Chain cleaner

Looking for a good chain cleaner machine thingy, but so many out there. Any suggestion on whats good!

A powerlink, a small tub and some diesel.

Will clean your chain better than any chain cleaner thing and lubes your chain at the same time.

Seconded either diesel or white spirit.

I now use squirt wax lube and would recommend no need to degrease the chain again after application just wipe and chuck on more lube.

They don’t work very well and get shitty to clean up and they break.

got a cheap one off ebay about £5, put some white spirit in jobs a good un

I use a small course brush a tub of hot water with washing up liquid and gt85 in it, then dry and regrease, works for me, however I may well try the diesel/white spirit thing next time

They don’t work very well and get shitty to clean up and they break.

I disagree – for a quick, weekly scrub of the chain, they are good: So you don’t have to remove it and give it a proper white spirit clean.

The one I got from Edinburgh Cycles (own make, I think) has lasted well.
Combined with Green Oil chain cleaner.

I used to use the powerlink and degreaser in a tub method but now use a one of these. I find it cleans it just as well and a lot less faffing about.
I have only tried it on a road bike though.

I recieved the Park version as a gift. It work really well. However I don’t use any thick gloopy chain lube for it to remove. I fill it with Fenwicks bike cleaner, give it a swirl round & then rinse with water. Once I’m finished cleaning the bike I dry the chain with compressed air & re-lube.

The Park Tool version sosts about 25 quid. You can probably pick up something similar for a tenner. On the plus side, all the brushes & wipers can be bought separately & replaced.

Good product IMO.

D.

second the Park one – I use it after most rides – fill with Muc off, 20 rotations of back pedal, refill with water another 20 rotations, job done, and that’s with finish line green on the chain. If I leave it for a few rides I will put degreaser in rather than muc off.

They work even better with snake oil.

Parrafin and a small brush has always cleaned my chain well.Quick and easy.Then a re lube.Job done

Park Tool cleaner for me. Done other ways in the past, toothbrush, small brush too much messing about.
I use a degreaser now and again but mainly washing up liquid/water in it. I tend to use wax lube on the chain so doesn’t need it every time

The second one I had was Park tools before the plastic snapped.

Try the twist test..
My chains always go crunch when twisted, (it’s gritty here).
After running them through the (late Park Tools R.I.P) machine with various expensive cleaners – which always ended up black. Guess what? -The chains still went crunch when twisted. (Grit stays in the joints).

The outside was always nice and shiny though, so at least the impression of a clean chain was good..

HIJACK!
I’ve started shaking the chain in a jam jar using white spirit, people have said you can decanter the white spirit leaving the crud at the bottom of the jar and reuse what’s left, it’s been a couple of days since i did this and the crud still hasn’t settled. How long do i have to wait till it all settles normally?
🙂

It’s quicker to just run it through one of those paper filters for coffee machines.

I’ve got a Cheapie Cleaner (“Ice-tools” or similar I think), which I use for “quick” Chain cleanings:

Works best if I stick the bike up on the work stand so the pedals are free to rotate, cycle it back and fourth a few times with soapy water to loosen the crap, empty, rinse out, do the same with white spirits, water cycle again then leave to dry and re-lube later…

The Blow dry with compressed air sounds like a good idea, might start doing that cheers “Davesport”…

For more thorough washes I whip the chain off and soak it in white spirits and/or degreaser, rinse, Dry and re-lube… I doubt it actually works much better than using the chain cleaner in reality…

I had a loan of a park tools cleaner, tried it, it seemed good but the chain still felt a wee bit crunchy. So out of curiosity threw the cleaned chain into my usual tub of paraffin and it was like a gilette advert, “Look how much more crap was stuck in your chain”. Quite eyeopening, I guess the tool cleaned the visible muck off but left the troublesome muck that’s between the plates etc.

Also the Park thing wasn’t significantly faster or less hassle, so, to me you’re paying money for a small amount of convenience and a worse clean. Also very easy to lube the chain when it’s off the bike.

Not a quick link, so dont want hassle of splitting chain (SS) to clean.

I find that they all break. I’ve honestly never had one for more than a couple of months before they snap. Now I’m using this after spotting it in a bike shop, it works really well and there’s nothing to break, just spray some cleaner onto it, a few back pedals and hose off.

Not a quick link, so dont want hassle of splitting chain (SS) to clean.

they don’t work on a ss anyway – the chain needs some slack.

you can get SS powerlinks

One of these is less hastle than taking the chain off and messing about with diesel etc.

http://www.scottoiler.com/uk/products/scottoiler-bicycle-oiler-active-fluid-system.html
although it takes a while to fit one and its not going to be the most elegant thing on the bike it works quite well.

Any suggestions for SS powerlinks

Just take the chain off the chainring before opening the powerlink? Unless you run your chain too tight…

I use a Park tool with Muc-off in.
Hose off and then drive out the water and any dirt left arround with WD40 fired onto the chain held in a rag. Followed by rub with kitchen roll to draw out the remainder. Passes the crunchy-chain test.
I have another chain in jam-jar in white spirit to swap over every month or so.

I haven’t got a powerlink as i said so would have to split it each time i clean it (every wk), so needs to left on the bike really..