Best value chain cleaner and lube
mh130
Posts: 19
Any thoughts on the best value for money chain cleaners out there? It seems that I can pay as little as a tenner and as much as £30-40. Any recommendations - ones to buy or avoid?
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I bought a kit from Decathlon for only a couple of quid. I've not used it yet though so not sure how good it actually is!0
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I have the Park Tool one and use it with a citrus degreaser. Find that it does the job very well indeed.0
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I brought some non big brand chain cleaner for about £15 at the LBS, seems to do the job fine so far. Perhaps im just not fussy enough?0
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gunk from the car shop for cleaning. i've used gtx engine oil for lubing for the last 20 years with no problems but as it's cheap and non bike specific not many like it
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I like the Citrus based cleaners - smell lovely and don't knacker the environment as much as their chemical-based cousins. As for lubes, depends on the weather conditions. My best bike that never goes out in the rain gets GT85, my winter bike uses Purple Extreme, my spring and autumn bikes use White Lightning wax lube.
What do I ride? Now that's an Enigma!0 -
Gussio wrote:I have the Park Tool one and use it with a citrus degreaser. Find that it does the job very well indeed.
I've got the Park Chain tool one too, the benefits over cheaper makes seems to be the magnet which catches all sort of muck and I agree with people's comments about citrus degreaser too.
In latter days I've started to take the chain off the bike I still use citrus degreaser but I'm happier with the results and its easier to clean the chainset/ cassette/ etc0 -
I have one of these Barbieri ones:
http://www.probikekit.com/display.php?code=T1012
It works well, although it isn't made very well and the brushes can fall out of the cleaner when tipping the liquid out unless I am very careful. I'd probably recommend a better made one really, although it is very cheap.
The degreaser I use is a water soluble one, non cycling specific since I think the cycling ones are overpriced and no different in function. It is a Swarfega one and can be diluted which is quite useful.
For lube I just use 3 in 1. I ride in all weathers and find that the cycling specific ones don't tend to last very well. You do need to clean the chain regularly as it picks up a lot of gunk.0 -
i use turps...not very environmentally friendly, but cheap as hell and eat up the grease. i combine it with chain cleaner which i've found to be very good...
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Barbieri-Chain-Cleaner-With-Lube-And-Degreaser_W0QQitemZ150172420329QQihZ005QQcategoryZ109122QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem0 -
Are chain cleaners easier and more effective than scrubbing your chain with a brush and kitchen degreaser and then wiping it down with a bit of parafin then?0
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I've used White Lightning since it came out on the market and I just love it. You need to reapply more often than normal lubes, but it does most of the cleaning itself. It has to be tried to be believed. I clean the whole drivetrain once in a while with citrus degreaser, wipe it very thoroughly, apply White Lightning and I don't clean again for at least a month and the chain stays silvery. It washes off fast in the rain, though, so having a wet weather lube is a good idea. Pedro's makes a similar product, called Ice Wax if memory serves me well.0
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duckiciao wrote:Are chain cleaners easier and more effective than scrubbing your chain with a brush and kitchen degreaser and then wiping it down with a bit of parafin then?
I have never tried to clean the chain with a brush but the little machine certainly makes the job quite easy. It takes a little practice to begin with but after the first time it is really a dodle.
For lube I use one winter and another one for summer - wet and dry
Rick0 -
I use turps substitute in my park tool cleaner.I got this tip from a cycle plus magazine. A lot cheaper than cycle specific cleaners and imo just as good.0
