Resurrecting the Dragon

My Jamis Dragon 29 by far sees more miles than any of my other bikes. Lately it hasn't been running so well. There was a lot of noise coming from the bottom bracket area, shifting was sub par, and no matter what I did the front derailleur rubbed in certain gears.

I realized I hadn't done much in the way of maintenance since I built the bike over five years ago. In general, I just don't keep bikes long enough for them to NEED maintenance. However, the Dragon has been the exception, so I ordered a few parts for a tune-up.

Yesterday I tore the bike down, cleaned it up, installed a new middle chainring, bottom bracket bearings, front derailleur and chain.

Today I took it out for a ride and everything worked like new.

It was weird to look down and see all the clean parts where the dust, mud and grease had been. I later learned that the shiny stuff I was seeing is called "metal."

It wasn't a fun way to spend a Saturday, but a necessary evil. And there is a certain satisfaction that comes with making a bike run like new again. Hopefully I get another five years out of it.

Later.