
Tour de Troit Bicycle Rental
The Tour de Troit is coming up on September 17. If you’re coming in from out of town or haven’t had the opportunity to properly service your bicycle in preparation, you can rent a bike from Wheelhouse.
There are also a limited number of spaces remaining (7, as of 9/7) in our trailer — we can deliver your bike right to the Roosevelt Park ride start!
Pictured above from left to right, we have sport hybrids, comfort hybrids, or deluxe cruisers available.
Find out more about your options and reserve HERE.
September Tour Update
It’s hard to believe we’re already in a month-that-ends-with-an-R, but that’s how time has flown this season. But we’re here for some of the best riding weather of the year: Autumn!
This coming weekend, we have space on Saturday morning’s Music Heritage Tour and Sunday afternoon’s Belle Isle Tour. The former is a wonderful overview of Detroit’s numerous, influential, and harmonious contributions to the world. The latter shines a light on both the history and ecology of Detroit’s island gem. Both are a guaranteed great time.
On the 15th, there’s our final Thursday afternoon tour of the Riverwalk and Dequindre Cut and, on the 20th, our final visit to Eastern Market’s Tuesday Market. Both are quick, inexpensive, and easy rides that feel like a private tour because of their small size.
Wrapping up the month, there’s Architecture and Auto Heritage on the 24th and 25th, respectively. These are two of our most highly-regarded tours and usually sell out, so don’t delay!
Rolling into October, we have 5 tours - Public Art, Corktown, Belle Isle, Auto Heritage, and Architecture - with openings. If you were hoping to hop onto a Haunted Detroit Tour, they’re all full. But have no fear, you can set up a private outing for a spooky fun group ride - or any of our tours! - by reaching out to Linda at bookings@wheelhousedetroit.com.
We hope to ride with you this Fall!
Service Series: Frame Size
Instead of riding around like Deebo, we want to help you make sure you’re selecting a bike that fits you!
One issue we’re seeing is that a lot of internet bicycle companies use height to guide customers when selecting a bicycle. We find that inseam (or leg length) is a much more important measurement. Two people of the same height with different inseams (ie long legs/short torso vs. short legs/long torso) can ride different-size frames!
The easiest way to make sure your frame is properly sized is to stand over the top bar. You should have about 2 fingers-width between you and the frame.
Step-through frames are different, since the top bar of the frame triangle is angled downwards. In this case, you’ll want to focus more on how comfortable your “lean” towards the handlebars is rather then the height of the frame.
When we’re working with you on picking out a new bike, the frame size is the most important part. Think of it this way: when it comes down to it, anything except the frame can be changed on a bike! The frame is essentially the bike and you want to be 100% certain of its fit.
Just one more reason to Buy Where You Ride! Come by for a test ride of one of the awesome new bikes we have for sale and we’ll make sure you are comfortable and satisfied.
If you want to get real nerdy on frame size, check this out. Rabbit hole alert!
Labor Day Weekend
It’s hard to believe, but Labor Day Weekend is right around the corner.
We will be open on the holiday Monday 10AM-6PM — same hours as Saturday and Sunday. We encourage advance reservations for rentals. You save 10% and time! You can do so HERE.
There are two tours running:
Finally, we are thrilled to be partnering with the Detroit Jazz Festival to provide bicycle parking. You can ride down to Hart Plaza to listen to some first-rate tunes — FOR FREE — and there will be volunteers to keep an eye on your bike while you do!
This summer has been all-too-brief, so we hope you get to spend some of this Labor Day on 2 wheels!
Service Series: Saddle Height
One of the simplest adjustments to be made on a bicycle is to the height of the saddle. To be frank, Detroit, many of you are riding around with saddles that are waaaay too low!
From adjusting rental saddles dozens of times a day, we know that there are lots of people who feel safer with the saddle too low, as their feet can touch flat on the ground that way.
We encourage you to take some time riding around with it higher — your foot will come to the ground on a mellow tiptoe — and your knees and back will thank you! Plus, you get a more efficient “stroke,” which will make your ride that much easier.
Simply put, on the downstroke your knee should be slightly bent. Not fully extended — in that case, your saddle is too high.
If you have a quick release seatpost clamp, you can raise and lower your seat without a tool. If not, you’ll need a hex wrench (probably a 4, 5, or 6mm). As always, feel free to swing by the shop for advice and guidance!
Service Series: Flat-Fixing 101
Don’t let a flat be a ride-ender! Changing a flat isn’t that tough. We’ve created this 3-part series to help you be able to help yourself.
Part 2: Basics to Have on Hand (er, Bike)
Part 3: Let’s Do the Dang Thing!
If you prefer the hands-off model of bicycle maintenance, we got you! A flat change is $12 + cost of the tube (usually $8-10). We can typically do it while you wait or take a stroll on the Riverwalk.