The World's Best-Selling Bicycle Repair and Maintenance Guide

This is an excellent reference, full of illustration and very updated. However, I tried to replace the Look pedals in my bike and I couldn't get the proper instructions in the book. There are only two pages on the topic. I did whatever I could to remove the pedals and was impossible (Look pedals does not accept the 15mm pedal wrench shown in the book) so I ended up going to the bike shop and fortunately they remove the pedals and installed the new ones for free.

Then, I bough a set of Shimano 105 brakes, I was trying to follow the instructions but the brake cable in the bike was shorter. So, again, I went to the bike shop and paid $20 to the technician who replaced the cable and installed them perfectly. He even put air in my tires and adjusted a bit the saddle bag.

Today, I got a new pair of shoes, the chapter on installing the cleats is very small. So, I am going tomorrow to the bike shop, they will remove the cleats from my old shoes and will fit them in the new ones using a fitting tool that they have. So, I will have the cleats fitted by a specialist.

So, thanks to this book, my bike shop is making a lot of money. I have yet to complete on repair following the instructions by the book.

This book should be called The Hard Core Cyclocrosser's Guide to Obsessive Bike Maintenance. It's really not written from a road bike perspective, even though that's in the title. Replacement intervals for things like cables and housing are ridiculously short unless you are riding in the mud every day. The information is also not complete in many areas. For instance, the section on brake cables does not even mention that you need to get the right cable for your brakes, either mountain or road, as one will not fit the other. It's a huge book filled with lots of information, but it has too many shortcomings to recommend.

I had preordered this book based on the excellent reviews of the previous editions. The book contains an enormous amount of information. I don't think that point can be stress enough. But fortunately the table of contents and index do an excellent job of helping you find what you are looking for. There is a troubleshooting section that is well laid out and quickly directs you to the sections you need. There are quite a few drawings and diagrams(no photos) that help illustrate the point he is talking about. There is a glossary so if you don't know what he is talking about you can just look it up. And one of the best things (imo) is at the beginning of each chapter there is a list of the tools you'll need so you can make sure you have everything before you start tearing your bike apart.

The only down side I have about the book are the cross references. The references to other sections are to the section number only. It would have been nice to have the page number in the reference also.

Overall I really like this book. It has a lot of information and the explanations are well thought out.

There is some good information in this. It contains helpful insights for making repairs and maintaining your bike. The pages are about the size of a magazine page so it lays flat easily on your workbench. It uses drawings rather than photos. This keeps them generic and can be applied to different bicycle models. The drawings appear crude at first but I've found them to be accurate; showing only what is needed. It includes descriptions and explanations of the many different types of tools used.

Great maintenance and repair manual for bocycles! If you're the type of person that buys a Haynes manual for your cars and trucks that you own, than this is the book for you if you plan on doing your own bicycle repairs. (Warning: if you're new to bike part terminology it may seem a little over your head at first, but look up the terms you arent familiar with and you'll be ok.--- there are pictured diagrams as well so it will help those visual learners as well ?

Now although I ride alot, I'm not really big on reading Mountain bike books from cover to cover. And I actually refer to the companion Mountain Biking DVD-Zinn and the Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance DVD more often. This one, on the other hand is just a wealth of information. It covers so many different areas. I've looked at other books in the stores. If you want to own just one Mountain bike maintenance book, this is it. I myself only have one-this one. If you are a more visual person, as I am - get his DVD video. It's awesome too.Zinn and the Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance

I often ride my mountain bike at night and use these lighting products:Down Low Glow Lighting Kit - Two Tubes-Envy(green)

Before I received this book, I knew very little about mountain bike repair. I looked at some other books in the library, and some happened to have terrible instructions. One book suggested that I hose down my bike after every ride (bad idea). For cleaning the chain, one book suggested that I completely remove it and put it in a cup with solvent, wash it, and then let it dry in a heated oven (another bad idea). Zinn happens to really know what he's doing and writing about. That's clear through reading this book, with his master-to-student advice and instruction.

This book was made to be read for people with a wide-range of skills from novice to more experienced. I learned almost everything about mountain bike repair and the anatomy of my mountain bike from this book. I found almost no stone unturned when it came to my bikes. Zinn also showed me the right tools to have for DIY repairs, useful tips on emergency repairs, and tools to always carry while on the trails.

Some people complained about the hand-drawn diagrams. Personally, I prefer this to colour-photos as they are clearer and more simple.

I would strongly recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn the art of maintaining their mountain bike.

Lots of good information. My biggest complaint is the line drawings. While I'm usually a fan of them, in the context of this book and its subject matter, they seem too vague. I find myself reaching for Park Tool's "Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair" more than this one because it contains actual photos.

As a beginner home mechanic (despite riding mountain bikes for the past 18 years) I found this book to have a very organized approach. I particularly appreciate the grading of repair/maintenance so you will know how difficult a job will be before beginning. This book will essentially be free from the money you saved after a skipping a couple of tune ups at the shop and doing it yourself. It seems amazingly current with the latest equipment even though it was published a few years back. I highly recommend this book to all recreational riders. Nice hand drawn diagrams, I prefer this reference to the other one I bought with photos due to the organization and the exploded views that photos cannot replace.

This is not a bad book. It is huge and quite comprehensive and probably has a solution for every problem. But where are the step-by-step photos that is much needed in a how-to book esp in the realm of bike repair! There are not even photos in color or b/w. The reader is forced to comprehend the "art" by some simple cartoon drawings?! Mountain bike repair is not exactly a simple thing to pick up for the normal person and the lack of photos make it even harder. Lastly, it is not a book you would want to read cover-to-cover. Granted, books like these are more for reference, but the writing is not even that great for the cover-to-cover attempt.

I borrowed a different book from the library on bike maintenance, but I wasn't entirely satisfied, so I purchased this one. It's a very solid book, that does a good job of helping you take care of your mountain bike. Its also a fairly pleasant read as well.

If this the first Zinn MTB maintenance guide you buy, you'll find tons of useful info. If you own the previous version, you'll see most of the material remains the same. The major (and welcome addendum) is the inclusion of rear shocks. However, few models are covered. For front shocks, there is still major and extended references to old forks, which I am in doubt if people still use them, and superficial reviews for new ones. There are a few new items added like tuning rear shocks, Stan Notubes, slime, tubeless etc - but this info is readily available in web sites. Overall I give this book 4 stars average - five if this is going to be your first copy, three if you have already one.

This is a nicely written and very informative book--a must for anyone who wants to do his/her own maintenence on a mountain bike. For long-time and experienced mechanics, much will be review, but there are always those little things that you haven't done before, or have changed with new equipment. This book gives you the proper approach in a clear, no-nonsense fashion.

Road cyclists around the world love Zinn & the Art of Road Bike Maintenance. It's the best-selling guide to bicycle repair and maintenance. Lennard Zinn guides you through every job with simple, step-by-step instructions. Hand-drawn illustrations show just the right level of detail - not too much, not too little. Exploded diagrams show how parts come apart and go back together.

Here's how other cyclists have rated this book in the past: 5-star reviews: 27, 4-star reviews: 7, 3-star reviews: 0, 2-star reviews: 1, 1-star reviews: 0

This book was recommended by a friend of mine to facilitate my Padawan ways of bike maintenance. I'm very impressed, and the illustrations are excellent. Everything is broken down into the most basic steps when making a repair/modification. It's so much easier to maintain and repair your own bike, than to have your LBS do it. Don't be a tool, buy the book.

I think that this book is over rated for 2 reasons. First, the pen and ink type illustrations are not as useful as photos, which the book does not have. Second and more importantly, good how to / fix it books explain how stuff works. If you know how it works, you can diagnose most problems and fix them. By contrast other books (incl Zinn) mostly just tell you the steps to fix something. This is great as long as your gear and problem perfectly match the one the authors intended, but not so good for having to diagnose other problems (or fix stuff in the field where you don't have the book). Based on these criteria, I prefer Mel Alwoods book, although I usually read both before attempting a repair.

I recommend the book as an resource (great diagrams, easy to read), but it turns out my hybrid bike falls more in the mountain bike category than the road bike category. Look at Zinn's Mountain Bike Maintenance for hybrid bikes. 2 Stars for this not being documented at all (as of 4/2017) on the main page.

If you are overwhelmed by all the moving parts or are just looking for a reference, this book is for you.

This book contains detailed descriptions and illustrations of everything you need to know to maintain and tweak your mountain bike.

Great book, up-to-date information. Two colors used throughout text, Black and Red. Diagrams are great; might be better if used the additional spot red used for text headings. The appendix includes useful information too. For all of the wonderful advice, instruction and detail within, cyclists would find more utility from a sturdier binding.

I bought this book for my husband who is a mountain biking nutter. He just loves it, can't get his head out of it. We would definately recommend this book to anyone who is interested in repairing/maintaining your mountain bike.

I've heard so much about the book I figured I'd have to get it. When I finally read through it I was dissapointed to find no new info and cheap hand drawn illustration. For anyone who wrenches on a large assortment of bikes I recommend the Hanes Manual on Mountain bikes. It has blow by blow pictures just like their car manuals and it's cheaper.

Good book, easy to read and understand.

Yet I still feel the internet is a much greater resource which the ability to search for specific problems, rather than browsing problems, and ability to talk with people (such as on forums).

Great if you want a book though.

Admitting, I haven't read the book, but honestly if the book was published 3+ years ago it's not a good book. Basically, you have to buy the maintenance book every other year to be up to date. The bikes are changing every single year and to keep up with the manufactures releasing new bikes and new components constantly is not that easy.

I'm no bike mechanic, but I'm pretty handy when it comes to fixing things. I've managed to keep my bike running and only visited the local bike shop for parts. And then, for some reason, I accidentally let some oil out of my hydraulic brake system. Bah. My rear brake lever, although still working, was considerably mushier than I would've liked.

I took it to the local bike shop for a repair and am pretty sure they did nothing to my brake system. The lever had the same amount of play in it as when I took it in. So, I cracked open Zinn, ordered some oil, and got to this myself. The instructions were great but, what really saved the day, were the little tips and advice.

After the first few attempts, I simply couldn't get all of the air bubbles out of my line. Zinn had great tips on how to work the hydraulic lines to knock bubbles loose. Sure enough, after going through the recommended motions, bubbles started to bleed out. I topped off the reservoir and was back to full strength braking! Aaaaaah.

This book is great. It has detailed, exploded diagrams, concise and clear instructions, and advice and tips from someone who's been there and done that. Definitely recommend for the mountain biker.

If you have never had Zinn's book in your library then you should! For one it is affordable and well written. This one is his most recent version. Like all the past I have had..............great to have. Great pictorials and written in a way a novice can perform routine care. I wrench alot and have built up several bikes from the ground up and use his book as a resource. So do yourself a favor and spend $17 for a great book!

I've heard so much about the book I figured I'd have to get it. When I finally read through it I was dissapointed to find no new info and cheap hand drawn illustration. For anyone who wrenches on a large assortment of bikes I recommend the Hanes Manual on Mountain bikes. It has blow by blow pictures just like their car manuals and it's cheaper.

Good book, easy to read and understand.

Yet I still feel the internet is a much greater resource which the ability to search for specific problems, rather than browsing problems, and ability to talk with people (such as on forums).

Great if you want a book though.

Admitting, I haven't read the book, but honestly if the book was published 3+ years ago it's not a good book. Basically, you have to buy the maintenance book every other year to be up to date. The bikes are changing every single year and to keep up with the manufactures releasing new bikes and new components constantly is not that easy.