How can I dry a chain?

Question

I've started cleaning my mountain-bike chain more regularly, using this process:

1. Wash off mud.
2. Use chain-cleaner tool with de-greaser.
3. Wash off de-greaser.
4. Dry chain (see below).
5. Re-lube with wet lube.
6. Wipe off excess lube with rag/paper.

The bit I'm having trouble with is #4 (dry chain). What's a good way to achieve that? Currently, I do this:

1. Dry chain as far as possible with rag/paper.
2. Squirt GT-85 all over chain to drive out water.
3. Dry chain (again) with rag/paper.

...but even then it's clearly not dry enough, because when I put the new lube on the whole lot emulsifies into a brown gloopy mess :-(

At this time of year (winter) I'm normally doing all this when I get home after a couple of hours riding and a couple of pints in the pub - late at night, in the dark, outside in the freezing cold, often in the rain - so I'm looking for a quick solution that doesn't involve a workshop (which I don't have, far less an air compressor).

I've tried leaving it overnight before putting the lube on, but in cold weather it's still not dry in the morning. And it tends to form surface rust too...

Do I just need a better (fluffier?) rag? Or is it simply not realistic to be able to clean it and re-lube it within 15 mins?

Answer 1

A method I've used a lot is after the chain is thoroughly clean but still wet, use an old hair dryer rigged up to be pointed into a small bucket, in which the chain is sitting in a wire basket or similarly suspended. It takes about three minutes to get the chain dry and hot. At the particular shop I was at where this was the protocol, we'd then pull the chain out with a spoke and dip it into a jar of Boeshield T9 for a few seconds, then pull out and let drip dry. The heat does a lot to pull the lube into the inners of the chain, and the results look and feel like a new chain out of the package. I imagine a lot of lubes would have the same result, although you need to develop the system in a way that doesn't cause fires (choice of lube and how hot you get it).

An old toaster oven would probably work too.

Answer 2

A mix of GT85 and chain oil isn't necessarily a good idea anyway. One beater bike of mine generally has its chain oiled with GT85 alone, which I use all over the chain and front/rear mechs to reduce surface rust (it's kept outside work) but the better bikes get proper oiling.

A fluffier rag won't get into the rollers, but these can largely be dried by spinning the chain, either on a stand or by riding a couple of hundred metres fast in the smallest chainring. So you can wipe down, spin, wipe down and that will get most of the water off. The rags I use are old T-shirts or bedsheets becuase they shed fewer fibres into moving parts than old towels. Paper towel is rubbish for this sort of thing - it either falls to bits or it's too stiff and not absorbent enough.

Assuming you use wet lube to oil your chain you can apply it to a damp (not soaking) chain, and work it in. I do one drop per roller and back-pedal by hand until the whole chain has been round several times, before wiping off the excess, and that's noticably smoother and clearer of surface rust than if I leave it to dry overnight (in an unheated built-in garage).

Answer 3

This isn't something I've tried, and I suspect it would be horribly wasteful in practice, but you could try a quick rinse of isopropyl alcohol just before drying out a towel/rag/etc might help.

I've used it for smaller items that I wanted to dry quickly; it's not magic but it will get mostly dry quicker than just water would.

Of course, if the concern is that your fingers are freezing, this might not be any improvement at all.

Answer 4

Wipe off as much water as possible with a rag. apply hair dryer or a heat gun (careful with a heat gun though, those things can burn off paint, melt plastic and even degrade epoxy in carbon fiber composite.)

When I wash my bike I blow excess water off it with a leaf blower and wipe it down with a clean rag. (The water where I live is quite hard and leaves a white residue if allowed to air dry). I don't have problems with my chain rusting.

Shop-Vac style vacuum cleaners also work quite well, with the hose connected to the 'blow' side and a small-diameter attachment adapter.

Answer 5

Try a different oil. Your MTB chain lube should be able to withstand the amount of water left in a rag dried chain. I wipe the chain dry with an absorbent rag and oil it immediately, I never had a problem.

In winter, one option is 'give up' keeping it clean, spend 2 seconds with a chain measuring tool and replace chain when its worn (or in spring if that comes first).

Answer 6

It's not terribly eco-friendly, but try a can of compressed air. It doesn't need a workshop or electrical outlet, it's portable and quiet, fairly cheap, and it generally works quite well on non-porous surfaces where it can just blow off surface water. Just make sure you get in all the little nooks and crannies -- oh, and don't turn it upside down or shake it (as you appear to dislike the freezing cold). I'd include a link but it's usually not worth buying it online - shipping canned air is expensive.

Answer 7

There is no need for all that work!

First wipe the chain with a rag.

Next, use a chain washer and commercial chain cleaner fluid. If you're really obsessive, drain & refresh the cleaner fluid and give it a second wash. (You can store the dirty washer fluid in a jug for a couple of days, then decant & reuse the clear stuff off the top, if you want to conserve resources.)

Wipe the chain with a rag again.

Lubricate with your preferred chain oil.

Note that you never need to remove the chain from the bike.