anatomy of a mountain bike..

• Bottom Bracket -  This attaches the crankset to the body of a bike. It contains a spindle to which the crankset is attached and the bearings that allow the spindle and cranks to rotate. 

• Brake cable -  Cable connecting the brake lever to the brake mechanism. 

• Brake lever -  The lever on the handlebar used to activate the brakes. The left side is for the front brake and the right side is for the rear brake. 

• Chain -  A roller chain that transfers power from the pedals to the drive-wheel of a bicycle thus propelling it. 

• Chainring -  The toothed rings that attach to the crank to hold the chain. 

• Crank -  The lever or "arm" which connects the pedal to the bottom bracket. 

• Derailleur -  The device which moves the chain from one chainring to another inorder to shift gears. 

• Downtube -  Part of the frame. The tube which runs diagonally from the head tube (supporting the handlebars) to the bottom bracket. Above this is the top tube, which runs from the head tube to the seat. 

• Front shock -  A suspension system on the front fork which allows the bike to absorb shocks without transmitting them to the rider. 

• Handlebar -  The horizontal bar located at the front of the bike which is used to steer, and which will contain the shifters and break levers and any other items a cyclist wishes to have within easy reach. 

• Headset -  The mechanism in front of the frame that connects the front fork to the stem and handlebars. 

• Hub -  The center part of the wheel that the spokes are attached to. 

• Pedal -   A short metal bar on which to put your foot, in order to propel the bicyle. The pedal is attached to the crank. 

• Rear shock -   The shock absorber for the rear tire on dual suspension type bikes. 

• Rim -   The metal ring that holds the spokes on the inside and the tire to the outside. 

• Saddle -   The seat. 

• Seat post -   The tubular support to which the saddle is connected. 

• Skewer -   A metal rod that attaches the wheel to the frame of the bicycle.  

• Spokes -   The thick wires that join the hub to the rim.  

• Stem -   A piece that attaches the handlebar to the steering tube.