Drivetrain De-Greasing
 

As I'm transitioning into running more as the weather gets colder, I'm wanting to clean up my bike for winter storage. The drivetrain has loads of that sticky black gunk on it, and my brother's taken the chain cleaner with him to college. I've used turpenoid often enough to remove that grease from my hands... would it be safe to use some soaked into a rag to clean off the bicycle components? Or is it corrosive/harmful?

Never used it myself. I either use proper degreaser in a bath (like the ones in car garages) or if it's not that bad, I'll use a bit of Muc-Off or some other soapy solution.

Get a rag, soak it in that kind of stuff and then wash all the crap off with water. Then, when it's dry, apply some decent lube so that the whole lot doesn't cease over the winter.

I'm a painter so I have Turpenoid, and Turpenoid Natural (in the green can) in my studio. I have tried both on bike parts that were so crusty with black gunk that I thought they couldn't be saved. The Turpenoid, which is basically just odorless mineral spirits, did NOT cut the really nasty stuff, even when soaked in a jar for days and days. However, the Turpenoid Natural, which is a citrus-based solvent, completely removed all the fossilized black crap in a matter of an hour or so. I couldn't believe it. I used it straight, and soaked a chain in it that had at least a decade's worth of horrible black nastiness on it (this was on a used bike I bought and was trying to salvage). Soaked it, rinsed it in water, came out clean as a whistle. Turpenoid Natural is safer than Turpenoid, but you still NEED to wear gloves and work in a ventilated place. Always. And don't use any kind of mineral spirits like Turpenoid on your skin, it is absorbed into your system. The water based solvents like Turpenoid Natural, Pedro's, Simple Green, don't do this nearly as much and are much better for you and the earth. And they work.

Turpenoid Natural might work as lawkd said, but lacquer thinner is MUCH cheaper and does the same job.

Ricardo

Yes it is flammable, but most of us are intelligen people, so you are not going to smoke while cleaning your chain. And the disposal is not that hard... any gas station will receive it for disposal without charging a dime.

Your comment about Bogota (not Bogata), I hope no pun was intended.

Cheers,

Ricardo