Originally Posted by
FBinNY
Most of the time, people "soak" the lever assembly on the bike with a spray solvent/lube such as WD-40, or in more extreme cases Kroil or PB Blaster.
If it's easy and you're doing lots of work anyway, than take them off because it's less messy to spray or soak in a bucket. Your call.
I prefer the PB Blaster, seems to leave less of a tacky residue than wd-40.