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
Meths, or petrol... But don't pour it down the drain!
and do what with it? 😀
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
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.
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!
+1 for Screwfix, my 5l has lasted ages.
Brake/clutch for a tenner or so from your local motor factor; works for me - and you don't need much!
Paraffin here too, pretty reusable as well so the 5 litre bottle I bought a few years back will maybe see out the decade.
Flicker, what oil do you dip the chain in?
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.
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.
Paraffin or White Spirit/ turps
Loctite 7840 natural blue.
Biodegradeable and cheap, works a treat.
It's what I used to use when I worked for a machine shop.
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?
People clean there chains!! Everyday is a school day.
[url= http://sheldonbrown.com/chainclean.html ]Sheldon Brown[/url] has the answer as always...
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).
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.
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.
You didn't scroll all the way to the bottom then?
No I didn't 😀 bwahahaha.
In my defense, there was a rat, and it was definitely smelt.
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... 😀
Nah, I was referring to Sheldon's serious comments on the subject that get treated as gospel, not the joke article.
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.
A while ago, people were recommending viro-sol. You can get 2x5l for £20 delivered
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.
I can second viro-sol, it's citrus based and much better for you and the environment, plus it smells nice too.
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.
Viro-sol is excellent. Pretty much as good as stuff 4x the price.
Thanks for the suggestions 😀 I think I'll have a look at my local screwfix 😀