Hello all this may b a silly ? and not sure if this even goes in this area so pse forgive me if it doesnt. Im just curious how many of you wash your bikes mt or road and with what? Soap and water? do you wax them? Also what do you use to lube ur chain, derailers and cables with? Also what is the maint schedule for the average mt road bike? Just curious tnx and happy riding
Do you wash your bike regularly?
- Thread starter Packerbacker
- Start date
Wash, wax, and blow dry.
ArmorAll on the tires.
STP in the crankcase.
LOL!
Washed thoroughly less than an hour after a ride where I get caught in some rain. Washed probably once a month otherwise.
Chain cleaned at least twice a month and lubed with bike chain oil.
I do rotate my tires and brake pads regularly.
ArmorAll on the tires.
STP in the crankcase.
LOL!
Washed thoroughly less than an hour after a ride where I get caught in some rain. Washed probably once a month otherwise.
Chain cleaned at least twice a month and lubed with bike chain oil.
I do rotate my tires and brake pads regularly.
I wash my bikes with Dawn dishwashing soap when they are really dirty and then wax the frames with car wax (usually once a year).
For normal light cleaning I use Finish Line Super Bike wash. It's quick and easy, and gentle enough that it won't strip the wax off the paint. It won't remove road tar, grease, etc....it's just gentle cleaner to shine your bike up.
I use Finish Line Citrus degeaser to clean the chains and lube them with Prolink. I've found that since I started using Prolink that I rarely need to clean the chains, but Prolink needs to be reapplied every 200 miles or so...
For normal light cleaning I use Finish Line Super Bike wash. It's quick and easy, and gentle enough that it won't strip the wax off the paint. It won't remove road tar, grease, etc....it's just gentle cleaner to shine your bike up.
I use Finish Line Citrus degeaser to clean the chains and lube them with Prolink. I've found that since I started using Prolink that I rarely need to clean the chains, but Prolink needs to be reapplied every 200 miles or so...
Besides cleaning up your bikes does anyone mess with gauges and scratches? Is that stuff fixable once done to the frame?
I usually clean my frame with water only. I do normally rinse off the dust if it was a dry ride shortly after I get home. If it was a wet ride, then I get a bucket of water and the sponge. I ndo use Dawn twice a year and then wax it after that washing. I use Meguiars COLORx Polish when I wax them. Like 64 Paramount, I use ProLink Gold and I have not needed to clean my chain other than wipe it off after every ride. Paramount gets a little more life out of his applications though, as I seem to need to reapply it anywhere from 100 - 150 miles.
I use model paints to fix my scratches and dings. They are readily available at any hobby shop and can be mixed if you have an odd color that you need.
I use model paints to fix my scratches and dings. They are readily available at any hobby shop and can be mixed if you have an odd color that you need.
Yes a regular wash, particularly after a stint of wet weather/dirty riding.
Kero on chain, cassette and chainrings, followed by hose down and car wash, followed by rinse. Leaving the bike in the sun is enough to dry it off, but if it isn't sunny I just wipe most of it dry.
I use a slightly thinned chainsaw oil on the chain. It sticks under the rollers (where it is supposed to be) and stays put for at least a couple of weeks between re-lubes. If I don't have that then I will use a wet-lube like the green Finishline stuff. A rag slightly dampened with degreaser than removes the excess from the exterior of the chain, and a wipe like this once every few rides keeps the chain nice and clean.
If I'm feeling lazy (or when there are water restrictions) I can usually also do a good cleaning job with just a rag and some Mr Sheen or Spray-n-wipe.
Kero on chain, cassette and chainrings, followed by hose down and car wash, followed by rinse. Leaving the bike in the sun is enough to dry it off, but if it isn't sunny I just wipe most of it dry.
I use a slightly thinned chainsaw oil on the chain. It sticks under the rollers (where it is supposed to be) and stays put for at least a couple of weeks between re-lubes. If I don't have that then I will use a wet-lube like the green Finishline stuff. A rag slightly dampened with degreaser than removes the excess from the exterior of the chain, and a wipe like this once every few rides keeps the chain nice and clean.
If I'm feeling lazy (or when there are water restrictions) I can usually also do a good cleaning job with just a rag and some Mr Sheen or Spray-n-wipe.
Nail polish comes in a wider variety of colors and the application brush never needs cleaning.
I wash my bikes with a garden hose using a shower head. I wash my bikes about once a month and anytime it rains during the ride. I use car wash soap a small amount everytime I wash.
After I thouroughly dry my bike I lube all of the components. I use Shimano Hypo-Spit for all of the brake and deraileur pivot points. I use park tools chain lube every 100 to 150 miles just started using this this year.
I dont wax my bike but I do give it a good shine every now and then when the pollen count is high and my bike gets dusty in the garage. I lightly dust off the pollen and use a shop cloth with a little lemon pledge on it and shine it up.
Now wheres the "Alienator" because the last time I posted this he had a field day on me./img/vbsmilies/smilies/ROTF.gif
I wash my bikes with a garden hose using a shower head. I wash my bikes about once a month and anytime it rains during the ride. I use car wash soap a small amount everytime I wash.
After I thouroughly dry my bike I lube all of the components. I use Shimano Hypo-Spit for all of the brake and deraileur pivot points. I use park tools chain lube every 100 to 150 miles just started using this this year.
I dont wax my bike but I do give it a good shine every now and then when the pollen count is high and my bike gets dusty in the garage. I lightly dust off the pollen and use a shop cloth with a little lemon pledge on it and shine it up.
Now wheres the "Alienator" because the last time I posted this he had a field day on me./img/vbsmilies/smilies/ROTF.gif
[SIZE= medium]It’s Winter here now so my bikes (roadie and roadie singlespeed) often (say 1 in 2 rides) get wet and rained on. [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]I hose my bike off as soon as I get home if it’s got wet as that is when the road grime etc is still moist and comes off easiest. [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]Often (say once a week if it’s getting dirty) I will wash my bikes with dish wash liquid and then hose off. [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]I’ve never polished them (why bother, bikes are to be ridden now mounted on the wall). [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]I’ll lube the chains when they need it – every say 2 or 3 weeks (depends on the lube that’s on there. [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]Sometimes (4 times a year?) I spray the gearing with a degreaser and hose off. [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]In the Summer I almost never wash my bikes (they basically don’t need it) apart from to wash the drink residue off the frames. [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]BBB[/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]I hose my bike off as soon as I get home if it’s got wet as that is when the road grime etc is still moist and comes off easiest. [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]Often (say once a week if it’s getting dirty) I will wash my bikes with dish wash liquid and then hose off. [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]I’ve never polished them (why bother, bikes are to be ridden now mounted on the wall). [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]I’ll lube the chains when they need it – every say 2 or 3 weeks (depends on the lube that’s on there. [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]Sometimes (4 times a year?) I spray the gearing with a degreaser and hose off. [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]In the Summer I almost never wash my bikes (they basically don’t need it) apart from to wash the drink residue off the frames. [/SIZE]
[SIZE= medium]BBB[/SIZE]
Im thinking that dawn dishwashing liquid soap and some wd40 on the chain should do it lol. Living out in the country I really dont get the tar on my bike as much so as the dust from the farmers fields.
Using WD40 as a solvent is OK, but it does not have good lubricating qualities. The best thing is to forget about WD40 for your chain and use a chain cleaning system and a proper chain lube. There are a lot of good chain lubes available and are not much more expensive than WD40.
=I like to try to dry my bike with the draft of an electric fan. The poor bottom bracket. The headstock bearings. : (
=We must realize, that once a bike is wet-down, it is soaked in places inaccessible to the blast of any fan.
=It is perhaps best to not water soak most bikes unless required by a rainstorm.
=A damp cloth may be best, but, heck, it is only a bike, and is supposed to be "mortal", right?
=I like Pledge like many others, for a quick-clean between wet-wipe-downs (don't rub!) with a microfiber cloth.
=For the chain, for about a thousand miles now, all I use on my singlespeed chain is PB Blaster "dry lube" (PTFE/'teflon).
It gets applied by a small paint brush, and is not waterproof, but it is absolutely clean (the wiping rag never turns black anymore).
And chain "stretch" seems to be nearly totally stopped. The truly-dry-lubed chain seems to work just ideally for casual, dry-road cycling.
=The chain, OEM, on my Trek Lime, is nickel plated. Nickel is a fascinating metal, in that it is largely self-lubricating. For engineering work,
nickel plate prevents metal from galling. It is an ideal metal finish for bike chains, and I wish more chains were available in nickel plate for this reason;
it is much better, I think, than a black-oxide finish. Nickel confers a nice appearance, yes, and also some added rust resistance,
especially if the chain is waxed, oiled or "Teflon" treated (tm), though "PTFE" ("Teflon", TM) cannot offer the corrosion protection of an oil,
it's good enough, in my experience, on a nickel plated chain, on a bike given a modicum of care: I like to put the wet bike in the draft of a fan,
to try to beat the (corrosion) band. In this way, the wet chain is quickly dried in a few hours at most. I flip my cruiser bike and then paint the chain with PB-brand
(The Home Depot sells it cheap enough, spray can, yellow) The Dry Lube (I think it's called). PTFE is a white, waxy-feeling plastic substance, inert and non-toxic,
if not exposed to flame-heat. It is not dangerous to human health at all, if you don't burn it, and has been around for over sixty years now. Just wash hands, like always.
=We must realize, that once a bike is wet-down, it is soaked in places inaccessible to the blast of any fan.
=It is perhaps best to not water soak most bikes unless required by a rainstorm.
=A damp cloth may be best, but, heck, it is only a bike, and is supposed to be "mortal", right?
=I like Pledge like many others, for a quick-clean between wet-wipe-downs (don't rub!) with a microfiber cloth.
=For the chain, for about a thousand miles now, all I use on my singlespeed chain is PB Blaster "dry lube" (PTFE/'teflon).
It gets applied by a small paint brush, and is not waterproof, but it is absolutely clean (the wiping rag never turns black anymore).
And chain "stretch" seems to be nearly totally stopped. The truly-dry-lubed chain seems to work just ideally for casual, dry-road cycling.
=The chain, OEM, on my Trek Lime, is nickel plated. Nickel is a fascinating metal, in that it is largely self-lubricating. For engineering work,
nickel plate prevents metal from galling. It is an ideal metal finish for bike chains, and I wish more chains were available in nickel plate for this reason;
it is much better, I think, than a black-oxide finish. Nickel confers a nice appearance, yes, and also some added rust resistance,
especially if the chain is waxed, oiled or "Teflon" treated (tm), though "PTFE" ("Teflon", TM) cannot offer the corrosion protection of an oil,
it's good enough, in my experience, on a nickel plated chain, on a bike given a modicum of care: I like to put the wet bike in the draft of a fan,
to try to beat the (corrosion) band. In this way, the wet chain is quickly dried in a few hours at most. I flip my cruiser bike and then paint the chain with PB-brand
(The Home Depot sells it cheap enough, spray can, yellow) The Dry Lube (I think it's called). PTFE is a white, waxy-feeling plastic substance, inert and non-toxic,
if not exposed to flame-heat. It is not dangerous to human health at all, if you don't burn it, and has been around for over sixty years now. Just wash hands, like always.
This is the defiler of "bicycle religion" here.....I wash regularly....I think once every five years on average so far. Use of a power wand is a very bad idea, as it gets water into places unseen and best left alone.
Why would I wash my bike more often? I want it to look old, used, and unwanted. That way it's less likely to be stolen. Nobody wants to steal a bike that looks like ****.
Why would I wash my bike more often? I want it to look old, used, and unwanted. That way it's less likely to be stolen. Nobody wants to steal a bike that looks like ****.
This is the defiler of "bicycle religion" here.....I wash regularly....I think once every five years on average so far. Use of a power wand is a very bad idea, as it gets water into places unseen and best left alone.
Why would I wash my bike more often? I want it to look old, used, and unwanted. That way it's less likely to be stolen. Nobody wants to steal a bike that looks like ****.
Why would I wash my bike more often? I want it to look old, used, and unwanted. That way it's less likely to be stolen. Nobody wants to steal a bike that looks like ****.
I'm too busy to be fanatical about cleaning, but I clean the dirtiest bike first and I judge that by appearance which means about once a month unless I get unusual amount of crud on them. I use the Finish Line Cleaning spray because it contains rust inhibitors and my bikes are all steel. Then after washing and drying I wax about twice a year with Meguiars NXT spray wax, I use the spray because it's faster but the paste is better.
