Parts of a Typical Bike

Frame, Handlebars, and Saddle (Seat)

1. Frame: Although frames come in slightly different shapes and a variety of materials, all frames do the same thing: serve as the bike’s skeleton, supporting your weight and holding together the bike’s components.
2. Forks: The fork-shaped parts of the frame hold the front and rear wheels in place. Forks often contain quick release mounts that allow you to remove the wheels quickly for maintenance.
3. Handlebars: These may extend straight outward (as on mountain bikes), curve back toward the seat (as on cruisers), or drop down (as on road bikes, such as the one pictured above). You hold the grips at the end of the handlebars, which are usually covered with grip tape or with rubber or foam.
4. Saddle (seat): Most saddles can be tilted (forward or backward) or adjusted (up or down) to accommodate your body type and personal preference.

Wheels and Tires

5. Wheels: The wheels hold the bike’s tires in place and impact the stability, smoothness, and straightness of the ride. Though wheels don’t require regular maintenance, they can become bent or off-center, causing the bike to wobble or pull in one direction. A process known as truing, usually done by a bike mechanic, can resolve this problem.
6. Rims: The main hoop, or circular part of the wheel, is usually made of aluminum.
7. Spokes: The thin metal bars that stabilize the inside of the wheel converge in a metal device at the center of the wheel, known as the hub.
8. Tires: Tires can be slick (smooth with a light tread) or knobby (textured with a deeper tread). Each tire contains an internal rubber tube that is inflated with air by using a bike pump. Bike pumps connect to a valve that’s attached to the tube.

Pedals

9. Pedal: Metal or plastic pedals support your feet as you ride. Pedals may allow your feet to move freely, hold each foot in place with toe clips (explained below), or hold the foot with a clipless locking system. If you use clipless pedals, you need to buy special cycling cleats, which have soles with bolts that lock into place on the clipless pedals. These cleat bolts must be tight before riding—loose bolts can cause you to slip out of the pedals and lose control.
10. Toe clips: Toe clips are small webs of fabric or plastic attached to the pedals that slip over your toes to hold your feet in place. Be sure your toe clips allow you to release your feet without struggling, in case you need to dismount your bike suddenly.
11. Cranks: These metal arms connect the pedals to the frame. Cranks rarely require maintenance.

Drive Train

12. Chain rings (or crank set): These consist of one to three large, circular, toothed gears attached to the pedal cranks. The chain rings mesh with the chain to turn the wheels and propel the bike as you pedal. They also hold the bike in a particular gear. All bicycle gears, including those of the chain ring, are described as high or low based on their size, with larger gears “lower” than smaller, “higher” gears.
     
    
13. Chain: Transfers power from the chain ring to the rear gear set to turn the back wheel. Before each ride, check to see that the chain fits snugly onto the chain ring. Also look to make sure the chain isn’t stretched or broken. Lube the chain after every few rides.
14. Rear gear set: These toothed gears are mounted at the hub of the back wheel.
15. Front derailleur: Derailleurs are metal mechanisms that “derail,” or shift, the chain through the bike’s various gears. The front derailleur moves the chain among the various chain rings. If changing from one chain ring gear to another becomes difficult, consult a bike mechanic to have your front derailleur aligned.
16. Rear derailleur: The bicycle’s most delicate mechanical component, the rear derailleur shifts the chain among the rear gear set. If it becomes bent inward, a bike mechanic will have to repair it. If it simply stops functioning well, you may be able to fix it on your own (see How to Adjust a Rear Derailleur).
17. Gear levers: These small levers, used to change the bike’s gears, are typically located in the middle of the handlebars or near the ends of the handlebars under the grips. Gear levers rarely need maintenance.

Brakes

18. Brakes: Just like those on a car, bike brakes apply friction to the wheels to stop the bike. Hand brakes, the most popular type of brakes, consist of brake levers attached to the handlebars, which are connected by a brake cable to the brake clamps, which house rubber brake pads, on the wheels. On bikes with rim brakes, the clamps squeeze the pads against the rim of the wheel when the brake is engaged; on bikes with disc brakes, the clamps apply friction against a metal disc mounted on the wheel hubs. On both rim and disc brakes, the front brake is engaged by the left brake lever, the rear brake by the right brake lever. Coaster brakes stop the rear wheel when you pedal backward and are found mostly on cruisers and kids’ bikes.
19. Brake cable: These cables link the brake levers to the brake clamps. Though brake cables rarely require maintenance, they must be in working order for the brake levers to function. They can be adjusted to tweak the responsiveness of the brakes.

Quick Releases

• Wheel quick releases: Let you remove the bolt that secures the wheel to the frame without using a screwdriver
   
  
• Saddle quick release: Lets you move the saddle up or down or remove it entirely without using a screwdriver
   
  

Quick Release Safety and Security

• Safety: Be sure to reclamp quick releases tightly after you adjust them. Loose quick releases can cause saddles to shift and wheels to disengage from the frame while you’re riding.
• Security: Unfortunately, quick releases make it easy for thieves to remove wheels and saddles. Always chain your wheels and remove your saddle when your bike is parked.