Basic chain and derailleur maintenance

[Phil_Lee]

Pretty much any motorcycle chain lube will work just as well on a pedal cycle.
The only downside is it tends to be a bit on the sticky side - motorcycles tend to fling off thinner oils.
You don't even need to worry whether it's O ring compatible or not - the only difference is that the O ring compatible ones don't contain solvents that harden or dissolve the O rings, which some spray lubricants may. Since I've never seen a bicycle chain with O rings, it's not something to worry about.

I've inherited a few cans and bottles of various chainlube from mates who've changed to shaft drive motorcycles

[greendragon]

As this thread has sprung back to life, I'll chip in with something that it occurred to me to wonder the other day (but hadn't when the thread was running initially).

Much of discussion on this topic - (every time it rears its head again, I mean, not just this particular thread) - seems to revolve around folk comparing (preferably easier) variants of Mick F's "ultimate chain cleaning routine" with something more akin to the so-called "Mickle Method". [ "It's not really my method, I'm just the most vociferous advocate of it." - (Mickle) << http://www.cyclechat.net/topic/28122-be ... aner-bath/ >> ]

But I suddenly realised this is not actually comparing apples and apples. The first, so far as I can make out, is a sort of overhaul in which Mick F changes chains over completely, every so many hundred km. (Sorry - having a mental block - can't remember how many.) So anyway, it's a periodic overhaul.
Whereas the Mickle thing is about wiping the chain over, and re-lubing and wiping, etc., every time it's been out if I remember rightly. So that that is much more just routine 'looking-after', rather than an overhaul.

So what I'd like to ask Mick F (are you still keeping an eye on this Mick? please) is what, if any, treatment do you give yours, in between chain changeovers, to keep it clean and un-gungy. (is that a word? - well you know what I mean). Mick? MICK!!

[greendragon]

Im sure i read it in a bicycle maintenance book that Diesel was an excellant degreaser and it also left a oily residue on the chain unlike petrol that would dry it out

I have a plumber mate (my best man, as was, actually) who swears by diesel as a way of cleaning and freeing-up any old 'lump' that needs it. Much better than ordinary easing oil, he reckons, but the technique entails just putting the victim assembly in a bucket of diesel for a month or two and leaving it to suffer. It'll free up anything he reckons.
The thing is, of course, that diesel is horrible stuff, so this technique is great, not least because it involves an absolute minimum of having to handle the stuff; just wear some good gloves to deal with the beginning and end of the process.

That said I had been wondering myself if, for just the reasons you describe, it wouldn't similarly be the ideal chain cleaner to use in one of those silly bath things. (which seem to be the Marmite of the bike world - people either adore them or detest them) The attraction again being a minimal need to touch the muck. Only problems I anticipate are (a) although a partly enclosed operation, it would still be dripping everywhere, so less easy to avoid contact than the 2-month bath routine; and (b) I shudder to think what such a ferocious solvent might do to one of those rather flimsy plastic baths.

So, if anyone has tried it, I imagine we'd all like to hear your experiences.

[snibgo]

Im sure i read it in a bicycle maintenance book that Diesel was an excellant degreaser and it also left a oily residue on the chain unlike petrol that would dry it out

But is this oily residue a good lubricant? If it is, then that's fine. If it isn't, we'd need to get rid of it and replace it with a good lube, which defeats the purpose of using the diesel in the first place.

[greendragon]

snibgo,

I'd expect it to act more like an easing oil, just stopping the links drying out. But any reasonably fluid 'proper' lube put on after should then find its way into the links by capillary action anyway. After all 'creep' properties are part of the essential function of a lube molecule - to force itself between the bearing surfaces.

In fact, thinking about it, if it isn't a "reasonably fluid" lube, a bit of easing oil, or something like WD40, to dissolve its 'greasiness' so that it will draw itself into the links, and then evaporate, leaving the heavy lube where it's needed, would be just what is required.

[snibgo]

The capillary action would only work if there wasn't something (the residue from the diesel) already there.

See the comments about WD40 at the top of this thread. The WD40 might get inside the rollers and thin out the oily residue from the diesel, then somewhat evaporate leaving the oily residue behind, plus the residue from WD40 which isn't a good chain lubricant.

WD40 is a great at chasing water away, and leaving an anti-water film behind. It is really good at that, but it's not a good lube.

If used in large quantities, WD40 can wash gunk away from a chain. It's tempting to do this to a chain, seeing the black gunk that ends up on my driveway as evidence that I am cleaning my chain. But I suspect this does more harm than good, and washes grinding paste into the rollers.

[CREPELLO]

I can't really see that leaving a residue of diesel oil on the chain is going to inhibit the action of any subsequent chain oil applied. Well, it may have a miniscule effect, but I'm not convinced that it would be significant.

Obviously, when using wax lube on the chain, the diesel will affect that lubes performance.

[al_yrpal]

I put my bike on its car carrier clamped in a bench vice ( to get the rear wheel off the ground) . Then I use a curved sprocket cleaner to get crud from between the rings after brushing with some turps. Then I fill my Chinese chain cleaner bath with turps and clamp it over the bottom run of chain. It's little brush wheels remove all the crud. Finaly use a soft rag to remove excess turps. An old toothbrush removes crud from the derailier and front chainwheels. Finally lube chain lightly whilst rotating crank backwards.10 minutes once a month suffices. Every six months chain completely off for a turps bath and back wheel off for a sprocket bath in a basin of turps.

For a few quid a clamp on chain bath soon pays for itself in time and money

Al

[Mick F]

....... Mick? MICK!!

Here I am!

All I can say is common sense. I'm full of common sense. Common sense makes sense to me.

A chain is just a set of metal bits and pins, and all the bits make hinges and pivots. As the metal bits and pins and hinges move about, they need lubrication.

Lubrication is best achieved with an oil that the viscosity holds itself to the metals, and therefore keeps the metal bits from rubbing together and wearing. Something too thin will just disappear. Something too thick won't get into the innards of the chain.

The trouble is, oils generally available are attractive to grit and muck, and these combine to form a grinding paste to wear the pivots and hinges you are trying to lubricate. The only thing you can do is to keep the grit and muck away from the chain to make sure the chain is clean AND lubricated.

Derailleur chains are in the worst possible situation: no chain guard, the chain is usually in the muck and grit from the road, and most chains are neglected and ignored.

Spend money on a sophisticated chain lube?
Change your chains frequently?
Spend loadsa dosh?

You pays your money and you takes your chance.

Personally, I'd rather buy a good chain and look after it. I could buy a cheap and nasty chain and chuck it out in a couple of months, together with a cassette three or four months later. Instead, I buy a good chain, a good cassette and lubricate it with a good chain lubricant.

As I said, you pays your money and you takes your chance!