damnable

Hi,
Even to me this sounds like a silly question. I've read a few threads on chain cleaning to get some ideas but not what exactly a dirty chain looks like.

My still relatively new bike is only a few hundred kilometres old. But I've looked at the chain and part of the drivechain and I'm seeing quite a bit of black grime in and around the chain. It looks and feels like fine dirt or dust mixed with sticky oil. It's most noticeable around the jocky wheels where it's come out of the chain.

Is this normal or a sign the chain needs a clean?

How do you tell when your chain needs cleaning?

canam73

When the chainring mark on my leg doesn't wash off in the first shower I figure it's about time.

gregf83 

Everyone has a different tolerance level for drivetrain cleanliness. Some like it polished and pristine and will remove the chain, clean with a degreaser and relube. Others, including me, just wipe it down with a rag or shop towel occasionally and re-lube. There is no benefit, other than looks, to having a perfectly clean chain. Wiping gets off the majority of grunge and takes less than a minute.

surgeonstone

When it's dirty.

achoo

Or the drivetrain is getting noisy.

kenji666

When it turns reddish brown and is dry to the touch.

surgeonstone

Then it's dirty.

rollin

It's the gunk you can't see that causes he most problems. The side plates looking greasy is just ugly but the place to consider are the rollers.

Dependent on ride conditions I would clean and lubricate my chain every 100-200 miles

StanSeven

Most of that is little bits of the chain material as it wears.

Like someone said, I clean it when washing off the chain tattoo in the shower takes longer that cleaning the chain.

TromboneAl

Every 50 miles or whenever riding in the rain.

This device, that I learned about here, is great (the grunge brush):

iiimik3

i degrease my entire drivetrain about once a month, which for me is usually around 200-300 miles. I'll also do the quick wipe and re-lube of the chain once or twice through-out that month. If i ride through a lot of wet or exceptionally dirty areas i'll maybe do a degrease/relube session sometime before the next ride.

kenji666

Does it get the chainring tatoo off your calf too?

FBinNY 

Minor surface dire glued to the outside of the chain won't kill it. You may dry clean it by running the chain through a rag or paper towel once in a while if you like. Decent chain lube will protect the chain from weather, including coastal salty air and rain, so how you handle that depends on what you used to lube.

IMO washing chains (as opposed to dry wiping) is more trouble than it's worth and I equate it to bathing cats. Only when absolutely necessary, and then very carefully.

Christobevii3

I feel the chain and if they don't roll or it feels gritty i clean it. I like to hear my chain sound like sizzling bacon, it gives me motivation.

San Rensho 

If you wipe down the chain after every ride and lighttly oil it every 2nd or 3rd ride, you never have to clean it. I haven't cleaned a chain in years. My chian is always visually clean (not sanitary, but definitely clean) and shifts perfectly.

chado445510

A poorly cared for drivetrain will wear down more quickly than one that was pristine.

carpediemracing 

If there's any grit, any black stuff accumulating around the outer pins, it's time to clean. If it makes gritty noises (if you think it sounds gritty, it is), time to clean.

Grit etc wears out a chain prematurely. Leave your chain sandy/dirty just as an experiment. In muddy conditions (mtb) I've worn a chain in 2 weeks (XT), maybe 8 rides. Apparently Phil Anderson (pro when STI levers first came out) needed a new chain every two weeks, but then that might be 1200-1300 miles.

It also shows a bit of pride in your bike, like having a clean workbench or car. I don't have much of anything clean/uncluttered but my bike stays a bit cleaner than not.

halfspeed

He's not advocating poor care. He's advocating adequate care.

spock

I used to do this, but then I read somewhere that this method is not recommended because when you wipe a dirty chain, you push small grime particles into the chain where it matters the most. Accelerated chain wear occurs when dirt remains on the inside of the chain. Whether the chain is clean on the outside matters the least. I wish I could find a link for better explanation, but it makes perfect sense to me. It also mentioned that you should never lube a dirty chain.

I clean mine with degreaser and rolling brushes about every 150 miles and make sure that all the excess lube is removed from the outside of the chain after lubing becuase it attracts dirt if there is too much lube. Before I lube a clean chain, I always make sure that the degreaser is removed from the chain by rinsing it down with water and wait till it's completely dry.

halfspeed

And degreaser supposedly washes lube out of the inside of the chain.

Look, you can obsess over this stuff or you can wipe, lube and ride your bike. I doubt you'll get any significant increase in chain life from regular meticulous detailing, but you will get all that time spent fiddling with chains back if you take a more relaxed approach to cleaning.

spock

Hey it ain't that bad really. About 20 minutes every 2 weeks or so for me. I like doing it too.

Yes it does remove dirt from the inside of the chain for the most part. I use simple green or purple power with chain cleaning roller. I know because when the chain is dry after the cleaning procedure, I shake the chain and it makes that metal to metal sound when those small rolling rings inside the chain shake.

Not only does it prolong chain life fairly significantly, but also cassette or freewheel life. Clean chain also makes pedaling more efficient.

Nachoman

Pristine? That's a bit much to ask.

colombo357

Cleaning your bike constantly shows inexperience.

If you've been riding for a long time, eventually you'll get tired of it and stop doing it. And a year later, you'll find that cleaning your bike every weekend versus twice a year yields zero improvement in performance and component life.

djb

I'll trade you a pristine for a somewhat clean, hows that?

wrr1020

I usually wipe the sides of the chain with an old rag after every couple of rides. Hate when the sides are gunked up and turn dark. I have ocd about having a clean drivetrain. I take off the cassette once a month, degrease and scrub. Chain is also cleaned. I usually re lube after 150-200 miles of riding.