E-Bikes & Bikes Customised to You
Bike parts determine the anatomy of a bicycle and what it needs to stay working. I'll begin by focusing on the high-level perspective of bike anatomy. Many people may know the top level bike parts. There is the frame, the seat, handlebars, pedals, tires, wheels, spokes, crank, and brakes. And last but not least, the chain. That's the simplest summation of the parts of a bicycle.
These parts can vary from bicycle to bicycle. An easy way to distinguish the anatomy of a bicycle is by the tires. Specifically the rubber on the wheel. The wheel is the rim that the tire sits on and the spokes are what connect the tire to the rim. The rim then attaches to the bike. Now there are more complex parts that most people are aware of. For instance the derailleur, or the gear mechanism. Not all bikes have derailleurs. The gear system is different across bikes, whether you have a single speed or a twenty-one speed. But all the parts I mentioned are essential for a bike to move.
Most bikes are specific to their category. While all bikes share the same components for the most part. There's not something on one type of bike that you don't see in another type of bike. What you do see is a different version of the same bike part on one bike versus another bike. A great example would be your typical road bike. You will notice a standard one-piece fork. Whereas on a mountain bike, you might see this option or a suspension fork.
Every bike will have a fork. However, it will vary from a cruiser bike to a comfort bike to a mountain bike to a road bike. Some key parts that you see changing across different bikes begin with the seat. You're gonna see a different type of seat across all bike types. Cruisers, mountain bikes, and road bikes will all have their own respected seats. The reason why is very simple. The needs of the rider on any one of those bikes are different. A road cyclist needs it for speed and aerodynamics. A mountain biker needs it for stability and speed, with a touch of comfort. And comfort and cruisers bikes are strictly focused on comfort.
You will also notice the drastic change of handlebars across styles. It all depends on the type of riding position best for each type of rider. The other bike part that changes from category to category are the tires. Different widths, different treads, different colors for that matter. Now, color isn't specific to different types, but with cruisers, you will see white sidewalls on the tire. This is for the purpose of aesthetics. On other bikes, you may see all black tires.
Lastly, what you'll see different between categories is the gear system. With cruisers, a lot of times, you see single speeds or three speeds. On road bikes, you see gears ranging from twenty-one speeds and over. And mountain bikes, a lot of times, same thing. You might see less than twenty-one speeds on a mountain bike, but usually, you see more. Recreational bikes, you see speeds or less, although twenty-one speeds aren't uncommon.
And I would say, adding on that too, is the braking system. For cruisers, most times you see coaster brakes where you pedal backward to stop. For recreational bikes, you usually see coaster brakes. Hybrid bikes, you'd see hand brakes with calipers. In regards to many mountain bikes, you'll see disc brakes. And then with road bikes, you'll see calipers. These will feature a bit more expensive and technical braking system. That's different from a comfort or cruiser bike. Moreover, bike parts vary across the category and designed for specific rider needs.
The best place to get replacement bike parts is your local bike shop. There are a couple of reasons why I say that. Number one, if you're not sure about the sizing or fitting of a certain part. Then taking your bike to a bike shop may be the best option. This will allow them to take a look at it and install the part for you. They should have a wide selection of parts that work universally on all types of bikes.
Let's say you bought a bike from sixthreezero and you bring it to your local bike shop. Most likely, they'll have the components and tools necessary to work on our type of bike. And I say this too because we work quite a bit with local bike shops. We don't have a national presence in stores in every city across the country, so we get this question a lot. "Where can I buy a new brake pad? Where can I buy new spokes?"
And what I would do is the same thing most people would do. This would be to conduct a quick Google search. I would scan through some reviews, and then I would reach out and call the best option. Your first goal should be to understand the variance in price. This is because the price is shop dependent. This is not only because of the cost of parts but also because of the labor involved. If it's a bike part that needs replacement. And you aren't comfortable doing it yourself, you might want to check ahead of time.
A lot of bike shops have published rates on replacing a certain part. Especially if it's something very common, like a chain or a pedal. If it's a simple repair, I would say you could go with the least expensive shop. Simple repairs are tasks such as replacing a pedal, seat, or a seat post. In other words, they are simple things most people could do at home. As a result, you don't need a very technical shop for these occasions.
If you need a basic repair on one of our bikes, find the best offer in your local area. You don't need to go to some high-end technical road or mountain bike shop. Their labor rates to replace parts is higher due to having more skilled technicians. So, number one is if you don't feel comfortable doing it, and you don't know what you need. The best place for the replacement of parts is your local bike shop. If you do feel comfortable and you know what you need, simply Google the replacement parts needed. Websites such as Nashbar boast a vast selection of online parts. Of course, there's also Amazon. Although Amazon may not have some specific part for a sixthreezero replacement. They may have some things to look for.
There's another company called Bicycle Warehouse. They are a local store with an online presence. There's also a national retailer with an online presence. However, they are going through the process of downsizing. They're called Performance Bike and they have a wide selection of parts for all types of bikes. You should be able to find most of the components you need there. The last two suggestions I recommend are Home Depot and Lowe's. If you need a screw or a bolt, your local hardware store is a good bet. Most people don't know this but screws and bolts, aren't bike specific. Instead, they only need a certain thread size.
Now, for high-end road or mountain bikes, it's a different story. Their screws and nuts are specific to those particular categories. There's a certain lightness to them that you can't find at your local home improvement store. But, when you're talking about products offered by sixthreezero. The screws and nuts used are comparable to Home Depot or a local hardware shop. All you would need to know is the length of the screw and the threading. Whether it's a Phillips head, flat head, wrench-only tighten or an Allen key does not matter. We've actually used all types of screws on our bikes.
Your best choice is to try to match it to the rest of your bike. But if you can't, that's not imperative to replace a screw or a nut on a recreational bike. This is especially true for sixthreezero bikes. And on that note, the best place to replace a part would be to contact us. We'll be the best source for you to at least tell you what the best option is. Due to speed and convenience, most times we would suggest Home Depot pick up a screw. If someone's not comfortable with that or they want the actual OEM original screw. We have those all on hand and we're happy to send any of those replacements. In addition, we have on hand replacement parts for any of the bikes that we offer.