Top 12 Bike Mechanic Skills to Put on Your Resume
In the competitive world of bicycle mechanics, standing out to potential employers means showing a sharp, well-rounded skill set. Put practical strengths front and center. Make it clear you can diagnose, fix, and fine-tune everything from spokes to firmware. Do that, and you look like the person who keeps bikes rolling when others stall.
Bike Mechanic Skills
- Wheel Truing
- Hydraulic Braking
- Derailleur Adjustment
- Suspension Tuning
- Shimano Di2
- SRAM AXS
- Campagnolo EPS
- Tubeless Setup
- Carbon Repair
- Electronic Shifting
- Bearing Overhaul
- Spoke Replacement
1. Wheel Truing
Wheel truing means bringing a rim back into line by balancing spoke tension so it spins straight and round without rubs or hops.
Why It's Important
A true, evenly tensioned wheel rides safer, lasts longer, and feels faster. It protects rotors, brake pads, and confidence.
How to Improve Wheel Truing Skills
Accurate truing rewards patience. Small turns. Frequent checks.
Inspect first: Look for dents, cracks, pulled nipples, and rim seam issues. Mount securely in a truing stand.
Correct laterally and radially: Use a spoke wrench to nudge tension—quarter turns at most—addressing side-to-side and up-and-down errors.
Aim for even tension: Use a tension meter when possible and match similar spokes across the wheel.
Check dish: Ensure the rim sits centered between locknuts or dropouts; verify by flipping the wheel in the stand.
Stress-relieve: Squeeze parallel spokes to settle wind-up, then recheck truth and tension.
Finish with a final spin and a sanity check. Quiet, consistent, centered.
How to Display Wheel Truing Skills on Your Resume
2. Hydraulic Braking
Hydraulic systems move fluid through sealed lines to push pads against a rotor (or a rim on hydraulic rim brakes). Most use mineral oil or DOT 4/5.1 fluid—always the type specified by the manufacturer.
Why It's Important
Powerful, predictable braking in dry heat or cold rain. Less hand effort. Better modulation. Less cable stretch drama.
How to Improve Hydraulic Braking Skills
Bleed correctly: Purge air, refresh fluid, and match the right bleed kit and process to the brand.
Mind the fluid: Use only the recommended fluid. Never mix DOT and mineral oil systems.
Pad and rotor health: Replace worn pads, bed them in properly, and true rotors. Check rotor thickness against spec.
Lever setup: Adjust reach and free stroke for comfort and control.
Inspect lines: Look for kinks, rub points, weeping fittings, or crushed olives and barbs.
Keep it clean: Degrease rotors and keep contamination away from pads.
How to Display Hydraulic Braking Skills on Your Resume
3. Derailleur Adjustment
Dialing in the front and rear derailleurs so the chain jumps crisply to each cog or ring without chatter, delay, or overshoot.
Why It's Important
Clean shifting saves drivetrains and rides. No dropped chains, no ghost shifts, just reliable gears on demand.
How to Improve Derailleur Adjustment Skills
Straighten the foundation: Verify the hanger is aligned before anything else.
Set limits: High and low screws keep the chain where it belongs—no derailleur in spokes, no chain off the smallest cog or ring.
Index precisely: Use the barrel adjuster to fine-tune cable tension for the cassette you’re running.
Mind B-tension: Set guide pulley clearance for modern wide-range cassettes.
Test under load: Shift across the range while pedaling at moderate power; micro-adjust as needed.
How to Display Derailleur Adjustment Skills on Your Resume
4. Suspension Tuning
Front forks and rear shocks need setup that matches rider, terrain, and bike design. Sag, rebound, and compression work together—get them in harmony and the bike feels planted and alive.
Why It's Important
Control, comfort, traction. Tuning reduces fatigue and increases speed without beating up rider or machine.
How to Improve Suspension Tuning Skills
Start with sag: Set rider sag to the recommended percentage for the discipline. Use a shock pump and O-rings for accuracy.
Rebound first: Too fast and it pogo-sticks, too slow and it packs down. Aim for controlled return without kick.
Dial compression: Open it up on rough, fast tracks; add support for braking, berms, and pedaling. Balance small-bump sensitivity with mid-stroke support.
Spring rate/pressure: Coil springs should match rider weight; air springs need pressure and volume spacers tuned to bottom-out resistance and feel.
Test, note, repeat: Change one thing at a time. Record settings. Chase the feel, not the myth.
Service intervals: Keep seals fresh and oil clean. Follow manufacturer schedules for lowers and damper services.
How to Display Suspension Tuning Skills on Your Resume
5. Shimano Di2
Shimano’s electronic shifting moves derailleurs with tiny motors for fast, consistent shifts, wired or semi-wireless depending on the generation.
Why It's Important
Accurate, low-effort shifting with smart customization. Less cable stretch, more repeatability, cleaner cockpit.
How to Improve Shimano Di2 Skills
Keep firmware current: Update via Shimano’s E-Tube Project to ensure compatibility and features.
Battery habits: Check charge status regularly; inspect connections and charging ports.
Secure wiring: Verify grommets and ports, watch for pinched or damaged wires.
Micro-adjust: Use the system’s trim modes to perfect front and rear alignment.
Customize: Tune shift speed, button functions, and multi-shift behavior to rider preference.
Clean drivetrain: Electronics still need a smooth, quiet chain path.
How to Display Shimano Di2 Skills on Your Resume
6. SRAM AXS
SRAM’s wireless electronic ecosystem—derailleurs, dropper posts, power meters—configurable from a phone, batteries that swap in seconds.
Why It's Important
No shift cables, high precision, rider-specific setup. Clean installs, swift troubleshooting, simple battery logistics.
How to Improve SRAM AXS Skills
Update firmware: Use the AXS app to keep every component aligned with the latest fixes and features.
Hanger alignment: Wireless still needs a straight base. Set B-tension for wide-range cassettes.
Battery care: Keep contacts clean, rotate spares, store cool and dry.
Chain line and wear: A clean, sized-right chain makes the magic obvious.
Button mapping: Customize shift logic to the rider’s brain and hands.
How to Display SRAM AXS Skills on Your Resume
7. Campagnolo EPS
Campagnolo EPS delivers precise electronic shifts powered by a rechargeable battery and an interface for setup and diagnostics. Note: Campagnolo also offers newer wireless systems; core setup and alignment principles still apply.
Why It's Important
High-end road systems demand careful installation, tidy wiring, and exact index. Mastery here signals premium-service readiness.
How to Improve Campagnolo EPS Skills
Update and diagnose: Keep firmware current and run system checks through the official interface or app.
Install meticulously: Follow torque specs, route wires cleanly, protect connectors, and weather-seal where needed.
Battery discipline: Monitor charge cycles and mounting security; inspect charging ports.
Fine adjustments: Use the EPS micro-adjust functions to eliminate rubs and hesitations.
Contact care: Keep electronic contacts dry and clean; replace damaged harnesses promptly.
How to Display Campagnolo EPS Skills on Your Resume
8. Tubeless Setup
No inner tube—just a tight tire-to-rim seal and liquid sealant standing guard. Lower pressures without pinch flats, better traction, fewer mid-ride swears.
Why It's Important
More grip, fewer flats, and a smoother ride. Shops save time; riders save rides.
How to Improve Tubeless Setup Skills
Prep the rim: Clean thoroughly. Choose tape width that matches inner rim width and apply with tension and overlap to cover spoke holes fully.
Valve fitment: Snug the valve with a proper rubber grommet; ensure airtight seating.
Bead seating: Use soapy water on beads. A burst of air from a charger pump or compressor helps snap beads into place.
Sealant choice and dose: Add the right volume for tire size and conditions; refresh periodically.
Leak hunt: Spin and shake the wheel. Check with soapy water for bubbles along rim, valve, and sidewalls.
Pressure check: Set pressure for rider, terrain, and casing strength; recheck after the first ride.
How to Display Tubeless Setup Skills on Your Resume
9. Carbon Repair
Restoring damaged carbon fiber components with proper composites, resin, and technique to recover strength, alignment, and finish.
Why It's Important
Structural integrity comes first. A smart repair can save frames and parts; a poor one can fail without warning.
How to Improve Carbon Repair Skills
Assess critically: Map the damage, check around it for delamination, and decide whether repair is appropriate. When in doubt, refer to the manufacturer or a certified specialist.
Prep with care: Clean with isopropyl alcohol, feather sand the area, and mask to control resin spread.
Match materials: Use quality carbon fabric and an epoxy system suited to structural repair; plan ply orientation to restore load paths.
Lamination: Wet out fabric evenly, remove air, and apply controlled pressure (vacuum bagging when possible) for consolidation.
Cure correctly: Follow temperature and time specs; manage post-cure if required by the resin system.
Finish and inspect: Shape carefully, paint as needed, and examine for defects before returning to service.
Safety note: Many brands void warranties after repairs; critical parts like steerers and handlebars merit extra caution and often replacement.
How to Display Carbon Repair Skills on Your Resume
10. Electronic Shifting
Button-press gear changes driven by servos and smart software. Consistent shifts, rider-configurable logic, and status checks at a glance.
Why It's Important
Precision with less effort, less cable maintenance, more personalization. Quicker diagnosis when something feels off.
How to Improve Electronic Shifting Skills
Stay updated: Keep firmware current across all components.
Battery vigilance: Healthy charge levels and clean contacts prevent mystery mis-shifts.
Perfect alignment: Derailleur position and limits still matter—electronics don’t fix bent hangers.
Run diagnostics: Use brand tools/apps to calibrate, map buttons, and troubleshoot.
Clean, lubed drivetrain: Motors work best with a smooth chain path and fresh lubrication.
Cable/wire routing: For wired systems, protect harnesses from abrasion and tight bends.
How to Display Electronic Shifting Skills on Your Resume
11. Bearing Overhaul
Refreshing the guts of hubs, headsets, and bottom brackets—cleaning, inspecting, lubricating, and, when needed, replacing bearings.
Why It's Important
Smoother rotation, longer life, fewer creaks. Small friction gains add up on the road and the workbench.
How to Improve Bearing Overhaul Skills
Know the system: Cup-and-cone requires preload finesse; sealed cartridges often mean press-fit service and replacement, not repacking.
Clean methodically: Degrease races, cups, and hardware; keep contaminants away from fresh grease.
Inspect under bright light: Pitting, brinelling, rust, or scored races call for replacement.
Right grease, right amount: Quality bicycle-specific grease; pack thoroughly without overstuffing.
Set preload: Eliminate play without inducing roughness. Recheck after initial rides.
Use proper tools: Presses, drifts, and pullers prevent expensive damage.
How to Display Bearing Overhaul Skills on Your Resume
12. Spoke Replacement
Swapping a broken spoke for a new one, restoring pattern, tension, and wheel truth.
Why It's Important
A single failed spoke can cascade into bigger problems. Fix it early and the wheel stays strong.
How to Improve Spoke Replacement Skills
Confirm failure type: Nipple breakage, elbow fatigue, or mid-span snap—each hints at different underlying issues.
Remove and route: Pull the damaged spoke, then thread a properly sized replacement to match the lacing pattern.
Nipple management: Use a dab of light oil or assembly compound to prevent wind-up and galling.
Match tension: Bring the new spoke up to neighborhood tension; then normalize surrounding spokes.
True and dish: Clean up lateral and radial error, verify dish, and stress-relieve.
Final check: Spin, squeeze, listen. If something pings or wobbles, go again.
How to Display Spoke Replacement Skills on Your Resume
