Short answer: for most riders, a general service every 6 to 9 months or every 1,200 to 1,500 km, whichever comes first, and a full strip-down service once a year or every 5,000 to 6,000 km. Between services, clean and lube the chain and check your tyres and brakes yourself. And if your bike has been ridden through the monsoon, October is the month to book one, because the damage rain does to cables and bearings shows up weeks after the rides that caused it.
Most riders service their bike when something goes wrong. By then the cost has usually doubled: a chain left too long has worn the cassette, a dry cable has started to fray, a bearing that needed grease now needs replacing. A service done on time is the cheapest maintenance there is. This guide covers how often to service, what each level of service actually includes, and the signs your bike needs one now.
- Why service at all
- How often to service
- What each level of service includes
- Signs your bike needs a service now
- After the monsoon
- What to do yourself between services
- What a service does not include
- FAQ
- Booking a service
Why service at all
Three reasons, in order of how much money they save you.
Wear parts protect each other, until they do not. A chain replaced on time protects the cassette and chainrings. Brake pads replaced on time protect the rotor or the rim. Leave one too long and it takes the next part with it, and the bill multiplies.
Small problems are cheap and big ones are not. A gear that needs a quarter turn of adjustment costs almost nothing to fix. The same gear left to skip for months wears the chain and cassette unevenly.
Reliability and safety. A serviced bike does not leave you walking home with a snapped cable, and its brakes work the way you expect when a car pulls out in front of you.
How often to service
Time and distance both matter, because grease dries out and rubber perishes even on a bike that sits still. Go by whichever comes first.
| How you ride | General service | Strip-down service |
|---|---|---|
| Occasional, weekend rides | Every 9 months | Once a year |
| Regular, a few rides a week | Every 6 months, or 1,200 to 1,500 km | Once a year, or 5,000 to 6,000 km |
| High mileage, brevets, daily commuting | Every 1,200 to 1,500 km | Every 5,000 to 6,000 km |
| Through the monsoon or on dusty roads | More often than the above | At the end of the season |
If you ride 150km a week, 1,200 to 1,500 km comes round in about two months, which surprises most people. That is why distance, not the calendar, usually decides it for keen riders.
A quick tune-up before a big event or a long ride, a week or so before rather than the day before, catches the small things without taking the bike away for long.
What each level of service includes
We offer four levels of service at our Kondapur workshop. The general service combines the first two, and the strip-down service includes the general service.
| Service | Price | What it covers | Choose it when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drivetrain service | ₹420 | Thorough clean of the chain, cassette, chainrings and derailleurs, a fresh lube with a choice of dry, wet or wax, and an inspection of chain and sprocket wear | The chain is dirty or squeaking and you have not cleaned it in weeks |
| Tune up | ₹480 | Safety check, brake and gear adjustment, lubing chain, cables and pivots, and tyre pressure | The bike is generally well kept but needs attention before a long ride |
| General service | ₹1,450 | Tune up and drivetrain service, plus wheel alignment, regreasing the headset, brake calipers and pedals, and a full clean | Every 6 to 9 months, or 1,200 to 1,500 km |
| Strip-down service | ₹3,000 | General service, plus stripping every part off the bike, new brake and gear cables and housing fitted, hub and bottom bracket regreasing, and a full rebuild | Once a year, or every 5,000 to 6,000 km |
The strip-down service is the one that transforms a tired bike. Cables that have been rubbing in their housing for a year make shifting and braking feel vague, and new ones make the bike feel new again. Prices include GST, and parts are charged separately. The full menu, including smaller jobs such as wheel truing and brake bleeding, is on our repairs page.
Signs your bike needs a service now
| What you notice | Likely cause |
|---|---|
| Chain squeaks, or looks black and gritty | Dry or dirty drivetrain |
| Gears skip, hesitate or will not shift cleanly | Cable tension, a worn chain, or a bent hanger |
| Brake levers pull close to the bar, or feel spongy | Worn pads, a stretched cable, or air in a hydraulic system |
| Brakes squeal or have lost power | Contaminated or worn pads |
| A creak when you pedal hard | Bottom bracket, pedals or seatpost needing grease |
| A knock from the front when you brake | Loose headset |
| A wheel wobbles or rubs the brake | Wheel out of true |
| Wheels or cranks feel gritty when spun by hand | Bearings need attention |
Any brake symptom is worth dealing with straight away rather than at the next scheduled service.
After the monsoon
If your bike has been ridden through the rains, mid-October is the ideal time for a general or strip-down service, and the timing matters more than people think.
Rain does not do most of its damage on the day. Water gets into cable housing, where it slowly corrodes the inner cable, and into headset, hub and bottom bracket bearings, where it washes out the grease. The symptoms, sluggish shifting, a creak, a gritty bearing, often appear weeks after the wet rides that caused them, which is why riders rarely connect the two.
A post-monsoon strip-down replaces the cables and regreases the bearings, which deals with exactly that. It is also the right moment to switch from a wet chain lube back to a dry one for the dry months, cleaning the wet lube off first. Our monsoon maintenance guide explains what rain does to each part.
What to do yourself between services
A service is not a substitute for basic care. These take a few minutes and make every service cheaper.
| How often | What to do |
|---|---|
| Before every ride | Check tyre pressure and squeeze both brakes |
| Weekly | Wipe and lube the chain, more often in the wet |
| Monthly | Check chain wear, look over brake pads and tyres for cuts, and check key bolts |
| Every few months | Top up tubeless sealant if you run tubeless |
Our guides to cleaning and lubricating your chain, checking chain wear and setting tyre pressure cover the details, and our home workshop guide lists the tools worth owning.
What a service does not include
- Parts. Service prices cover labour. New chains, cassettes, brake pads, tyres and cables are charged separately, and you approve the estimate before any work goes beyond it.
- Hydraulic brake bleeding. A separate job at ₹830 for a hydraulic brake set, needed only when the lever feels spongy after the pads have been checked.
- Major wheel truing. A minor true is quick; a badly buckled wheel is a separate job.
- Suspension servicing. Coil front forks can be serviced as an optional ₹600 add-on to a strip-down. Air forks and rear shocks follow their manufacturer's own service intervals, usually measured in riding hours, and are a separate job.
FAQ
Does a new bike need a service sooner than the normal interval?
Yes: a new bike benefits from a tune-up after its first month or first few hundred kilometres, because new gear and brake cables stretch slightly as they bed in, and bolts settle as the bike is ridden. That shows up as gears that start to hesitate and brake levers that pull a little further. A quick adjustment at that point sets the bike up properly for the long run. After that first check, the normal service intervals apply.
Do I need to service a bike I barely ride?
Yes, roughly once a year even if it hardly moves: grease dries out, chain lube attracts dust and gums up, tyres lose pressure and their rubber slowly perishes, and tubeless sealant dries inside the tyre. A bike that has stood for months often feels worse on its first ride back than one ridden regularly. If yours has been parked for a season, a tune-up before you start riding again is the sensible minimum.
Can I service my bike myself instead?
The routine work, yes: cleaning and lubing the chain, adjusting gears and brakes, checking bolts and replacing pads are all well within reach with a few tools. The jobs worth leaving to a workshop are those needing specialist tools or experience, such as bearing service, hydraulic brake bleeding and wheel truing, where a mistake costs more than the job. Many riders do their own weekly care and book a strip-down service once a year for the rest.
How do I know if my bearings need attention?
Lift each wheel and spin it by hand: it should turn smoothly and quietly, with no grinding or roughness. Hold each crank arm and try to rock it side to side, which should reveal no movement. For the headset, hold the front brake on and rock the bike back and forth; a knock or clunk means it is loose. Any roughness, play or clicking under load is a sign the bearings need cleaning, regreasing or replacing.
Is it worth servicing an old bike, or should I replace it?
Often worth servicing: a strip-down with new cables, a chain and brake pads can transform an old bike for a fraction of the price of a new one, especially if the frame is sound and you like how it rides. It stops making sense when the frame is cracked or badly corroded, or when the parts needed would cost a large share of a better new bike. Bring it in and we will tell you honestly which side of that line it is on.
Booking a service
Servicing is by appointment at our Kondapur workshop. You drop the bike off on the booked day and usually collect it the same evening, with a service report, and every service carries a two-week guarantee. Details and the full price list are on our repairs page.
Not sure which level of service your bike needs? Ask TBA Guide with how often you ride and what you have noticed, and we will point you to the right one.
