Cycling: chain cleaning and lube and wet conditions

[masraum]

I live in an apt, consequently, I don't have a garage or easy access outdoor hose.

This thing looks pretty good for cleaning your chain. Is it something that I should worry about?



OK, and as a follow up, how often and how should the chain be cleaned and lubed (and what lube).

I was kind of thinking that since our bikes are new, and we don't really know what/how they were lubed, it might now be a bad idea to give them a thorough cleaning and then relube with a good lube.

I see that there are lots of kinds of lube, dry, wet, wax, ceramic....

Based on some things that I've seen, I think the best bet for us is probably a wet lube (we ride outside and often either hit wet spots or get rained on.

Is there a "great" brand or will just about any brand of wet lube do.
I've seen these plus several others.


For whatever reason, the "Finish Line" wet caught my eye, but I don't know if it's because I saw it in some video or the label caught my eye or what. It may be complete crap.

And if you are out and hit a few puddles and some drizzle, what do you do when you get back to your chain/bike

[red-beard]

I use Finish Line. The red bottle is for dry conditions. The green bottle is for WET conditions. If you ride in the rain, clean you chain and bike as soon as you get home.

The best way to clean a chain is with an ultra-sonic cleaner. But you can do it with a metal bowl and Berrymans.

Install " KMC missing links", which allow the chain to be removed in a few seconds. I typically use Berrymans to clean the chain. You can do this with a metal pan, but do this outside! Dry the chain with shop towels and then re-install. You will probably want to clean the detailer, cassette and front chain ring before re-installing.

After you re-install the chain, crank it backwards and drip one drop on each link. run it backwards a few times and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. Then wipe it down.

I would clean my chain every Friday night. I would also check my chain stretch at the same time...

[vash]

i'm the worst chain maintainer. and i ride mud and grit.

all i ever do is spray a micro-fiber cloth with WD-40 and spin the chain thru it. then i lay that same cloth down and drip a drop of chain lube on each pin..meticulously.

that's it. i repeat when i start to hear my chain buzz.

road bike stuff? hell, i bet i never look at it.

[BK911]

Almost every time I have lubed up my chain without cleaning it first, it broke on the first steep uphill.
Something about the oil helping dirt get into places it shouldnt be.
So my advice it to ALWAYS clean the chain before lubing it up!
Let the lube soak for a couple of minutes, then wipe off the excess with a rag.
As far as which lube? Any is better than none.

[LEAKYSEALS951]

Perhaps others here have had a better experience with the park chain cleaning tool, but I think it's a joke.

We had one a bike store I used to work at. It was a hassle to set up, and made a big mess. I couldn't tell if it ever really cleaned the chain or not. The cleaner would just pour out the sides where the chain entered/ exits.


Unless you are riding your bike on a beach in sand, I would not sweat chain cleaning at this point. I usually just lube mine with whatever, wrap a paper towel around the chain, spin the crank to pull the chain through the paper towel, to wipe off the excess.

As stated- an ultrasonic cleaner is the best way. I have a spare dental one, and use it only very occasionally. Most often, I just lube and wipe off with cloth/ rag


I'm sure others will have a better way.

[A930Rocket]

I’m sure it’s totally wrong, but the day before Ms Rocket did a triathlon, I cleaned her chain with brake cleaner while spinning the chain. Then wiped it down, followed by chain lube. It did make a mess though.

Never any problems, but I’m sure it’s just dumb luck!

[wayner]

I ride in a lot of crap and a lot of crap weather, so there is lots to get rid of after a ride.
(especially in spring when even the good roads have paved shoulders caked in winter debris, sand and salt)

OUTDOORS

• I spray wash it with a can of WD40 and let it sit (forget all the naysayers)
• then I spray wash it with water at low pressure (forget all the naysayers)
• Then I spray it down with WD40 to disperse the water
• Then I wipe it down and ride it 200 more miles
• Then I do it all again.

I replace my chain every 3 years just in case.

INDOORS:
If I am in a hotel or something, I just spray down a cloth with wd40 and wipe it down (including the chain)

If I am somewhere indoors and more ambitious, take the chain off and into a bowl to soak

For the derailers, I hold a rag under them and spray them down with wd40

I don't use chain lube (just residual wd40)
but chain lube is probably a good idea.

[BK911]

Ive had good results with the park tool.
Don't over fill it, or spin too fast, and it works great.

[vash]

Originally Posted by BK911

Almost every time I have lubed up my chain without cleaning it first, it broke on the first steep uphill.
Something about the oil helping dirt get into places it shouldnt be.
So my advice it to ALWAYS clean the chain before lubing it up!
Let the lube soak for a couple of minutes, then wipe off the excess with a rag.
As far as which lube? Any is better than none.

should i be worried that i have never broken a chain?

i have little girl legs, apparently. damn..i really want to snap a chain on a big uphill..but i'm usually pushing my bike

[HardDrive]

Ive been using Perdros for years. Love it.

https://pedros.com/products/clean-and-lube/lubricants-and-grease/ice-wax/

I never clean the chain on my road bikes. Just an occasional light coat of Pedros.

[LEAKYSEALS951]

This thread has me laughing because when I say I use "whatever" for this job... I really mean "whatever"

wd40...
brake cleaner... etc.. for cleaning..

Usually tri flow for lube,
motor oil (messy- too sticky, only if out of other lubricants). but must have have high ZDDP content!
whatever bottle of silicone whatever...
something from harbor freight...

One thing I've noticed for cleaning, if the aerosol can has high pressure, the better it works. Nothing like putting a really dirty chain on some paper towels and blasting it with carb cleaner. That's always fun.

It's a good thing I've never heard of a chain snapping because it wasn't cleaned! Now that I've heard it, watch my chains start to break!

[fanaudical]

I ride a recumbent and have 2.8x more chain than a regular bike.

+1 on the quick links.

For a "quick clean", I use the Park Tool featured above with some Simple Green. For a thorough clean the chain comes off and it goes into my ultrasonic cleaner.

I also use the Finish Line lubricant for wet conditions.

[masraum]

Thanks all. I think I'll go with the Finish Line Wet since that was what grabbed my attention.

I'll figure out what to do with the cleaning. Good info on the KMC quick links.

[flipper35]

On our dirt bikes we used bar and chain lube. Pour on the inside and let it work its way outside as you turned the back wheel.

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by masraum

Thanks all. I think I'll go with the Finish Line Wet since that was what grabbed my attention.

I'll figure out what to do with the cleaning. Good info on the KMC quick links.

I'd suggest the Finish line Dry. The wet stuff stays oily and picks up more dust and dirt. I only used the "wet" in wet conditions.

[VincentVega]

I cant believe they still sell those things. But, I bet most of us had something similar at one point. A rag and a brush work good enough for typical maintenance. Until your mileage gets up there you wont need more unless go agricultural.

[Laneco]

I'm a pretty big fan of the white lightning products but I use tri-flow in the cold weather. Clean the bike after a wet/muddy or very dusty ride. I spray WD40 on a rag and run the chain through the rag. Then put the appropriate lube back on. Take your time to lube each link carefully. Alot of people just douse the chain with oil and most of that just collects dirt. It's the links that need the oil. Let it dry thoroughly.

On very long races (e.g. 24 hr) I'll drop more lube on the chain but I'm usually too lazy to clean it first. Sort of a splash-n-go.

As far as chain replacement, I tend to replace early. I replace as soon as they no longer measure new. Most people give it 1/16 over. When I was riding all the time, a chain was good for about 3 or 4 months.

I've only broken one chain and that was a bad bad shift with me jumping hard on the pedals. Had to ride/run/ride the rest of the 7 miles of the race. Fortunately it was mostly downhill. Annoying as hell.

angela

[mepstein]

The park chain cleaners are a bit gimmicky and make a mess. We sold them at the shop but would never actually use them. Best way to clean it is a cheap stiff brush and dawn dishwashing detergent. Wet brush, apply dawn, scrub chain and cogs, rinse lightly with water (don't high pressure blast it into bearings) Do it again if you need to but it should only take 5 minutes all together. hit the chain with an old towel to get most of the water off, lube the chain lightly and then wipe off the excess with the town (more lube is not better, it just attracts dirt) It will look and work like new with this method.
Has to be Dawn for the soap.

[masraum]

Thanks all. Since our bikes each have well under 100 miles (at relatively low speed/power levels), I'm not concerned about stretch or breakage yet.

I'm just trying to make sure that I take care of our stuff correctly so we don't have problems or premature problems.

[LEAKYSEALS951]

Back when I was riding a lot, I would go so far as buying a cassette and three chains, rotating between them at frequent intervals. Heck... I've tried everything, and have gone so far, I've worn out front chainrings on numerous occasions.

Just get out and ride, enjoy it, and by the time you wear out a cassette to the point where you are jumping gears, you will have a much better idea of what you will want to upgrade to. In a worst case scenerio, in several thousand miles, perhaps 5-10,000 miles, you will have a small cog on the rear cassette wear to the point where the chain jump over it during real hammering. At that point... It's miles of smiles!

judging from your tinkering nature, you will have upgraded all this stuff to di2 or whatever long before any chain /cassette combo wears out.

All this is to share a funny story. In high school (1987?), I bought my best friend a mtb. He never really rode it. He sat it behind his house and it rusted. In 2000, he wanted to ride again, so I rebuilt it for him, buying a new drivetrain (chain, etc...). He never rode it. So outside his house it rusted again. In 2016, he asked me to rebuild it again, so I took it back to my house, and rebuilt it again.

The chain was essentially new, but had rusted solid, so I soaked it in old motor oil, and let it sit in the ultrasonic for about two weeks, at which point it freed up.

I rebuilt the bike, and my friend asked when he could get it back. I told him he was a douchbag, that since he never paid me for it, it was my bike, and since he wasn't going to ever ride it, that he drive an hour and half and could come and get it. I gave it to my wife. Now she never rides it, but at least it's in a garage! The seven speed chain works great btw and will NEVER stretch as it's a 7 speed and could drive a motorcycle it's so big by today's standards! oh well!