Rating: 
Summary: Not as clear as Zinn's Art of Moutain Bike Repair
Review: This guide is just okay. For a more precise and clearer description of how to fix a mountain bike the Zinn book is preferable. The Zinn drawings are more detailed and he addresses the specific differences between various brand parts more precisely. Zinn is a better writer.
Rating: 
Summary: All types of bikes covered in one source with great pix!
Review: This is an excellent book on the maintenance and repair of all bicycles.
Each of the 17 chapters discusses one component of the bike, such as rear derailleurs, front derailleurs, brakes, wheels, suspension, frame and others. Each chapter begins with a drawn illustration of the system, which is followed by a text description of the system and maintenane and repair of the system. This is followed by a troubleshooting section listing common problems and their solutions. But the best part of each chapter are the step-by-step procedures with excellent black-and-white photographs of each step.In addition to discussing bike systems, there are chapters on creating a home workshop and even how to box a bike. (Exactly how my bike came from its manufacturer!) There's really not a lot more to ask for from this book. The main complaint is that some of it seems a little out-of-date despite its 1999 copyright date, and I regret now that I did not list examples as they struck me, but a minor one, for example, was ignorance of 10-speed cassettes. However, some bicycle components are changing rapidly, and it's difficult for authors to keep up. Note that this is the 4th "expanded and revised" edition, so it does appear that the editors of Bicycling have made a commitment to update the book regularly. I also got bogged down some times in the text description of procedures without pictures, but everything is clear when you get back into the step-by-step procedure section with the photographs. So it also seems that information is unnecessarily repeated. Bicycling magazine has run articles on how to get home from different types of roadside breakdowns. It would be nice if they include this as one separate chapter that can be read before a trip. The rest of the book lends itself to a "only read the chapter I need at the moment" type of use. You don't need to read through the whole book to understand chapter 15 on saddles, for example. I have also read and reviewed Complete Idiot's Guide to Bike Maintenance and Repair, and despite its knowledgable author and fun style, did not have step-by-step illustrations which are required for such a book. Others have also recommended the books by Zinn and Van Der Plas, and I have seen them and they look good, but separate books are written by each author for road bikes and mountain bikes, while this book is one reference for all bikes.
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Manual for Most Repairs
Review: This is an excellent manual for most repairs that the average cyclist would need to make. It has guided me through several repairs on my mountain bike and on other bikes, as well. It explains everything simply and step by step, so it is actually difficult to get confused while using it, even when adjusting derailleurs, which has always been rather difficult for me. It is also a fairly comprehensive book, in a layout that is very efficient. You don't have to spend a lot of time trying to find what you're looking for. The only drawback I can think of is the fact that it simply needs to be updated, since cycling technology has changed quite a bit since its last revision in 1996. However, this could be said of any technical manual. In order to get a more comprehensive bike repair manual, you'd have to get the Sutherland's Handbook for Bicycle Mechanics, which has been referred to as "the bible of bicycle mechanics."
...but that's only if you want ot drop a couple or so hundred bucks on a bike repair manual.
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Manual for Most Repairs
Review: This is an excellent manual for most repairs that the average cyclist would need to make. It has guided me through several repairs on my mountain bike and on other bikes, as well. It explains everything simply and step by step, so it is actually difficult to get confused while using it, even when adjusting derailleurs, which has always been rather difficult for me. It is also a fairly comprehensive book, in a layout that is very efficient. You don't have to spend a lot of time trying to find what you're looking for. The only drawback I can think of is the fact that it simply needs to be updated, since cycling technology has changed quite a bit since its last revision in 1996. However, this could be said of any technical manual. In order to get a more comprehensive bike repair manual, you'd have to get the Sutherland's Handbook for Bicycle Mechanics, which has been referred to as "the bible of bicycle mechanics."
...but that's only if you want ot drop a couple or so hundred bucks on a bike repair manual.
Rating: 
Summary: good workshop guide!
Review: very good. it's clear and concise, with excellent illustrations. it can get a little repetitive, but for me that's a good thing!
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