Removing wheel from bike witbout going upside down

[tom_e]

I think the confusion comes because many new bikers will have experience from mtb, where its normal to drive to the ride and and detach / reattach wheels twice a day. They've done this loads of times and know perfectly well what the easiest way to do it is - with the bike upside down. If an old hand roadie comes along and tries to tell them otherwise without admitting it's a side effect of the drop bar controls and tape, they are going to get looked at a bit funny.

[Biggsy]

Jacket/bag/grass/carpet/something can protect the bar tape and saddle.

Having the bike upside-down lets me take my time and have a good look at everything down there.

[Deano]

^^^^^^

At a previous club we had winter club sessions where the 'old hands' gave demonstrations and top tips on all kinds of things including what to do when the tyre goes flat.  Putting the chain in small/small was a useful tip for many.  However, turning the bike upside down would have resulted in you being booted out of the club!

In many respects, for those not having/choosing the option of club nights, the internet and YouTube provide a very useful service.

We just had a club night, and one of the old hands was really struggling to explain why the bike isn't turned upside down (personally, I'm not fussy, provided there are no GPSes, computers etc on the bars to get scratched), and a couple of people were giving him a bit of a hard time about what was, basically, an article of faith. He was also aghast that someone had their front QR lever on the driveside.

Well absolutely. The tyre would be forced to roll the wrong way!

That was his race mechanic history showing - the tyre was entirely smooth

[LittleWheelsandBig]

I can change either wheel (rim brakes) in under 10 seconds. It takes me longer to turn the bike upside down and then work on it.

Having the QR consistently on the same side saves time. Sort of similar to always having brakes rigged consistently.

[ElyDave]

It's not getting the wheel off, its getting it back on without jamming a combination of chain/sprockets/ dropouts/ brakes that gets me.  Winter bike with mudguards just adds another thing to foul on the way back in.

[drossall]

I think the confusion comes because many new bikers will have experience from mtb, where its normal to drive to the ride and and detach / reattach wheels twice a day. They've done this loads of times and know perfectly well what the easiest way to do it is - with the bike upside down. If an old hand roadie comes along and tries to tell them otherwise without admitting it's a side effect of the drop bar controls and tape, they are going to get looked at a bit funny.

This is exactly why you see riders in the Tour de France, who need really quick changes, turning their bikes upside down.

[Kim]

There's a difference between quick and easy.

[Biggsy]

Speed is not the same thing as ease.  Ease is taking it easy, not rushing. We're not all in a race.

[drossall]

You takes your pick I suppose. I've always found that gravity helps me both ways with the bike the right way up. The wheel drops out (hence the name, as I said before), and the bike drops back onto it. The wrong way up, especially if the wheel is a tight fit between the blocks, it can be a right fiddle, and hitting the wheel with the palm of your hand risks dragging the bike along whatever surface it's resting on.

[Kim]

I don't buy that.  If you've got the bike upside down, you're only fighting gravity to lift the wheel out.  If you keep it the right way up, you're fighting gravity the whole time to support the bike with one hand, leaving you with only one to do the fiddly stuff.

[Biggsy]

Tight blocks is another thing of the past for me, since QR brakes, so the wheel just drops in.

[Deano]

Damn, I forgot how controversial this could be. The (in experience) old lag did a really good job, but a few people just didn't see the time advantage in not flipping the bike, especially when they foresaw being on their own and not having a handy rider to hand the bike off to, as they'd then have to lug the bike around as well as worrying about the puncture.

[drossall]

I don't buy that.  If you've got the bike upside down, you're only fighting gravity to lift the wheel out.  If you keep it the right way up, you're fighting gravity the whole time to support the bike with one hand, leaving you with only one to do the fiddly stuff.

As I said, each to his (or her) own. I put the bike down and, when I do pick it up, a lightweight bike that's missing a wheel is even lighter. Especially as it's always the back one...

[Biggsy]

I hope what we can all agree on is that there's not anything wrong with either method when you're good at it, and when there's time for it.

I'm just glad I wasn't at the club being told that I must do x and mustn't do y!

[LittleWheelsandBig]

When I swap the rear wheel and the rider isn't holding the saddle (e.g. when I am working on my own bike), my shoulder is tucked under the saddle supporting the bike, leaving both my hands free to get the wheel in and out. Quick and easy.

[ElyDave]

If it were my nice carbon framed Orbea, I could dangle it from my left nut leaving both hands free. The recumbent is another matter and in my experience very unwieldy when you lift the back end to remove the wheel. A full pit crew is more appropriate for that one.

[tom_e]

If it were my nice carbon framed Orbea, I could dangle it from my left nut leaving both hands free. The recumbent is another matter and in my experience very unwieldy when you lift the back end to remove the wheel. A full pit crew is more appropriate for that one.

Ah yes, I'll admit my recumbent got carefully hung from convenient objects whilst staying right way up.  A bit of a handful that.

[Whitedown Man]

Cyclists (def'n): a close-knit community of like-minded individuals bitterly divided by their common interest 

[mattc]

If it were my nice carbon framed Orbea, I could dangle it from my left nut leaving both hands free.

Now THAT is a skill worth bragging about!

[Wowbagger]

I have always turned bikes upside-down to work on them*. When I had dropped bars with delicate cables, I would put a small pile of books on the floor to support the bars and ensure that the brake cables weren't squashed.

With a flat-barred bike, that problem doesn't occur. With my Thorn, the Tubus low-rider rack allows me to remove the front wheel and keep the bike upright when the wheel is removed, so it is easier than otherwise would have been the case to remove the wheel with the bike the right way up. However, I have found that when I return the wheel to the drop-outs after the puncture repair, it is hard to seat the wheel in exactly the right place. It just drops right in when the bike is upside down and seats itself precisely.

*Actually, not so much with the tandem. I used to suspend that from the branches of our walnut tree as the tandem is far too big for me to turn it upside down easily on my own. It is much easier, however, to put it back together using the S & S couplings when it is upside down, and it's pretty well the only way to do it if I am reassembling the bike on my own.

I would be interested to learn how owners of solo machines with S & S couplings get on with reassembling their steeds after (e.g.) train travel.

[LittleWheelsandBig]

Wheels in each half of the bike and then join the halves.

[Cudzoziemiec]

I have always turned bikes upside-down to work on them*. When I had dropped bars with delicate cables, I would put a small pile of books on the floor to support the bars and ensure that the brake cables weren't squashed.

That's what's making it difficult then: I'm not carrying enough books round with me.

[Wowbagger]

Wheels in each half of the bike and then join the halves.

We don't normally take the wheels out if we separate the tandem, so this bit is OT. However...

The tricky bit with S & S couplings is lining up 3* different tubes to that you can start to get a purchase on the thread. The reason it's easier with the tandem upside down is that the rear half, having bars and saddle, is rock solid on 3 points, so doesn't need to be supported. When it's the right way up, it is only supported on one point, the rear wheel, and needs a hand or two to hold the other end up. The two halves of the tandem tend to sway around a bit. Once you do get just one of the three threaded cups to make a start, it all becomes a great deal easier and the other two line up pretty much perfectly every time.

*With a solo machine this would only be two tubes, which would probably make things easier. You couldn't turn a solo machine upside down to reassemble the couplings as solo machines don't have the luxury of stoker bars.

[frankly frankie]

You takes your pick I suppose. I've always found that gravity helps me both ways with the bike the right way up. The wheel drops out (hence the name, as I said before), and the bike drops back onto it.

   ^^^ this, for me ^^^

[Samuel D]

I use Ningishzidda’s method, which drops the wheel against your legs. I doubt another method improves on this for ease and general cleanliness.

However, there are slight differences with different bicycles, depending on the chain length, derailleur type, dropout style, etc. There may be no shortcut to doing it with your own bicycle until you’re comfortable with it.