How to clean a bicycle: (formerly: motorex oil of switzerland bike shine)

[ron l edmiston]

best i have worked with!

worked well on ti and plastic bikes - love it on new/old atmo and jpw collectors.

easy to use and leaves a shine like "a diamond in a goat's as-!"

ronnie :)

[deepsix]

on that note... I learned today that the Finish Line Showroom Polish and Detailer is a crummy product for bikes. If a frame is stripped bare it is acceptable. Otherwise its wax solidifies on all the tiny spaces between components that aren't exposed by light during wiping and look like a real mess afterwards. I found it worthwhile to hose down bikes to get the overspray of this garbage off.

I scrub at minimum 3 bikes and often as many as 10-15 every day. These are all road bikes, primarily carbon and ti with good finishes both matte and gloss. My method is honed and efficient out of necessity. Here's the skinny:

Set Up: (outside)
1) Tacx Spider Portable Workstand. Clamping by the front fork and bracing the bottom bracket make for a stable platform. The ability to spin the bike around and stand in one place makes life easy.
2) Table. Bending over sucks. Buckets and brushes are kept at arms reach.
3) Cleaning products: Blue Dawn Dish Soap, Odorless Mineral Spirits, 2 Broad Stiff Scrub Brushes w/ long handles, 1 parts cleaning brush, 1 chain scrubbing device (I like the Park one), Simple Green, two buckets, hose and water, fireman boots, SRAM Pitstop Parts Protector
*****I'm aware that the mineral spirits are not the most environmentally friendly approach. PEDRO'S ProJ is acceptable for well maintained bikes.

Cleaning: Bike in stand, front wheel removed
1) Do chain first. Based on condition, I'll either run the chain cleaner with mineral spirits or a dilution of Simple green.
2) Clean cassette. Use degreaser and parts cleaner brush. Spin wheel with brush held against gears. Be conscious of the flow of product into seals and bearings-- avoid doing so. That being said--- sealed bearings do a good job of standing up against routine cleaning. I routinely peek underneath seals of BB's and hubs just to see whats going on. I'm increasingly less afraid of canceling grease in bearings from cleaning.
3) Spin wheel backwards, stand behind bike, hose grime and cleaning product from cassette and chain as wheel moves.
4) Use a broad brush (this one is dedicated to wheels) to scrub the rim sidewalls with wither Dawn Solution or Simple Green Solution. Hose off the soap. It helps to have the wheel in the frame to clean the cassette and chain, but that process can get muck on the rim. This order prevents that from being a problem.
5) Use parts brush to clean derailluers, cranks, chainrings, and brakes. If mineral spirits were used on any parts, a second going over with Simple Green or Dawn is in order. Scrub these parts indiscriminately with a stiff brush (not the wheel brush). Hose off, avoiding seals directly.
6) Sponge and Dawn/water for the frame. Front to back. Stiff brush and Dawn for white bar tape. Remember to scrub the front wheel. Mavic stone comes in handy as well as it is easy to clean up with the hose handy.
7) I really like applying SRAM Pitstop to the drivetrain and stembolts... basically anything metal on the bike. It forms a coating that repels water, pushes it out of crevasses (no rust), and makes it easier to clean in the future. Wipe off.
8) Coat frame in LEMON SCENTED PLEDGE!!! I promise nothing works better for any material bike with a gloss finish or bare Ti. Matte finishes do well with Pitstop over the whole frame for protection that won't add shine or just the towel. I've used many products but always find them inferior either in result or convenience to use.

I then use a needle applicator to lubricate all pivot points. All chainring bolts get fresh grease and BB's get pulled for fresh grease on the threads. Chain gets desired lube. Stem bolts get pulled and greased and reset to proper torque. Cables get a drip of lube (hitting just the entry/exit point is a waste of time-- pull the cable and really lube the thing). Tiny spot of lube on every spoke nipple, as well as rail/saddle clamp interface. Pull and wipe seatpost (grease if metal, carbon paste if carbon).

I'm super tempted to make a video to show how quickly this can all be done. It comprises most of what makes a pro tune up on a high end road bike.

[Too Tall]

Deepsix. SPOT ON brother, that's perfect :)

FWIIW I understand why you clean cassettes that way. For heavy infestations (hehe) of hard grease / dirt I take the wheel off and lean the wheel over a solvent bucket or hot water + dawn and use a dedicated muck brush to brush out the cassette.

Thanks again, great read. Def. wikki-worthy.

Ronnie, executive decision to rename this thread. Lemme know if you want me to send $$ for therapy ;)

[sloji]

on that note... I learned today that the Finish Line Showroom Polish and Detailer is a crummy product for bikes. If a frame is stripped bare it is acceptable. Otherwise its wax solidifies on all the tiny spaces between components that aren't exposed by light during wiping and look like a real mess afterwards. I found it worthwhile to hose down bikes to get the overspray of this garbage off.

I scrub at minimum 3 bikes and often as many as 10-15 every day. These are all road bikes, primarily carbon and ti with good finishes both matte and gloss. My method is honed and efficient out of necessity. Here's the skinny:

Set Up: (outside)
1) Tacx Spider Portable Workstand. Clamping by the front fork and bracing the bottom bracket make for a stable platform. The ability to spin the bike around and stand in one place makes life easy.
2) Table. Bending over sucks. Buckets and brushes are kept at arms reach.
3) Cleaning products: Blue Dawn Dish Soap, Odorless Mineral Spirits, 2 Broad Stiff Scrub Brushes w/ long handles, 1 parts cleaning brush, 1 chain scrubbing device (I like the Park one), Simple Green, two buckets, hose and water, fireman boots, SRAM Pitstop Parts Protector
*****I'm aware that the mineral spirits are not the most environmentally friendly approach. PEDRO'S ProJ is acceptable for well maintained bikes.

Cleaning: Bike in stand, front wheel removed
1) Do chain first. Based on condition, I'll either run the chain cleaner with mineral spirits or a dilution of Simple green.
2) Clean cassette. Use degreaser and parts cleaner brush. Spin wheel with brush held against gears. Be conscious of the flow of product into seals and bearings-- avoid doing so. That being said--- sealed bearings do a good job of standing up against routine cleaning. I routinely peek underneath seals of BB's and hubs just to see whats going on. I'm increasingly less afraid of canceling grease in bearings from cleaning.
3) Spin wheel backwards, stand behind bike, hose grime and cleaning product from cassette and chain as wheel moves.
4) Use a broad brush (this one is dedicated to wheels) to scrub the rim sidewalls with wither Dawn Solution or Simple Green Solution. Hose off the soap. It helps to have the wheel in the frame to clean the cassette and chain, but that process can get muck on the rim. This order prevents that from being a problem.
5) Use parts brush to clean derailluers, cranks, chainrings, and brakes. If mineral spirits were used on any parts, a second going over with Simple Green or Dawn is in order. Scrub these parts indiscriminately with a stiff brush (not the wheel brush). Hose off, avoiding seals directly.
6) Sponge and Dawn/water for the frame. Front to back. Stiff brush and Dawn for white bar tape. Remember to scrub the front wheel. Mavic stone comes in handy as well as it is easy to clean up with the hose handy.
7) I really like applying SRAM Pitstop to the drivetrain and stembolts... basically anything metal on the bike. It forms a coating that repels water, pushes it out of crevasses (no rust), and makes it easier to clean in the future. Wipe off.
8) Coat frame in LEMON SCENTED PLEDGE!!! I promise nothing works better for any material bike with a gloss finish or bare Ti. Matte finishes do well with Pitstop over the whole frame for protection that won't add shine or just the towel. I've used many products but always find them inferior either in result or convenience to use.

I then use a needle applicator to lubricate all pivot points. All chainring bolts get fresh grease and BB's get pulled for fresh grease on the threads. Chain gets desired lube. Stem bolts get pulled and greased and reset to proper torque. Cables get a drip of lube (hitting just the entry/exit point is a waste of time-- pull the cable and really lube the thing). Tiny spot of lube on every spoke nipple, as well as rail/saddle clamp interface. Pull and wipe seatpost (grease if metal, carbon paste if carbon).

I'm super tempted to make a video to show how quickly this can all be done. It comprises most of what makes a pro tune up on a high end road bike.

That would be cool!

[billrick]

I just rebuilt the drivetrain on my Hampsten SBti, cleaned off the gunk with diluted Simple Green, and finished off the bike with LEMON PLEDGE. Wow. You weren't kidding. Looks fantastic on matte Ti! I'll post photos later.

I'll try your whole cleaning routine at the end of summer. Thanks for taking the time to write it up.

:)

[allerge99]

On a Ti bike I have found after trial and error that stainless steel bbq cleaner after washing a bike works better than pledge.


On the chains that are really gunked up and nasty how do y'all go about cleaning them? I usually take mine off and sit it in degreaser over night then scrub the next day with a tooth brush. It's a pain in the arse and makes a mess. I've seen the park tool cleaners by have never used one, do they work that well and what do you put in them?

[Too Tall]

Taking chains off leads to problems. Put a long screwdriver thru the frame / chain ahead of the seatstays and park the bike in a stand over your fav. environmentally fiendly cleaner or not and go to town with a wire brush. A pre-soak helps.

[ridethecliche]

Taking chains off leads to problems. Put a long screwdriver thru the frame / chain ahead of the seatstays and park the bike in a stand over your fav. environmentally fiendly cleaner or not and go to town with a wire brush. A pre-soak helps.

This.

Even 10 speed chains with quick links won't last long if you take them off.

I figure you've already weakened they chain once you've taken off the quick link to wash the chain.

[JitteryJoe]

This.

Even 10 speed chains with quick links won't last long if you take them off.

I figure you've already weakened they chain once you've taken off the quick link to wash the chain.

What's the purpose of the quick link, then?
Isn't it to allow easy removal and re-installation?

[Scott G.]

This.

Even 10 speed chains with quick links won't last long if you take them off.

Have you had the same problems with 9,8,5,1 speed chains ?

Anyone use an ultrasonic to clean chains ?