Viewing 31 posts - 1 through 31 (of 31 total)
  • Degreaser, Halfords is too expensive!
  • biglee1
    Full Member

    Hiya folks, Im looking to get some degreaser for chain cleaning duties but halfords stuff at £10 for a litre is getting a bit expensive. Any suggestions of something a bit better value that wont peel my skin off or kill all the wildlife when I pour it down the drain?

    Chars

    Lee

    lerk
    Free Member

    Meths, or petrol… But don’t pour it down the drain!

    biglee1
    Full Member

    and do what with it? 😀

    scaredypants
    Full Member

    hmmmm, diesel probably a teeeny bit safer, lerk ! 😀

    (reusable many times over – just keep it in a sealable tub & swish the chain round in there)

    4 and a bit litres for a fiver

    flicker
    Free Member

    Paraffin.

    I’ve a jam jar with paraffin in and a jam jar with fresh oil in. Soak the chain in paraffin for a while, quick wipe off then into the oil, job done.

    flossie
    Free Member

    Screwfix no nonsense heavy duty degreaser!

    A gallon of the stuff is about £8. It’s an odourless detergent based degreaser which is quite concentrated, so good on transmission, you can dilute it down and hey presto cheap as chips muck off!

    Conan257
    Free Member

    +1 for Screwfix, my 5l has lasted ages.

    househusband
    Free Member

    Brake/clutch for a tenner or so from your local motor factor; works for me – and you don’t need much!

    Northwind
    Full Member

    Paraffin here too, pretty reusable as well so the 5 litre bottle I bought a few years back will maybe see out the decade.

    cyclistm
    Free Member

    Flicker, what oil do you dip the chain in?

    project
    Free Member

    Brake cleaner aerosol from toolstation about 2.50 and swarfega, oil and grease remover 5 lts for about 8.50, can be watered down and bio degradeable. works well.

    flicker
    Free Member

    I use whatever engine oil I’ve got on the shelf. Half fill the jam jar, that fill then lasts months. I do between 50 and 100 miles a week commuting, mostly offroad so do the chain every couple of weeks.

    stoney
    Free Member

    Paraffin or White Spirit/ turps

    sbob
    Free Member

    Loctite 7840 natural blue.
    Biodegradeable and cheap, works a treat.
    It’s what I used to use when I worked for a machine shop.

    brokenbanjo
    Full Member

    I use white spirit. Have a small amount in a jar. Drop chain in, leave whilst cleaning cassette etc. Give it a judicious shake, wipe then leave to dry. Put on bike and coat liberally with dry lube. Just a question, would melted candle wax work as a chain lube 0r would it be too brittle?

    sandwicheater
    Full Member

    People clean there chains!! Everyday is a school day.

    Clobber
    Free Member

    Sheldon Brown has the answer as always…

    thisisnotaspoon
    Free Member

    Various solutions,

    1) chain cleaner thungymabob, I got the muckoff one what attaches to a spray can, dunno how long it’ll last but a few seconds of spraying leaves the chain spotless so it’s worth it for the lack of faff. rinse with a hose, spray with WD40, and lube as nomral (see 2).

    2) never clean the chain, just wipe off the mud, ad more chain lube and wipe off ALL the excess before the next ride. The chain should be almost dry on the outside. If it’s oily then that attracts dirt and makes things worse. The chain should be spotless and oil free on the outside before the ride otherwise it only gets worse.

    3) jamjar of white spirit/petrol/diesel. Dirt cheap, no detergent so no need to rinse the chain before oiling, just put it bakc on the bike and let it dry. Some roadies make a mix of petrol and oil for this, the petrol evoapoates leaving a very thin coating of oil.

    4) putoline tin wax, the most faff, but even in winter it lasts weeks (does wash off if it’s really bad, but it has to be so bad that nothing else would survive, brake pads gone inside 5 miles, car park flooded, tractors to pull the cars out of the mud, endurance racing kinda bad).

    Northwind
    Full Member

    Putoline chain wax is the business, I’ve not come across anything else that comes close. On the other hand, you’re more likely to burn your house down while applying it than you are with other lubes.

    FWIW, Sheldon was a roadie and always very quick to assume that worked for his own situation was the best for absolutely everyone.

    Stevelol
    Free Member

    Sheldon Brown has the answer as always…

    Is that a troll? 😀 Who in their right mind would DISSASSEMBLE A CHAIN to clean it?!

    I chuck some muc-off in a finish line cleaner, 2 minutes of back pedalling, scrubbing and rinsing and it’s fine. Life is too short write off a Saturday in your biohazard suit cleaning your links with a cotton bud.

    northernmatt
    Full Member

    You didn’t scroll all the way to the bottom then?

    Stevelol
    Free Member

    No I didn’t 😀 bwahahaha.

    In my defense, there was a rat, and it was definitely smelt.

    Clobber
    Free Member

    Is that a troll? Who in their right mind would DISSASSEMBLE A CHAIN to clean it?!

    I chuck some muc-off in a finish line cleaner, 2 minutes of back pedalling, scrubbing and rinsing and it’s fine. Life is too short write off a Saturday in your biohazard suit cleaning your links with a cotton bud.

    FWIW, Sheldon was a roadie and always very quick to assume that worked for his own situation was the best for absolutely everyone.

    He shoots… 😀

    Northwind
    Full Member

    Nah, I was referring to Sheldon’s serious comments on the subject that get treated as gospel, not the joke article.

    freeagent
    Free Member

    White spirit in old 500ml coke bottle.
    Share vigorously then tip the used white spirit through a coffee filter back into the white spirit bottle.
    I’v had a 750ml bottle of white spirit on the go for months.

    breninbeener
    Full Member

    A while ago, people were recommending viro-sol. You can get 2x5l for £20 delivered

    TurnerGuy
    Free Member

    I just scrub the chain whilst on the bike with a toothbrush with mucoff on – plus brush the rd cogs clean and any chainrings that need it – sometimes with a more specific brush if I need to get between the cogs.

    Then hose to rinse, towel, and oil.

    fooman
    Full Member

    I can second viro-sol, it’s citrus based and much better for you and the environment, plus it smells nice too.

    andyv
    Free Member

    Jizer from the local farmers merchants (Mole Valley down ere in the SW) About a £15 for the 5L that lasts me about 10 years. reusable too if you’re inclined to filter it out.

    jonathan
    Free Member

    Viro-sol is excellent. Pretty much as good as stuff 4x the price.

    biglee1
    Full Member

    Thanks for the suggestions 😀 I think I’ll have a look at my local screwfix 😀

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