Cleaning cassette and rear mech etc?

[LeadFarmer]

Any tips for cleaning please? Any preferred tools, brushes etc?

I struggle to keep my cassette, chain and rear mech clean. I commute every day in all weathers and always wipe my chain down with a rag when I get home, and apply WD40 dry/wet oil, but don't do more than that.

Each week I'll give the cassette some attention with a brush, maybe wipe the chain over with some degreaser, but it's always gunged up and I struggle to get it really clean. I don't like the idea of degreaser getting into parts it shouldn't.

Periodically I attach the chain cleaner/bath and spin the chain backwards through it, and remove the rear wheel and give the cassette and mech a good scrub, but the oily gunge is hard to get off completely, never get it back to looking shiny new. It's as if I need to use the jet wash to blast it all off, but I don't like doing that.

After removing the chain and scrubbing the cassette, it still looks mucky...

Edited by LeadFarmer on Saturday 30th January 14:07

[Indoraptor]

Get an ultrasonic bath, put the cassette in that full of Muc Off or similar, then give the cassette the scrub treatment.

[frisbee]

I've tried chain baths but found that although they clean the chain, they do so by distributing a horrible mess over the cassette, chain stays and various other parts of the bike.

I used to take the chain and cassette off every few weeks and scrub them clean in a tray off meths. And clean the chainrings just with a rag.

[Bathroom_Security]

frisbee said:

I've tried chain baths but found that although they clean the chain, they do so by distributing a horrible mess over the cassette, chain stays and various other parts of the bike.

I used to take the chain and cassette off every few weeks and scrub them clean in a tray off meths. And clean the chainrings just with a rag.

By doing as you said. I remove the chain frequently and clean it in white spirit followed by isopropyl in a sealed container. At the same time I'll use wd40 bike degreaser on the casette and derailleur. Once cleaned ill lube the derailleur joints again, plus chain

Or, use a good all purpose cleaner and a jet washer bearing in mind that may force water into the pawls/internals of the hub. Plenty of water to drill away the grit.

A good quality lube will help keep the noise of the grit down. Muck off wet lube ceramic is excellent and long lasting. Quiet too.

[frisbee]

It is amazing just how much grit and sludge is left in the bottom of the pan after cleaning.

[colin_p]

I jetwash my bikes, avoiding wheel bearing and bottom bracket and headset areas as much as possible, then blow any water away with an airline and then properly oil the chain. This is a good reason to have an air compressor as any other.

As for oiling the chain, the first stage is to get oil into and onto every link. I then let it settle for about ten minutes and let capillary action do its thing and then proceed to wipe off as much as I can.

I've tried all sorts of other methods, the only one that works better, but is a real faff, is taking the chain off and washing it in paraffin using the Wifes toothbrush and then rinsing with aerosol brake cleaner.

[remedy]

I've got a big can of brake cleaner with a nozzle attachment. The cassette and chain get a blast of that after a spray of muc off and it's always shiny clean.
Then a spray of wd40 to get rid of the water and a dribble of muc off wet or dry to lubricate.

[LeadFarmer]

remedy said:

I've got a big can of brake cleaner with a nozzle attachment. The cassette and chain get a blast of that after a spray of muc off and it's always shiny clean.
Then a spray of wd40 to get rid of the water and a dribble of muc off wet or dry to lubricate.

Im conscious of getting degreaser into the rollers the chain, thought I know re-oiling should take care of that. I'll give your method a try.

I used a cleaning brush I had bought for my motorbike on my pushbikes cassette today (after a mist spray of degreaser) and it did quite a good job of cleaning it.

[mathmos]

I guess one question is how much effort to actually go to...it is a working piece of mechanical equipment after all, it's not meant to be spotless. How much additional life are you going to get out of it if you spend loads of time and money trying to get it shiny? You're going to get chain stretch and worn out components however clean they are.

I tend to do a chain clean using a cleaner and some degreaser, clean off the worst of the muck with a rag and a bit of brushing, then re-lube...seems to be a reasonable compromise between getting it spotless and just keeping it pretty well maintained as to not shorten the components life to much.

[dontlookdown]

mathmos said:

I guess one question is how much effort to actually go to...it is a working piece of mechanical equipment after all, it's not meant to be spotless. How much additional life are you going to get out of it if you spend loads of time and money trying to get it shiny? You're going to get chain stretch and worn out components however clean they are.

I tend to do a chain clean using a cleaner and some degreaser, clean off the worst of the muck with a rag and a bit of brushing, then re-lube...seems to be a reasonable compromise between getting it spotless and just keeping it pretty well maintained as to not shorten the components life to much.

Pretty much my view. I am a reformed drivetrain over-cleaner;) Uses to clean chain after every ride and cassette/chain rings every weekend. Slightly obsessive.

Now I do a run through the chain cleaner every couple of weeks and a full strip-down drivetrain clean maybe once a month or so in the winter. So long as shifting is OK and it's not utterly filthy I am OK with that now.

It makes no difference that I can tell to the life of chain or cassette. New chain every 6 months or so either way, new cassette every second chain. So why not save time and aggro and go dirty?

[Indoraptor]

mathmos said:

I guess one question is how much effort to actually go to...it is a working piece of mechanical equipment after all, it's not meant to be spotless. How much additional life are you going to get out of it if you spend loads of time and money trying to get it shiny? You're going to get chain stretch and worn out components however clean they are.

I tend to do a chain clean using a cleaner and some degreaser, clean off the worst of the muck with a rag and a bit of brushing, then re-lube...seems to be a reasonable compromise between getting it spotless and just keeping it pretty well maintained as to not shorten the components life to much.

That largely depends how much the bits cost. I tend not to give a 50 quid cassette as much T.L.C. as a 250+ quid cassette, for example. The same goes for chains. A cheapo 1-8 speed, will get a cursory clean ( wiped down with an oily rag ) a relatively expensive 12 speed will get a proper clean. ‘Chain stretch’ is actually not the chain ‘stretching’, the side plates don’t elongate much at all, it’s ‘effective stretch’ caused by wear to the rollers and bushings, that you’re actually seeing. The cleaner and better lubed you keep the system, the longer it takes for the bushings and rollers to wear.

[dontlookdown]

Also, to the OPs question - for getting the worst gunk out of the gaps in a grubby cassette I use pipecleaners. Better than a brush but you do have to throw them away which is not very eco.

[gashart]

colin_p said:

I jetwash my bikes, avoiding wheel bearing and bottom bracket and headset areas as much as possible, then blow any water away with an airline and then properly oil the chain. This is a good reason to have an air compressor as any other.

As for oiling the chain, the first stage is to get oil into and onto every link. I then let it settle for about ten minutes and let capillary action do its thing and then proceed to wipe off as much as I can.

I've tried all sorts of other methods, the only one that works better, but is a real faff, is taking the chain off and washing it in paraffin using the Wifes toothbrush and then rinsing with aerosol brake cleaner.

Once you have got your chain , cassette, chain ring etc properly clean, (I use a bio degrable spray degreaser with everything on the bike nowadays) the above second paragraph is the key, when oiling the chain put the bike into the smallest gear so the chain has the biggest movement, oil sparingly and and run the chain backwards for about a minute, allowing the oil into the roller, then, very important, get a rag and WIPE OFF the excess. It's this excess that causes the black gloop, you don't really need oil on the outside, just a little to prevent rust, doing this from a couple of years ago has transformed my drivetrain and the milage I get out of chains and cassettes. Oh and get a chain wear guide, if you change your chain at 75% wear you can normally then get 2 chains for 1 cassette, enjoy your riding
Oh and I never use WD40, if I just want to protect the chain after a bike wash and oil later I use GT85, disperses the water but doesn't dry like WD40, I feel WD40 is the devils work.

[sociopath]

I use paint brush cleaner/ white spirit and a paint brush
Takes everything off in seconds, then apply new chain lube.

All this worry about getting into parts of the chain is unnecessary, the chain will stretch and need replacing way before anything gets damaged by 30 seconds in paint brush cleaner

[LeadFarmer]

I'm not one for cleaning my bike (or motorbike) as I commute every day in all weathers, rain or shine, so if I cleaned the bike every day it would be dirty again the following day. But when I do try to clean the drivetrain I find it difficult. Other cyclists comment on my drivetrain being filthy, even if it had been cleaned just a few days ago.

Working on the assumption of changing the cassette every second chain, this works out expensive for me as I get through about 4 chains per year. When you consider a chain for my bike costs £15 - £50 and cassettes £80, that's quite an expense. Which is why I'd like to try and keep it all cleaner than I do, but I usually fail.

Recently I had a chain link snap and the sharp edge got caught in the rear derailleur, ripping it off its hanger and wrapping around my cassette. I fitted a £35 chain (in the hope it would be stronger), new hanger, cassette, chain and front chain ring, and managed to twist the derailleur back into shape. That was an expensive repair.




There months later and the new £35 chain snapped. I replaced it with a cheap one but noticed it was catching on the rear derailleur which was slightly twisted causing the chain to rub, probably the reason it snapped. Ordered a new derailleur for £70.

So keeping the chain clean is something I try to do, and I've just bought some of this to try on it..

Edited by LeadFarmer on Sunday 31st January 10:59

[Barchettaman]

Screwfix degreaser

Wippermann reusable Quick link for the chain

Remove the cassette and clean

Scrub the jockey wheels

Decent wipe of the chainrings

Takes about 20 mins

[colin_p]

sociopath said:

I use paint brush cleaner/ white spirit and a paint brush
Takes everything off in seconds, then apply new chain lube.

All this worry about getting into parts of the chain is unnecessary, the chain will stretch and need replacing way before anything gets damaged by 30 seconds in paint brush cleaner

Maybe, but on a mid-drive e-bike (like the OP's) you need to be a bit more fussy.

With my mid-drive e-bike, although I don't have power metered pedals / crank, looking at the estimated power outputs on Strava, you can see some huge wattage spikes.

A 250w rated mid motor can peak at 350w+ for short periods and if you add in your own power output on top when that is happening, there is a lot of force going through the drive train. I often see short Strava segments with estimated power outputs (me+motor) of 600 to 700 watts.

Note that these are short segments as sustaining that power for a mere mortal like me is impossible.

When looking at the detailed estimated power graphs I often see momentary power peaks of 1,000w+ (me+motor). So an e-bike drive train can get a proper battering even in ideal conditions. I was out yesterday through, flood, mud and all sorts, which just adds to the potential bork factor.

Also, for any e-bike riders, carrying a set or two of quick-links and quick-link pliers is a very good insurance policy. I even carry a spare chain!

But proper oiling, whenever you clean the gubbins is key.

[addey]

LeadFarmer said:

So keeping the chain clean is something I try to do, and I've just bought some of this to try on it..

Edited by LeadFarmer on Sunday 31st January 10:59

I use squirt, it's great, but I probably wouldn't recommend it for daily winter use. It washes out pretty easily in wet weather so you may find yourself reapplying very regularly! In the summer it is brilliant and only needs reapplying every 10-14 days. I'd also suggest that you fully degrease your chain before applying for the first time (plenty of good recommendations in this thread for how to do it)

[gashart]

Looking at the picture of your broken chain I'd say you have too much lube outside of the chain therefore collecting muck on your daily ride, just my thoughts

[gazza285]

I'm glad I commute on a single speed.