Apologies if wrong thread but .... After a cracking ride on Sat I spent a lovely hour cleaning and buffing the bike on Sunday - and got to wondering whether there was a "right way" to clean a bike - particularly all the fiddly bits.
I don't always have the luxury of an hour to give everything a good going over so any tips welcomed or any recommendations for cleaning tools / products that would help keep the bike in tip top condition.
For example I was particularly perplexed by a small bit of rust I could see in between the cogs on the cassette and can't see without taking it apart how you clean these bits
I have rust on most of my bolt heads, doesn't seem to matter how much I put a leyer of oil on them, a bit of rust on the cassette will not do much harm as its not likely to be in contact with the chain and will be replaced usually within about 6-8,000 miles depending how you look after the drive chain, the main things are to keep cables and drive chain as clean as you can over the winter months, to clean the chain take a cloth and wrap it round the chain and spin the pedals backward this will remove the dirt, keep doing this till you can remove no more dirt, then lube the chain a small drop on each link with the lube of your choice, me just basic 3-1 type oil, again wrap the cloth around the chain till its clean, again by spinning the pedals backward, you will be surprised how quick you can do this after a bit of practise, I try and do it any time its rained and a couple of times a week if its been dry, I can have chains last up to 8,000 miles, though usually it would need a new cassette at that mileage.
Cassette, I tend to dismantle this maybe once every 2-4 weeks if its been bad weather wise (I could do with doing this at the moment).
Cables make sure the cable guide at the bottom is clean of road muck, and I use GT85 where the cables come out of the outers this just any build up of crud and helps the cables run smoothly.
Brakes try and clean these especially after a mucky ride as the build up of muck will act like a paste accelerating rim and pad wear.
The rest can really be done as and when you have time
However if you want to clean the cassette in place try some baby wipes rolled up or pipe cleaners, its easier with the wheel removed, and I find if I remove the wheel it just as easy to strip the cassette.
Bam turning right off the main road to head home front wheel went ended up kissing the tarmac several grazes to knee and an extremly sore (Poss Broken) right wrist.
The good news is that the old highway should be nice for riding. I can get to all sorts of nice low traffic roads with it as well as just use it for basic fitness spins. Nice to see some of you are getting out, I hope to be back out soon. I am going to start getting the bikes ready for spring for next week or so. Have fun and be careful. 
....(I had trouble figuring out there is a new thumbs up emoticon 
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