Okay so as my chains have worn out and gotten replaced, I've put on some SRAM Powerlinks onto the new ones, to make removing the chain easy. I was hoping this would take me to maintenance utopia; a magical state of mind where I could simply dunk and shake the chain in a gatorade bottle full of degreaser, and everything would be clean, wonderful and mess-free, the sun would come out and birds would start singing, etc.

Well, no ... after getting more messy than using the on-bike chain cleaner (and getting the chain stuck in the bottle, meaning I had to cut the ****ing thing to bits to get it out), and using way more degreaser than with an on-bike cleaner, I ended up with a "somewhat clean" chain. Nowhere near as good as the on-bike brush cleaner tool.

So, for those who are veterans to the off-bike chain cleaning thing, what do you do? Is it a matter of having to do it about 5 times (using about a litre of degreaser each clean cycle), a special sort of container, an ultrasound cleaner, what ?

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Peter
Cannondale Synapse Carbon Scalpel Cyclocross Ultra

Dishwashing gloves, Dishwashing detergent that is 7.0 on the ph scale, very warm water, used tooth brush, clean cotton rags, piece of #14 solid electrical wire, your plastic "gatorade" bottle, and hair dryer.
I start be putting on the gloves.
I wipe off as much as I can with the rags. I do this regularly to prevent any build up.
Take the link off and remove chain when I am getting serious about the process... about every 300 - 500 miles.
I clean the cassette, jockey wheels, and chain rings carefully.
I wash the chain in a warm water detergent bath after running the #14 solid wire through the ends of the chain. I put the chain in the bottle and put the wire in the neck of the bottle where I ask it to stay while I shake the bottle. I have rigged a wire holding eyelet that I "bolted" to the bottle cap.
I retrieve the chain and repeat until with bath comes out clear.
I rinse with water and dry with cotton rags.
I fling the chain around to encourage the remaining water out of the inards of the chain.
I "blow dry" the chain with hair dryer.
I then carefully apply my chain saw oil mix with the chain back on the bicycle.
I then pull of those wonderful gloves.

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David Ornee, Western Springs, IL USA

A suitable non breakable container and mineral spirits. Sheldon Brown has the complete drill.No need for making rocket science out of it.