Woke up to a semi-rusted chain
Today I decided to go for a spin over to the local BestBuy. When I brought my bike out of the garage, I noticed some severe rusting on the pedals, and moderate rusting on the chain. When I rode it around the street, it felt as if there were lumps in the chain, although visibly I didn't see anything bad. I've only taken my bike out three times this winter so far, and I store it in my garage which is pretty cold. What should I do to get rid of the rust, and do you think I may need to have parts replaced in the spring? I'll admit my winter maintance has been pretty bad, and it's the same bike I ride in the summer - maybe it's irresponsibility on my part?
At the very least, you should put chain oil on your chain. The 'lumps' you feel riding around are parts of the chain that aren't moving. Put on lots of oil and then wipe off the excess. Work the oil into the whole chain and get it into the internal moving parts. Don't use WD40. Motor oil can work, but bike chain oil is pretty cheap (try MEC).
Replacing a chain is really easy. A new chain is at about $40. If you buy a 'SRAM' chain, you don't need a chain tool to put it on (just break the old one to get it off). Take a picture first, though, so you know how to loop the new one through the gears at the back. Check out the Bicycle Tutor online - lots of great instructional videos.
Vinegar is a great way to get rid of rust. Let it soak on for a while, then scrub it.
MEC Bio-Cycle Chain Cleaner
http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?bmForm=mec_q...
MEC Chain Cleaner
http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?bmForm=mec_q...
you can clean surface rust with steel wool (about $1.50 for a giant box) and a dab of your favourite lubricant. provided your favourite lubricant is tri flow. or 3 in 1. (or motor oil). but it's totally messy on the hands and time consuming. drop of the good stuff, scrubba scrubba, and then wipe with a clean rag.
but yeah. i'd start with just putting lube on the chain.
new 5,6,7 chains are actually only about $10 at the MEC.
i want to try vinegar sometime. never heard of that. thx for the tip.
At MEC, chains cost $10