Chain

davebee said:

My brand new (about 2 weeks) old chain completely rusted
up over the weekend, because I was forced to keep the bike
outside (silly landlord rules grrr) and I was wondering if
there is any way I can get all this bright orange rust off
and get it nice and smooth again. I have put a large
amount of light oil on (wd40) as an emergency measure
because I haven't got time to sort it this morning but I
still need to ride the bike. Any help is much appreciated.

Cleaning and relubricating is normally all that's required
with superficial rust, but soak in oil for a few hours if it
still looks rusty after that.

Try a thicker lubricant in future that can better withstand
the weather. Good luck with that (and the landlord!).

~PB

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by davebee
My brand new (about 2 weeks) old chain completely rusted up over the weekend, because I was forced to keep the bike outside (silly landlord rules grrr) and I was wondering if there is any way I can get all this bright orange rust off and get it nice and smooth again. I have put a large amount of light oil on (wd40) as an emergency measure because I haven't got time to sort it this morning but I still need to ride the bike. Any help is much appreciated.

Old toothbrush to gently remove the "chain plaque", then steep it in a citrus degreasing agent to remove any old oil that might have crud adhering to it, and then relube copiously with a wax based lubricant like RaceDay Extreme.

I find that light oils like GT85 get pulled off in wet weather, and something a bit more glutinous is needed.

I didn't think that WD40 was a lubricant, I thought it's principal purpose was to expel water? Maybe that's where it all went wrong? Dunno though...

davebee said:

My brand new (about 2 weeks) old chain completely rusted
up over the weekend, because I was forced to keep the bike
outside (silly landlord rules grrr)

If you hadn't splashed out on a new chain already, I'd
suggest one of those nice shiny stainless steel ones :-)
Guaranteed to keep their good looks etc.

Regards

Philip Thornton-Evison

McBain_v1 said:

I didn't think that WD40 was a lubricant, I thought it's
principal purpose was to expel water? Maybe that's where
it all went wrong? Dunno though...

Precisely. The WD stands for Water Displacer. I have some
horrid gungey industrial open gear lubricant that is great
for this time of year. I got it from the storeman in a
steelworks.

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Simon Brooke <[email hidden]> wrote:

: Good oils for chains are quite thick and clingy. Chainsaw
: oil, developed for a similar but possibly more demanding
: use, is said to be good (and cheap).

Best oil I've ever used was a can of machinegun oil, taken
as a leaving present by a friend of mine when he finished
his national service in the German army.

: Otherwise there are a number of specialist bike chain
: products (I use Finish Line Cross Country) which although
: not cheap are good.

I use this as well. It may be more expensve per litre, but
since I use a small bottle per year, it's not exactly
expensive in cash terms.

It's also much better for those of us without big
sheds/garages to only have a small bottle of oil for
storage reasons.

Finish Line Teflon lube is fine in summer (I use it on the
race bike) but no use at all to the OP - if the bike is
stored outside, something more viscous is needed.

Arthur

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"Arthur Clune" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

Simon Brooke <[email hidden]> wrote:

: Good oils for chains are quite thick and clingy.
: Chainsaw oil, developed for a similar but possibly more
: demanding use, is said to be good (and cheap).

Best oil I've ever used was a can of machinegun oil, taken
as a leaving present by a friend of mine when he finished
his national service in the German army.

: Otherwise there are a number of specialist bike chain
: products (I use Finish Line Cross Country) which
: although not cheap are good.

I use this as well. It may be more expensve per litre, but
since I use a small bottle per year, it's not exactly
expensive in cash terms.

It's also much better for those of us without big
sheds/garages to only have a small bottle of oil for
storage reasons.

Finish Line Teflon lube is fine in summer (I use it on the
race bike) but no use at all to the OP - if the bike is
stored outside, something more viscous is needed.

I'd suggest covering the bike as well. Perhaps try and get a
wall mount to place it on to stop early morning dew climbing
up the bike and cover.

davebee said:

My brand new (about 2 weeks) old chain completely rusted up
over the weekend, because I was forced to keep the bike
outside (silly landlord rules grrr) and I was wondering if
there is any way I can get all this bright orange rust off
and get it nice and smooth again. I have put a large amount
of light oil on (wd40) as an emergency measure because I
haven't got time to sort it this morning but I still need
to ride the bike. Any help is much appreciated.

A mate of mine swears by motor bike chain oil - the stuff
you have to heat up before it becomes liquid. Stays on for
months! I just use GT85 almost daily.

Steve