Learn bicycle maintenance with our Park Tool School Courses @ CycleLab
Even if you rely on a local bike shop (hopefully us), relative or friend to fix your bicycle, there are a few basic tricks every cyclist should know, such as how to remove and refit wheels and tyres; how to repair a puncture; how to adjust the gears; and how to adjust the brakes. Get hands-on mechanical experience and gain vital knowledge by attending one of our Park Tool School courses where you will be shown how it's done by one of our professional mechanics. You will then get to practice your new skills.
Choose between a quick 2 hour evening Foundation Course, a one day Basic Course, or if you have basic knowledge our Intermediate Course will be the one for you. Due to massive demand we have brought forward our Wheel building Courses, see blow for more information.
You can email us at shop@cyclelab.co.uk to book a place or just give us a call on 0203 222 0016. We now have CycleLab Gift Vouchers so you can give the gift of knowledge!
COURSE DATES
NEW DATES COMING SOON!
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Foundation Course
Useful, hands-on cycle maintenance course for people with no previous experience. The Foundation course covers the basic essentials for dealing with common ‘first aid’ roadside repairs so you can get back on your bike and home safely.
Course length - Thursday evenings every week - 7.00 - 9.00pm
Cost- £25 for the Foundation course
What will I need? - Nothing, all tools and parts you need to work on will be provided.
Where? - CycleLab’s new Park Tool School teaching workshop in Hackney.
What will I get from the course?
You will:
- Learn the correct names of components and parts of the bicycle
- Gain a basic understanding of how your bike works
- Learn how to remove wheels, tyres and repair a puncture
- Perform a basic safety check
- Carry out essential gear and brake adjustments
- Use a selection of general and specialist tools
- Gain the confidence to keep you riding and not walking home!
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Basic Course
Useful, hands-on cycle maintenance courses for people with no previous experience. The Basic Course is suitable for anyone wanting to learn how to keep a bike in good working order.
Course length - Each course is one day - 10.00 - 5.00pm
Cost - £95 for the Basic Course
What will I need? - Nothing, all tools and parts you need to work on will be provided.
Where? - CycleLab’s new Park Tool School teaching workshop in Hackney.
What will I get from the course?
You will:
- Learn the correct names of components and parts of the bicycle
- Be able to recognise a range of problems and understand their solutions
- Gain a good understanding of how your bike works
- Learn how to remove wheels, tyres and repair a puncture
- Perform regular maintenance and how to lubricate and assess wear of parts
- Carry out gear and brake adjustments and replacement of cables / pads
- Use a selection of general and specialist tools
- Get valuable advice about which tools to invest in
- Gain the confidence to keep your bike running smoothly!
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Intermediate Course
Useful, hands-on cycle maintenance courses for people with no previous experience. The Intermediate Course is suitable for anyone wanting to learn how to keep a bike in good working order & who wish to be able to carry out a general service on their bike.
Course length - Each course is two consecutive days - 10.00 - 5.00pm
Cost - £175 for the Intermediate Course
What will I need? - Nothing, all tools and parts you need to work on will be provided.
Where? - CycleLab’s new Park Tool School teaching workshop in Hackney.
What will I get from the course?
You will:
- Learn the correct names of components and parts of the bicycle
- Be able to recognise a range of problems and understand their solutions
- Gain a full understanding of how your bike works
- Learn how to remove wheels, service hubs and preform a basic wheel true
- Service your bikes headset & bottom bracket
- Perform regular maintenance and how to lubricate and assess wear of parts
- Carry out gear and brake adjustments and replacement of cables / pads
- Use a selection of general and specialist tools
- Get valuable advice about which tools to invest in
- Gain the confidence to fully strip and rebuild your bike!
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Wheel Building Course
The course focuses on hands-on wheel building but also aims to give an understanding of wheel design, component selection, and the theory of lacing, truing and tensioning. Our Wheel Building course is suitable for people that already have some experience in cycle maintenance. It includes the option of building a wheel to your own specification.
Course length - Each course is two days - 10.00 - 5.00pm (seperated by a 2 week interval to enable participants to purchase components for their own custom wheel-build)
Cost - £175 for the Wheel Building Course
What will I need? - Nothing, all tools and parts you need to practice with will be provided. (If you want to build your own custom wheel(s) on the second day you will need to purchase the components)
Where? - CycleLab’s new Park Tool School teaching workshop in Hackney.
What will I get from the course?
You will:
- Gain a detailed understanding of how a wheel works
- Learn about wheel components
- Understand component measurements, spoke length calculations and specifying components
- Learn about lacing, truing and tensioning and practice these skills
- Use a wheel-truing jig and other wheel building tools
- Build front and back wheels
- Build your own custom wheel (optional)
Day 1
- Wheel Overview - How a wheel works / What makes a good wheel / Parts of the wheel / Spoke crossing patterns
- Choosing wheel components - Factors to consider when choosing hubs, rims, spokes & nipples etc
- Wheel building tools - What tools are needed / How to use tools / Advice on buying tools
- Identifying and measuring - Hubs, rims and spokes etc
- Calculating spoke lengths & using on-line calculators
- How to lace (build) a front wheel
- Truing & tensioning techniques
- Advice on ordering components for day 2 (if required)
Day 2
- Quick recap & review of day 1
- Front & rear wheel build theory (including dishing)
- Practice of learnt techniques - lacing, tensioning, truing etc
- Building your own wheels! (Participants can build using their own parts or practice on borrowed parts)
