Bicycle Mechanics - Bikecleaning; high or low pressure?

Bikecleaning; its a dirty job but everybody around here`s go to do it!
So i was wondering wat is the best way,

A: with low pressure water and a brush, better for the bearings, but you can`t clean all parts well.

B: with high pressure water, take out the wheels, clean the frame and get rid of all the dirt on your bike, even the though spots, than clean your wheels manually.

Whats your choice, opinion or tip?

Regards,

sod the powerhose mr toolfreak. get your bike on a workstand, clean your chain with a chain bath, with a decent degreaser in it. get your chain, sprockets and chainrings all spick and span wash off the degreaser(use a toothbrush to get into all the nooks and crannies). then working down from the top of the bike, clean it with soapy water and a decent rag or flannel, i always take the wheels out and clean them seperate. rinse it off with water, leave it to dry or dry it off and try to get all the water out of the allen key bolts so they don't rust up. no need to worry about this if all your bolts are titanium! make sure everything is dry and super, stick the wheels back in, dry off the chain by back pedalling it through a clean dry rag. then i use 'finish line - cross country lube' dripping a drip on each link. spin the pedals round for a min, going through the gears, then wipe off the excess lube with a rag. your bike will now look super clean and fresh and sexy new and i can assure you, you will enjoy riding your bike when it looks this way! and you will get more satisfaction doing it this way than powerhosing it. at least when your legs have died, your bike looks good:)

laters, cabledonut.

p.s. - keep on top of cleaning your bike, then it doesn't get too messed up, which makes it less of a ball-ache of a job next time!

hurrah!

High pressure water can be bad for your components. Derailleurs, chains, etc. can be harmed by blasts of high pressure. The chain is probably the single most important thing to keep clean, but it's much better to clean it manually or with a cleaning kit than with high pressure water.

you shouldent have any problems spraying high pressure straight at your components, After every muddy ride, I spray all the mud and crap off, then get into the fine details when I get it hanging up. I dont use a pressure washer, but my hose is pretty dang powerful.

When I said don't use high pressure water, I was thinking specifically of the super-concentrated blasts from the self-serve car washes.

yea, that might hurt the bike a little:) it would probably blast the paint off of my klein!!! EEK:crash: :crash: lol

Thanks for the feedback, Cabledonut, i use Finish Line to, great stuff and better than PTFE.

VisiousCycle, isn`t it true that derailleurs have glidebearings instead of ballbearings, so you can powerhose them as long as you grease them after the cleaning, am i right or is my conclusion wrong?

The point is that i can`t clean my derailleurs well without water, the working of these "things" depend not only on proper adjusment and cablehousing, but also on cleaning.

Whats the best way to clean a derialleur good?

Regards,

The best way to clean a chain is to take it off, put it in a 2-litre pop bottle, add some citrus degreaser, then shake like hell. Rinse out with water, remove the chain, let it dry, then re-mount the chain. I get about 5000 miles on a chain this way, without any stretch.

Originally posted by toolfreak

ViciousCycle, isn`t it true that derailleurs have glidebearings instead of ballbearings, so you can powerhose them as long as you grease them after the cleaning, am i right or is my conclusion wrong?


You are correct. There are no ballbearings in a derailleur. Just be very mindful of where you aim the hose. Of course, if you use a garden hose, there's less risk than if you use a car wash sprayer. (I've never used a car wash sprayer on my bike. Allegedly, the car wash sprayers can force water into the bearings, etc. where water should not be.)

(Ugh. Winter is coming, which means the local governments will throw a ton of salt on the roads. Nasty stuff for bikes. Far harder on bikes than ordinary dirtiness.)

There are bearings in a XTR and DURA-ACE rear derailleurs in the two main pivots !!

Just do as I do and don't clean the bike (other than dismantling the moving bits to regrease etc. periodically)

I'm sure my bike still has some sand from the beach at Schevenegen(sp?) from about 6 years ago.

Seriously, I use a bucket and brushes or sponge.

Originally posted by chewa


I'm sure my bike still has some sand from the beach at Schevenegen(sp?) from about 6 years ago

:D LOL

D*Alex, you get 5000 miles out of one chain!? do you ride on glass cranks!? do you freewheel everywhere!? i was always led to believe that every time you take off the chain it weakens it. but in saying that when i was a super keen junior, just starting out, i used to remove the chain and rings to clean them and it got them spotless. but now i'm a lazy, 'has been', overweight, old biker, all dreams of becoming a pro out of the window..........blah blah blah............and cleaning a bike is now done with less enthusiasm. chain baths work ok, so i'll stick to that method!

cabledonut.

I use only SRAM pc68 chains with masterlinks. I never need a chain tool to break the chain, and a fresh masterlink goes on after about 2000 miles.