How To Clean a Bicycle Chain Part One

Prepare the can for use by trimming the hose that comes with the can, then inserting it into the nozzle.

Brace the can against the seatstay and wheel dropouts. This will hold the can steady, allowing you to focus the spray on the chain, instead of missing it and spraying other parts.

Spray the chain while turning the crank backwards for about ten turns. Then place your rag in your hand, grip the chain with it, and turn the crank backwards again for another couple of turns. Lift the rag, move to a clean spot, and repeat the process until a minimum of dirt appears in the rag. Moving to a clean spot will keep you from running the chain through the dirt you just removed. You may find that the residue you’re wiping off is dry, not wet as you might expect after spraying the chain down with a liquid degreaser. This is because Speed Clean dries instantly, which has many advantages when used for other applications. However, the dry residue consists of fully dissolved grime, and will come off into the rag just as easily as if it were wet.

Lube your chain after cleaning it to prevent flash rust from forming. This is especially easy with Speed Clean because, as we’ve already mentioned, it dries instantly, which means that you can apply lube right away, without waiting for the chain to dry. There’s a kind of lube for every kind of riding condition, like wet lubes for riding in wet conditions, dry lubes for riding in dry conditions, ceramic lubes for racing, etc. Many of these lubes are not compatible with one another, like oils and waxes, and can turn your chain into a dirty mess minutes after you cleaned it. If you don’t know what lube you’re going to use, Finish Line’s Dry Teflon Lube is a good choice. Its carrier fluid evaporates instantly, leaving dry Teflon particles and anti-rust additives which will not only work with other kinds of lube, but actually fortify them. If it turns out that you’ll be riding in dry conditions, you can just leave it on as is.

Wipe any dirty degreaser off of your rims. Earlier, we mentioned that Speed Clean’s fast-drying properties have many advantages for other applications. One of these applications is the cleaning of rims and disc brake rotors. If you get Speed Clean on your rims, it will not only wipe off easily, but will also remove any dirt and brake pad residue from the braking track, even if it’s already contaminated with dissolved grime from the chain. Unlike other degreasers, it won’t leave a slick film on the rim that might compromise braking or cause squealing. If you’re using a degreaser other than Speed Clean, wipe the dirty degreaser off of your rims, then pour a bit of alcohol into a rag, and wipe the rims down again, allowing time for the alcohol to dry before riding.