Park Chain Cyclone Cleaner

[Mick F]

Soaked the Cyclone (completely dismantled) in a small bucket of warm water and a strong solution of soda crystals.
Left it over an hour stirring occasionally then gave it scrub with an old washing-up brush. Needs a smaller brush for the difficult crevices under where the sponge goes, but the unit etc is almost spotless.

Done each time it's used, it'll be perfect especially using water soluble degreaser in the future.

Excellent idea for using soda. Highly recommended!
Thanks muchly!

[Mick F]

I use screwfix degreaser (diluted) for chain cleaning on or off the bike... £9 for 5 litres. It might have been someone on her who recommended it.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/no-nonsense- ... 5ltr/88668

Orderd a bottle.
Click and collect from Plymouth.
I'll be in town on Thursday to pick it up.

Looks excellent value. Water soluble and biodegradable too.

Just used a 50/50 solution in the Cyclone and cleaned Mercian's chain with it.

Utterly and completely impressed by this.
I mean it. Utterly and completely impressed.

White sprit is good in the Cyclone, and Gunk is brilliant in a jar to shake.
This Screwfix stuff in in another league entirely.

Not tried the jar method, but I'm unlikely to ever bother again.

The chain is so clean, it's as if I'd used Gunk in a jar. It's so clean, I decided to do Moulton's again. That bike had the Cyclone treatment with White Spirit, but using the Screwfix, it got it even cleaner ........... and better still, both the chains now have a sparkle. White Spirit leaves them dull.

That's it for me.
The only times I'll take the chains off, is to measure them.
From now on, it's the Cyclone + Screwfix no-nonsense Degreaser. Water washable and clean.

Pointless using anything else. £9 for 5ltrs and I've not even used a cupful and I doubt I'll have to clean the Cyclone other than washing it out with water.

[philvantwo]

I'll get me some then Mick F, I had a free £10 voucher arrive from the Screwfix last week, I'll pop into Toolstation first though and use the free drinks machine!!

[rfryer]

Thanks for the recommendation, Mick; if you're impressed it must be astounding! Orders now placed at Wiggle and Screwfix. Looking forward to spotless chains from now on...

[Mick F]

Great!
Hopefully, you'll be as impressed as me!

[Brucey]

it might be worth mentioning

a) what you are cleaning off the chain (what lube do you use?) and
b) how much rinsing you have to do before you are sure that there are no residues left on the chain and
c) if there is any hazard (to person or bike) if the degreaser is splashed about.


Not all lubes will be cleaned off equally easily. The reason for b and c is that whilst they vary somewhat, many chemical degreasers are pretty nasty; they can (if spilt neat or splashed ) cause paint to be damaged, corrosion, or even chemical burns.

cheers

[Gattonero]

it might be worth mentioning

a) what you are cleaning off the chain (what lube do you use?) and
b) how much rinsing you have to do before you are sure that there are no residues left on the chain and
c) if there is any hazard (to person or bike) if the degreaser is splashed about.


Not all lubes will be cleaned off equally easily. The reason for b and c is that whilst they vary somewhat, many chemical degreasers are pretty nasty; they can (if spilt neat or splashed ) cause paint to be damaged, corrosion, or even chemical burns.

cheers

Yes, yes and yes.

I repeat myself: no need to get the chain so greasy that you need nuclear weapons to clean it.
Let alone all the oil that inevitably will drip down the spokes and onto the rim.

When using those chain-cleaners, one really needs to flush the chain as best as possible, then to expel as much residuals as possible with an air-gun.
Obviously this needs to be done in a well-ventilated area, removing the rear wheel (to prevent contamination to the freehub body), and been extra careful that no degreaser drips down to the bottom bracket.
Plus you want ot make sure the chainrings, jockey wheels and the rear mech cage, plus the front mech, they are all free from dirt.

All in all, it shows there's a lot more than yust "degreasing the chain".

[pliptrot]

The cheap version of this sort of chain cleaner I have has completely fallen to bits. I have decided to use chains in rotation and clean them at my leisure when off the bike. The question I have is, how best to break and rejoin the chain? Until the advent of Shimano's special joining pin I had no issues -ever- with rivet removal and replacement. I suppose I could just use -up to- 112 of the Shimano pins before the chain should be replaced, or use quick links. I understand that (1) quick links should not be re-used, and (2) the generic versions available at nominal cost in, say, Decathlon will fit all chains. Am I right here? I am, of course, not proposing that different speed chain links are interchangeable.

[elPedro666]

Love my Park chain cleaner, been using it regularly for years (after the cheap version broke in no time), usually with Gunk, and it is brilliant! Once the Gunk is spread around a bit I'll get in and scrub the sprockets, rings and especially the jockeys with a good stiff brush. Hose off the greybrown mess and it's magical to see even some pretty old gear still comes up looking like new!

Will give that Screwfix stuff a try next time (thanks for the heads up); but as my last purchase was 10litres (£16), even at the rate I use it it'll be a long while before I run out of Gunk [emoji23]

I'm a trendy consumer. Just look at my CLT-L09 using hovercraft full of eels.

[Brucey]

…..Until the advent of Shimano's special joining pin I had no issues -ever- with rivet removal and replacement. I suppose I could just use -up to- 112 of the Shimano pins before the chain should be replaced, or use quick links.

you have been lucky (and/or you are not as clumsy changing gear as the average rider); nearly all chains that are 7s or higher (that I have used since about 1980) have some peening of the rivets and when you push these pins back into the chain the result is a weakened connection. Having one weak joint occasionally causes problems but having multiple weakened joints is asking for trouble.

I understand that (1) quick links should not be re-used, and (2) the generic versions available at nominal cost in, say, Decathlon will fit all chains. Am I right here? I am, of course, not proposing that different speed chain links are interchangeable.

re-used from one chain to another? No; they wear just like any other link.

Re-used on the same chain? Usually 'yes' but read the instructions to make sure.


The Qls you buy in decathlon appear to be repackaged KMC ones, usually 'R' (reusable) models where available. They fit like KMC links do, so fit all chains of identical width. In practice this means nearly all shimano and SRAM chains but not all campag, because their chains are a slightly different width in some cases. KMC make special QLs for campag chain and they are not sold by Decathlon.

cheers

[pliptrot]

Thanks Brucey. I must have been lucky. The first bit of cycling paraphernalia I ever had bought new was a copy of Richard's Bicycle Book. If you subscribed to his maintenance regime, the chain was off twice a month. The first derailleur I had was a cheap and nasty Simplex device (how the mighty had already fallen, back in the early '80s) and then paper round money bought a Suntour Superbe and Simplex retrofriction levers. Always Sedis chains. That was probably the best friction shifting combo. ever made, so I am sure that helped. After a year with a Croce d'Aune rear mech I gave up on Campagnolo transmissions. I didn't want to spend 50 quid on a riveting tool, either, in subsequent editions of Italian hubris, so stuck with you-know-who from Japan. We should all rue the day Suntour went under.

[philvantwo]

Picked up degreaser from the screwfix today, says to dilute it 5 capfuls to 5 litres of warm water, Mick F mixed his 50/50??

[DNC123]

I use Screwfix degreaser. I dilute 50.50.
5 litres will last a long time even at 50.50.

[ossie]

I use screwfix degreaser (diluted) for chain cleaning on or off the bike... £9 for 5 litres. It might have been someone on her who recommended it.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/no-nonsense- ... 5ltr/88668

Orderd a bottle.
Click and collect from Plymouth.
I'll be in town on Thursday to pick it up.

Looks excellent value. Water soluble and biodegradable too.

Just used a 50/50 solution in the Cyclone and cleaned Mercian's chain with it.

Utterly and completely impressed by this.
I mean it. Utterly and completely impressed.

Happy to help.

Likewise I use 50/50 in the Cyclone. I've also decanted some into an old dettox spray bottle, dilute with water and when the chain doesn't need anything as dramatic as the cyclone just spray onto a wet wipe and pull the chain through it as per normal, dry and lube.

[ossie]

Picked up degreaser from the screwfix today, says to dilute it 5 capfuls to 5 litres of warm water, Mick F mixed his 50/50??

I also use it for other applications. Its brilliant for the tops of kitchen units , cooker hoods etc and in that case I usually dilute more to their instructions.