Maintenance tips for rain

[Aushiker]

G'day

In winter and spring I service my bikes every 500 km and I ride my commuter right through winter (unless there is a severe road weather alert). My maintenance program is detailed on the bikes page, e.g., CRX 1 can be found here.

Basically I clean the chain with a citrus degreaser using a chain cleaning tool and then re-lube it with Rock 'N Gold. As I said I do this every 500 km.

The Look 555 gets the same treatment but I try not to ride it in the rain. The chain is OEM and has done 6,515 km and is still within wear parameters.

The CRX 1's current chain is a KMC X 10 and has done 2,946 km and again is travelling well.

In summer and autumn I go to a 1,000 km service routine.

Regards
Andrew

[m@]

checked out the link Thoglette suggested, this guy is COMITTED to cleanliness !

My favorite part is the health warnings:

*Warning!Shelbrothane Cleaning Solvent ®

Shelbrothane Cleaning Solvent ® is the finest chain cleaner ever developed, especially when used correctly in conjunction with Shelbroconol Pre-soak ® and Deakinol Rinsing Solvent ®. However it is EXTREMELY toxic!

In case of skin contact, immediate amputation is indicated.

If swallowed, do not bother to induce vomiting, it won't do any good, you're a goner!

[Thoglette]

Just to show we all have different experiences, I used to use R&R Extreme (blue) and gave up on it as the chain started to sound gritty to me in less than 100Km of dry road cycling. (Yes, I used it as directed). I now keep it for the kid's bikes.

I've mostly used "white lightning" and some south african waterbased (yes, waterbased) stuff. If it's dry I get a few hundred km before paranoia sets in.

I guess, compared to oil, with wax I clean less but lube more. I don't miss the mess.

I've now moved to Finish Line Wet......
So far I'm impressed. Took the MTB out in some wet and muddy conditions earlier this week and the chain is still running smooth without further lubrication.

I'll defer on that - apart from the odd bit of strada bianca I'm normally strictly sealed road. No real mud to deal with - that does appear to be a different problem space.

[Thoglette]

...
and then re-lube it with Rock 'N Gold. As I said I do this every 500 km.

Any idea what's in it? It seems to get rave reviews, but you can't tell the grass roots from the astro turf these days.

Found this thread - Mulga Bill, are you still using it too?

[martinjs]

I use Rock and Roll Yellow and am up to 12,100k's on my Felt commuter and still going strong. The only maintenance I do is to remove build up and lube when noisy. More often in the wet(wait a minute! did I say in the wet? )

I have heard that R & R Blue is for in the wet but not sure how it works in those conditions as I've just stuck to the Yellow.

[Aushiker]

I use Rock and Roll Yellow and am up to 12,100k's on my Felt commuter and still going strong.

G'day

Same chain for those 12,000 km?

Andrew

[martinjs]

I use Rock and Roll Yellow and am up to 12,100k's on my Felt commuter and still going strong.

G'day

Same chain for those 12,000 km?

Andrew

Yes and no sigh of jumping gears yet.

[Aushiker]

I use Rock and Roll Yellow and am up to 12,100k's on my Felt commuter and still going strong.

G'day

Same chain for those 12,000 km?

Andrew

Yes and no sigh of jumping gears yet.

That is impressive. Do you check for wear or just going off feel (i.e., not jumping gears)? How is the cluster and crank wearing? Also what brand/model of chain is it?

Regards
Andrew

[martinjs]

Not sure, as far as I can tell the it's mostly Sora based. Front cogs showing some wear but not to bad. Below are the specs taken from the bike details on my BJ Profile.

Chain KMC Z92
Freewheel Shimano 12-25 8s

[Big Jonny]

Orange oil for de greasing and cleaning chain get a chain cleaner they work a treat, check out rolling rock chain lube and cleaner its amazing and no chain noise after use, just squirt it on and keep cleaning it off. dry your ride when it wet to avoid rust and 10 mins a week is all it takes. Love the rain its an extra shower and remenber its only water.
Big Jonny