Originally Posted by
Gramercy
I've only actually wiped it down once and have about 500 miles on it, so it's black and disgusting. The last time I used an old T shirt and just threw it away because it was covered in soot after cleaning it. Would paper towels do the trick as washing a cloth with this much dirt would be useless? I noticed the bike isn't shifting as smoothly as it used to and I figured this may be the reason.
Install a Missing Link (or a similar item) on your chain to make removal of the chain easier. Then remove the chain from the bike, dip it into a container filled with enough chain cleaner to over the chain. I use Park's citrus cleaner, it is pretty good and safer for the environment than other products. Depending on how dirty your chain is, rinse and repeat until chain is clean. Re-install chain, lube it (don't over lube it). You should be fine.
BTW, I doubt that your chain was covered in
soot. From the Wiki:
Soot /ˈsʊt/ is impure
carbon particles resulting from the incomplete combustion of
hydrocarbons. It is more properly restricted to the product of the gas-phase combustion process but is commonly extended to include the residual
pyrolyzed fuel particles such as
coal,
cenospheres, charred wood,
petroleum coke, and so on, that may become airborne during
pyrolysis and that are more properly identified as cokes or chars. Soot is theorized to be the second largest cause of
global warming.[SUP]
Good luck.
Ride often, ride safely. [/SUP]