Which Chain Cleaning Tool

TiBoy

It's getting close to Christmas list time and I need a new chain cleaner. I have had cheap ones before and but they only last about a year then fall apart. Can anyone recommended a good one that will last a while?

Thanks

ugo.santalucia

Removing grease from the chain with solvents is not a good idea. If you really want to do it, then use a low budget old toothbrush and some spirit.

Best is just to wipe the chain frequently with a dry old cloth and relube (just a few drops, no need to flood it)

synchronicity

An old rag and a bit of elbow grease is what I use.

ednwireland

park tools (got mine from probikekit) excellent piece of kit 5 mins clean chain

maddog 2

Park one here too.

Gets used a lot but works well and lasts well. I currently have 8 bikes in the workshop.

For a degreaser I have a 50litre tub of paraffin left over from when we swapped oil tanks. It will last me a lifetime, literally.

rake

its good to get all of the grime out now and again.

sundog

Does anyone know who stocks elbow grease?

markyone

toothbrush and a degreaser ive had a couple of the chain cleaners and i find the toothbrush the best.

dodgy

I just use a rag, maybe moistened with a bit of gt85 if it's the MTB and the chain is particularly filthy. Brings it up like new. I do this after every ride on the winter bike (if bad weather) and every hundred or so miles on the summer bike.

I don't see the need for chain cleaning contraptions (having tried them in the past), they're such a faff. I bet if everyone just tried using a rag, they wouldn't bother with any other method.

But I guess we all have our favourite routines

balthazar

dodgy wrote:

I just use a rag, maybe moistened with a bit of gt85 if it's the MTB and the chain is particularly filthy. Brings it up like new.

Only outwardly. Internally, the chain is still full of an emulsion of oil, water, and grit – an efficient grinding paste: also, by wiping the outside of the chain, you have partially enriched this paste by pushing into it whatever fine grit was outside. In a critical environment, a chain so mistreated would be destroyed rapidly. Even a fast-wearing bicycle chain isn't so appalling to the faithful as a visibly dirty one, however, so these decorative practices get passed on.

doyler78

markyone wrote:

toothbrush and a degreaser ive had a couple of the chain cleaners and i find the toothbrush the best.

+1. I've had several chain cleaning tools (Park, lifeline & finish line). They all fell to bits rather too quickly for my liking.

It actually doesn't take that long.

ride_whenever

balthazar wrote:

dodgy wrote:

I just use a rag, maybe moistened with a bit of gt85 if it's the MTB and the chain is particularly filthy. Brings it up like new.

Only outwardly. Internally, the chain is still full of an emulsion of oil, water, and grit – an efficient grinding paste: also, by wiping the outside of the chain, you have partially enriched this paste by pushing into it whatever fine grit was outside. In a critical environment, a chain so mistreated would be destroyed rapidly. Even a fast-wearing bicycle chain isn't so appalling to the faithful as a visibly dirty one, however, so these decorative practices get passed on.

Depends how often you do it. Chain cleaning is a bit of a dark art as there are far to many variable that effect how efficient a regime is. In my opinion the factory grease is pretty good stuff (the rohloff webby seems to suggest this anyway) and the inside of a chain is unlikely to get contaminated over the space of a ride. Regular careful cleaning seems to preserve the most life for me, and i find performance goes downhill pretty rapidly once I give the chain a good soaking.

TiBoy

Cheers guys, I do give my chains a good clean with a toothbursh every couple of months and tend to use a chain cleaner after every other ride so am just looking for something quick to use that will last me. Was looking at the Park ones, wondering if they are up to the same quality as the rest of their stuff.

balthazar

ride_whenever wrote:

In my opinion the factory grease is pretty good stuff (the rohloff webby seems to suggest this anyway) and the inside of a chain is unlikely to get contaminated over the space of a ride

I agree. But eventually it is contaminated and washed away: this is an exposed mechanism and unoiled it squeaks, indicating it is internally clean and dry. Someday you have to replace the supplied grease.

rolf_f

doyler78 wrote:

markyone wrote:

toothbrush and a degreaser ive had a couple of the chain cleaners and i find the toothbrush the best.

+1. I've had several chain cleaning tools (Park, lifeline & finish line). They all fell to bits rather too quickly for my liking.

What do you do to them? My Lifeline one is still good after two years and over 10000 miles cycling.

I think it's great - so quick and easy. Tend to run through a few times if really grubby though. Can't see a toothbrush being as effective as 10s of runs through the cleaning tool.

father_jack

Got a clip on chain bath/brush thing works great, better than using a toothbrush (as the toothbrush does not go inbetween each link. £10 or so and comes with a couple of containers, one a degreaser another chain lube.

doyler78

Father Jack wrote:

Got a clip on chain bath/brush thing works great, better than using a toothbrush (as the toothbrush does not go inbetween each link. £10 or so and comes with a couple of containers, one a degreaser another chain lube.

Oh yes it does

father_jack

And how long does it take you to go in between each link? 1 minute and can clean all the links, change the white spirit, do it again and sparkling clean. Wipe down, let it dry, lube, done.

doyler78

Father Jack wrote:

And how long does it take you to go in between each link? 1 minute and can clean all the links, change the white spirit, do it again and sparkling clean. Wipe down, let it dry, lube, done.

I don't do each link at a time. It works exactly the same way that your machine does. As I scrub the top and bottom of the chain the bristles go between the links and clean there. That only leaves the sides to get a quick scrub. You place under chain and then scrub along the length, cleaning the toothbrush as required then repeat but this time from below, then the sides. That process only takes 10-15s for each section. 4 or maybe 5 sections does a whole chain. Hose down, run whole chain through a clean dry rag and let dry completely and then lube. It's really not that different. I find using the toothbrush much cleaner overall as I found that the chain would through the crap off the chain as it was exiting the chain cleaner and that splattered quite a lot round it. Much less force with toothbrush so much less crud hits the bike. But hey that's just my experience. Use whatever technique works for you so

mroli

FWIW - my tip is a KMC quicklink which is reusable, a small plastic drinks bottle and some citrus degreaser. pop chain off - pop in bottle with degreaser solution and warm water. Shake, leave, shake, pour away solution, rinse chain, dry put back on bike/relube. Chain will be spotless.

what brakes

Give me the chain cleaning tools any day! it gets right into the chain and fully degresses it. alot less hassle than a tooth brush or just wiping the surface crap of with a cloth! I always then hose pipe it to get into the chain. Give the bike a good few bumps on the ground to shake the excess water off. leave for awhile to drip dry abit then apply lots and lots of GT85 making sure to cover the wheel with a cloth to stop that being covered. wipe excess off and im done!
I have done this for years and years including my mountain bike and have never had a chain go rusty on me! i also dont get all the crap build up in the cassetee either.

father_jack

You use Gt85 as a chain lube?

dmch2

I think GT85 is good to rinse out the crud if you can't be bothered to do a full chain clean. But then wipe it all off and use a proper chain lube.

maddog 2

+1

GT85/WD40 is not a lube, it's a degreaser

Just because people use GT85/WD40 on their chains, doesn't make a lubricant

freddiegrubb

:oops: Okay I'll admit I only do road & never try to get caught in the rain (one of the benefits of being able to pick & choose my riding days) , after every ride clean the chain with an old rag & every second ride a "smidgin" of lube on every roller. Works for me every time.