Cleaning my drivetrain

[OakLeaf]

I use Simple Green for everything (almost )

The only thing about it is that it's slightly acid, so you have to rinse very thoroughly. As long as you do that, it's harmless.

What I actually want to try next for waterless drivetrain cleaning is CitraSolv. It claims to contain no petroleum distillates and no toxic solvents (unlike most of the citrus degreasers on the market). Anyone use that? TriFlow is seriously toxic.

[Mr. SR500]

ProLink Gold, best stuff ever, and I've tried them all. Cleans and lubes. I usually do it about once a week in season. Chains last almost forever with proper maintenance. Use Prolink to wash away dirt and old lube, keep drying/cleaning chain with paper towel. After you no longer get a lot of "black" on your paper towel, but mostly a grey, chain is clean. Give one last application and sock up any excess with a paper towel. If done regularly, it only takes a couple minutes, a bottle of lube will last a couple months, and you only need a few paper towels. Quick, easy and works great - quiet drivetrain, long chain life, and no rust.

[li10up]

I spray the entire drivetrain with Simple Green, let sit for a few minutes than rinse off with no pressure. If it's really dirty I'll use Simple Green in one of those drive chain cleaner do-hickies and then rinse with water. I clean the jockey wheels with a rag/small brush then take a rag to the chain until it's "clean". Then I lube the chain and wipe off any extra lube. Then I take the rear wheel off and take a brush/rag to the cogs. After the drivetrain is clean I wash the bike. Works for me.

[firenze11]

Thanks this was a huge help. I think I'll take a cloth and floss the cogs tonight to get the grit out from my last outdoor ride and leave it at that for awhile. I might try the Simple Green thing when I can start riding outside in Spring, that way I'll have access to a hose to wash it off well and dry it down.

And thanks for the tips on lube preferences/use. I've been using mine to clean the black junk off the chain so that seems to be working ok. It just seems like it gets black again pretty quickly.

Oh and I'm in awe of all of you riding outside in the snow/slush. Being really new at this I can't imagine me doing that right now but I think you're pretty amazing. We have so much snow up here I can't make it to our barn (it's down a little trail from our house) without snowshoes anymore.