Chain love @cyclelogicMCR

I had a feeling of smug satisfaction this morning on my ride in.  For once this was not due to me rattling past queuing traffic or getting a hat full of PBs on Strava.

No, the warm glow was due to the overwhelming success of replacing my chain at the weekend. I know it’s a relatively straightforward process but I’m genuinely surprised as to how much of a difference it has made.

The previous chain had gone beyond the .75 mark on the chain stretcher thingamabob so it was time for a new one.  It’s now working like an absolute dream and I’m intrigued to find out how much wear I’ll get out of it.

I've gone for the ‘extreme durability’ option which gives the impression that it’ll last about the same amount of time as a track on a Sherman tank – we’ll see.

Thanks to the lovely folk at Ken Fosters for the advice!

You have nothing to lube but your chains

So, there was no other way to avoid it, today I decided to get stuck in and clean my chain.
The science and materials in cleaning the drive chain on your bike are remarkably complex and you can find much advice via your preferred search engine.
I am going to add to the rump of information out there but hopefully demistify the process somewhat by revealing my simple guide to how I clean my chain.
The wonderful Sheldon Brown reckons that chain maintenance is one of the most controversial aspects of bike mechanics owing to the various schools of thought as to how you should tackle your filthy chain.
Essentially, my approach is a quick & dirty solution: clean it.
The materials you need are:
Some hot water with detergent (washing-up liquid) in, a rag, some degreaser, a scrubbing brush, lots of elbow grease and some oil to lube up once you've finished - lube up your chain I mean obviously.
It's really not difficult to maintain a healthy chain with 'little and often' being the mantra. Once you've removed the worst of the filth with a dry rag, wet the rag and remove a bit more.  Then spray degreaser and remove lots more.
Remember to use elbow grease liberally during the process.  Repeat steps two and three until chain is clean - scrubbing brush can be used at this stage.

Shiny links

You'll know when it's clean as it'll look like metal again rather than being black and it won't mike a grinding noise in the links.
To lube up, just dot some oil on each link and let it soak through.  Remove any excess with a different dry rag.
Do the same on your cassette, chainrings and jockey wheels and your bike will love you for it.  A well maintained chain lasts approximately 4,500 years longer than one left to the elements so it's well worth doing.  It also makes your bike sound nice too.
Go forth and get scrubbing!