how frequently do you clean your chains and chain rings?

aripallaris
aripallaris Posts: 294
edited May 2011 in Road beginners
been out for the last two days cycling from wood green to covent garden - done about 20miles collectively each day and my chain is a right muddy mess.

how frequently do you guys clean your chain and components? ive got one of those chain cleaner devices that attach to the chain. its pretty good but the solution is rather expensive. are there any home made or cheaper solutions to use if i were to clean on a daily basis?

ari

Comments

  • rolf_f
    rolf_f Posts: 16,015
    I just use a big plastic container of degreaser from B&Q. About £7 and its lasted a couple of years. That said, the Finish line stuff can be strained and reused which the B&Q stuff can't.

    I don't like to let the cack build up on my running gear!
    Faster than a tent.......
  • Pretre
    Pretre Posts: 355
    aripallaris wrote:
    been out for the last two days cycling from wood green to covent garden - done about 20miles collectively each day and my chain is a right muddy mess.

    how frequently do you guys clean your chain and components? ive got one of those chain cleaner devices that attach to the chain. its pretty good but the solution is rather expensive. are there any home made or cheaper solutions to use if i were to clean on a daily basis?

    ari

    How has your chain got so dirty in the last 2 days? It hasn't rained since Saturday morning in London & it's been warm & windy since then... :?
  • geebee2
    geebee2 Posts: 248
    I do a basic chain clean each ride ( just wiping chain with rag ), and a proper clean about every two to three weeks.
    My new bike
  • aripallaris
    aripallaris Posts: 294
    no idea how it's got that dirty. hand to sit behind a fair few buses that puffed out loads of smog. cleaned my chain two days ago and just used some lube. the lube could possibly have attracted it. will give it a rub down tomorrow and do full weekly cleans. thanks all
  • Robbie1958
    Robbie1958 Posts: 148
    I clean my bike thoroughly including chain, rings and cassette, every time i ride it. i know that might seem like i have too much time on my hands, but i can't imagine riding a dirty bike, and besides i reckon the components might last longer if they are clean.
    Colnago..............The name on the worlds finest bikes
  • Velonutter
    Velonutter Posts: 2,437
    My chain is wiped down with a rag until it shines then sprayed with GT85 and left overnight until the next ride.

    I ride 4-5 days a week and this keeps my chain smooth and lubed. I get about 2000 miles to a chain.
  • nickwill
    nickwill Posts: 2,735
    Velonutter wrote:
    My chain is wiped down with a rag until it shines then sprayed with GT85 and left overnight until the next ride.

    I ride 4-5 days a week and this keeps my chain smooth and lubed. I get about 2000 miles to a chain.
    :?: :?: :?:
    ........at the risk of opening a whole can of worms! GT85 really isn't an effective lube!
    http://lakescyclist.wordpress.com/
  • father_jack
    father_jack Posts: 3,509
    I strip down and re-grease my bike every 100 yards.

    :roll:
    Say... That's a nice bike..
    Trax T700 with Lew Racing Pro VT-1 ;-)
  • Chris James
    Chris James Posts: 1,040
    I never degrease my chain, depsite having a quick link on my KMC chain which would make it easy to do so. I don;t think it is a good idea.

    I wipe the chain with a rag after each ride. As long as you don't let the back gunk build up I haven't seen any evidence of 'grinding paste' shortening my chain life.

    I use either a rag dampened (not soaked!) with WD40, or baby wipes, on chain rings and cassettes to remove any surface gunk building up there.

    I use Finish Line Cross Country on the chain. It isn't too dirty if you regularly wipe the chain and it lubricate s very well as stays put for a lot of miles.
  • JST
    JST Posts: 158
    Do most people degrease their chains? I have not yet, just wipe and relube. I would be worried aboutr removeing all the lube from within the links/rollers etc whic is very hard to replace by just lubing externally. The KMC website backs this up http://www.kmcchain.com/index.php?ln=en&fn=service#2 and says never use anything more than soapy water, definately not solvents. Maybe everyone is doing more harm than good degreasing their chains even if they look lovely and clean???
  • bilirubin
    bilirubin Posts: 225
    Father Jack wrote:
    I strip down and re-grease my bike every 100 yards.

    :roll:

    Why do you need to be naked to re-grease your bike?

    :lol::lol::lol:
  • father_jack
    father_jack Posts: 3,509
    Because I can then clean the chain between my butt crack.
    Say... That's a nice bike..
    Trax T700 with Lew Racing Pro VT-1 ;-)
  • JST
    JST Posts: 158
    Father Jack wrote:
    Because I can then clean the chain between my butt crack.

    Bet it smarts when you get pubes stuck in it - or are you a SCB man :P

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