mcdoggy2000

I always clean chain by WD-40 and brush.

I was told best way to clean chain is that soaked in Kerosene and brush which require to remove the chian from bike.

Just curious how do you clean your chian?


Also Dupont teflon chain lube doesn't get dirty, dry quick and self-cleaning? function.
Does anybody use the product?
Which mean doesn't have to clean the chain and just spray on top of old lube?

Please share your opinion about these things.

mboe794

WD-40 seems to be the way to go for me. I put the bike on the rear stand and give her a good soaking. Usually use a towel or rag to wipe clean. One round is usually good unless I let it go too long.

j shizzy wizzy

I use kerosene to clean the chain while its on the bike. I lift the rear end with my rear swingarm stand and jam a piece of cardboard up behind the chain but infront of the rim (to keep the gunk off the rim). I use a solvent brush to clean the chain in sections as i spin the rear tire. I use an old tupperware container to hold the kerosene under the chain. I then Wipe the chain to see how clean its gotten. If its clean i wipe it more and let it dry. Now I go for a 10 or 15 minute ride to warm the chain up. come back and lift the rear end up again and liberally coat the chain with DuPont teflon lube.

That suff is waxy, sticks good, dosen't attract dirt, and dosen't fling off that easy. I re lube the chain every 500 miles or after it rains. Works great for me so far!

Too much effort to remove the chain, IMO. A grunge brush brand brush might serve you better.

Spaz'

WD-40 makes me a little weary when working around rubber gaskets and such, as I've found it to expand certain rubber based things.
I used some on my piston o'rings on the brake calipers to my '84 CB650sc Honda Nighthawk years ago and went in to do some more stuff later on and the rubber had gummed up.

Circuit_Burner

when cleaning - I use a coarse non metal brush (used toothbrush is great) and some gas.
Lube it weekly when riding everday with good sticky PJ1 blue label or better.
Dont run the chain too tight ( many do ). I see this way too often.
It should have no less than a full inch up off the swingarm with the bike in neutral.
Any tighter than this and youre grinding **** up.

Remember that the countershaft(sprocket) axis is forward the swingarm pivot axis, and this causes
the chain to get tighter as the suspension is compressed since the distance between the rear axle
and the countershaft gets longer.
Motocrossers learn this ( I think they still do ) early since theres so much travel in the rear suspensions.
When people run their chains tight, they are wearing the **** out of the countershaft bearings.
And when this bearing soon gets sloppy, it allows the countershaft to run out of line with
the pinion and drive gears, wearing the **** out of them and their bearings.
In other words, running your chains too tight screws **** up quickly.

finepooch

kerosene + toothbrush follwed by rag.
liquid performance lube. i keep dupont around too for back up when i run out of liquid performance. they both work well.

check this site out for lots of chain info
www.webbikeworld.com

Wolverine

I have used kero on previous master clip chains. Soaked it for a while then used an old toothbrush, dried with a rag then lubed real good. Works great. Now I use dedicated chain cleaner and the Grunge Brush.

Pretty sure gas isn't very good for x/o-ring chains.

altosuperhawk

Kerosene in a shallow rectangular baking pan, nylon bristle paint brush, 5 inches at a time up on the rear end stand, with plenty of newspapers underneath the chain run. Clean the sprocket and swingarm with K1 too. Dry with paper towels. Then it's BelRay SuperClean, DuPont Spray with Teflon, or Honda HP- all three stay on the chain if given time to set up. done every 350 miles.

j shizzy wizzy

the sticky lube people talk about is a bad idea i feel. if you think about it. that sticky lube attracts sand and dirt, which mixes in and becomes an abrasive paste. The chain dosen't need any lube really. all the lube you need is factory sealed behind the o-rings. the lube we put on is more for preventing a rusty chain and for the contact points to the sprockets. I feel a dry, waxy lube is the best idea!

And kerosene is recommended by the factories to clean chains. gasoline is not good to use.

j shizzy wizzy

I will also add, I have heard and read several times that the waxy type lubes are great for dry climates. if you ride in wet climates the sticky lube is actually better in that case!

PUSHrod

Obviously a bunch of none smokers on this forum. Gasoline or kerosene as a cleaning fluid? Then you have to dispose of the rags. Got that steel can with the tight fitting lid handy?

WD-40, soft brush, low pressure air jet, Teflon lube. 25,000 miles and minimal wear. Never had an O ring fail. Those who are paranoid can use any of several light lubes labeled as O ring safe.

Starbucks Fueled

I keep a bucket full of kerosene soaked rags in the corner of the garage just for general parts cleaning.

comedo

I've got kerosene in a spray bottle. I put the bike on a rear wheel stand, spin the wheel and spray the chain as it goes around the sprocket. Once the chain is wet with kerosene, I clean it with a brush that came with a can of Tirox chain cleaner. I wipe the chain with a rag, clean up the sprocket carrier and lube it with Dupont Teflon spray lube. 40,000 km. on this chain and it's still good.
I only got 22,000 km. from the original chain. I lubed it religiously but I didn't clean it often. I took it off and soaked it in kerosene after it developed a few tight links. I was amazed at the amount of grit that had been picked up by the sticky lube I was using.

Circuit_Burner

I guess it would be cool to be smoking while in the paint booth spraying too?

Sometimes activities dont mesh well with cigarettes and fire.


Everyone has opinions, and many people exist only on what they hear from someone else..
Theres many ways to a solution, always remember that one.
Dont put down people who get it done instead of whining about some damn technicality or other bullshit why you cant or shouldnt do something.
Thats how new techniques are invented and stuff...

besides, if you were freezing to death while cleaning your chain, you could easily get warm.

RK1

Not a good idea to use any petroleum based solvent, including WD-40, in the vicinity of any ignition source. Try spraying some WD-40 through the top of the flame from a match or lighter, you'll see what I mean.

motojoe

When washing the bike, I use XL-1 Bike wash, a grunge brush then rinse off with water. Blow it off with air then add chain wax every 200 miles or so. If it gets too dirty I use WD-40.

mcdoggy2000

That is what I thought, = too much effort, removing the chain and soak in kerosene...

so you do ride before appply chain lube to heat it up.
I guess chain lube stick better on hot chain rather than normal temp.

superbeater

DON'T USE GAS. I know, I've used it too, but don't. Kerosene and WD-40 are relatively high flash solvents. Kerosene probably flashes around 125-130 deg. Diesel is a good cleaner and flashes aroud 140 deg so it is slightly safer. Gas flashes at about -65 deg. If you don't know what "flash" means, its the lowest temperature that the liquid produces flamable vapors. Gas vapors also have a much faster flame travel which makes it explosive.

Kerosene and WD-40 are both good chain cleaners and safe for the "O" rings or "X" rings in the chain.

RK1

I don't recommend gasoline 'cause some moron will do it in the garage next to the water heater pilot light, or while smoking a cig, but to be honest, if you are out in the yard away from any ignition source, gasoline would work fine and be perfectly safe to use.

Circuit_Burner

I guess on the west coast you all have modified pond-water for de-greasers.(with its government-required 10% living algae content)

Gas works awesome as a mild paint-safe solvent everytime.
Nothing will clean the tar and grunge from your bike faster either.
( "Oh, I use mega-XD-420 ultra sudsy kick-back cleaner, and its ..."[BS] )

And it obviously thins out the ranks of mechanics who cant handle the extra precautions required when working with flamable materials in a shop environment...
Who would ever have though that would be an issue? lol

j shizzy wizzy

well, I have read that warming up the chain helps the lube wick deeper into the chain links. sounds good to me!

VTRsurfer

A close friend of mine, who I've known for 45 years and has worked in the motorcycle industry for over 40 years, got to tour the EK Chain factory in Japan in 2004. He and 2 other accessory sales reps won the trip. He said the only reason to LUBE an O-ring chain is to protect the external surfaces from corrosion.

My first 3 bikes were shaft drive, so chain maintence is new for me since '05.

Also, Suzuki recommends cleaning with Kerosene right in their factory service manual. Using gasoline to clean anything is insane.

RK1

My '03 Honda VTR manual recommends cleaning with kero and lubing with 80/90 gear oil.

As a general rule for folks with an IQ less than room temp who might clean with gas in an enclosed space, near a pilot light or while smoking, "never use gasoline" is a good rule.

For someone with a brain, outside, far away from any possible ignition source, I don't see what is "insane" about it.

I always use kero/diesel or WD-40. Today, in honor of this thread and for the first time ever, I parked my bike in the middle of the front yard and flooded the chain with 87 octane. I'm still alive!

Circuit_Burner

Im glad we arent completely marxist, yet.

j shizzy wizzy

does anyone actually use gear oil to lube their chain? would it not just fling off after a couple rides??

VTRsurfer

I worked in tune-up shops for several years, then taught Vocational Automotives in a 10 bay shop for 34 years. I've seen my share of gasoline fires up close both in commercial shops and at school, and they are scary. The problem is that it goes off so fast and can cover a large area in an instant. And in a shop or school, liability is always a concern.

Kerosene works great, and I've used it. But to each his own, I'm just giving my recommendation based on experience and what I taught my students.

RK1

Surfer;

You're right. I was being picky, maybe a little bit of a jerk. Just saying outdoors, away from any ignition, in a pinch, you could use it. There's no reason to use it with other solvents so available. And yeah actually, using gas to clean parts at a trade school would qualify as insane.

jschmidt

Kerosene and WD40 are pretty close cousins, which is obvious from the smell. Teflon as a chain lube seems to lack the ability to stay fixed under pressure. It doesn't seem to last long for this task.

I use it and like it for cables and lots of other lube tasks. But for chains, I use chain lube.

VTRFISH

GAS?!?!?

Holy Crap Batman! Not on my O ring chain. Not gas. not WD-40, not kerosene......


What then you may ask? New light weight motor oil. New oil in an oil can, stiff brush, RAGS.

No harm to O rings......and if you choose.....have a smoke while you work.

Pipe and a pancake??

asdf33

i use gear oil for VTR chain lube. i've used bel-ray (waxy) and pj1 black label (sticky) too. the pj1 attracted way too much grit for my taste. i used mostly bel-ray on the first chain. that chain failed due to a couple shredded o-rings at ~20k miles (perhaps my fault for infrequent maintenance). the second chain has been lubed with gear oil and has lasted over 45k miles. gear oil keeps the o-rings moist for >500 miles unless your ride in rain. i still use bel-ray on my mx bikes, but i'm finding their o-rings dry and crack sooner. bel-ray is good if the chain sees a lot of water.