CHAIN CLEANING the best way?

I use this:
http://www.parktool.com/tools/CG_2.shtml
Called a Chaingang--all kinds of little brushes inside, and you can use
a citrus cleaning fluid with it. You don't have to use theirs--you can
get it a Home Depot or Auto supply.

Polly said:

Id like to hear any ideas on the best way to clean a chain.

Id like to hear the easiest and most enviromentally friendly ways,

but

Quoted message said:

whatever way you like to clean your chain Id like to hear about.

Personally I either use a rag, or sometimes a chain cleaner with some

soap

Quoted message said:

and water.

I find the chain cleaner still doesnt get it as clean as I like it to

be.

Quoted message said:

Perhaps someone could reccomend some good chain cleaning solution..
something that gets inside the links as well.
Or perhaps its the chain cleaner itself..any reccomendations?

thanks
Polly

Polly said:

Id like to hear any ideas on the best way to clean a chain.

If you search this forum -- via Google groups -- you'll find more than
an abundance of information on that very topic.

Just use the keywords "chain cleaning"

Best of luck!

Polly said:

Id like to hear any ideas on the best way to clean a chain.

Remove chain and place in a container of kerosene or white spirit AKA
mineral spirits and shake. Extremely effective and easy when using a SRAM
Powerlink to break/join chain. Environmentally friendly in that the fluid
can be re-used after letting the crud settle.

~PB

Polly said:

Id like to hear any ideas on the best way to clean a chain.

Id like to hear the easiest and most enviromentally friendly ways,

but

Quoted message said:

whatever way you like to clean your chain Id like to hear about.

Personally I either use a rag, or sometimes a chain cleaner with some

soap

Quoted message said:

and water.

I find the chain cleaner still doesnt get it as clean as I like it to

be.

Quoted message said:

Perhaps someone could reccomend some good chain cleaning solution..
something that gets inside the links as well.
Or perhaps its the chain cleaner itself..any reccomendations?

thanks
Polly

Plastic bottle and some mineral spirits. Take it off,put it in, shake
well, take out, let air dry, put on, lube, ride next day.

Monk said:

I use this:
http://www.parktool.com/tools/CG_2.shtml
Called a Chaingang--all kinds of little brushes inside, and you can

use

Quoted message said:

a citrus cleaning fluid with it. You don't have to use theirs--you

can

Quoted message said:

get it a Home Depot or Auto supply.

It appears that you do not have to remove the chain from the bike(?).
True?

How much bother (clean-up) is it to keep it from slinging citrus
cleaning fluid everywhere?

rsquared

Klaus said:

Monk said:

I use this:
http://www.parktool.com/tools/CG_2.shtml
Called a Chaingang--all kinds of little brushes inside, and you can
use a citrus cleaning fluid with it. You don't have to use
theirs--you can get it a Home Depot or Auto supply.

It appears that you do not have to remove the chain from the bike(?).
True?

True.

Quoted message said:

How much bother (clean-up) is it to keep it from slinging citrus
cleaning fluid everywhere?

I tried the similar Baberi product. It's was enough bother for me not to
bother..... and remove chain instead.

~PB

Klaus said:

It appears that you do not have to remove the chain from the bike(?).
True?

True.

Quoted message said:

How much bother (clean-up) is it to keep it from slinging citrus
cleaning fluid everywhere?

Fluid doesn't sling everywhere. I take out the rear
wheel and put in one of these:

http://www.nashbar.com/profile_moreimages.cfm?sku=10528

Then I put a towel down underneath the chainline. Just
a few drips of fluid.

Larry Coon
University of California

How about:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/chain-care.html

[email hidden]

"Larry Coon" wrote: (clip) I take out the rear

Quoted message said:

wheel and put in one of these:
http://www.nashbar.com/profile_moreimages.cfm?sku=10528 (clip)

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Larry, could you describe how it works? I can see how it provides support
for the chain while you are cleaning, but does it have a reservoir with
cleaning fluid? All I see is a dry path. Do you use it with a separate
cleaning device? Thanks. Sorry if I'm being dense.

Leo Lichtman said:

Larry, could you describe how it works? I can see how it provides support
for the chain while you are cleaning, but does it have a reservoir with
cleaning fluid? All I see is a dry path. Do you use it with a separate
cleaning device? Thanks. Sorry if I'm being dense.

No problem -- you're right, it's a dry path and I use the
Park chain cleaner to do the actual cleaning. This just
takes the wheel out of the equation, so nothing splatters
on it when I'm cleaning.

Larry Coon
University of California

"Larry Coon" wrote: (clip) This just takes the wheel out of the equation,
(clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Thanks, Larry. Two ideas occur to me. If you had a spare hub off a junk
bike, it would do the same thing. Also, it would be easy to modify this
item so it also acts as a stand (for anyone who doesn't already have a
workstand.)

Pretty good for a start, but I still think that after going to all the hassle of
removing the chain, cleaning and drying it, it's a good idea to grease rather
than oil it. Or grease after oiling.

Just put the chain into a large strong plastic bag with half a pound of your
favorite grease ( I kind of like constant velocity joint stuff, but way less
expensive grease should work fine. ) Knead the bag, chain and grease for
fifteen minutes, and you should be able to work grease into each of the
bushings. Remove the chain from the bag, wipe off all the grease you can, and
put it back on the bicycle. But you're not done yet.

Go for a ride somewhere safe where you can get up to your top speed and some
grease will fly out of the chain, onto the wheel rim and tubes nearby. I find
that this has very little effect on the brake's ability to stop the bicycle, the
heat generated causes the grease to melt, and be flung off very quickly. You're
going to have to clean the frame tube, tire, rim, etc. afterwards.

Grease is preferable to oil as a lubricant because it stays in place, and forms
a gasket which prevents dirt from entering the bushings. It's twice the hassle,
but last much more than twice as long. It's hard to quantify, but back when I
rode a 12 tooth high on a six speed cluster, I had to oil it again every hundred
miles or shifting wasn't as quick and easy. Unfortunately, a decent 6 or even 7
speed cluster doesn't seem available any more.

I wonder if it wouldn't be possible to develop ( or if someone hasn't already )
an electric motor driving a couple chainwheels upon which the chain might be
mounted so it might be rotated rapidly enough to fling off most of the grease
which would otherwise come off during riding. I suppose the factories which
manufacture bicycle chains must have something of the sort, huh? Complications
foreseen involve starting the motor slowly to avoid stressing the chain with a
sudden jerk, and just how fast should it be rotated for how long?

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

How about:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/chain-care.html

[email hidden]

Dale Benjamin said:

Just put the chain into a large strong plastic bag with half a pound

of your

Quoted message said:

favorite grease ( I kind of like constant velocity joint stuff, but

way less

Quoted message said:

expensive grease should work fine. ) Knead the bag...
Go for a ride somewhere safe where you can get up to your top speed

and some

Quoted message said:

grease will fly out of the chain...

How long do your chains last when lubed this way? Do you really think
all the mess, materials, and labor is worth it, when a new chain costs
$10-20?

-Vee

Vee said:

Dale Benjamin said:

Just put the chain into a large strong plastic bag with half a pound
of your favorite grease ( I kind of like constant velocity joint
stuff, but way less expensive grease should work fine. ) Knead the
bag...
Go for a ride somewhere safe where you can get up to your top speed
and some grease will fly out of the chain...

How long do your chains last when lubed this way? Do you really think
all the mess, materials, and labor is worth it, when a new chain costs
$10-20?

I think he was kidd---- er, dead serious.

Personally, I hardly EVER "clean" my chain. Run it through a dry rag before
lubing with White Lightning; /occasionally / spray some degreaser on the rag
first (maybe once every three months).

My chains ain't pretty (always look black), but shift well and seem to last
as long as others'.

Bill "bike shorts are black for a reason (touching my chain comes to mind)"
S.

Dale Benjamin said:

Go for a ride somewhere safe where you can get up to your top speed and some
grease will fly out of the chain, onto the wheel rim and tubes nearby. I find
that this has very little effect on the brake's ability to stop the bicycle, the
heat generated causes the grease to melt, and be flung off very quickly. You're
going to have to clean the frame tube, tire, rim, etc. afterwards.

Funny. You had me going for a while. Unfortunately most people won't
realize you were joking.

Polly said:

Id like to hear any ideas on the best way to clean a chain.

I was going to let this thread pass, but I think I discovered
something new while cleaning a really dirty MTB chain yesterday.

I usually do the old "shake in a bottle of mineral spirits" trick, but
follow up with a rinse in really hot water. I then submerge the chain
in Simple Green (in an old plastic TV Dinner plate) and let it soak
for an hour or so, folllowed by a thorough scrubbing with a
toothbrush. I then rinse again with hot water, followed by the old
"centrifuge by swinging around my head" procedure.

I then hang the chain up and dribble White Lightning down the length,
letting it dry before reinstalling it. Usually, especially when I
start with a really dirty chain, what dribbles off the end is pretty
black.

Yesterday, instead of just rinsing in the dinner plate, I ran the
chain under the hot water tap, allowing the water to rinse over each
link. I did this from both sides of the chain (the roller sides, not
the sideplate sides). Result, the White Lightning that dribbled off
the end was actually white. I think I've stumbled onto something! :-)

jeverett3<AT>earthlink<DOT>net http://home.earthlink.net/~jeverett3

Dale Benjamin writes:

HEY!!! Jerk. Stop sending me this stuff as personal mail. Meanwhile,
as I politely explained at length, your idea is just another chain
religion. Forget it. I'm not in a polite mood anymore as you may
have noticed. You are practicing ultra bad nettiquet.

Quoted message said:

Pretty good for a start, but I still think that after going to all
the hassle of removing the chain, cleaning and drying it, it's a
good idea to grease rather than oil it. Or grease after oiling.

Quoted message said:

Just put the chain into a large strong plastic bag with half a pound
of your favorite grease ( I kind of like constant velocity joint
stuff, but way less expensive grease should work fine. ) Knead the
bag, chain and grease for fifteen minutes, and you should be able to
work grease into each of the bushings. Remove the chain from the
bag, wipe off all the grease you can, and put it back on the
bicycle. But you're not done yet.

Quoted message said:

Go for a ride somewhere safe where you can get up to your top speed
and some grease will fly out of the chain, onto the wheel rim and
tubes nearby. I find that this has very little effect on the
brake's ability to stop the bicycle, the heat generated causes the
grease to melt, and be flung off very quickly. You're going to have
to clean the frame tube, tire, rim, etc. afterwards.

Quoted message said:

Grease is preferable to oil as a lubricant because it stays in
place, and forms a gasket which prevents dirt from entering the
bushings. It's twice the hassle, but last much more than twice as
long. It's hard to quantify, but back when I rode a 12 tooth high
on a six speed cluster, I had to oil it again every hundred miles or
shifting wasn't as quick and easy. Unfortunately, a decent 6 or
even 7 speed cluster doesn't seem available any more.

Quoted message said:

I wonder if it wouldn't be possible to develop ( or if someone
hasn't already ) an electric motor driving a couple chainwheels upon
which the chain might be mounted so it might be rotated rapidly
enough to fling off most of the grease which would otherwise come
off during riding. I suppose the factories which manufacture
bicycle chains must have something of the sort, huh? Complications
foreseen involve starting the motor slowly to avoid stressing the
chain with a sudden jerk, and just how fast should it be rotated for
how long?

Quoted message said:

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

How about:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/chain-care.html

----------------------------------------------------------------------
[email hidden]

Peter Cole said:

Funny. You had me going for a while. Unfortunately most people won't
realize you were joking.

Is he joking? Massaging grease into a chain is only slightly eccentric
on the wacko chain-theory spectrum. Gasoline, home-made lubes, nickel
plating, wax immersion, $40 chains, 8 vs. 9 speed, chain-wear essays,
endless threads... I only ever wanted to ridicule someone. Guess the
joke's on me.

-Vee

Vee said:

Peter Cole said:

Funny. You had me going for a while. Unfortunately most people won't
realize you were joking.

Is he joking? Massaging grease into a chain is only slightly eccentric
on the wacko chain-theory spectrum. Gasoline, home-made lubes, nickel
plating, wax immersion, $40 chains, 8 vs. 9 speed, chain-wear essays,
endless threads... I only ever wanted to ridicule someone. Guess the
joke's on me.

C'mon, don't tell me you didn't know the chain waxers were pulling your leg!