Home repairs

It's a special feeling doing some repairs on your own (and if you actually manage to fix the problem). My bike had been giving me trouble over the last few weeks and I thought I'd have to throw in the towel finally and take it to a workshop when the pedal stopped working on my way to work today morning. And I did.

Growing up in India, I always thought that things would be a lot more professional in the west and that you'll always get a fair deal. Imagine my surprise then when the mechanic tells me that the freehub is completely messed up and I'm better off replacing the whole wheel because they didn't have jus the part available. Even if they did, it would still be cheaper to replace the wheel as it costs 400 + 600 NOK service fee compared to 900 NOK for a new wheel (oh, I still have to shell out the 600 NOK service fee). Guess math wasn't his forte.

It was an easy decision at that point and after a few metres of lugging the bike along, the pedal somehow started to work again and I managed to get the bike home this evening. Went straight to YouTube to see if there's any good DIY tutorials. There are many things I hate about YouTube but you can't deny there's a lot of quality content as well to make life easier for you. 

Turns out it's most likely just the freehub getting gunked up and a quick wash and degreasing should help. So, took the wheel apart and gave it a wash and some time soaking in soap water and I could immediately feel it getting better. Hoping it'll be good to go again tomorrow morning...