Bike Inspection: Get Your Bike Ready for Riding Season

Pre-season bike inspection.

Welcome back to our series on "Getting Your Bike Ready for Riding Season". In our first article, "Getting Your Bike Ready for Riding Season: The Bike Wash", we introduced the first phase of our pre-season maintenance plan, by way of Calvin Jones at Park Tools. We highlighted the Park Tool bike wash process as our choice for the simplest, and the most thorough example of how to wash a bike.

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We believe that the bike wash is the critical first step in any good maintenance plan. Getting your bike free and clear of dirt, mud, and grime is a prerequisite for any proper bike inspection. A clean bike makes it easier to spot any damage, identify wear, or find loose parts that may need attention. Your bike assessment is only as good as your ability to make a clear visual inspection of the frame, components, and drivetrain. Why make it hard on yourself by trying to inspect a dirty bike Besides, do you really want to get all of that mess on you during the inspection? The reality is... if you don't want it on you, then you probably don't want it on your bike either.

So let's jump in.

Here we will cover our take on the second phase of our pre-season maintenance plan... the bike inspection.

We are talking bike inspection not just a safety M check

Most bicycle mechanics are well aware of the term "bicycle safety M check". Most commonly, this term is used in the context of performing a "safety" check on a bicycle. But at its core, this term is nothing more than a learning mnemonic named after the order in which it prescribes that a bicycle inspection should be performed. This mnemonic is a simple guide that systematically leads you through a complete review of all of a bike's key components. Following an imaginary letter "M" superimposed on the frame, this process flow ultimately traces out the letter "M" as it progresses you from the front of the bike to the rear... one-by-one, reviewing each major component along the way. If nothing else, it really is a simple and effective way to ensure all parts of the bike are properly reviewed.

Almost every context in which we have seen or heard the M check term being mentioned, it has been with respect to a bicycle safety inspection. And not surprisingly, that is because the M check is considered the recommended check that a rider should perform before every ride. And doing this type of review is a great thing. It is a smart thing to do. But the intent of the M check still leans more towards being a surface-level review of the bicycle as it really doesn't involve making adjustments or repairs beyond minor tweaks. Instead, the M check functions as more of a "go/no-go" decision, rather than being a comprehensive inspection. And since we are ultimately intending to perform an in-depth maintenance on our bike (the next phase of our series), we need that detailed inspection in order to know what needs work. In the end, we want to do all of the maintenance that involves adjusting, lubricating, and fine-tuning of our bike's components to ensure they work smoothly.

Our Take: The Bicycle M check Inspection Checklist

Okay, so why mention the M check at all? Don't we just want a detailed inspection anyway?

Well, yes, we do want that detailed inspection. We are just big fans of the M check. Conceptually speaking, we really see huge value in the methodology behind the M check pattern. We see how a systematic review pattern provides big benefit in ensuring that each and every part of the bike is seen, touched, and thoroughly inspected. In fact, we love the M check mnemonic so much, we have adopted its methodology. We have incorporated its systematic approach as the fundamental core of our own bike inspection checklist. We are simply borrowing on the beauty of the structure that the M check provides. Our adaptation essentially translates into just an advanced version of the M check. We have extended that adaption to formally document our inspection process in the form of a checklist that we continue to use today. We call our inspection process the "Bicycle M check Inspection Checklist".

The Bicycle M check Inspection Checklist

Our inspection process is nothing new. All of the aspects of our checklist process are considered to be integral parts of almost every inspection process that is out there today. And YouTube has hundreds of videos that back this up. All we have done here is to document, and systematically record the order of the bike's components as you trace out the imaginary letter "M" of the M check process. All in all, our checklist is just a means to ensure that we are thorough, deliberate, and standardized in the inspection process. And we do stand behind it. All our mechanics follow the same checklist. We believe our inspection is simple in concept, but big in its value.

Here is our Bicycle M check Inspection Checklist:

Bicycle M Check Inspection Checklist.pdf

Download PDF • 312KB

Snippet from our Bicycle M check Inspection Checklist

Just a few points of interest with regards to our inspection checklist...

Notice that we have broken out our inspection into 12 distinct stages. Not at all surprisingly, the order of the stages closely follows the M check pattern. That is completely intentional. Similarly, within each stage, we have further sub-divided it in order to itemize the key components each area that should be reviewed... yes, also following the M check pattern of outer to inner.

Alongside each component line item, we have also provided evaluation status checkboxes, ranging from Good to Acceptable to Replace. This simple checkbox mechanism allows us to efficiently move through the inspection, but to also capture an assessment of a given component.

Additionally, take note of the comment column. We provide this column as a means to record any special notes or findings as you work through the inspection. We make extensive use of this column as a way to let our customers know of any wear that is worth paying attention to. We go so far as to record the actual date and part number for any components that we do ultimately replace. I cannot tell you how valuable this proves when we wish to look back to determine the last time we replaced a component or part. We love this feature, and so do our customers.

And last but not least, we have specified a stage for "Accessories". These are often overlooked components until such time as one or more of them stops working. So we've added in this stage as a reminder to give all of your "add-ons" a check as well. We actually use our pre-season maintenance as the time to replace all of our batteries across all of our accessories. This takes the guesswork out of trying to recall the last time we changed out a battery. And yes, we record that in the Comments section of our checklist as well. How cool is that?

The Bicycle M check Inspection Tools and Supplies

Tools and Supplies:  

• Paper copy of our Bicycle M check Inspection Checklist

• Bike stand (either is good choice):

  • Park Tool PCS 9.3: Competitive Cyclist  | Amazon  

  • Park Tool PCS 10.3: Competitive Cyclist  | Amazon  

• Park Tool ATD-1.2 - Adjustable Torque Driver: Competitive Cyclist  | Amazon  

• Park Tool AWS-1 3-Way Hex Wrench (4mm,5mm,6mm): Competitive Cyclist  | Amazon  

• Chain checker (choose one)

  • Park Tool CC-2 Chain Checker: Competitive Cyclist | Amazon

  • Park Tool CC-3.2 Chain Wear Indicator: Competitive Cyclist | Amazon

If you have given your bike a wash, you've already gathered a fair bit of information (mainly mental notes) on areas of your bike that need specific attention. If you haven't given your bike a wash, we highly recommend it. In actuality, we consider the bike wash as your pre-inspection. So why not set yourself off on the right foot... give it a wash.

Again, we are technically performing an in-depth inspection and review. We are not doing maintenance quite yet. We do, however, always want to take the opportunity to tighten and torque bolts. Sometimes that is all your inspection uncovers, so why not take the time to do that now. No need to wait until the actual bike maintenance phase. So that is why we've listed those tools above. Review the list of tools above. Check your inventory of tools, and purchase what you need to set your inventory in full.

The Bicycle M check Inspection Checklist Process

As we did with part 1 of this series "Getting Your Bike Ready for Riding Season: The Bike Wash", we have taken extra time to do some Internet searching to find videos that do fairly match up with our version of the bike inspection process. And while we won't necessarily find an exact video match out there... at least until such time as we record our own video..., we have come across one video that we believe does share the same philosophy as us in terms of the approach to performing an inspection. Though titled more along the lines of being a "safety M check", we believe that this video from Bike Radar does provide a great example on how to perform an M check. And the basics are the key to it all. Our inspection process, when coupled with our inspection checklist, is really just a very in-depth version of the basic M check. So really, if you can nail down the basics of how to do a "safety M check", then you are well on your way to performing our version of the inspection. In any event, we believe that once you follow along with our process, over time you will naturally internalize it, and make it your own. And that is the idea... share what we've learned over the years... from the untold others that taught us... paying it forward, if you will.

Here you go... the video version of the Bike Radar's safety M check process:

Bike Radar's Video version: (7m8s)

"How To Safety Check A Bike"

Bike Radar's Text article version:

"How To Safety Check Your Bike"

(the video is actually a sub item in this article)

So here is how we recommend you get started.

First things first, download and print a copy of our inspection checklist from above. Give it a quick skim to familiarize yourself with how we see the inspection process flowing.

Next, we recommend you watch the Bike Radar video in its entirety, at least once. It is only 7 minutes or so, and it will give you an idea of how a good safety M check should be performed.

No need to worry, this video does largely follow the M check pattern (which is why we recommend it), so you should be able to move along each video section and then perform the corresponding inspection on your bike in parallel. Don't forget to record your findings on your inspection checklist. This checklist will serve as your roadmap for when you move on to the actual bike maintenance phase.

Remember, our checklist goes into a bit more detail than most M check videos. But that is our intent. Use the video as your visual guide, but use our checklist as your actual treasure map. You will get the hang of it fairly quickly. The more times you actually perform this type of inspection, the easier and more intuitive it will become.

Oh almost forgot... don't forget to torque your bolts as you progress through your inspection!

Time to start your inspection

So have at it. Grab our checklist, watch the video, and then step through each of the 12 stages of our inspection checklist. You will learn from this process, we promise you. We never cease to find new questions about the operation of the bike that we endeavor to add into our checklist cheat sheet. It is all part of the process.

You will learn how to do an M check, both this advanced version, as well as a modified pre-ride version. You will get better at it, little by little. And you will get to know your bike. Which in turn means that your bike will get more love, more often. Isn't that the goal? Inspections lead to maintenance, and that is where the real fun is. There is no better satisfaction than working on your own bike.

Next up, "Getting Your Bike Ready for Riding Season: The Bike Maintenance".

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