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I've been using Bikehut Citrus Degreaser and it works great, but my local Halfords has now closed and they don't ship it.
What would folks recommend for less than £10/L?
When I do degrease, I use swafega jizer. Even cheaper when you realise that you can let the crap settle and keep reusing.
Half fill an oasis bottle and give it a good shake. Then do the same again with fairy liquid.
As above, I'm on my second can of Jizer since 1987, jam jar and a paint brush. Don't need alot to get it clean.
Putoline! Never clean or degrease a chain again!
Petrol.
Degreaser? Stop putting so much on in the first place.
Smoove can only be applied to a clean chain. How does one do that without cleaning it? It lasts about 200-300km so about a week.
Shimano PTFE lasts longer and can be topped up, but tends to get black and horrible after about 3 weeks and 1000km.
Either way, I need to clean it every now and again.
Putoline - maybe, but for now, 5mins of cleaning, rinsing and relubing ever 300-600km doesn’t seem an issue.
^^^ I have no idea how to do a link.
Putoline! Never clean or degrease a chain again!
I use Putoline and it's really good but I still degrease in between applications. Although the Putoline is very clean, some dust etc does get embedded in it and so I figured it would be better in the long run if I got the old stuff off first before re-dipping. Also keeps the stuff in the DFF nice and clean too. 🤷♂️ No idea if it actually makes any difference but I quite like cleaning the chain and measuring it when it's naked anyway. The degreaser in my link works really well and can be diluted if required for general duties. That Screwfix stuff looks excellent value too.
Smoove do a prep for first application which is really good. For the in-between cleans, I've been using baby wipes on the chain before an extra drop on each link.
That Screwfix stuff looks excellent value too.
The screwfiw one does no play nice with anodising. Just make sure you never leave stuff to soak in it overnight.
I had a tiny bottle of Muc Off yellow stuff that ran out last night, so I’m back to using Gunk which works much better anyway.
Also none of the proper bike cleaners work as well as fairy liquid, so I’ll be back to using that once the Uberbike spray runs out.
Wurth brake cleaner
If you're taking the chain off the bike, paraffin. Works superb but also it lasts forever- seal it in a jar or airtight tub, let the crap settle, and pour off the top.
Thanks for the suggestions everyone - I ordered some Gunk for £10 and will see how it gets on.
ELBOW GREASE® ALL PURPOSE DEGREASER XTRA LARGE 1 Litre https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B085F1YNM8/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_J12E31TJXARBJ9HDF3A9?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
Morgan Blue Chain Cleaner.
I've never seen anything like it. Doesn't seem to matter how black the chain or cassette is, the dirt just falls off and you're left with pristine metal.
Morgan Blue anything is really good, but I use boiling water, screwfix, stiff brush, boiling water and its spotless and dries itself off.