What Does a Bike Master Service Include? (Full Breakdown)

Why Transparency Matters

When you book a "master service" at a bike shop, what are you actually paying for? Most shops give you a vague description — "full service", "complete overhaul", "pro tune" — and leave it at that. You hand over your bike, wait a week, and hope for the best. At BikeClinique, we think you deserve to know exactly what's happening to your bike. So here's the full breakdown of what a master service includes, every step.

Frame and Fork Inspection

Before anything else, we put the bike on the stand and inspect the frame and fork thoroughly. We check for cracks — especially around the head tube, bottom bracket, and seat stays. We look for corrosion in steel frames and impact damage in carbon. We check the fork for any play in the dropouts. A cracked frame is a safety issue. We catch it before it becomes your problem on the road.

Bottom Bracket and Crankset

The bottom bracket is the heart of the drivetrain. On a master service, we remove the cranks, clean and inspect the bottom bracket shell, check for play or roughness, and refit with fresh grease. We inspect the chainring teeth for wear — worn chainrings tell you the chain is due for replacement too. We torque everything to spec. No cross-threading, no guesswork.

Chain Removal, Cleaning and Lubing

The chain gets removed completely, soaked in degreaser, scrubbed with a chain-cleaning tool, rinsed, dried, and re-lubed with a wet or dry lubricant appropriate to your riding conditions. We check chain stretch with a ruler — if it's past 0.5% stretch, we tell you. A stretched chain (£28 to replace) will wear your cassette (£80-120 to replace) at an accelerated rate. Getting the chain changed on time saves you money long-term.

Drivetrain Degrease and Re-lube

After the chain, we degrease the entire drivetrain: cassette, rear derailleur jockey wheels, front derailleur, chainring. All degreaser rinsed off, all components dried, fresh lubricant applied to every moving part. This is the difference between a bike that shifts perfectly and one that jumps under load.

Gear Indexing

We run through every gear combination, front and rear, checking each shift. If the chain is hesitating between cogs or the front derailleur is slow to respond, we adjust the barrel adjuster until the indexing is spot-on. Correct indexing means the chain moves cleanly between gears under load — not under load. Bad indexing wears chains and cassettes faster and makes riding genuinely unpleasant.

Brake System Strip and Rebuild

Brakes are stripped down to the frame. Brake pads inspected — if they're below the wear indicators or hard, we replace them. Brake cables inspected for fraying, replaced if needed. All pivots cleaned, lubricated, and reassembled. We set the toe-in on brake pads (slight angle so the trailing edge contacts first — eliminates squeal), centre the brakes, and test the feel. Spongy brake levers mean air in the cable — we bleed them properly.

Wheel Check: Truing, Hub, Spokes

Wheels get checked in two stages. First, we check hub play by holding the axle while rocking the wheel side to side — any play means the bearings need attention. Then we true the rims: we spin each wheel, watch for wobble, and use a truing key to adjust spoke tension until the wheel runs straight. We check rim brake tracks for wear. We check spoke tension with a tension meter if needed. A wheel that's slightly out of true will cause brake rub and accelerate wear on the rim.

Headset Check

The headset is often overlooked. We remove the stem, check the headset bearings — both top and bottom — for pitting, roughness, or play. We clean and regrease the races, check the crown race, and reassemble with the correct torque. Play in the headset causes a clunking feel when you brake or turn and eventually damages the bearings permanently. We catch it early.

Torque Check: Every Bolt on the Bike

This is the step most shops skip. We go through every bolt on the bike — stem bolts, seatpost clamp, brake mounts, derailleur hangers, bottle cage bolts, crank bolts — and check each one with a torque wrench. Bolts that are too loose can work loose and cause damage. Bolts that are over-torqued can strip threads or crack components. Every bolt has a spec. We follow it.

Final Test Ride

Before we call the service complete, we test ride the bike. We spin the gears through every combination, test the brakes from both hands, check for any unusual noises, and ride out to see how it feels under power. A bike that feels right in the workshop should feel right on the road. If something doesn't feel right, we fix it before you collect.

What You're Getting That's Worth Paying For

A master service isn't just a fancy name. It's the difference between a bike that mostly works and a bike that's genuinely reliable. The £120-180 you spend on a master service is a lot less than the £200-400 cost of replacing worn components that were neglected, or the injury risk of a mechanical failure at 25mph. Your bike is a precision machine. It deserves proper attention. That's what a master service is.

Book a master service with us at BikeClinique — Wimbledon and Putney, South West London. We do it right.