Cleaning your bike after every ride has always been a good idea. Not only is it essential for even the best bikes to run smoothly on their next journey, regular cleaning also prolongs the life of many of the components, especially the drivetrain.
But with the rise in the cost of living, ensuring the longevity of your bike’s moving parts has never been so important. Add in the continued supply-chain issues that can make finding the right cassette, chain or crankset a little tricky, and there’s more incentive than ever before to give your bike some regular TLC in pursuit of a long life.
We’ve got an explainer on how to clean your bike, but ultimately, how extensive each clean is will depend on the amount of time you have to spare and also the season and terrain of your last ride.
Winter miles may lead to summer smiles but they also often add up to dirty bikes that require a fair amount of effort to get clean. Conversely a short spin on a dry summer evening can leave your machine needing not much more than a wipe down.
But whether you’re giving your bike a quick blitz to get rid of some accrued dirt or you’re stripping it down, degreasing and lubing before reassembly, if done correctly both your bike and your wallet will thank you.
The drivetrain
(Image credit: Johner Images)
Given that your bike’s drivetrain, comprising chain, chainrings, cassette and derailleurs, consists of many moving parts, it’s important that you keep it clean. It’s an area of the bike that’s particularly susceptible to both picking up dirt and then distributing it.
A mucky chain is a super spreader, leading to a dirty cassette, chainrings and jockey wheels, all which adversely affect the running of your bike and the speed of wear of the components themselves.
Chain and cassette
When it comes to cleaning your drivetrain after a ride, a dedicated cassette cleaning brush and some degreaser are sensible investments. A chain-cleaning device also works, though isn’t essential: a sponge or cloth can do the job here.
What’s important is that you thoroughly clean the chain and cassette, ridding it of dirt that not only slows the drivetrain down and impacts smooth shifting, but also causes the parts to wear at a faster rate. The cost of 10, 11 and 12-speed cassettes, and especially those from top-tier groupsets like Shimano Dura-Ace and SRAM Red, can be eye-wateringly expensive, so keeping them clean to help prolong their life makes a lot of sense.
As well as cleaning…