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Rolling my pants up does not really work - chain stain

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Old 08-02-10, 07:01 PM
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Rolling my pants up does not really work - chain stain

I'm not the creative type. How do I keep long pants from getting chain grease stains other than installing a chain guard which I don't think will fit on my bike. I'm thinking there has to be something really easy and cheap to do - my legs are bigger so pants rolling is out. TIA
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Old 08-02-10, 07:05 PM
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Use rubberbands around your ankle to keep your pants off of your chain.
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Old 08-02-10, 07:08 PM
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Velcro straps.
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Old 08-02-10, 07:32 PM
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Tuck the leg into your sock. Who the hell needs a rubber band or velcro straps when we have socks? Less to forget or lose as well....


And if you say you're wearing sandles with no socks with long pants then you're a hippy and a little grease on the pant leg will just be seen as part of your heritage....
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Old 08-02-10, 07:36 PM
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There are velcro bands specifically for wrapping your ankle. They're sometimes reflective or light up. I use these in the winter as I don't like tucking my pants into my socks. If I'm wearing sandals, I'll roll my pant legs up. You only need to roll it up twice.
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Old 08-02-10, 07:40 PM
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Some of us don't wear crew socks.

Rubber bands tend to break too soon for me; I use 10" ball bungees from an auto store... properly altered, they're near-perfect.

Break off the ball, shorten up the elastic, and use them around your ankles.
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Old 08-02-10, 07:49 PM
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I wear shorts when I ride. Carry long pants with me or keep them staged at work. I ruined too many pairs of pants and gave up. Shorts are the only way to go for me.

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Old 08-02-10, 08:05 PM
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I've used toe straps before.
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Old 08-02-10, 08:09 PM
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To beat chain stain, wear black pants. Keep them tight by wearing black socks.
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Old 08-02-10, 08:54 PM
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I really like the Nathan Acid Reflex. It's a wickedly visible reflective slap band with built-in LEDs for night use. The fact that it helps to keep grease off of your pants is just a nice side benefit. I leave it wrapped around my head tube until I need it for my leg.



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Old 08-02-10, 09:08 PM
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Put this on my bike last week. Seems to work OK

https://www.velo-orange.com/suchgu.html
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Old 08-02-10, 09:15 PM
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I wear shorts year round when riding.
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Old 08-02-10, 09:42 PM
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I don't have the luxury of wearing shorts year round in my climate, so a reflective velcro strap is what I use. Of course, now that I'm riding a belt-driven bike chain stains are a non-issue.
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Old 08-02-10, 10:09 PM
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Originally Posted by episodic
I'm not the creative type. How do I keep long pants from getting chain grease stains other than installing a chain guard which I don't think will fit on my bike. I'm thinking there has to be something really easy and cheap to do - my legs are bigger so pants rolling is out. TIA
Don't use grease on your chain! Honestly, chains don't have to look like they have escaped from the La Brea Tar Pits. A wax based lube does a very good job in most conditions and doesn't leave behind oil to get all over everywhere. I haven't had chain leg in 15 years.
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Old 08-02-10, 10:19 PM
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My pants don't get chain stains when they're rolled up in my pannier. I don't care if I get a black mark on my calf during the summer (alcohol-based hand sanitizer takes it right off anyway), and in the winter I wear tights that tend to stay out of the chain. Either way, when I get to work all hot and sweaty, I can change clothes, rinse off my face, and I'm good to go - no sweat-smelling clothing, and no chain marks.
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Old 08-03-10, 05:10 AM
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I second the cyccomute's idea about the chain wax. I use White Lightning and Maxxum Chain Wax on my bicycles and my HD Sportster. The Sportster goes many hundreds of miles between chain adjustments, and doesn't fling oil all over the wheel, the rider, etc. Wax is great!
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Old 08-03-10, 09:17 AM
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shorts are money, son.
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Old 08-03-10, 10:26 AM
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Originally Posted by BCRider
Tuck the leg into your sock. Who the hell needs a rubber band or velcro straps when we have socks? Less to forget or lose as well....


And if you say you're wearing sandles with no socks with long pants then you're a hippy and a little grease on the pant leg will just be seen as part of your heritage....
+1 to both parts. If I'm not wearing socks, neither am I wearing pants long enough to worry about rolling up.
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Old 08-03-10, 10:39 AM
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Originally Posted by bhop
I wear shorts year round when riding.
bhop - Location: Los Angeles
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Old 08-03-10, 01:25 PM
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When I ride with pants I usually wear a reflective band made by Jandd. I wish I could wear shorts year round.
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Old 08-03-10, 02:25 PM
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Originally Posted by bhop
I wear shorts year round when riding.
+1 sometimes LA does have it's advantages
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Old 11-10-10, 10:30 AM
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Buy a big roll of Velcro. Zillion uses on a bike, including pants minder.
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Old 11-10-10, 10:42 AM
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Hiking gaiters.
When I was commuting (I work from home now), I used something like these: https://www.rei.com/product/778002

Last edited by Shimagnolo; 11-10-10 at 10:47 AM.
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Old 11-10-10, 10:45 AM
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Picked up a pair of reflective velcro straps. Works real well.
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Old 11-10-10, 11:06 AM
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Originally Posted by wunderkind
Picked up a pair of reflective velcro straps. Works real well.
Same thing here basically. Have a RoadID ankle strap and wrap the right leg. No grease, reflector and body tag - three birds with one stone.
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