Your best chain cleaning device please

Living in Yorkshire my chain is quik ly picking up grit mud. I’m looking for any recommended chain cleaning divests that fit round the chain. Thanks in advance :-.)

Water, bit of a brush. that and change chains more often

I use a Park Tools cyclone and a fab degreaser called virosol. Its sold as an industrial floor degreaser but works great on chain….and its top value.
My chains and sprockets last ages.

just to add, you can wash it all you like if you hit the gritty puddle on the first km it’s chewing your chain, change over scrub

Park Tools chain bath with white spirit brings a chain up like new.

I boil mine in chain wax on a Peak stove “outside”

Then using an old towel I get all the wax off the outside while it’s still hot and hang up to cool down. It gets all the crap off and lubes up the pins inside the links that require lube. Works a treat for me. Agree it’s a bit of a faff but those bastid plastic things are a real pain in the arse.

Other method I’d use is soaking it in Petrol and then just normal lube. Get a big enough jar “beetroot” throw chain in, shake and then pass used petrol thro a coffee filter and store on shelf in garage to use again. It’s so easy.

nd hang up to cool down. It gets all the crap off and lubes up the pins inside the links that require lube. Works a treat for me. Agree it’s a bit of a faff but those bastid plastic things are a real pain in the arse.

How does that help when you run through a grit filled puddle in the first KM?

Mike are you suggesting that you change chains per puddle?

not at all just don’t get all excited about cleaning and change chain when it’s done

Can’t be bothered cleaning it so I just get a new one

If you want a clean chain the nothing compares to scottoiler ubs. It’s water based and after a ride a quick rinse with the hose whilst scrubbing with a soft brush and the chain and cassette will look like new(no exaggeration). But in my experience longevity is reduced. But on my mtb’s I continue to use it as I feel it’s a worthy trade off. I have gone back to a proper lube for my road bike and commuter but these barely get cleaned anyway.

It helps because the graphite that is in the wax adheres to the chain, this forms a barrier on the rollers and in turn leaves a layer on the front ring, the same can be seen on the jockey wheels and the cassette, i don’t know how many microns the layer is or even if it works. I’ve been boiling chains for MX Bikes since I was a kid so when I found that I was graunching the drivetrain on my MTB a long time ago I gave it a whirl and it seems to protect the component parts.

Or you could just replace the chain every time you go thro a puddle or just leave it in the house and sit looking at the thing for weeks on end or you could even ride it and get it dirty.

Mike, you talk bollocks by the way, I’m sorry that my opinion doesn’t match the micron scale for grit and that the puddles make your bike dirty.

Or you could just replace the chain every time you go thro a puddle or just leave it in the house and sit looking at the thing for weeks on end or you could even ride it and get it dirty.

Mike, you talk bollocks by the way, I’m sorry that my opinion doesn’t match the micron scale for grit and that the puddles make your bike dirty.

Think you were missing the point a little/deliberately

For the amount of faff in doing that I’d go with a quick clean and replace a little more often, using a checker to make sure it didn’t go too far.

People get really hung up on cleaning the bike and scrubbing everything perfect for it to sit in the shed doing nothing, it’s when it’s moving the damage is caused so as soon as you hit that first gritty puddle the wear begins. At no point did I suggest changing chains when you hit a puddle just that it’s going to get gritty

UBS.

I got through several chain-cleaning devices, which are pricey, faffy and tend to break. I’m currently using 2 toothbrushes, zip-tied together with the heads facing one another. This seems to work, is effectively free, and is almost indestructible.

it’s when it’s moving the damage is caused so as soon as you hit that first gritty puddle the wear begins

This is true. However, you can (try to) make sure that there is lubricant rather than grit in the moving parts before you hit the first puddle. Indeed, on some rides you don’t hit a gritty puddle at all. And if the chain is pretty clean when you start, it’s easier to get one day’s grit off at a time.

🙂

I use Fenwicks foaming chain cleaner post ride and scrub it in with a cassette brush. Then rinse off with water and spray with gt85 or wd40 to drain. Its not spotless, but is pretty good and certainly good enough for me.

Park tools one for me with a citrus degreaser. Can’t see how anyone could describe using one as a faff. It’s a one minute job.

^ not sure I’ve used a Park one, to be fair.

The park tools one. I used to use Virasol with it but it has a ph of 11, quite alkaline, enough to strip anodising… Now use it with more neutral citrus degreaser – http://www.amazon.co.uk/Evans-Vanodine-Multi-Purpose-Cleaner-Degreaser/dp/B009KMRRPK

Juice Lubes Dirty Little Scrubber and their Super Gnarl degreaser. Works a treat. Generally use once a month when I wash my bike. Most of the time I brush the crud off the bike and wipe my chain down with a cloth. Job done.

2nd chain wax – read this previous thread.

Why not just take the chain off and wash in a bit of diesel?

1. Take chain off
2. drop into a jam jar filled with white spirit
3. shake
4. wipe down
5. re-fit
6. take wet lube, throw in bin
7. get good quality dry/wax lube, and get used to putting it on a bit more often
8. Enjoy not having filthy chain

Some good suggestions ppl. I’m not shore I have time to boil anything though but some good ideas on cleaning agent.

Park Tools chain bath with white spirit brings a chain up like new.

+1
It also lasts a lot longer than the cheap ones.
I bought a massive can of ‘Jizer’ degreaser from local car place, that cost not a lot, and has lasted a year or more. A LOT cheaper than ‘bike specific’.
I then rinse well, allow to dry, pop new oil on chain.

I use some quick link pliers to take the chain off. Drop it in a jam jar full of white spirit, shake it around for 30 seconds before rinsing off, re-attaching and lubing.

Sounds a faff but it only takes a few minutes and the chain is spotless afterwards, also easy to clean cassette and jockey wheels without the chain being in the way.

Edit, typed too slow, all listed above

Bathing the chain in solvent, will that not dissolve any lube inside the rollers too?

Maybe bathe it in 2 stroke petrol mixture at least?

Just clean it with a cheap chain cleaner device or a mild washing up liquid solution to get all the surface muck off. Allow to dry and Apply fresh lube.. Then buy a new chain when you need to.

Since getting 11 speed, got in a routine of being regimented with the chain cleaning, it’s either degreaser in a muc-off chain cleaner if i’m doing a quicker washer or chain off and into a jar of white spirit overnight when i’m giving it a full clean, followed by water rinse and dry on low oven.

Got 1500 miles, that’s 3 chains, one cassette, cassette is now worn. Chain was replaced before 0.75 each time. I have no idea if that’s good or bad though.

It has faired no better than a rinse under the hose.

I’m sort of with mike on this one, you may get the chain surgically clean, but 10 mins later, dry (dust) or wet, it’ll wear in the same way anyway.

Just need to keep on top of the gunk/grit build up i reckon.

Can’t remember the model name but it’s made by Karcher…

The ShelBroCo method as recommended by the mortal Sheldon Brown

Slightly off topic, but all you guys using white spirit, diesel etc. … what do you do with the contaminated liquid afterwards?

Ubs here too.. Great stuff

I have a 25l container that I use for car oil change waste oil, I put it in there. I intend to take it down the tip hen it is full but I fear the tip police might give me grief after reading some stories.

Slightly off topic, but all you guys using white spirit, diesel etc. … what do you do with the contaminated liquid afterwards?

Put the lid back on and use it again next time, it does get dirty over time but doesn’t seem to affect the ability to clean as the chain gets rinsed off afterwards anyway.

After reading the above re greasing the rollers and internal plates of every single disassembled Link I think I’ll stick to chain wax, for people with black chains try changing your Lube, also for those with a fear of dirty puddles if you apply the correct lube in the right place the lube should give some protection to the drivetrain. In most circumstances I’ve found a black chain comes from snake oil which promises everything and pulls the lube to the outer surface trapping the crud there. The outer needs to be dry so it can’t attract the crud. Sounds counter productive but it’s not.

Alternatively try different lights, sealskin socks and half an hour digesting the what tyres with leopard print underpants thread.

Cloth, splash of petrol on cloth, run chain through cloth a few times. New lube.

Chuck chain and cassette away in the spring, fit new ones. Can’t be arsed to be any more fussy.

Only clean them when new. Use white spirit to soak, then put the white spirit back in the bottle for re-use. Then use squirt or similar wax lube and just brush/ dry rag off the manky bits before re-lubing.

Chain goes in the middle 🙂

My big issue is oil. Even using Fenwicks degreaser neat it doesn’t remove the slimey paste that is always on my chain.

Hope sh1t shifter has been the best I’ve used.

Wash with water. Rock n roll blue. Wipe chain with towel. Ride bike. Repeat. No need for taking the chain off, petrol, diesel, white spirit, green citrus cleaners, mechanical devices and the like. Survives 4 hours of the Chiltern’s finest winter mud no problem. Unfortunately the world’s supply of RNR is in decline so I will be switching to UBS which singletrackworldwisdom suggests is the next best thing along the same lines.