Quote Originally Posted by luvmyguys View Post
You can clean it once it has started to rust? I mean, can you actually get the rust off (didn't think that was possible), and how will that affect the chain life and performance?
When it's bad like this I will use the chain cleaner tool, this thing:
Click image for larger version.  Name: 1386_i_1.jpg  Views: 430  Size: 15.0 KB  ID: 15961

Then lube it.

If it's really bad I might have to repeat. It would have been better if I'd dried it & lubed it right away. But I have all weekend to get it done. (I'll probably find myself doing it late tomorrow night and cursing myself for not doing it right away, or at any other time this weekend.)

I don't know how it affects chain life & performance. On my commuter, performance isn't something I notice, unless it starts skipping or something. But it's not like I'd notice if I was riding a little slower. The heavy basket and studded tires pretty well take care of that. I'll replace this chain at the end of winter whether it's ready or not. I won't replace it before the end of winter because a new chain would just get torn up with the salt & snow and I'd have to replace it at the end of winter too.

I guess my method works all right. I replace my cassette about every 3-4 chains, and I replace my chain every 1500 miles. But-- that works for me with the type of riding (daily commute) that I do. Commuting in all weather is hard on the drivetrain, and the roads in town are not as clean as the highways that I do my recreational rides on. I'm sure mountain biking on dirt and gravel is pretty rough on the drivetrain too.