# How much cleaning??



## wyno70 (24 Dec 2008)

Having recently treated myself to a Trek 6700 (which I highly recommend), I'm making much more of an effort to keep her in good nick after rides.

At present, my after ride routine is pretty much, pressure hose the bike, top to bottom a couple of times, make sure all the crud is off and then chain lube, chain, cassette, chainset and then WD40 over pretty much the rest of the parts.

Anyone got anything else they do, or any recommendations??


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## weely (24 Dec 2008)

Do not pressure hose the bike, as this will penitrate the hubs ect and disperse the grease.

I find a simple hose pipe does just as good a job.


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## dodgy (24 Dec 2008)

Pressure hose + bike = tears


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## RedBike (24 Dec 2008)

Yep, keep the pressure hose well away from the bike.
This is the best way to kill bearings. 

WD40 is the next best way to kill your bearings. It's designed to penetrate seals and it will remove any protective grease/lubrication you've got in there.
WD40 will also completely wreck your brake pads if you happen to get any on them.
In fact it's probably as well not to spray it on the bike. 

Stick to a hose pipe and or a bucket of soapy water.


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## wyno70 (25 Dec 2008)

Okay so thats my cleaning plan completely down the pan then!

Thanks for the tips, hosepipe and a sponge it is in future!!


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## spandex (25 Dec 2008)

wyno70 said:


> Okay so thats my cleaning plan completely down the pan then!
> 
> Thanks for the tips, hosepipe and a sponge it is in future!!



Good luck!


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## mickle (26 Dec 2008)

Bucket of hot water
Hose
Posh car shampoo (I use the cheap stuff on the car)
Car washing brush
Drying cloth
Chain rag
Mr Sheen or similar


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## arallsopp (26 Dec 2008)

If its just surface road gank, I use a baby wipe.
If its deeply crud covered, I maybe use two.

Once in a while, clean the chain with a wet baby wipe. 
Lube it, then clean off the excess oil with a dry one.

Job done. Glossy, clean, and oh so pleasantly fragranced


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## Dave5N (26 Dec 2008)

mickle said:


> Bucket of hot water
> Hose
> Posh car shampoo (I use the cheap stuff on the car)
> Car washing brush
> ...



9/10

Buy and use a Chamois and you get full marks. 

Get a Park Chain cleaner and you'll do the same thing even better/quicker/sexier.


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## Kirstie (31 Dec 2008)

In this order:

Hose with thumb over the end
Muc off distributed with a variety of special shaped brushes
Leave for 5 minutes
Hose with thumb over the end
Wipey cloth
Take chain off, soak in paraffin, rinse off, hang up to dry (when I can be bothered)


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## Pearson72 (31 Dec 2008)

Bucket of hot water, car shampoo, rinse and then spray with WD40 over frame and cables followed buy a buff. Lovely!


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## dodgy (31 Dec 2008)

Chain cleaning contraptions are gash. An old rag is all you need, as long as you can spare the 30 seconds it takes after every ride.


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## zzpza (31 Dec 2008)

imho, chain cleaning tools are awesome. a rag won't clean in between the links; a tool will. i don't really clean my mtb. i might hose it down every now and then. this is it clean:





​
and this is it dirty:




​
i do however use the chain cleaner every time i ride the bike (winter rides are usually 20k<x<60k). the mechs get degreased and lubed every month.

my road bike on the other hand gets a soapy wash, sponge and chammy everytime it goes out, but i prefer not to take it out in the winter as it gets filthy.


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## dodgy (31 Dec 2008)

If you clean your chain after *every* ride, you don't get a build up of dirt between the links. It's how I clean the chain on my MTB, and I bet it gets just as dirty as yours.

Dave.


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## zzpza (31 Dec 2008)

dodgy said:


> If you clean your chain after *every* ride, you don't get a build up of dirt between the links. It's how I clean the chain on my MTB, and I bet it gets just as dirty as yours.
> 
> Dave.



yep, every ride, and yes i get mud in between the links often.


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## dodgy (31 Dec 2008)

you need to avoid the puddles.


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## zzpza (31 Dec 2008)

dodgy said:


> you need to avoid the puddles.



but they are the best bits!!!!

this one was awesome:







so was this one, too:






but they are all frozen this time of year. 




​


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## Dave5N (1 Jan 2009)

dodgy said:


> Chain cleaning contraptions are gash. An old rag is all you need, as long as you can spare the 30 seconds it takes after every ride.




Bollocks.

I clean four bikes every week. Or twice a week, sometimes.

The Park chain cleaner is exceptional.


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## dodgy (1 Jan 2009)

Dave5N said:


> Bollocks.
> 
> I clean four bikes every week. Or twice a week, sometimes.
> 
> The Park chain cleaner is exceptional.



I'm happy for you


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## simoncc (11 Jan 2009)

MTB maintenance is absolutely essential. An expensive bike will very quickly disintegrate into a heap of worthless metal if you don't maintain it. Unfortunately it will disintegrate into a heap of worthless metal only slightly slower if you do.


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## User482 (20 Jan 2009)

Kirstie said:


> In this order:
> 
> Hose with thumb over the end
> Muc off distributed with a variety of special shaped brushes
> ...



Same here, except I use a chain cleaner. Seems to work fine if half-filled with muc-off.


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## wyno70 (27 Jan 2009)

Got myself a Park Chain Cleaner and you are right Dave, it's excellent and the gears run so much smoother now it's all clean and shiny!!!

Nice one


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## jadlem (30 Jan 2009)

I use a nail brush and some grease in a tin marked elbow, followed by a spot of the old halfords chain lube.

:OP


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## Globalti (31 Jan 2009)

Fit a proper Hozelock trigger spray on the end of your hosepipe to avoid wastage and because the water is freezing at this time of year. Buy a hand brush (the sort that goes with a dust pan) and rinse the dirt away while loosening it with the brush. 

Dry and lube the chain. Make tea and relax.


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## GilesM (2 Feb 2009)

Rigid Raider said:


> Fit a proper Hozelock trigger spray on the end of your hosepipe to avoid wastage and because the water is freezing at this time of year. Buy a hand brush (the sort that goes with a dust pan) and rinse the dirt away while loosening it with the brush.
> 
> Dry and lube the chain. Make tea and relax.



That sounds about right, although I did buy some Hope shoot Shifter on Saturday and that seemed to work really well, I find the Muc Off bike spray is pretty good to help get the water out of the more difficult to get to places, especially on cold days when the water just isn't going to evaporate. A bit of normal car polish after the bike is cleaned helps the dirt come off next time. I can't remember the last time I road my MTB on a dry trail and didn't have to clean it after just one ride.


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## fossyant (5 Feb 2009)

simoncc said:


> MTB maintenance is absolutely essential. An expensive bike will very quickly disintegrate into a heap of worthless metal if you don't maintain it. Unfortunately it will disintegrate into a heap of worthless metal only slightly slower if you do.



Quite true.

I had the misfortune of working with a guy last year - he was in his 50's thought he knew it all - fairly new to bikes...me late 30's been riding them all my life.

He had a top of the range Scott - carbon frame and XTR.... big bucks.... He asked what I use to oil my chain...

"erm...Finish Line Pro"..

"oh sounds expensive......"

"What ???? What are you using ?"

"GT85" was the response... "that might be why I went through a whole set of chain rings, cassette and chain very quickly......"

Absolute idiot - I kept my gob shut - he had the bike, no idea how to look after it....

To top it off he'd take the mick out of my regime....and that's for road bikes......just didn't have the heart to tell him he was a knob !


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## Mirco (6 Feb 2009)

awesome, guys. Just a note, if you use degreasers on your chain to clean it, RINSE WELL BEFORE APPLYING THE LUBE!!!!!! otherwise, the residual DEGREASER will, well, DE-GREASE your lube. May as well soak it in WD-40. I've found the best results by far with BoShield T-9 lube. I used to replace chains every month, to avoid replacing cogs, now I've used BoShield, I've been on the same chain since July, through the wet, salty, gritty winter, with very rare cleanings, and applying lube maybe, TOPS once a week. and no dirt/grease buildup whatsoever. Amazing stuff.


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## wyno70 (6 Feb 2009)

So, now I thought my regime was much improved, cleaning the bike okay, chain, rings cassette etc cleaned with park chain cleaner, degreaser etc, rinsed with hot soapy water, then plenty of "GT85" applied.

Fossyant - is this stuf no good then, your post above implies not??? I'll change if it isn't, after all the effort I'm putting in, I want to make sure the lube is half decent!


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## Sh4rkyBloke (6 Feb 2009)

Fossy - how do you get your cassette so clean though??? The bloody thing looked brand new on your 18 year old bike... I was very impressed (sad, I know!).


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## Simeon Jones (6 Feb 2009)

I find that getting the servants to do such menial tasks frees ones time for more congenial activities such as tiger shooting and bear bating.


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## Ludwig (6 Feb 2009)

I get my butler to fly my mechanic Luigi in from Ascona to deal with all the menial tasks like cleaning the bike, polishing the silver and shooing the horses etc. The thought of getting ones hands wet to clean ones own bike is too much to bear.


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## kozzach (17 Feb 2009)

Ludwig said:


> I get my butler to fly my mechanic Luigi in from Ascona to deal with all the menial tasks like cleaning the bike, polishing the silver and shooing the horses etc. The thought of getting ones hands wet to clean ones own bike is too much to bear.



pfft amature!

I get my sexy latino maid to strip down and clean my bikes in her underwear.


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