Chain cleaning challenged

I got my first bike in December, and my LBS told me how to take care of the chain. 1 drop of lube per link, and they recommended a rather heavy oil with which to do this once every 3-4 weeks. So I did what they directed (not thinking that I wasn't riding very often in the winter)...

So you can guess in what shape my poor chain is in after only 140 miles! My legs, sock, and shoe was a sight to behold this weekend when I cam in from my 13 mile ride...

On the advice of a friend who has been biking longer than I've been driving, I am cleaning the chain. Sunday evening I cleaned it with WD-40 - and it took quite a bit to get most of the gunk off. It may not be a good lube but it certainly removes other oil!

My next step is to spray it with Simple Green a few times - basically trying to get it in a state where I can start all over again. Simple Green is on my shopping list on the way home today :p

Tomorrow night I will oil it with a thinner lube (just a very light stream as I turn the crank) and then wipe it off.

So that is the plan - and my question is this - how often SHOULD I lube the chain? I want to do it enough but certainly don't want such a repeat. I do wipe it when I come in from a ride...

I use ProLink and apply it every 300 miles.

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Originally Posted by makbike

I use ProLink and apply it every 300 miles.

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Yep....although I aim for 150, it is probably closer to 300.

Apply ProLink to the inside of the lower part of the chain, spin the chain a couple of times and wipe it off really well. The lube is for the inside of the chain, not the outisde so wipe it down well so that you don't attract so much gunk. At the same time, wipe down the cogs, chain rings and derailleur pulleys.

The only time I use a degreaser is on my winter bikes. On those I use a heavier oil (to protect against the snow, salt and slush). That's a messy job. I much prefer the ProLink method on the road bikes.

Here's a good tip I found for cleaning a chain (assuming you have a speed link). Take a 2 litre plastic bottle of coke & drink it. Remove the chain from the bike, drop it into the bottle & add a little white spirit. Shake the bottle up, pour out the filthy white spirit & repeat until the chain is clean. Put it back on the bike & re-lube. This is much easier & more thorough than doing it on the bike.

By the way - after you lube the chain, always wipe it really thoroughly all over (until the cloth comes away clean). The chain really only needs lube on the inside - on the outside it gets all over you & attacts grit (which really wears the chain). We had a customer go through a chain in 300 miles through running it dirty & gritty through a UK winter.

Even with a Powerlink, I don't know about removing the chain to clean it (and definitely not if you don't have a SRAM Powerlink chain). Every time you push that pin through it has the potential to cause wear on the links and makes breakage more likely. Plus it's $5 every time you replace it, then. Anyway, just in terms of building your home shop, maybe a chain tool isn't the best first thing to learn to use. ;)

You'll also find differences of opinion on degreasers. I use them, but I've seen convincing opinions that they reduce the life of a chain. Honestly, I think it depends (like most things) on conditions. If what mostly gets on your chain is farm dust, mud or rain, then probably no degreaser. Simple Green, an old toothbrush, and a stream of rinse water from a pump-up garden sprayer, repeat until clean (I don't remember who it was on TE who suggested the pump-up sprayer, but it's the best cleaning tip evah - just enough pressure to force the crud out from inside the links, not enough pressure to threaten bearings; a narrow stream so it doesn't get inside the frame down the seatpost hole or elsewhere.) In the winter, I get a lot of sand, and I think that getting the sand off is more important than trying to maintain the internal lubrication of my chain.

WD-40 also tends to attract a lot of crud. If you use a degreaser, use a real one, either a water soluble one like Royal Purple or a solvent like Goo Gone. There are some that are more environmentally friendly than others - I use Park Tool brand, and I strain it through a shop-quality paper towel and re-use it.

Whatever solvent you use, when you discard it, put it in an old bottle and take it to your household hazmat disposal site. PLEASE don't pour it down the drain, on the ground or into a gutter! As for Simple Green, do be sure to rinse it off thoroughly, as it is slightly acid and will corrode metal and cloud plastic if it's allowed to stay on the surface for a long time.

I lube my chain with Pedro's Go! roughly every 300-400 miles - it depends on the lube and the conditions. If I've been riding in the rain, the chain will be dry and need new lube. A new chain I'll run in the grease that came on it until it starts getting really cruddy - that can be 5-600 miles depending on conditions. A "thin stream" of lube is too much - I usually put a drop every 3-4 links and follow with a paper towel as I'm applying it, to spread it evenly and wipe off the excess.

Um. I'm probably really the wrong person to answer since I go through chains like crazy. But at least I'll be eagerly following the responses here :D

My experience is that my chain dries out very fast. I ride a lot in winter and wet conditions, and my challenge is keeping my chain lubed enough. A couple of weeks with no riding (and lubing), my chain is orange and crinkly. So I'm liberal with the lube, preferably quite thick stuff, try to let it sit overnight and wipe off before riding. I remind myself of that by leaving a rag over the chain when it's "soaking". When I'm good about this things work fairly well.

But unfortunately wet conditions here often mean sand and gravel as well, which means a really nasty grinding sound if I forget to remove the excess lube.

I've also read that the original lube on the inside of each link is better than and hard to replace with any lube you add to the outside, so I've stopped the vigorous de-greasing of my chain. Mostly I just wipe to clean my chain, holding a rag over back of the rear jockey wheel and then the front of the forward jockey wheel to pick up both directions, spray with a thin oil to flush out a little, then add a thicker oil. If it's a real mudfest I wash over with water first.

Looking forward to more good tips on this one!

While we're on this topic, does anyone know if the Park Tool Chain Gang cleaning system is a good investment?

I am amazed at how much dirt gets in my chain, and just wiping with a rag and Simple Green doesn't get it out.

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Originally Posted by PamNY

While we're on this topic, does anyone know if the Park Tool Chain Gang cleaning system is a good investment?

I am amazed at how much dirt gets in my chain, and just wiping with a rag and Simple Green doesn't get it out.

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I just bought the Park Tool kit last week and I used it on both of my bikes recently. Since I ride every day, the chain gets really dirty and I felt like I was constantly cleaning it and never really getting it as clean as I would like. I'm very pleased with the kit. The dirt just comes right off and it is really fast. The cleaner is expensive so when it runs out, I'll buy the cleaner that I normally use from my lbs. For me, it was worth the money that I spent because it saves me time and makes me happy.:)

All of this is fantastic information, and I now understand just how many things I did wrong - to start with I should have gotten more clarification from the LBS staff - but I didn't know enough to know WHAT to clarify :o Hopefully the chain didn't get any real damage from a novice owner. I know they are not expensive, but I don't want to have to face that any sooner than I have to.

At least the gunk from the chain covered up the scars on my leg that the chain gave me in my clipless Olympics :cool:

What about the chain on my new LHT - it is quite sticky with the original lube - is it best to leave it or to remove it? It sounds like it is good to leave it for a time?

I use a dry lube on my chain to reduce the amount of gunk that gets all over me, my car, etc. The guys at the shop told me to reapply it after every 2 rides. In practice I generally do it after 3-4 rides.

I used one of those chain cleaning gizmos that you put around the chain and the brushes turn when you turn the pedals. It seems to work well enough and it only uses a little bit of cleaner each time.

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Originally Posted by ny biker

I use a dry lube on my chain to reduce the amount of gunk that gets all over me, my car, etc. The guys at the shop told me to reapply it after every 2 rides. In practice I generally do it after 3-4 rides.

I used one of those chain cleaning gizmos that you put around the chain and the brushes turn when you turn the pedals. It seems to work well enough and it only uses a little bit of cleaner each time.

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Dry lube? My trainer tells me that he tends to use either a very light oil, a dry lube, or a dry silicone in a spray can. hmmmm, this might be the way for me to go.

I lube every 100 - 200 miles or so - or when I hear any noise from the chain. Pro link is good, not too messy. Be sure to apply to the inner part of the chain - by that I mean the part that contacts with the gears. And be sure to wipe off any excess. There is a good video on how to do this at the Terry Website.

http://www.terrybicycles.com/videos

Scroll down to the one called Cleaning and Lubrication your Bike Chain

I clean the chain with one of those chain cleaning gadgets a couple times a year, filled with chain cleaner. Warning - do this outside - spinning the chain through the cleaning gadget invariably sends droplets onto the floor, or walls, not to mention your shirt. In reality I do this when I notice that the chain is looking pretty bad, shifting poorly, making noise or otherwise calling attention to itself. This may not sound like much, but my riding is split among 3 bikes, and when I do one, I do them all.

Umm..so i'm doing all wrong then?? :confused: :o

I remove my chain & cassette every couple of weeks and give them a good clean. We get an old plastic container, thow some kero and leave it for a few hours. Old cloth, some water etc etc.. It comes out darned clean ya!

We use Squirt lube or rock n roll & apply it once or twice a week. http://www.squirtlube.com/

I use the Rock n Roll lubes that claim you don't need to degrease or anything. Just wipe down the dirty chain, apply RnR liberally, and then wipe until the chain is clean. My chains are all in very good condition, even after 1000's of miles.

Thanks for the good discussion and advice. My chain is now pristine clean once again and sporting Rock and Roll Gold dry lube :) I will endeavor to have better chain-cleaning habits :rolleyes:

What really matters is the weather & road conditions. Whether it's 5 miles or 25 miles in the rain, I'll have to clean my chain. By "clean" I mean, I lube each link and run the chain through a rag for a long time. Theoretically that is "until the chain runs through the rag cleanly" but in reality it is "until I'm tired of turning the pedal by hand".

I was very proud when I got my new cassette because the mechanic said my diligent chain-cleaning really prolonged the life of the old cassette (4500 miles). He said some people come in after 1000 miles and their cassette is already trashed. Ultimately what matters is how smoothly the chain goes onto different cogs, and whether it is wearing down your cassette.

For those of us who want to be sure our chains are exceptionally clean Sheldon Brown provides clear instructions ;)

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Originally Posted by wavedancer

For those of us who want to be sure our chains are exceptionally clean Sheldon Brown provides clear instructions ;)

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Thanks for the reminder of his page - I was very, very new the first time I saw that and I wasn't sure quite what to think :p

Now that's funny.

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Originally Posted by wavedancer

For those of us who want to be sure our chains are exceptionally clean Sheldon Brown provides clear instructions ;)

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I dropped in to see if anybody had put in the Sheldon Brown link yet!

(That's one of those--read all the way through before beginning kind of things!)