Jaz123

I need to clean my chain in order to switch to a wax-based lube since the last two times I've tried it without degreasing it, the lube seems to wear off quickly.

I know it's better to take the chain off and soak it in mineral spirits but I am not confident in my bike mechanics and the chain is the factory chain (I think I need a chain tool to take it off). Can I just drip mineral spirits through the chain instead and wipe the cogs with a soaked rag? If not, what alternatives are there?

dsbrantjr

You could use something like this Cyclone Chain Scrubber - Park Tool
which can be made to work but is messy. I use quick links on my chains so they are easy to open and re-close. Removing two pins from a chain with a chain tool and installing a quick link is not very difficult, but of course you will need the link and the tool.

Al1943

[QUOTE=dsbrantjr;18348205]You could use something like this Cyclone Chain Scrubber - Park Tool

+1
This is what I do, and between scribes I use mineral spirits on a rag or paper shop towel. I think removing a chain is inefficient before it's time to replace the chain.

MichaelW

Use an old toothbrush, a rag and a tin can with 1/2" of solvent. You want to avoid getting solvent inside the bearings of the bottom bracket, wheel and freehub. A small pointy stick is useful for removing dirt from the chainrings.

GravelMN

IMHO, being able to replace a chain is like being able to fix a flat. It is a simple job that any cyclist can and should be able to do. A mini-chain breaker costs about $12-15 and will be needed every time you install a new chain. Quick links are $1-2 each and make drive train maintenance a breeze.

[QUOTE=Al1943;18348239]With a quick link it takes all of 15 seconds to remove a chain and maybe a minute to put it back. I drop the chain into a quart container with a few inches of mineral spirits and agitate it a few times while I clean the rest of the drive train. A quick wipe with a clean rag with some clean mineral spirits gets the last of the residue off before reinstallation. A few spins while I wipe with a dry rag and my sparkling clean drive is ready for lube. Chain off makes it easier to clean any grit or gunk out of the cassette and RD jockey wheels. You also get a much cleaner chain with really no more effort than messing around with a chain scrubber or a toothbrush and pointy stick. If the OP is concerned about removing old lube and getting the chain really clean before changing lubes, this is the way to go.

For light cleanings I just put a small amount of mineral spirits on a rag and run it over the chain while spinning the cranks, relube, spin for several seconds, then wipe off the excess.

habilis

If the chain has already been treated with solvents (mineral spirits or other), the factory lube may have been removed from between pins and rollers. In that case, proceed with more solvent (non-water-based, please!) and re-lube.

If the chain was never cleaned with solvent, the factory lube is probably still between the pins and their corresponding holes in the rollers. Since that lube is longer lasting and more effective than anything we can apply at home, why remove it?

Leaving the chain on the bike, you can brush off the surface grime with a toothbrush or rag, re-lube with light oil (not a penetrating solvent), and wipe off the excess oil. This is so fast and easy, your chain will get more cleanings and re-oilings than with the Park tool. Easier on both you and the chain.

dsbrantjr

Along with the worn-off particles of metal and the road grit, which along with the old lube, makes a good analog to grinding compound.

habilis

All depends on what material, if any, can enter that very small space between pin and roller if it's already filled with a tenacious, heavy-weight lube. As long as the lube is left intact, it might be hard for anything but a chemical solvent to get in there and strip out the original lubricant.

Furthermore, the solvent might actually carry dirt into that space. Just theorizing.

The way to prove the theory would be to disassemble chains at various points in their life cycles and test for the presence of the factory lube on the pins. That might revolutionize people's thinking about chain maintenance. As long as the lube is intact, it would seem wrong to remove it.

dsbrantjr

The worn-off metal particles are generated by motion between the pins, rollers and plates, so they are already in those spaces since that is where they are created. The stuff which blackens the lube is the old metal, mostly.

habilis

The discloration may be as much from metal as from road dirt. But how abrasive is super-fine metal dust if suspended in grease? I guess it depends on the quantity and the fineness, and the trade-off of removing the grease along with the metal dust.

The pins and rollers are plain bearings, as opposed to roller bearings. Roller bearings are typically packed in grease. Plain bearings have more friction and would seem in even greater need of grease than roller bearings. Oil is inferior to grease as a bearing lubricant unless the bearing is continuously immersed in an oil bath, like a car's crank shaft. Therefore, it would seem a mistake to replace grease (if still present in a bearing) with oil, which is what most people do with their bike chains.

Lots of "ifs" and "maybes," but I'm inclined to believe it's the truth without evidence to the contrary. After cleaning their chains in solvent, people sometimes complain of the short life they get from a chain oiling before the chain starts squealing. If they used a very thin penetrating oil like WD-40, chains squeal within a few miles. With a light oil, chains remain silent a little longer, but eventually they squeal.

I'm unwilling to run a new chain without re-oiling just to see how long it lasts with just brushing off dirt. I think brushing off followed by oiling leaves the grease intact while reducing corrosion and friction on outer surfaces. I'm hoping the oil also helps seal the grease inside the rollers for all or most of the chain's life. Guess I'll see how long my new chains (installed this year) last.

fietsbob

Remove 1 pulley & take the wheel off and you can hang the chain loop in a bucket of solvent

and pull it through a bit at a time to soak off grime stuck in the old lubricant.

RandomTroll

I use the White Lightning chain scrubber because Walmart sells it cheap. I don't know that it's better or worse than any other model.

Removing a chain is a skill everyone should have (even if you use a chain tool) ; removing it makes it easier to clean the derailleurs and cassette. I'd do it that way if I weren't lazy.

Jaz123

Sounds like I should try to get a quick link in to soak the chain. The wax lube I'm trying is Squirt and my chain to my knowledge has never been treated with a solvent. Before I had been using Tri Flow which had been okay but wanted to try something different, something more self-cleaning and longer lasting (yes, I'm slightly lazy).

davidad

If the chain doesn't come with a master-link, but and install one.Chain care, wear and skipping by Jobst Brandt

02Giant 

I rotate two chains, one is always ready for install. Once removed from the bike with a quick link, it goes into a container with mineral spirits and soaks for a day or so, then agitated and scrubbed, then into a second container with clean solvent to rinse, hang to dry, then run it through the mini crock pot with wax based lube and hang.

vze23c3q

+1

You have to take the chain off and soak if you're using wax lube. I'm doing one today, this chain has 400 miles since last cleaning and was ridden mostly on rollers. This is after the second soak, I'm holding a magnet under the jar:

wvridgerider

I used one of these for several years using straight Simple Green and then hosing the chain off. I then apply a motorcycle chain lube, Honda pro with moly. The chain stays clean and lubed for some time. Simple

scott967

To wax a chain I would remove all and I mean all lube first. Mineral spirits, then denatured alcohol then mineral spirits again, and finally lacquer thinner. Though if you aren't taking the chain off then you aren't actually doing a wax I suppose (not sure how I would get a chain saturated with 190F paraffin on the bike?)

scott s.
.

dwing

Haha , somebody with common sense...Rare indeed in these forums. And until u get the cyclone (or other) u can do the same as this ProMech. hit the entire drive with degreaser, quick scrub, hose , dry, lube, done. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLL9aG0Tvng

davidad

Chain care, wear and skipping by Jobst Brandt

davidad

If you want the longest life from your drive rain, remove the chain and clean it in an ultrasonic cleaner. I use simple green and water.
I have had chains last over 15,000 miles using this method. I relube with 1 part chainsaw bar oil to 4 parts unscented mineral spirits.