Chain cleaning tools
#26
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^^^^ I realize there are many ways to take care of chains. Damage? Stretch? Removing all oil inside and replace with cleaner and water? Lots of bikes and lots of stuff to work on. I measure and replace as needed. Don't spend a lot of time cleaning chains. Mt bikes usually see a new chain and cassette each spring, commuters as needed. Currently on a 3 chain rotation for the newer 1x11 fat bike drivetrain. Just like tires and brake pads, they are a wear item, replace as needed.
To be clear, I don't spend a lot of time cleaning chains either. They get cleaned once when they are installed and then I use a chain lubricant that doesn't provide a vehicle for contamination to become trapped. I don't suffer from chainring tattoos nor do I have to wear a hazmat suit to handle the chain.
Finally, I fully agree that chains are a wear item. I'd go further and say that people obsess way too much about their chains. But most of that is because they use lubricants that require them to obsess about the filthiness of their chains.
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#27
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how do you get rid of the mineral spirits? i cleaned a cassette yesterday and i'm seeing if it will evaporate leaving the sludge for me to clean with paper towels.
how may minutes with the us cleaner for a chain?
how may minutes with the us cleaner for a chain?
#28
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Eliminating the solvent from inside the chain is pretty straight forward. Wicking- by wrapping with paper towels, rags. Compressed air- blasting the liquids mostly out. Draining- gravity. But all these don't fully remove the solvent from insides of the links. (BTW water based solvents have the same issues). So time to evaporate or add heat to hasten this. Andy
#29
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Eliminating the solvent from inside the chain is pretty straight forward. Wicking- by wrapping with paper towels, rags. Compressed air- blasting the liquids mostly out. Draining- gravity. But all these don't fully remove the solvent from insides of the links. (BTW water based solvents have the same issues). So time to evaporate or add heat to hasten this. Andy
I'm not a fan, by the way, of using compressed air to blow out mineral spirits. While mineral spirits does have a high flash point, blowing it into an aerosol form increases the flammability significantly.
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#30
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I would agree with one exception. Water-based solvents indeed have the same issues but it also has water in it. Water takes longer to evaporate and mineral spirits don't serve as a vehicle for metal oxidation.
I'm not a fan, by the way, of using compressed air to blow out mineral spirits. While mineral spirits does have a high flash point, blowing it into an aerosol form increases the flammability significantly.
I'm not a fan, by the way, of using compressed air to blow out mineral spirits. While mineral spirits does have a high flash point, blowing it into an aerosol form increases the flammability significantly.
Good point about water being an oxidizer increaser. And while I understand the flash point/vapor issue (using compressed air) I will say that in 40+ years of shop wrenching I have never heard or experienced said problem.
I have heard of auto mechanics who while smoking a cigarette and then releasing the pressure from a tire which had been inflated with an aerosol can/fix a flat and having what was basically a flame thrower directed at their face. Andy.
#31
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My favorite chain cleaning tool is cash. When my chain gets grimy, I replace it. Is that environmentally unfriendly?
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#32
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I too do this. A basic chain that is decent is less than $20. I just replace my chain every spring and call it good. During the riding season i lube as needed and wipe off excess and call it good. Just easier to buy it once a year than to mess with it.
#33
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This is the post I was waiting for. I too stopped cleaning chains altogether-- because it doesn't make a difference. Meticulously maintained or simply wiped down when dirty, chains last the same amount of time. There is no increased wear on the rest of the drivetrain, either-- my current cassette has around 9,500 miles on it, has lived through three uncleaned chains, and itself been cleaned only once-- just because I couldn't bring myself to put the dirty cassette on a brand new rear wheel.
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#34
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What's the Park Tools cleaning fluid? Is it a mixture of lemon juice and something else? I'm think of mixing lemon juice and vinegar.
I was also weary about dumping the fluid even if it is supposed to be environmentally friendly. So I keep the used stuff in a yogurt container. Besides, if I do dump it, it can go on the asphalt driveway. The driveway already has all these toxins from gasoline, motor oil and bitumen anyways.
I was also weary about dumping the fluid even if it is supposed to be environmentally friendly. So I keep the used stuff in a yogurt container. Besides, if I do dump it, it can go on the asphalt driveway. The driveway already has all these toxins from gasoline, motor oil and bitumen anyways.
#35
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You might have a chance of removing grease if you used glacial (100%) acetic acid but you wouldn't like the smell and it is very caustic to your tissues, including the mucus membrane. Imagine the smell of vinegar multiplied by about 20 times.
"Green" cleaners often aren't all that "green". If you use more of a cleaner, you've just created more of a waste stream. A cup of mineral spirits (in a bottle but not a chain "cleaner") can clean 6 to 12 chains or even more. To do the same work with a "green" cleaner, you'll have to use about a gallon of cleaner per chain. I'll leave it as an exercise for the reader to determine which is "cleaner", a cup of waste or 6 to 12 gallons
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Solo Without Pie. The search for pie in the Midwest.
Picking the Scablands. Washington and Oregon, 2005. Pie and spiders on the Columbia River!
#36
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I really appreciate that perspective, @cyccommute. It's good to know the truth about this stuff.
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#37
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I use the chain cleaning tool that came with a can of white lightning de-greaser. I removed the de-greaser can and clamped it to a can of Tri-Flo. I spray and spin for 4-5 seconds with it clamped around the chain and then run the chain another 10 seconds or so with no spray and then grab the chain with a towel and spin until the dirt is gone. This leaves the chain clean, with plenty of lube to set up in the rollers. It does not make a mess while doing it if you are careful but you will get some splatter on the floor if you are on a trainer for the first ride. Of course a little spatter will hit the bike on the first ride as well but a few second swipe with the de-greaser takes care of that. I can ride 500+ miles and still see a nice wetness seeping out of all the rollers.
It's a simple process and one can of Tri-Flo has lasted a few years with multiple bikes and two tandems and makes for a very quiet drive train.
It's a simple process and one can of Tri-Flo has lasted a few years with multiple bikes and two tandems and makes for a very quiet drive train.
#38
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I use the chain cleaning tool that came with a can of white lightning de-greaser. I removed the de-greaser can and clamped it to a can of Tri-Flo. I spray and spin for 4-5 seconds with it clamped around the chain and then run the chain another 10 seconds or so with no spray and then grab the chain with a towel and spin until the dirt is gone. This leaves the chain clean, with plenty of lube to set up in the rollers. It does not make a mess while doing it if you are careful but you will get some splatter on the floor if you are on a trainer for the first ride. Of course a little spatter will hit the bike on the first ride as well but a few second swipe with the de-greaser takes care of that. I can ride 500+ miles and still see a nice wetness seeping out of all the rollers.
It's a simple process and one can of Tri-Flo has lasted a few years with multiple bikes and two tandems and makes for a very quiet drive train.
It's a simple process and one can of Tri-Flo has lasted a few years with multiple bikes and two tandems and makes for a very quiet drive train.
Cleaning the chain on the bike is not very effective. The crud on the outside is meaningless unless you wash it into the chain where wear occurs making grinding compound. I started using an ultrasonic cleaner years ago and have gotten 16k and 19k plus miles on chains on my two bikes.
#39
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Cleaning the chain on the bike is not very effective. The crud on the outside is meaningless unless you wash it into the chain where wear occurs making grinding compound. I started using an ultrasonic cleaner years ago and have gotten 16k and 19k plus miles on chains on my two bikes.
Good luck!
#40
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My chain cleaning is very simple. I take an old t-shirt in hand, grip the chain near the bottom of the chainring and briskly pull backward toward the rear derailleur. Pull and repeat until chain is clean. I then take Marvel Mystery Oil and do drip trick just one drop across the pins. Spin the crank several revs, wipe off excess. I do this every 3 weeks or couple hundred miles. MMO will deep clean the rollers and sufficiently lube. Simple and effective. My chains have satisfactory longevity and last 2-3 seasons with no troubles.
#41
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I got this one last year, also a White Lightning, but a different model. Not too bad for ten bucks but fell apart quickly. But it worked well enough that I'm planning to buy a better chain cleaning tool. Gets between the links better than anything else I've tried, including manually brushing by hand.
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Yup, that's the one. It's held up well. Just be careful that you don't let it spill after cleaning, especially after the can is half empty. The used lube does evaporates in between uses.
Is it this White Lightning chain cleaning tool?
*****
I got this one last year, also a White Lightning, but a different model. Not too bad for ten bucks but fell apart quickly. But it worked well enough that I'm planning to buy a better chain cleaning tool. Gets between the links better than anything else I've tried, including manually brushing by hand.
*****
I got this one last year, also a White Lightning, but a different model. Not too bad for ten bucks but fell apart quickly. But it worked well enough that I'm planning to buy a better chain cleaning tool. Gets between the links better than anything else I've tried, including manually brushing by hand.
#43
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A solution is to use a solvent that actually evaporates as at decent pace. 4t Alkylate petrol (for chainsaws) for instance evaporates at a much higher rate than water based degreasers and mineral spirits. It also doesn't leave a oily residue.
#44
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I have tried all of the chain mounted cleaners and none worked well for me. I am a bit on the clumsy side and I would end up making a mess of things, regardless of the tool I used.
So I finally got an ultrasonic cleaners like this one:
2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner
I simply remove the chain (I use KMC Mssing Link) put the chain in the cleaner's basket and after a couple of minutes, Voila! a clean chain.
I use a mixture of water and Dawn dish detergent.
After removing the chain I thoroughly dry it, put it back on the bike using a new Missing Link, apply oil and I am good to go.
The ultrasonic cleaner is also good for cleaning cassette cogs and othe small bits.
Good luck.
So I finally got an ultrasonic cleaners like this one:
2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner
I simply remove the chain (I use KMC Mssing Link) put the chain in the cleaner's basket and after a couple of minutes, Voila! a clean chain.
I use a mixture of water and Dawn dish detergent.
After removing the chain I thoroughly dry it, put it back on the bike using a new Missing Link, apply oil and I am good to go.
The ultrasonic cleaner is also good for cleaning cassette cogs and othe small bits.
Good luck.
#46
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The older I get the less I think about chain life! Probability is very good that next new chain will outlive me. Wipe it with a terry rag once in awhile and done.
#47
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Quick link, and a can with solvent in it.. Open the chain take it off soak it in the solvent, hang it . Put it back on. re oil..