Opening it
The sparkle button at the top right, next to your profile picture, opens the chat once your first bike is added. Also via Bike assistant or on the bike page in the Chats tab. The first time, Velopit shows an Important safety notice that you confirm once. If you do not like the button, switch it off under Profile → Appearance.
What it knows
The bike assistant sees your Velopit data: all bikes with components, brand and model, mileage and status, the service intervals with remaining life, the latest services and your consumables. With the bike filter at the top you limit it to one bike. If it needs more, the whole service history for example, it reads it and says so in the status line.
It does not see individual rides, neither date nor distance or duration. From your rides it only knows the summed kilometres per bike and component, and for services based on hours also the summed riding hours. You find your rides under Rides.
For technical values like torque, oil quantities or compatibility it searches the web, preferring manufacturers, and names the source. If it finds none, it marks the value as an experience value for you to check.
What it is good for
At the start it offers five entry points:
- Service check: what is due soon, and what should I check while I am at it?
- Troubleshooting: a noise, a rubbing brake. It asks before it guesses.
- Setup tuning: riding position, tyre pressure, gearing.
- Log service: work done goes into the service book, see Actions in the chat (in the Velopit wiki, after signing in).
- Research & save: manufacturer values into the setup.
You can also attach a photo, of a worn cassette or a sticker with values, say.
What it cannot do
- It does not see your bike. Whether the chain is really done is what the chain checker decides.
- It can be wrong, numbers included. Safety-relevant values such as torque on handlebar, stem and brakes you check in the manufacturer's documentation.
- It changes nothing without your confirmation. Every action runs through a card.
- Without web search, in rare sessions, it says so and answers from its own knowledge.
Tip: Name bike and component and say what you are planning. "I want to bleed the brakes tomorrow, what do I need?" gets you more than "brakes?".