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| Boston slums, 1909; Boston Public Library |
Bicycle chains get dirty quick. Once when I was out on a ride the chain fell off the gears, and I had to stop and manually thread it back on the gear cogs. I was feeling quite proud of myself for putting the chain back, but my pride faded somewhat when I looked at my hands. They were covered in black oily grime that didn't come off very easily. Ew.
Why does this happen? Well your bicycle chain links each have small rollers that spin as you pedal. Like most moving parts, they need lubricant to spin smoothly. However, as you bike, the lubricant acts as a magnet and picks up dust and dirt flung up from the road. As time goes on you may notice a slight grinding as you pedal, and changing gears doesn't seem as smooth as it should. This is a sign that it's time to clean your bike! If you're a daily-ish bike commuter in the city, you need to clean and re-lube your chain once a week.
While some people may bring their bikes into the shop to get the chain cleaned, you can do it yourself relatively cheaply.
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- rag aka old t-shirt
- White Lightning degreaser
- Finish Line bike lube
- Finish Line chain cleaner
- Carchet bicycle chain brushes
+ old toothbrush
- bucket of soapy hot water
- empty bottle to collect used degreaser
First things first. A bike stand will help when doing this because you need to be able to spin the back wheel freely. You can also turn your bike upside-down and achieve the same thing. I also lay down some rags to catch any drips.
Next you'll want to clean off your chain. You can do it by hand with various brushes, but the chain cleaner boxes work sooo much faster and better. Simply fill up the tool up to the fill line, then fit the chain in it, close the lid, and spin your wheels backwards. It's basically like a tiny car wash; the chain is forced repeatedly through the degreaser and brushes which will scrub the chain. I've heard it recommended to go turn about 100 pedal rotations to clean thoroughly enough.
Once your chain seems clean enough, rinse the chain off. Do this by removing the chain cleaner tool and filling it with water instead of the degreaser. Then replace the tool on the chain and spin the wheel backward for another minute or so.
I also like to use a brush to scrub off any remaining offending grit stuck between the chain links. I also take a rag to wipe off the derailleur gears, as gunk really builds up on those. If you're somewhat OCD like I am about cleaning, you'll have to make peace with the fact that the chain will not be 100% clean. A really thorough cleaning would involve taking the entire chain off the bike.
I also use the pick tool to scrape anything out from between the gears of the bike. Soooo satisfying to get all the crap out.
Once the chain and gears are clean to your satisfaction, wipe off the chain to remove any last degreaser or water. Then it's time to lube it up. As you pedal slowly backwards, put a drop of lube on each link in the chain. I'll leave it for a minute to let the lube settle into all the nooks and crannies of the chain.
You also want to make sure all the gears have some lube as well. Pedal forwards this time, and as you pedal, go through all your gears, both front and back. When that's done wipe the length of the chain with a rag to remove any excess lube. This is important to remember, as lube is a dirt magnet, and a clean chain will stay cleaner longer.
The last step is to clean up! Your hands are probably covered in black gunk from the chain. IMO the best and quickest way to clean it off is Fast Orange. I used it in my high school art class days, and that stuff is AMAZING.
Further Reading:
Bicycle StackExchange: "How to achieve an always clean chain," zenbike's answer
SheldonBrown.com: "Chain Maintenance"
