Mountain bike maintenance

[Eastwolf1228]

Hi family， I don't know where else to ask
It is a modern mountain bike as easy to work on as a arma Kraton?
Are they allergic to water and can I use my brake cleaner on the gears and chain?
Is there a forum or Facebook group where I can learn this stuff?

Thanks

 

[Kla912000]

@Velodromed

 

[Mazin]

https://www.google.com/search?q=mou...j0i22i30l4.15780j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

 

[Velodromed]

Hi family， I don't know where else to ask
It is a modern mountain bike as easy to work on as a arma Kraton?
Are they allergic to water and can I use my brake cleaner on the gears and chain?
Is there a forum or Facebook group where I can learn this stuff?

Thanks

View attachment 210086

Nice trek hard tale you got there. A mountain much is much easier to clean then a remote control car. There’s no electronics, Parts do not rust as easy and the bearings are far better. Don’t use brake cleaner. Use simple green and an old toothbrush or similar. Do not use WD-40. I preferred dry lube like finish line.

Don’t let it sit wet. After cleaning I would bounce mine to shake all the water off then towel dry it very well. After it sits for a few hours and dries off good I would lube the chain. You have a Hardtail which has far less moving parts than a full suspension, and that’s good. You don’t have to worry about extra bearings etc.

For polishing my bike I would basically use Windex to clean off the frame. There’s other bike cleaners out there that do the same thing they’re just more expensive. I strongly suggest getting on YouTube and searching for bicycle maintenance videos. The more info you have the better.
Enjoy your new ride!

 

[Roadkill69]

DO NOT! Use brake cleaner simple green is the best for everything

 

[Camaroboy383]

Marlin?.. I too prefer the finish line dry lubrication, but it also depends on your riding locations.. I mainly ride an old rail bed here in CT and 90% of the earth we ride on is crushed mica and fine silt.. it turns to lapping compound fairly quick if enough sticks to the wet oil formula's..

I wash my bikes pretty much the exact same as @Velodromed as well.. I'm a little more cautious with my ebike and where the water is headed, but otherwise just like stated above..



Enjoy that ride...

 

[FlipSide]

Nice bike.

Basic maintenance on a hardtail is very easy. Easier than the Kraton in a way, since you won't have to do much...but definitely not as easy as your Kraton if you want to fully disassemble it. You will need lots of specialized tools, know-how and time if you want to fully service the fork, brakes, hubs, etc. You don't want to fully disassemble it anyway. I would say that compared to RC cars, bicycle maintenance and repair can very frustrating. You will need specialized tools to install many parts, but on the other hand, bike are now so reliable you don't have much to do on them apart keeping them clean and lubricated.

Avoid spraying high pressure water on places with bearings (headset, bottom bracket, hubs).

I almost never use degreaser on the chain. Only when it is really nasty...and I only spray degreaser on a rag and clean the chain, chainring and cassette with it. I am a firm believer of the "Clean with lube, lube with lube" strategy. What you want is to have your chain lubricated at all time, but not dirty. I find that thoroughly degreasing the chain is a big step in the wrong direction.

My chain maintenance is really easy: After a ride, just wipe it clean with a dry rag. Then add bicycle-specific chain oil (no grease, no vegetable oil, no motor oil). Then wipe off the excess. Wiping off the excess is important, you don't want your chain dripping in oil...it will only collect dust and will turn into abrasive goop.

If you want to be thorough, buying a cassette tool and chainwhip could be a good idea. With these, you can remove the cassette and fully degrease and clean the cassette. I like to do this once in while.

Make sure no oil or grease gets on the disc brake rotors. Never, ever. Actually don't even touch the rotors with your fingers.

For the rest, make sure everything is tight and spinning freely. On a new bike, you will probably need to readjust the derailleur cable tension after a few rides if you find that shifting is less accurate. 30 seconds job.

 

[JKWoods]

Just like your RC just clean it after each use. I just use Dawn dish soap and water. You can dry it with air also. I use a leaf blower on mine nothing to extreme. Then light lubrication when needed. Like others have shown they make bike chain lube. There is also cable lube.

 

[The Bean]

My "maintenance" is:
1. Clean chain with soapy water
2. Re-lube chain
3. Ignore for appx. 2 yrs
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=mountain..._9875484&tag=hydsma-20&ref=pd_sl_9661lbbp70_e
These are great if you clean your chain often

 

[Robbbbbb66]

As @FlipSide and @Velodromed said use dry lube for dry dusty conditions and wet lube if you ride in the mud and wet.
If you Disc brake rotors get contaminated with oil use brake clean to clean them off because oil will make disc brakes disfunction.
GMBN on YouTube is a good source of mountain bike maintenance related stuff.
Muc-off bike cleaner and chain lube is pretty good.

 

[Eastwolf1228]

My "maintenance" is:
1. Clean chain with soapy water
2. Re-lube chain
3. Ignore for appx. 2 yrs
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=mountain..._9875484&tag=hydsma-20&ref=pd_sl_9661lbbp70_e
These are great if you clean your chain often

HAHAHAHA. pure honesty - I think my strategy may be very similar.

Thank you all for your quick replies. Good job I didn't use the brake cleaner (not that the bike is dirty yet) It's my go to cleaner on the Kraton diffs - I just assumed it would work a treat on the cassette and chain too. Appreciate the warning. It's so cool that Arrmy can help with just about any question and no question is a stupid one. Props to you guys.

It will likely be 80% ridden on sealed surfaces to the corner shop with my daughter and then 20% off road; being a little lose dry gravel... nothing muddy.
It will be a little overkill, but I scored an XL frame on marketplace for a good price.
Yes, it's a Marlin 6 2021.

Bash on.

 

[JPWSRC]

I raced XC 3 decades ago, sprayed water for the thick stuff and spray bombed GT85 on everything then wiped with a rag. Never had disc brakes on my bikes so I can't advise,
Cables will loosen up over time, on mine there are adjusters at the shifters and at the derailleur. Occasionally you will have to reset the cable as they stretch out. Storing your bike requires little more than a shot of lube on the chain and a shot in the shifter cables.