Bike cleaner stuff
Deadeye Duck
Posts: 419
is this the same as degreaser but just works on everything?
All I have so far is all weather lube, an old toothbrush & a rag, so I'm in pretty much need of everything.
I was thinking of getting the muc off tub kit. which has all the brushes as well as cleaners & a bucket as I'm getting told off for keeping asking to use the dish from the kitchen
would the bottle of bike cleaner in that work on the drivetrain, or would I still need degreaser?
What makes to avoid?
Am I making a mistake getting muc off?
Thanks for the help folks.
All I have so far is all weather lube, an old toothbrush & a rag, so I'm in pretty much need of everything.
I was thinking of getting the muc off tub kit. which has all the brushes as well as cleaners & a bucket as I'm getting told off for keeping asking to use the dish from the kitchen
would the bottle of bike cleaner in that work on the drivetrain, or would I still need degreaser?
What makes to avoid?
Am I making a mistake getting muc off?
Thanks for the help folks.
0
Posts
You know, I can't honestly remember what order I use it in, but I think it's like this:
Black bottle of Muc Off de-greaser
The Muc Off bottle with the pink stuff in it
Water
Then lube.
To clean the cassette, you're best off taking it apart and giving the sprockets a good soak in a bucket of hot water and this awesome lube stuff (which I can't remember the name of, but got it with the Dragon Ride finishers' pack a couple of years ago. "F-something").
"What happens when the hammer goes down, kids?"
"It stays down, Daddy."
"Exactly."
I know, I've tried doing exactly that.
So just buy a 35p washing up brush from somewhere like Woolworths (I know, that's why I said somewhere like Woolworths) and replace it every few times you've cleaned your bike.
Or get an old ice cream tub (or old tupperware) and fill it halfway up with white spirit then remove the drivetrain parts and clean them 'underwater' (or 'underspirit') with an old toothbrush.
Then use wet wipes or something else that's disposable to remove the worst muck from the frame and finish with a sponge and soapy water once it's clean enough that it's not going to do the same thing to the sponge that it does to brushes, as mentioned above.
Place in oven at gas mark 6 for 2 hours.
Remove chain, dry with silken bedspread, grease with goosefat then put back on bike.
Works every time for me.
cleaning the brushes is a bit of a pain, but it is doable. Using 2 brushes against each other while under spirits is a good way of shifting it off. It's what i do to the old toothbrushes when they get gunked up to the point of not helping.
The Flying Scot : FCN 5
My Life, My Bike & My Xbox
Personally as far as chains go, I follow the KMC method - no degreaser, wipe clean, lube, spin, leave overnight, wipe clean. Done.
N.b this is for roadbikes, I'd imagine CX/MTB need more intensive methods.
As others have said, baby wipes are also excellent!
2020 Canyon Ultimate CF SLX
2020 Canyon Inflite SL 7
On the Strand
Crown Stables
the chain's got a powerlink on it, so taking it off is not a problem. Will I need any specialist tools to get the cassette off and to bits?
The Flying Scot : FCN 5
My Life, My Bike & My Xbox
Yep, you'll need a Chainwhip and a CassetteTool
2020 Canyon Ultimate CF SLX
2020 Canyon Inflite SL 7
On the Strand
Crown Stables
you forgot the bit about chanting the spell
How do I find out if the cassette itself is shimano? I have shimano F&R derailleurs , STI shifters, but a ISIS bottom bracket & quest crankset. All I know is that it's a 9-speed
cassette and theres not a lot of metal to each sprocket, and they're dirty
speaking of makes, can I get a quest/isis crank tool/bb tool, or would I have to get a shimano or campag one and hope?
Oh also, does the type of chain on a chainwhip or cogwrench matter? as in, is there a 9-speed chainwhip, 10-speed, 8-speed etc...
The Flying Scot : FCN 5
My Life, My Bike & My Xbox
The Park Tools chain cleaning tool is really good if you want to avoid taking the chain off. One observation though is that degreasing a chain completely can take out the manufacturers soaking of lube and you can end up with rust if you don't do the job really well and make sure that all the cleaner is out and the new lube is soaked in.
* slightly off topic, but it's interesting how the moment something is labelled as a specialist item then the prices shoots up. For example put lube into a tiny bottle and sell it in bike shops and the price shoots up compared to bulk bottles. An LED torch costs half the price of an LED bike light etc etc </rant over>
the 99p engine degreaser, also tends to corrode paint. it's meant for the baths you have in garages. It's also usually not biodegradable in the slightest, and stains like buggery.
why use cleaner at all when you've got good old fashioned washing up liquid? Because that eats at rubber seals, into your hubs/BB & at your paint too. and to top it all off, it's hard to get rid of and if it gets between your new layer of lube and your chain, you'll soon know about it.
These bike specific things are created for a reason. just like you wouldn't clean your dishes with whitespirit.[/off topic]
I really can't see the point in chain cleaners after looking up what they actually do. Get a toothbrush, and some elbow grease.
The Flying Scot : FCN 5
My Life, My Bike & My Xbox
It'll be Shimano or Shimano compatible. I have a lockring spanner with Campag on one side and ShimaNo on the other, v handy but no idea where I found it!
Any chainwhip'll do.
You don't need a BB tool - unless you know what you are doing I'd leave the BB to the pros...
2020 Canyon Ultimate CF SLX
2020 Canyon Inflite SL 7
On the Strand
Crown Stables