A scary tale and who played with yours before you ??

[Blimey]

My mate called from Sunny Plymouth the other evening

Hi Mark its Ady (blah blah blah 5 mins later) My bikes failed the MOT and i want to sell it, Front forkseals leaking and chain too slack.

OK

I'm starting with the chain and have managed to slaken off the nuts on the rear adjusters (5 mins later i've worked out these were the locking nuts on the adjusters) ok what do i need to do now ??

Right tighten the adjusters equally and gradually both sides untill the chain is at the right tension.

Ok i'm doing that but they have gone tight and nothings moving

Right have you loosened the axle bolt ?

Whats that ?

The bolt that goes through the middle of your wheel, you need to loosen this for the wheel to move backwards.

Ok what end do i loosen??

Ady its a bolt with a nut on the other end, the nut you idiot !!!

Right ummm its fairly large

Yes its prob 30/32mm

Ok

and its prob tight about 100 nm

Ok right i'm doing it now, ahhh sh*t

Whats happened ??

It slipped on the nut

Well be careful, if you round it off your in trouble

Ok ahhh sh*t, it did it again

What size socket are you using??

I haven't got any sockets , i'm using an adjustable spanner.

With that i suggested he stopped what he was doing and take it to someone who knew what they were doing

He then suggested , perhaps i will start on the forkseals then

[Sixth Gear]

OMG..... I shouldn't be allowed in the kitchen, and what is your mate like, big big warning signs, got us all having kittens here. At least he should get himself a Haynes manual, but it sounds like he shouldn't be allowed to near anything where safety’s an issue. Similarly my neighbour’s friend called round after he'd fallen off his GC125, big ooozy welt on his knee, (only wearing jeans) he'd twisted the front forks, but back to maintenance, the chain was so rusty it was squeaking.

[deej]

With skills like that I'd have thought he be friends with funky not you....

It is a worry with used bikes,I always like to have a good check over each bike I buy plus its a good excuse to spend a evening in the garage tinkering for no real reason

[delvey91]

i use an adjustable spanner

[badgerKDD]

But not for mechanics, eh !

[jam]

No he uses it as a hammer!!

[Mervin]

The only adjustable worth knowing is this one, cheap foreign stuff is ok for farmers and gardeners to hit nails with, this actually clamp on the nut and has got me out of the pooh a few times with rounded nuts file some flats back on em and clamp this on it,

[Milky]

ahahahahaha

[Funky]

Did he do something worng?