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I rarely have problems with rotors etc , whenever I do I've always just used meths and a clean cloth . I do have some Parkside stuff that my mechanic mate says is shite 🤔I see it's on offer Crivit in Lidl for under £3 , the likes of Screwfix and Halfords selling Holts for not much more , which got me l
Dunno what happened there ! 🙄I was about to say Juice Lubes , Muc Off etc are over a tenner albeit bigger tins so are they in the bike specific equals double the price category?
I buy mannol or holts in big packs of 12 or more, costs hardly anything. Don't use much for bikes, though. Incredibly useful stuff, cleans sticker residue, Mysterious Goo, all sorts.
I never clean rotors. Never seen the need and you need that layer of pad material on the discs. I guess if you get grease or oil on them?
It is useful stuff tho
The Lidl stuff is relatively crap, needs lots to shift anything and takes a long time to flash off dry. Smells different to most other brake cleaners, too. I usually buy a few tins from car shops when they're reduced (quite a good item to add to a basket to get free shipping, too) so couldn't tell you what I've got at the mo. i think i'm down to my last can though, so i'll be keeping my eyes open for a while 😉
In the meantime, accessible things i usually just rub down with isopropyl alcohol that i buy in 5l bottles... and then decant maybe 200ml at a time into a smaller bottle, so when i inevitably knock it over, i don't waste too much!
This stuff is brilliant for cleaning road discs which pick up road grime/oils and MTB pads and discs which pick up contamination. Also best for mopping up spills and dribbles during a brake bleed.
https://www.eurocarparts.com/p/triple-qx-brake-and-clutch-cleaner-600ml-new-formula-542779000
Ive used Isopropyl alcohol on disc brakes for over 10 years
cheaper than disc brake cleaner and can be used on electrical components also
Buy a 5 litre bottle for around £15 and decant it into a small spray bottle
Both the places I use to get my bikes serviced use alcohol, and reckon Mucoff disc cleaner was making my squeaky brakes worse. Stopoed using disc cleaner and the brakes are much better
Anything with Mucoff on the label is well worth avoiding.
Anything with Mucoff on the label is well worth avoiding.
Yeah, they're whole business model seems to be rebranding cheap products and adding a huge mark up. They don't sell a single item that you can't get a better/cheaper version of elsewhere. Latest example is their new Snow Foam sprayer. They're about 7 quid on AliExpress, minus the pink bits.
As for brake cleaning, I just used isopropyl alcohol on the one occasion I've needed to.
Snake oil. Washing kills bikes. Wipe the drivetrain clean after a ride (and the stanchions if you're one of those weirdos with suspension). Mudguards keep you clean above the knee, and prevent cack getting into your headset.
having to hold myself back from suggesting WD40 as the obvious choice... 😬 😉
Anything with Mucoff on the label is well worth avoiding.
Yeah, they're whole business model seems to be rebranding cheap products and adding a huge mark up. They don't sell a single item that you can't get a better/cheaper version of elsewhere. Latest example is their new Snow Foam sprayer. They're about 7 quid on AliExpress, minus the pink bits.
As for brake cleaning, I just used isopropyl alcohol on the one occasion I've needed to.
*Their
FFS
I only ever use Isopropyl cheap off Ebay a couple of litres at a time no need for anything else at silly prices.
i get carb cleaner from costco at not a lot for 12 tins - i also have a squirty bottle filled with isopropyl alcohol either does the job
I remember needed a bleed/fix for my brakes in Les Arcs, the lad in the shop pulled my brake apart, spilled fluid all over the rotor, frame, etc
I was horrified, he just shrugged. Didn't even wipe it down, just sprayed with his brake cleaner. They were perfect.
Dunno what brand it was, but it was proper.
I have some Lidl stuff. More squirts back over your hand than out the nozzle. I mostly use it for cleaning the rotors on my KTM. I'm prepped for it running out by getting IPA from ebay as it seems a lot of people here do. I must have got the idea from here.
+1 for simple isopropyl alcohol. I've also used the peatys brake cleaner before, it's a highly pressurised can that helps get any brake fluid out from the holes in the disc and worked a treat after a leaky calliper seal.