Quote Originally Posted by yellow
The only $0.02 I would add is that it's worth the investment to get a workstand. It makes doing all that maintenance easier. Get one that has adjustable height so it can be tweaked to accommodate whatever you are working on.
...A bike stand (good one - nice and steady) and the proper cleaning brushes. For years I made do with rags and paint brushes. A friend finally bought me proper bike cleaning brushes including a cassette brush which is heaven sent!!! Now cleaning is fun and easy. My friend (a properly anal-retentive bike geek who breaks down and cleans his bikes after every ride) showed me how to properlu lube my chain after cleaning. I used to just roll the chain, spray on the lube and then wipe off the excess. WRONG! (he screamed!) Although it takes alittle longer it is worth the effort, I now use a good lube (I like Pro Link) and put only a drop on every link connection starting at teh Conex Link and going all around then after the lube has had a chance to set in, I back pedal the chain and gently wipe. My chain, cassette and bikes have stayed remarkedly clean.

Another thing I learned - no brushes or dirty rags on the mountain bike shock and forks. They can cause scratches and thus prevent the seals from working properly. Soft clean rags and then a lube such as Tri Flow ad gently wipe.