Maintenance Question - Worm Guts

[Jorg Lueke]

Following my ride today I started to clean the frame. I encountered a
lot of torn up earthworms today on the tires and in the chain. But
besides the dirt I noticed two things that are probably fine but I
just wanted to check.

#1. There's a little grease leaking out from where the stem goes into
the frame. I'm assuming this is normal and I just wiped the excess
away.

#2. The chanring has some spots of orange. These are quite hard so
I'm guessing it's a little rust. This is a 06 model year and the
crank is the low end bontrager select which is not aluminum. Is there
anything I should do about this? I'm guessing it was like this when I
took the bike home on Friday.

#3. I see a lot of little bits o dirt and sand in the chain. The
result of wet weather and typical road debris. Is there any way to
help remove this, or should it just be part of a regular monthly or
quarterly maintenance cycle?

 

[Bill]

"Jorg Lueke" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Following my ride today I started to clean the frame. I encountered a
> lot of torn up earthworms today on the tires and in the chain. But
> besides the dirt I noticed two things that are probably fine but I
> just wanted to check.
>
> #1. There's a little grease leaking out from where the stem goes into
> the frame. I'm assuming this is normal and I just wiped the excess
> away.
>
> #2. The chanring has some spots of orange. These are quite hard so
> I'm guessing it's a little rust. This is a 06 model year and the
> crank is the low end bontrager select which is not aluminum. Is there
> anything I should do about this? I'm guessing it was like this when I
> took the bike home on Friday.
>
> #3. I see a lot of little bits o dirt and sand in the chain. The
> result of wet weather and typical road debris. Is there any way to
> help remove this, or should it just be part of a regular monthly or
> quarterly maintenance cycle?
>
http://sheldonbrown.com/chainclean.html

 

[JP]

"Jorg Lueke" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Following my ride today I started to clean the frame. I encountered a
> lot of torn up earthworms today on the tires and in the chain. But
> besides the dirt I noticed two things that are probably fine but I
> just wanted to check.
>
> #1. There's a little grease leaking out from where the stem goes into
> the frame. I'm assuming this is normal and I just wiped the excess
> away.


You mean stem that holds the handlebars?
If so that's not an issue. It's a new bike?



> #2. The chanring has some spots of orange. These are quite hard so
> I'm guessing it's a little rust. This is a 06 model year and the
> crank is the low end bontrager select which is not aluminum. Is there
> anything I should do about this? I'm guessing it was like this when I
> took the bike home on Friday.

Rust will show up overnite if a chain gets wet without enough lube.
Lube your chain with a product designed for wet conditions.
I tried a few different lubes before I settled on Boeshield T-9. Love it.



>
> #3. I see a lot of little bits o dirt and sand in the chain. The
> result of wet weather and typical road debris. Is there any way to
> help remove this, or should it just be part of a regular monthly or
> quarterly maintenance cycle?


I care for my bikes and ignore my kids' bikes.
I did have to replace one chain on a kid's mountain bike after he put it
away wet in the fall. When he took it out again in the spring many links
were frozen by rust. The chain was $12.00.
Lube it when it looks dry, wipe off the excess, don't worry about it.

 

[Jorg Lueke]

On Apr 2, 7:12 pm, "JP" <[email protected]> wrote:
> "Jorg Lueke" <[email protected]> wrote in message

> > #1. There's a little grease leaking out from where the stem goes into
> > the frame. I'm assuming this is normal and I just wiped the excess
> > away.
>
> You mean stem that holds the handlebars?
> If so that's not an issue. It's a new bike?

Yes and Yes
>
> > #2. The chanring has some spots of orange. These are quite hard so
> > I'm guessing it's a little rust. This is a 06 model year and the
> > crank is the low end bontrager select which is not aluminum. Is there
> > anything I should do about this? I'm guessing it was like this when I
> > took the bike home on Friday.
>
> Rust will show up overnite if a chain gets wet without enough lube.
> Lube your chain with a product designed for wet conditions.
> I tried a few different lubes before I settled on Boeshield T-9. Love it.
>
On further inspection this appears to be rather hard and crusty
grease. It looks like overflow form what the LBS put on the pedal/
crank connection
>
>
> > #3. I see a lot of little bits o dirt and sand in the chain. The
> > result of wet weather and typical road debris. Is there any way to
> > help remove this, or should it just be part of a regular monthly or
> > quarterly maintenance cycle?
>
> I care for my bikes and ignore my kids' bikes.
> I did have to replace one chain on a kid's mountain bike after he put it
> away wet in the fall. When he took it out again in the spring many links
> were frozen by rust. The chain was $12.00.
> Lube it when it looks dry, wipe off the excess, don't worry about it.

I suppose, it's just odd noticing all the little pieces of grit. No
wonder these things wear out eventually. I suppose I could take the
chain apart after each ride and get one of thos fancy kits I've seen
around here...

 

[Mike Kruger]

Jorg Lueke wrote:
>
> I suppose, it's just odd noticing all the little pieces of grit. No
> wonder these things wear out eventually. I suppose I could take the
> chain apart after each ride and get one of thos fancy kits I've seen
> around here...

DON'T take the chain apart often.
Use a paraffin lube -- you will lube often, but the chain will stay clean.
Get one of those kits that let you clean it on the bike.
If maintenance becomes burdensome, you won't want to ride.

 

[Jorg Lueke]

On Apr 2, 11:15 pm, "Mike Kruger" <[email protected]> wrote:
> Jorg Lueke wrote:
>
> > I suppose, it's just odd noticing all the little pieces of grit. No
> > wonder these things wear out eventually. I suppose I could take the
> > chain apart after each ride and get one of thos fancy kits I've seen
> > around here...
>
> DON'T take the chain apart often.
> Use a paraffin lube -- you will lube often, but the chain will stay clean.
> Get one of those kits that let you clean it on the bike.
> If maintenance becomes burdensome, you won't want to ride.

Oh I won't. It was just a joke based on one of the recent threads
here. I'm happy to lube the chain monthly or whenever it get
squeaky.