how often to clean chain at the moment?

[MikeS]

Like many people I guess, I'm riding my ebike much more on roughish tracks than on tarmac roads. There's a lot of dust gathering on the bike and presumably therefore on the chain and cassette. So after how many miles would people be doing a chain off and complete clean of that and the cassette?
Mike

 

[Fordulike]

Wow, you must have read my mind, coz I was going to post exactly the same thread the other day. At the moment I'm hosing down the drivetrain after every ride, allowing it to dry in the sun and lubing every 2-3 washes. Every 200 or so miles, I deep clean with one of those mechanical chain cleaners and then lube.

Not sure if this is cleaning overkill, but the local tracks are loaded with dust.

 

[D C]

I'm doing the exact opposite at the moment thanks to lock down.
Normally I prefer to use tracks and avoid tarmac as much as possible but I'm enjoying the almost empty roads for a change (6 vehicles in 15 miles today but 16 bikes) and leaving the tracks for the walkers.
I'm now only needing minimal chain maintenance, in fact not even had to oil it for a couple of weeks, thanks largely to the lack of rain. When I ride off road I just clean and oil the chain when it gets dirty, it can be after one ride sometimes if wet. Chain off, clean and soak in oil when I can see it needs it, it's not an exact science and depends on weather and track conditions rather than time or distance covered.
Dave.

 

[soundwave]

i clean mine mostly after every ride and relube it esp if it has crud and dust all over it from down the canal path.

i just use a rag and wd40 to remove the crud and relube with muck off dry lube.

 

[MikeS]

OK Thanks guys. I suspect I'm not cleaning it enough. It's still very silent though since I stopped using the dry lube and now paint it with this as my Honda isn't in need of it at all at the moment https://www.fc-moto.de/epages/fcm.sf/?ObjectPath=/Shops/10207048/Products/MOTUL-MC-Care-C5-Chain-Paste-150-ml&Currency=GBP&Locale=en_GB&utm_source=Kelkoo.uk&utm_medium=productlistings&utm_campaign=Kelkoo_UK&utm_term=MOTUL MC Care C5 Chain Paste 150 ml&iccm=KEL_UK&from=kelkoouk
The thing is Fordulike, though that rinsing the cassette and chain when it's been painted with this has no effect whatsoever - which itself is quite useful in that rain and puddles don't remove it. But I'm slightly concerned that the dust will be sticking to it and making a nice grinding paste.
Mike

 

[soundwave]

my chain cost 25 quid to replace so keep it clean as possible as the cassette on my bike cost 150 quid.

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imo that motor bike stuff is way to thick and holds crud like glue.

if you want total performance you can use baby oil but it wont last long as also the same with bearings.

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[Fordulike]

I use a dry lube, same as soundwave, but use Finish Line instead of Muc Off.

Also, my chain is a KMC EcoPro Teq, so it doesn't rust after a quick rinse with the hose.

 

[Tarka]

I clean it once every few years whether it needs it or not

 

[MikeS]

I use a dry lube, same as soundwave, but use Finish Line instead of Muc Off.

Also, my chain is a KMC EcoPro Teq, so it doesn't rust after a quick rinse with the hose.

phew - cheapest on Amazon is over £50 with delivery
Mike

 

[Fordulike]

phew - cheapest on Amazon is over £50 with delivery
Mike

Were you aiming that at soundwave, coz I only pay around 12 quid for the chain and no more than 10 quid for a big bottle of lube.

 

[Nealh]

The only time I clean a chain is if the bike is caked in mud then it gets a hose/brush rub down.
My chains usually just get a lube of gear oil only, mainly winter time when wet conditions clean the chains and they start to show signs of dryness and light surface rust.

 

[MikeS]

Were you aiming that at soundwave, coz I only pay around 12 quid for the chain and no more than 10 quid for a big bottle of lube.

No It was in response to Fordulike's recommendation of a KMC EcoPro Teq which is about £50. Must admit I'm looking to pay £12 to £15
Mike

 

[Fordulike]

No It was in response to Fordulike's recommendation of a KMC EcoPro Teq which is about £50. Must admit I'm looking to pay £12 to £15
Mike

You've got to scout the web all year round and catch the bargains when you can, even if you don't particularly need that item at the time. I've never paid anywhere near 50 quid for an 8 speed EcoPro Teq chain!

 

[georgehenry]

My 2015 Yamaha Haibike is a workhorse that I have only used to get me cross country to work and then 10 miles back home again on the road all year round.

So the whole drive train gets dirty on the way to work where it cannot be cleaned and then ridden 10 miles home on the road. I do daub chain oil on it when I get to work if it has been wet and muddy as opposed to dry and dusty. So far from an ideal way of treating a drive train.

Fresh oil on a muddy chain, not considered the best approach! This picture was taken after my bike had completed four consecutive return trips to work in wet and muddy conditions. 54 miles off road and 40 miles on road.

"The bike got filthy and there was no time to wash the bike between trips and the only maintenance was to add oil to the chain on arrival at work after my wet and muddy cross country ride in."

My approach, knowing that my drive train will lead a hard life is to use cheap Shimano HG400 9 speed 12-36 cassettes costing just £12.95 delivered and KMC 9 speed chains, the last two of which I bought for £18 delivered.

I pair these with a high quality and more expensive garbaruk 42 tooth narrow wide chain ring that I fitted on the 24th of February 2018.

I am actually pretty impressed with how well the cheap Shimano 9 speed cassette last and perform and likewise KMC chains considering the hard life they lead. My current rear cassette and chain have together now covered 1446 miles.

I do not use a wear indicator, I just change the chain and cassette when I start to get jumping in top gear (one with the least cogs). At the same time I inspect the chain ring but that is proving to be a very hard wearing item. A good job as it is quite expensive.

"The narrow wide chain ring has been fantastic, ensuring no drooped chain since it was fitted and has now covered 3,510 miles since it was fitted."

I do clean the whole bike, chain, cassette and chain ring and re oil the chain when I get time.

The bike has now done 11.938 miles since I bought it in March 2015.

 

[MikeS]

My 2015 Yamaha Haibike is a workhorse that I have only used to get me cross country to work and then 10 miles back home again on the road all year round.

So the whole drive train gets dirty on the way to work where it cannot be cleaned and then ridden 10 miles home on the road. I do daub chain oil on it when I get to work if it has been wet and muddy as opposed to dry and dusty. So far from an ideal way of treating a drive train.
View attachment 34906
Fresh oil on a muddy chain, not considered the best approach! This picture was taken after my bike had completed four consecutive return trips to work in wet and muddy conditions. 54 miles off road and 40 miles on road.

"The bike got filthy and there was no time to wash the bike between trips and the only maintenance was to add oil to the chain on arrival at work after my wet and muddy cross country ride in."

My approach, knowing that my drive train will lead a hard life is to use cheap Shimano HG400 9 speed 12-36 cassettes costing just £12.95 delivered and KMC 9 speed chains, the last two of which I bought for £18 delivered.

I pair these with a high quality and more expensive garbaruk 42 tooth narrow wide chain ring that I fitted on the 24th of February 2018.

I am actually pretty impressed with how well the cheap Shimano 9 speed cassette last and perform and likewise KMC chains considering the hard life they lead. My current rear cassette and chain have together now covered 1446 miles.

I do not use a wear indicator, I just change the chain and cassette when I start to get jumping in top gear (one with the least cogs). At the same time I inspect the chain ring but that is proving to be a very hard wearing item. A good job as it is quite expensive.

"The narrow wide chain ring has been fantastic, ensuring no drooped chain since it was fitted and has now covered 3,510 miles since it was fitted."

I do clean the whole bike, chain, cassette and chain ring and re oil the chain when I get time.

The bike has now done 11.938 miles since I bought it in March 2015.

That's impressive George, and quite inspiring. I have a KMC chain 9 speed on its way at £9.58 - it's got one link less thatn the original chain so i'm crossing my fingers. The rear cassette looks ok at the moment (about 2500 miles but I think I will order one of those shimano ones you mention and put it on the shelf. From what I have read the front chain ring fitted to the Bosch mid drive Active line plus is pretty hard wearing - I hope so because I don't think that's a job for me to replace it is it?.
Mike

 

[MikeS]

Went on to order one of these 9 gear cassettes, but how do I know which one to order? There are several options 11-32, 11-34, 11-36 and 12-36. I confess I don't know what these numbers stand for.
Mike

 

[sjpt]

Number of cogs, smallest and largest. The smaller the number the faster you go for a given pedal speed. BUT you need large numbers to be able to go up a hill without having to push too hard. (large numbers are called granny gears, but good for older men too). If you are young and fit and don't mind knackering your knees go for the small numbers.

 

[soundwave]

10-50

 

[georgehenry]

Hi MikeS, if you like the gearing on your bike the way it is now then check the cog numbers on your current cassette and buy a replacement that is near the same.

Probably the most important number is the lowest gear for getting you up steep hills and on these cassettes their lowest gear option is 36.

The next most important number is the highest gear. Again if you are happy with your current top speed gearing buy a cassette with a top gear that matches it.

You can play around with gearing but it gets expensive as you have to experiment with different sized front chain rings and rear cassette combinations.

On my own bike I played around with the gearing until I found just the right gearing for my journey to work and back.

For me that was a 42 tooth front chain ring paired with the 12/36 rear cassette. This gave me a low enough gear to climb all the off road routes I needed it to on my cross country ride to work and a high enough top gear to maintain 20 to 23mph on the flat and get me home in around 30 minutes for my 10 mile road ride home. My bike assists me above the legal cut off.

Having said I only use my bike for riding to work and back I have used the Haibike recently on a few lockdown rides for exercise and chosen some quite demanding off road routes that I used to ride on a ordinary mountain bike and where I found the gearing on my Haibike to be too high.

I still managed to get up these steeper hills but where as I only use the lowest assist level on my off road route to work I had to use a higher level of assistance to get up the steeper more difficult climbs on my lockdown exercise ride. I guess that is the beauty of an electric bike you can simply up the assist level.

 

[Nealh]

I would say go for the 12/36t cassette but first we need to know which brand/model rear derailleur is fitted because you might have an issue changing up to the 36t low gear.