Is there anything I can do to make my bike a little safer from being stolen and to prevent rust from forming since its exposed to the outdoors. Someone gave me the idea of replacing my seat quick release with normal seatclamp so I don't have to take the seat off. Do you guys have any other tips likes that?
My suggestion would be a single speed bike because they don't look as flashy(in general). Bolt on parts such as hubs with axle nuts instead of quick releases. They do make quick release skewers that have-basicly a removable release tab. I've seen a guy that covered a 4 thousand dollar bike with burlap sacks so people thought it was trash. I'd also go with a cable lock that you can run through both wheels and the frame to the bike rack. That moslty eliminates any issues. Beyond that, you only have to deal with jerks that cut your tires or serious theifs with big cutting tools. As for the seat-- there's a devise that can be put in the seat post, then has a plug on the other end that is held in the seat tube by the bolt for your water bottle cage. You could keep the quick release seat for quick adjustments, but still be secure. If you wanna get very detailed, you cen get stem bolts and such replaced by tamper=proof torx bolts or some other security screw that requires a special key to remove. Those keys are much harder to get than your standard allen wrench and would greatly minimize missing parts or loosened bolts.
And for the rust, lubricate everything frequently. Something like wd-40 is fairly light and clean but repels water well. You may also want to try a wax-type lube for the chain because it will last a while and repel water very well.
you can use what i use for my quick release seat post.it's just a little cable and a small lock that i loop around my frame to my seat whenever i go in anywhere.that way no one can steal it.that,along with my 8' cable that goes thru both wheels,the frame,and then around something has done the trick for me.hope that helps!ride on
buy a cheap bike from craigslist for 50 bucks so it's not devastating when it gets stolen. leave the good one at home
I think I am going to buy a cheap bike instead, I found older Trek 7000s and Giant Iguanas for just at 100 dollars so I'm gonna buy one of those. Would it be smart to change it to a single speed? I thought about buying a new suspension fork so I could do some trails comfortably but thought of single speed makes me remember when I had my little bmx bikes and struggled to get up big hills.
It's almost always smart to go singlespeed. Just gear it so you are able to climb whatever the biggest hill is. Here's my ss commuter/town bike...
I haven't found a hill in town that gives me any trouble(central kentucky has a lot of rolling hills). The only hills I dread are the same ones that nearly kill me on the multi speed road bike too. I do have some pretty big power in my legs so I'm able to really throw the torque to the pedals for a very short distance. I run a 44-16 gearing on my SS. BUT, if you have good working gears on a mountain bike, they're not a terrible thing to keep. Keep those cables lubed up or it'll be stuck in one gear before long.
I found a 2004 Diamondback Coil X for 125 in pretty good condition. There is some rust on the cassette but other then that its very good looking. Ill have to post some pictures before I start making it look worse.
