Cleaning/ Maintenance Routine

dynebaruk

What do you guys do post ride and between rides?

My bike is usually filthy with mud so it gets a gentle hosing down and cleaned with muc-off spray and a sponge, then drivetrain scrubbed with a brush to get the grit out, dried and then chain re-lubricated.

Interested to see what others recommend.

cooldad

Clean it sometimes, lube a bit as required.

Kowalski675

cooldad wrote:

Clean it sometimes, lube a bit as required.

+1 , with the addition of a big green magic bike drier.

DCR00

Quick spray to get the worst off, then brush to get the rest off once dried. I used to wash after most rides, but there's no need imo. Lube stanchions after every ride tho, although the Defender is very good at keeping the crud off the slidey parts of the forks.


Maintenance as and when required.

paul.skibum

Routine?!?

welshkev

Bike goes in shed after ride unwashed, bike gets taken out of shed and ridden again. Repeat....

dynebaruk

I'm surprised at the answers so far to be honest. By the time I've finished a ride I've usually got so much thick mud on the bike that I can feel it in the drive train on each turn of the cranks...

miceden

Post muddy ride I'm not usually up to giving the bike a good clean, so, I hose it down well, shake off excess water, lube stanchions and then GT85 the chain and cassette to drive water out... get down of your pedestal you who is about to preach and give me the 3rd degree about GT85... in the following day or so the cassette & chain cleaner come out and the drivetrain gets degreased, cleaned and re-lubed.

Post dry ride... usually brush off any dust/dirt, lube stanchions and re-oil the chain.

At least once a year, sometimes twice, I strip my bikes down completely and clean, degrease, re-grease, check bearings, bushings, replace cables if necessary, re-index gears, bleed brakes, the lot, a complete service.

dynebaruk

Thanks. Can I ask what do you use for lubing the stanchions?

miceden

I use Fork Juice

cooldad

I use Fox Float Fluid. And the forks and shock are the bits I'm fairly religious about cleaning and lubing.

BloggingFit

Hose Down. Wash Clean. GT85 Moving Parts. Fork Juice Shocks. Air Dry.

rockmonkeysc

Hose down before the mud dries then lube.

welshkev

dynebaruk wrote:

I'm surprised at the answers so far to be honest. By the time I've finished a ride I've usually got so much thick mud on the bike that I can feel it in the drive train on each turn of the cranks...

I'm exaggerating a bit. I do clean it, just usually not after every ride as I don't have an outside hose pipe. It does get chain lube and a squirt of gt85 on the mech. When I have it I use fork juice on the stansions too.

I'm just not religious at cleaning it. Last time my trail bike got washed it was in the river at cwmcarn lol

whitey161

Same a welsh Kev tbh.

Bike usually sit dirty in the kitchen til it dries then I take it out back and brush it off. I do make sure its lubed and tight and true though. Tbh I focus more on it functioning well than looking spangly.

mike hunts alpine

Eat sleep ride repeat.

Cookeh

Give it a quick hose down to get most of the crap off of it, clean the cassette, mechs and chain, bounce it a few times, wipe down the frame, dry the drivetrain, lube it if necessary.

Takes about 10-15mins tbh, so I do it after every ride in poor conditions. If its dry conditions I don't do anything much more than making sure everythings adequately lubed and true.

step83

I tend to get the worst off the frame but make sure that the mechs, cassette and bottom bracket. Clean the forks and brakes. and lube as needed
Takes about ten to fifteen minutes. Every few months ill do a proper strip down and deep clean.