mike09

What are some simple maintenance tips after every trail ride besides wiping down the bike? My LBS says that applying some dry lube on the chains and wiping the excess is all that is necessary. What about brakes, derailleur, etc.? Can someone please explain the differences between dry, wet, and all purpose lube? Got any other simple/quick maintenance after every trail ride? Thanks in advance!

sycophantastic

I think you're right to clean your bike afterwards. I hose my bike down after each ride and keep it in my garage so it dries pretty quickly. I have started recently to wipe off excess water and apply some dry lube or silicone-based lube to my derailleurs after each ride. I spray the deraileurs and then manipulate them a little by hand to make sure that the lube gets into the joints and springs. It helps keep the derailleurs from getting stiff.

I'm only an intermediate rider so I'll let someone else explain the differences between lubes. I will say this however...
dry lube works by creating a layer around your chain and cogs which catches dirt and then clumps and falls off. It is best to reapply it after each ride in very dry conditions. Wet lubes like Pedro's Ice Wax actually coats your moving parts to prevent water from penetrating the layer of lube.

If anyone can expand on this I would appreciate it.

jiiiim

dont forget to clean the fork and oil it

Hank Rearden

No wipe down here. I just hang them in the garage.

If my chain needs lube before the next ride, it gets some lube then. If it's winter and the bike is caked in mud, it gets a blast with the hose. If it's wet, it gets hung on the rack.

iamthetas

I lube my chain after riding so it dries before my next ride (Progold). other than that I dont do anything but check for cracks in the frame and components. I wash it about once a year , need it or not.
I figured out that besides being bad for my local trails, if I dont ride in mud I dont have to clean the bike.
if I hit real muddy patches I will do the hike-a-bike around them for the above reasons. some trails can take lots of abuse but Id rather not take the chance or have to clean the bike.

wheelhot

get this book, Zinn and the art of Mountain Bike Maintainence. Its very detailed and it even tells you how to service your bike. Very usefull although it will take time for you to understand some of the cycling terms used.

Tweek

What do you oil with?

a2psyklnut

After my ride Saturday, I watched as another rider hosed his bike off and then proceeded to wipe down his chain and re-lube it.

I told him it's best to wait until the chain dries completely before applying lube. Water can get trapped between the links and inside the rollers of the chain. Applying lube when wet, can trap the moisture in there and rust your chain from the inside.

I use a Sram power link and recommend it to everyone. I personally have never had the link come apart (others have), but for me it makes chain maintenance a breeze.

I remove the chain and drop it in a 1-liter bottle with a cap, fill it 1/3 of the way with degreaser, put the cap on and shake like crazy. I then remove the chain, rinse it with fresh water and hang to dry. I don't relube it until I put it back on the bike after it's completely dried.

As far as the rest of the bike. I hose it down, get the chunks off and stick it in the garage. I used to soap it down, but unless the ride was muddy, I just let it dry.

Occassionaly, I will lube my shifter cables. You can shift into the big chain ring / little cog and then without pedaling, shift down again. This will slacken your cables and you can pull the housing out of the frame stops without undoing you cable. I drip lube on the cable and slide the housing back and forth. If I feel a lot of grit, then I will go ahead and remove the cables from the bike completely and get new housing.

iamthetas

A2, every time you post I learn. I used to lube my chain before rides until you edumacted me on the benefits of doing it after. the tip you posted on putting the thumbs in front while climbing has helped a lot of folks Ive shared it with as well as me , especially newbies and kids.
thanks

a2psyklnut

I do what I can! Thanks for the thumbs up!

LowCel 

I only do one thing after every ride. I put my chain in the small ring in front and small ring in back. I like to take as much pressure off of the cables and springs as possible. This was just something my brother told me to do a long time ago, have no idea if it helps or not but it doesn't hurt anything.

Oh, if you have rapid rise then you would need to be in the small front, big rear to take the tension off.

DaveVictors

Absolutely, I use them too. Can't be beat. HOWEVER, you are NOT supposed to reuse them. I've only ever had 2 break, and I'd reused both of them.

Drag

A2 - Good info. Thanks!

LowCel 

I wouldn't pay too much attention to that do not reuse thing. I've reused them several times and never had a problem with one. I've never had one break.

DaveVictors

Just sharing from personal experience as both times I've reused, they've broken. Never broke a new one though.

a2psyklnut

What do you mean specifically?

Don't reuse them as in, "only take apart once and then throw away" or "don't use an old power link on a new chain"**********?

If the prior, then what would be the point? If the later, then that makes perfect sense as the link would wear as the chain wears, and thus a new link should be used on a new chain.

betes

When you say 1/3 of a bottle of degreaser, is that diluted or not? If not, then you must be going through a LOT of degreaser. I've read about that technique before and always wondered, because nobody has ever mentioned whether it's diluted or not.

DaveVictors

The power link is not meant to be reusable once engaged once. It is meant to be a simple, no-tool way to put your chain together. Instead of carrying around a chain break, you just carry around an extra powerlink.

This is straight from sram btw. I used to think the same, well if it goes together, it'll do it again. Until I broke 2 of them.

You don't have to believe me, but I'm going on personal experience here and merely offer a suggestion based on that.

LowCel 

We're not arguing that it happened to you. We are (at least I am) just stating that we have had the opposite experience. I've taken chains apart using the powerlink several times and then put them back together using the same powerlink. I've never had a problem. I even save my old powerlinks from old chains and keep them in my camelbak in case of a broken chain for either myself or others. They are generally for others though, I've only broken two chains in the last five years, both of which have been shimano.

It is very common practice for people to clean their chains the way a2 stated and then using the same powerlink to put them back together. I don't do it that way, I just use a park chain cleaner but that's just me. I generally only use a mountain bike chain about 500 miles (if that long).

a2psyklnut

Yep! +1

DaveVictors

Guess maybe I've just got bad luck.

For 5 bucks though, I'll stick to keeping a couple new ones around.

a2psyklnut

I keep 2 spares in my Camelback. To date, whenever I've had a chain/link failure it's been someplace other than the Powerlink. Maybe it's my GOOD luck.

LowCel 

Don't blame you. I buy them in six packs. It seems like I give them away on a pretty regular basis.

LowCel 

You can reuse the same bottle of degreaser several times. Whether or not you dilute it is up to you. There are several thread on this subject, a lot of people even use kerosene and such. I don't, but there are a lot of people that do. My cleaner of choice is simple green. I buy a gallon of it about every two years.

gwhunt23

You don't have to buy the expensive Pedro's stuff to degrease your chain. I believe Home Depot sells Simple Green for something like $3/gallon. That should last you a while using it undiluted.