Lubing and cleaning tips please

markiegrim

Cleaning and lubing still a bit of a mystery. My knowledge comes from Zinn and LBS

Only had bike 6 weeks, so have yet to fully degrease the chain. Currently spraying with Fenwicks stuff that displaces water (and lubes a bit I guess), wiping down and then lubing with this thick Fenwicks stuff you put on with a pipette (although so thick that the idea of "adding one drop to each link" is a bit laughable)

But when and how and what else should I lube? I spray the rear mechs with same spray and give a wipe, but currently do not lube derrailleurs or shifters or brake pivots as I don't how best to do that, what with or how often. Any thoughts????

N.B. when I do degrease chain, will use Fenwicks foaming stuff and a sponge with a v cut in it....seems like a good plan, although I know some people use a bath/cleaning tool thingy with integral brushes - again pros and cons?

Also, how often is it really necessary to do the full degrease? I was thinking maybe in Spring and Autumn (I cycle about 20-50 miles owe week)

Thanks

barrie h

Have a look at this
http://www.bikeradar.com/road/news/arti ... ula-36424/

Barrie

Primus84

Don't see how that helps the OP barrie?!

dai_t75

From what I have read everyone has their own routines/ways of cleaning.

I generally try to give the chain a wipe down after most ride with baby wipes - don't ask me how or why but they are good at getting rid of a fair amount of grease and all the other crap that accumulates on a chain. Then give it a top up of lube (I personally use Finish Line Wet, but again everyone has a favourite).

Usually about once a month I will take off the chain and soak the whole thing in a degreaser solution. Have you got a quick link on your chain? Makes cleaning much easier IMO. When it is soaking I give it a shake very couple of mins. After the soak I run it under the tap and scrub it with a brush.

When the chain is off I will use this:
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/muc-off-water-soluble-degreaser-500ml-aerosol/
and spray it over the cassette and mechs - it is very good, but be careful as you can fly through the can if you get a bit trigger happy! Then just take a brush and hot soapy water and scrub away at the various bits and pieces.

Again, once clean and dry, re-lube the chain.

In terms of derailleurs/shifters/pivots I don't know! I have never put anything on these, but guess it would be a grease rather than a lube, hopefully someone on here can let us know.

crankycrank

markiegrim wrote:

But when and how and what else should I lube? I spray the rear mechs with same spray and give a wipe, but currently do not lube derrailleurs or shifters or brake pivots as I don't how best to do that, what with or how often. Any thoughts????
Also, how often is it really necessary to do the full degrease? I was thinking maybe in Spring and Autumn (I cycle about 20-50 miles owe week)

Generally you want to lube all of the pivot points on your brakes and mechs roughly every 500 miles depending on conditions. It would be a novels worth of writing to explain in full detail how to do each piece but the front and rear mech both have at least four pivots where the mech swings sideways to shift. The rear also has the mounting bolt pivot and jockey wheels. Caliper brakes usually have at least two pivot points. Bottom bracket and headset vary considerably depending on type but at a minimum should be inspected yearly and provided you have sealed bearings put at least a thin coat of grease on the crank axle and fork tube if it's steel to prevent corrosion. Some sealed bearings have a seal that is removable with a thin blade and can then be greased. Same with the hubs. Grease bearings at least once a year and a light coat on the axles. I don't like to lube cables as it just turns to gunk and fouls them up but some prefer to lube theirs. Brake/Shifters I don't bother lubing until they stop working but that's another story. You're more likely to foul them up trying to add some sort of lube to the innards. Plenty of threads on chain cleaning and lubing and heated arguments about which is best so take your pick until you find what works for you. If you ride in wet and crap conditions you may have to lube more often, less if you ride in mostly clean and dry conditions. It's just something that you will find out with experience. Obviously a clean, well lubed bike will last longer but you just have to find your own happy medium for how often you want fuss over your bike. If parts are squeaking and sticking you've waited way too long to clean and lube. I probably missed something but that's most of the basics.

FatManSeth

Sorry to hijack the thread -
I've been using silicone lube rather than grease, keeps the chain looking cleaner. Anyone else do this? If so, do you need to reapply more often or less? Also does my standard de greaser clean it or not?

Thanks

Good question by the way.

dave in swansea

Hi, just want to emphasise the Importance of cleaning and lubing. I have a relatively cheap bike with Shimano 2300. When the novelty of cleaning every week wore off I noticed the gears were starting to loose their indexing. Shifting was becoming harder work. Decided to clean the bike before taking it down the shop for a service. Set off to ride to the shop, and gears were perfect. Went for a ride instead.
I now clean the drive chain every couple of weeks and a cheap (supposedly low quality) groupset has never needed to be touched in several years. (Except for replacement chains and cassette).
To clean I use a device attached to an aerosol of decreased. I use this a couple of times, then run it through the device with soapy water. Finally rinse clean with watering can. When dry I use a wet lube on the chain and wipe off as much as possible after it has had a chance to soak in. The rear wheel then needs a good cleaning because of all the splatter from the device. This could be a reason to remove the chain for cleaning, alternatively I am thinking of using an old wheel for chain cleaning duties only.