This time I am going to point you back through the fog of time to posts I have written on cleaning your bicycles and lubricating the chain a well.
The first post I will reference here is the one I posted in 2019 about how I go about cleaning my own bikes. It was.....controversial. As one commenter stated, "... I think only old bike mechanics (who know how not to create more work for themselves) understand your bike cleaning practices."
Maybe so. But if you want the best results with the least amount of collateral damage, this is the way you should go about cleaning your bicycles. It works well for me and has for many years. Another primer for easy home cleaning of bicycles can be found HERE that I wrote as part of my Beginners On Gravel series.
Secondly, that post raised some questions which I answered in a separate post. This time it was how I clean up a drive train while it is all still on the bike. Chain lube practices are also covered here. back then I was a strong DuMonde Tech lubricant advocate, (still am), but these days I've been using a lot of Silca's Super Secret Lube. You can check that post out HERE.
Questions? Suggestions? Hit me up in the comments. If I get feedback I'll do a follow-up post.
4 comments:
Some of the best bike shops I have seen have a wash station in the back. Water is not your enemy, HIGH PRESSURE is. Been skating the same line since 83 and pro team mechanics have been doing it for decades more than that.
@Tman - Most people are not professional bicycle mechanics, nor do they work in professional bicycle shops. I wouldn't expect them to know the nuances of how to use water on a bike. So, there is my justification for my advice.
And from my perspective, water creates a mess at home, so I found a way to do what I need to get done sans water.
You do you. If my advice doesn't suit you, fine. I'm not here to say you are wrong.
@Guitar Ted. Some people should not even be allowed to touch their bikes! So, you are correct ;). Like the guy with a 96 Y-33. Showed up EVERY Saturday with his matching Taco dripping wet from the car wash. After munching a headset and two bottom brackets we found he was riding the river bottoms in the mud and running his rig AND bike through the carwash! It was a learning moment for him.
@Tman - That's a good story! Interestingly, I find much of the time that the cleanest bicycles we get as donations to the Cedar Valley Bicycle Collective have the worst rusted out bottom brackets, head sets, and fasteners than the ones we get that are so filthy you cannot tell what they are.
Recently had one on the stand that was pristine outside but when I tipped the front end down in the stand it poured water out of the lower head set cup. It looked like it needed nothing to go out on our floor for sale but it ended up requiring new BB, bearing cones, and an OH on the head set.
Water. Be careful where you use it!
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