Poor Man's Parts Cleaner
08-20-21, 02:15 PM
#51
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08-20-21, 02:21 PM
#52
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08-20-21, 04:01 PM
#54
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You are on your way towards understanding. I’m not sure what you mean by a “chain break in process” as a chain is useable out of the package without any thing being done to it. I clean my chains once when I install them. They don’t get cleaned again. After 3000 to 4000 miles, I replace them with a cleaned chain. Even with what most people would consider abusive treatment of the chain, I get what other people usually claim in chain mileage. All of the ultrasonic cleaning, multiple washes, multiple solvents, passing of bones over the chain, and ancient chants in dead languages that most people will tell you that you have to do doesn’t get them significantly more mileage out of their chains. It’s just extra work.
Coleman fuel, by the way, is basically odored mineral spirits. We call it “white gas” but it isn’t gasoline. The flash point is a bit lower (0°F) which makes it a little more flammable then mineral spirits but not nearly as flammable as gasoline. It does have an elevated benzene content which makes it more hazardous to handle…please use gloves with any solvent…but it’s still less toxic than gasoline which has a much higher benzene content.
Coleman fuel, by the way, is basically odored mineral spirits. We call it “white gas” but it isn’t gasoline. The flash point is a bit lower (0°F) which makes it a little more flammable then mineral spirits but not nearly as flammable as gasoline. It does have an elevated benzene content which makes it more hazardous to handle…please use gloves with any solvent…but it’s still less toxic than gasoline which has a much higher benzene content.
08-20-21, 07:04 PM
#55
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The basic reason I like ultrasonic is it cleans out friction points that are sleeved or pinned(not bearings). Yes its overkill cleaning but it is a time saver. I do the occasional derailleur or brake on a vintage bike.
Mineral spirits is indeed a safety factor over gas. Lacking a garage, I only use solvents outdoors. Some high school friends were using solvents in a garage with a heater, the solvents went up and they suffered terrible burns.
Nobody thinks about pH of cleaners! Just as nobody thinks about the base chemicals of lubes. The average guy should just use basic products and not overthink the topic. Thanks for your input. Good to have a fellow chemist to consult
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08-21-21, 09:23 PM
#57
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I started taking one every day. Then I started taking two or three. Eventually I was taking them out by the handful. My coworkers suck, but I have clean nooks and crannies on my bikes. Oh... I brush my teeth with them before using them on the bikes.
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08-22-21, 06:57 AM
#58
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I so agree, Stu. The whole idea of u/s cleaning was to save time and mess, but in the end its nothing but a fiddly mess in its own right.
08-23-21, 11:59 AM
#59
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A car mechanic friend uses brake cleaner for everything. You can get it in a can, or an aerosol. Unlike carburetor cleaner it doesn't leave a residue and it cuts grease well, since it's designed to get everything that's even closely related to grease off you car's friction surfaces. Works for me too. I suspect it's functionally similar to mineral spirits, but it's at least specifically formulated for a task similar to cleaning a chain.
I would appreciate any responses from the posters that know more than I do.
Do I need to start a new topic to ask if any of these cleaning methods will fix an old sticky Shimano brifter that doesn't want to ratchet?
I would appreciate any responses from the posters that know more than I do.
Do I need to start a new topic to ask if any of these cleaning methods will fix an old sticky Shimano brifter that doesn't want to ratchet?
08-23-21, 01:11 PM
#60
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Some thoughts, the well heeled reloader has an ultrasonic cleaner for their brass. A tumbler wight be a way to polish components since walnut shell media and brass polish makes for shiny stuff.
For general grease removal I use brake cleaner or Simple Green for small stuff and S100 to wash the bike. That usually removes all the crud I care about. I use solvent based chain lube which takes care of cleaning as well.
In answer to the last post, Shimano Rapid Fire and STI shifters sometimes respond to flushing with solvent followed by some penetrating oil and sometimes not.
For general grease removal I use brake cleaner or Simple Green for small stuff and S100 to wash the bike. That usually removes all the crud I care about. I use solvent based chain lube which takes care of cleaning as well.
In answer to the last post, Shimano Rapid Fire and STI shifters sometimes respond to flushing with solvent followed by some penetrating oil and sometimes not.
08-23-21, 10:10 PM
#61
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All I see when someone mentions hot wax 
08-24-21, 06:14 AM
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I would have agreed with this statement until about a year ago. For decades I had used mineral spirits, WD-40, degreasers, and lots of various brushes and rags. I was getting sick and tired of it. Last year I bought an ultrasonic cleaner to clean chains, as I was converting all my bikes to hot wax (a decision I'm very happy about). Now that I have the ultrasonic, I use it all the time for other parts and love it. No more breathing fumes, and little or no scrubbing. Saves time and does a better job. No more accumulation of stinky used mineral spirits.
"I was converting all my bikes to hot wax"
08-24-21, 09:14 AM
#63
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A car mechanic friend uses brake cleaner for everything. You can get it in a can, or an aerosol. Unlike carburetor cleaner it doesn't leave a residue and it cuts grease well, since it's designed to get everything that's even closely related to grease off you car's friction surfaces. Works for me too. I suspect it's functionally similar to mineral spirits, but it's at least specifically formulated for a task similar to cleaning a chain.
I would appreciate any responses from the posters that know more than I do.
I would appreciate any responses from the posters that know more than I do.
Do I need to start a new topic to ask if any of these cleaning methods will fix an old sticky Shimano brifter that doesn't want to ratchet?
But for general cleaning, mineral spirits and a rag will do the job a lot cheaper. The key is to not use something that makes everything oily. Oil based chain lubes just cause maintenance issues that make everyone who uses them lose their minds about cleaning.
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08-24-21, 09:43 AM
#64
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A car mechanic friend uses brake cleaner for everything. You can get it in a can, or an aerosol. Unlike carburetor cleaner it doesn't leave a residue and it cuts grease well, since it's designed to get everything that's even closely related to grease off you car's friction surfaces. Works for me too.
08-24-21, 10:37 AM
#65
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08-24-21, 10:52 AM
#66
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Not all brake cleaners use chlorinated solvents. If you are going to use brake cleaner on bicycles, choose the nonchlorinated ones or use Finishline Speed Degreaser which is the same stuff.
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08-25-21, 09:40 AM
#67
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Wikipedia talks about at least 22 types of waxes. And cross country skiers and alpine ski races certainly use wide variations within a type. Straight paraffin is easy to find, but tends to crack and flake and doesn't seem like it would be very good for chains. Beeswax seems like it would be better, but I'm sure there are specialized chain waxes that are far from the goal of "poor man's" expressed in the OP. Maybe there is a best answer, but, like oils, wax contains hydrocarbons. It seems strange to have a digital divide: wax good, oil bad.
08-25-21, 11:15 AM
#68
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My Method:
1. Clean factory wax off new chain with mineral spirits
2. Install and lube
3. Ride, ocasionally lube and clean if it makes me embarressed to be in public with it.
4. When shifting suffers, remove old chain and dip once in a trash can.
5. Repaeat steps 1-4.
1. Clean factory wax off new chain with mineral spirits
2. Install and lube
3. Ride, ocasionally lube and clean if it makes me embarressed to be in public with it.
4. When shifting suffers, remove old chain and dip once in a trash can.
5. Repaeat steps 1-4.
08-25-21, 11:40 AM
#69
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I've head that cautionary. As I recall carb cleaner is comparatively less hazardous to use for degreasing, but brake cleaner the nuclear option for getting a surface clean. I've got a project bike that will need the headset cups and maybe the bottom bracket glued in. I was going to use brake cleaner as the surfaces have been full greased before.
08-26-21, 08:16 AM
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If so, the fumes are quite strong from it.
Thanks
08-26-21, 08:43 AM
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Yes, although there are different grades. Odorless mineral spirits has a lower aromatic (benzene/xylene) content which makes it less objectionable. It also increases the flash point.
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Stuart Black
Plan Epsilon Around Lake Michigan in the era of Covid
Old School…When It Wasn’t Ancient bikepacking
Gold Fever Three days of dirt in Colorado
Pokin' around the Poconos A cold ride around Lake Erie
Dinosaurs in Colorado A mountain bike guide to the Purgatory Canyon dinosaur trackway
Solo Without Pie. The search for pie in the Midwest.
Picking the Scablands. Washington and Oregon, 2005. Pie and spiders on the Columbia River!
Stuart Black
Plan Epsilon Around Lake Michigan in the era of Covid
Old School…When It Wasn’t Ancient bikepacking
Gold Fever Three days of dirt in Colorado
Pokin' around the Poconos A cold ride around Lake Erie
Dinosaurs in Colorado A mountain bike guide to the Purgatory Canyon dinosaur trackway
Solo Without Pie. The search for pie in the Midwest.
Picking the Scablands. Washington and Oregon, 2005. Pie and spiders on the Columbia River!
