Kevan
journeyman
Reged: 12/22/03
Posts: 70
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Spring has sprung and with it a whole lot of snow melt, mixed with sand and salt schmootzing your bike. You're out there doing your miles and return home and set the bike aside until your next ride. Low and behold, upon later inspection you find you bike is a complete mess. The back of the seat tube is covered in gritty grime as is the underside of the bottom tube.
What are you folks doing to keep the steed clean and shiny? Spraying windex or some other cleaner on the tubes and wiping them off? Or do you have some other approach that avoids rubbing the grit off, setting micro scratches into the bike's coating surface?
Don't you just love that little sand trap at the back of the BB?
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homsie
new member
Reged: 12/31/03
Posts: 23
Loc: San Ramon, CA
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I usually ride my rain bike if it's really nasty out, but if I do get the Calfee dirty, I do the following. I use a hose with a gentle shower setting (direct hard streams!!) and a nylon brush to get most of the stuff off. I will then use plain water and an old t-shirt to get the remain stuff off. In the tight spaces, the wet t-shirt wrapped around my index finger seems to do the trick. I haven't tried using any of the brush sets from Park, etc., but I can imaging they might help in the tight areas.
BTW, I hate that little spot behind the bottom bracket!!
James
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Jas0n
journeyman
Reged: 01/26/04
Posts: 62
Loc: Westchester, New York
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car wax works great at keeping the frame always looking great. it will make the clearcoat appear deep and shine like new. it will also make it more difficult for dirt/sand/etc .. to stick to the frame. i found that applying a couple of coats one after another works great. try it out, it will def. help out.
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eat to live, live to ride
if it ain't rainin, it ain't trainin
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vaxn8r
contributor
Reged: 12/19/03
Posts: 222
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I've been trying Lemon Pledge lately based on a tip I got from a guy who owns an auto paint shop. So far I'm very pleased. The bike cleans up easier and it's definitely easier to apply than auto wax.
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Rebecca_Smith
new member
Reged: 12/24/03
Posts: 21
Loc: Pacific Northwest
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It’s a hassle but one trick is to hose down the bike right after your ride before the stuff dries. Just a quick rinse mind you not a full-fledged get out the toothbrush soapy water wash. This will get the grit off and make it look like you’ve washed the bike. The hassle part is doing it right after the ride. I don’t know about you but after a ride I want a visit with Juan Valdez and a cinnamon roll rather than do any bike maintenance.
B.
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SevenOdonata
new member
Reged: 01/29/04
Posts: 19
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I too use lemon pledge, but it's for my Seven Ti bike that has carbon tubes. Works great and makes cleanup alot easier. (Sidenote: I am looking at Calfee's as my next ride, hence my reason for trolling here.)
I was thinking about getting one of those portable pressure sprayers that people use in their gardens to water/fertilize (not motorized, hand-pressurized). Anyone else have experience with a sprayer? I live in an apartment so I don't have access to a hose. The pressure output isn't high, but should be sufficient to clean the bike without having to use a towel that traps dirt/sand that can scratch the frame.
Edited by SevenOdonata (03/10/04 02:53 PM)
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Kevan
journeyman
Reged: 12/22/03
Posts: 70
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Thanks for all the input. I've done the McGuire's (sp?) car wax, which is not so easily, being lazy as I am, I'll go for the Pledge.
R -
Yup, I've learned that the immediate hose off is the best approach, I was hoping there was an even easier way. Some of my rides are associated with the club where I throw my steed in the back of the station wagon and zoom off somewhere in the county. I usually throw all my riding junk in an ol' school backpack, then scoot out the door. Now I think I might have to bring extra water just to do that immediate hose-off. With my outside water being shutoff, due to it being winter here, I used two double liter soda bottles to do the rinsing. I put a little soap in one of the bottles to help things along. I used my hands to basically whip off the grime.
Rims and spokes don't get addressed unless the bike is clamped in its stand.
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Lon
sage
Reged: 12/20/03
Posts: 595
Loc: Pittsburgh, PA
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Well Kevan it is nice to see you are back. I can only surmise from having seen your photo that you and your Calfee were in hibernation. 
I was all set to give a detailed explanation of all I do to my ride based on mileage time, and so forth. My bike's cleanliness amazes even the most hardened of mechanics. 
However I remembered correctly about your one attribute, that being laziness so I held off. Your response proven me right. 
Well again good to have you back and posting. Now what happened to MR. NUDE CALFEE himself Bruce Wells? 
Lon
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Kevan
journeyman
Reged: 12/22/03
Posts: 70
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Hey Lon,
Since the forum wars and the splintering of Serotta to its own board, I've been doing most of my loitering there. Sorry, but it's true.
I feel sorry that Calfeeland hasn't flourished. I'll try better to drum up some yak here. Let me ramble on here for a moment.
Work over hibernation has gotten between my bike and me. Now back from my travels, I have Senor Mikemets to beat me up. Winter and Spring are teasing us, but finally we're in riding weather. Mike is totally dedicated to riding and shows no lapse in his talents of last fall. I won't go into the outdoor miles he did this past January when temp highs were like 15 degrees. Me, I'm struggling with the Spring warm up rides hoping to achieve A status and thinking is B+ really all that bad?
I continue to be extremely pleased with my bike, but could it be better? Hmm, maybe that's a topic for a different thread. Calfee, the other owners, the wisdom found over in Serottaville has taught me much about bikes, their riders, and what to look for in quintessential rides. I love the high-tech bike, but the future is calling for a classic steel steed. If my purse fattens, maybe a call to Vanilla will happen.
Rebecca and I exchange recipes off-line keeping each other amused and advised as to how the other coast lives. Despite the ruin the trolls caused here, information still flows amongst bike lovers. Serotta folk are good at getting gatherings put together; a chance to connect faces to the words. I'm sure we could arrange an infiltration where Calfees and Serotta can mix. Though we know who'll be riding out front, don't we. Dbrk a gentleman of some renown welcomed a bunch of us to join him up in the NY finger lakes region last August, where some of the bestest riding can be found.
Calfee owners need to work harder to make this board function and maybe jump over to other boards to liven them up. I'm willing to accept that we are different animals than they, but we are cyclists and all cyclists like talking bikes. We're not the snobs who don't wave from the opposite shoulder. I suspect we just need to ride out slowly and regain our strength is all.
Here's to a damn fine bike. Here's to a new season starting before us. Here's to matching some faces to the words.
And Stella, if you're reading this, do please chime in and keep us advised as to how our favorite folks are doing.
Edited by Kevan (03/10/04 10:50 PM)
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Rebecca_Smith
new member
Reged: 12/24/03
Posts: 21
Loc: Pacific Northwest
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Kevan,
I didn’t realize that you were looking for the ‘ultimate’ regarding the ease of cleaning your bike. Quinten Crisp once quickly quipped the he never cleaned his house as the dust stopped getting any deeper after three years. Perhaps you could appropriate this approach regarding your riding rig.
B.
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SpinDoc
friend
Reged: 12/24/03
Posts: 35
Loc: Columbus,Ohio
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Hey Guys long time no see 
I've been super duper busy so I haven't really had much time for message boards and the internet or cycling of late unfortunately.
The reason is good though, my wife had a baby boy on feb. 2 so things have been good around here. I've been training as much as possible but any parent can attest to the fact that time is limited when a baby comes.
As to the topic at hand...I bought a pancake air compressor and have pretty much abandoned chemicals for cleaning. A little soap and water and then Meguiar's clearcoat liquid Car wax has always been the best finishing touch but this air compressor is the ultimate for a bike shop. I highly recommend it, it cost me about 150 bucks at Sam's Club.
For Drivetrains I like Boeshield T1 as a cleaning agent and I use Dumond Tech's chain lubes.
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Lon
sage
Reged: 12/20/03
Posts: 595
Loc: Pittsburgh, PA
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Kevan thanks for the great post. I was wondering about Mike as well and forgot to ask you. Showing your great insight you answered the question poor sad old age addled brain Farr forgot to ask.
The only way you will ever see me riding out front is if there are two groups and I'm in the first and you think I'm in the second. That happened quite often in high school track! When God passed out fast twitch muscle I stood in the slow twitch line a second time by mistake.
I wondered where you went since you were a great contributor and I could not imagine you dropping out all together. We really have not had any trolls or such of late. I'm happy for that. I switched to General Discussion a little in hopes of seeing some new reading.
Steel doesn't mean no Calfee. It just means a new steed for the collection! There is some very good American steel out there. Don't forget Waterford and IF. Waterford will do a custom measure right at the factory if you so desire. Richard Schwin is a lot like Craig Calfee.
Take care and happy riding. Tell Mike it is colder out here and I managed 266 miles for January. How do I stack up with him? There are many advantages to OCD!
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Kevan
journeyman
Reged: 12/22/03
Posts: 70
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Hey Spindoc! Congrats! Hey, change a diaper for me. I've sworn off of them. Told my wife I'd never touch one ever again. Two kids later, I've seen enough dirty butts, thanks.
Boy, it's ol' farts week, COG speaking.
Mikemets makes my head spin, I think he broke his last year's personal record of 300 outdoor miles for January by doing 320. I'll have to confirm these numbers, but I'm pretty sure they're on mark. Lon, I don't know which place was colder, here or there, but our January was just plain old dangerous. Mike wears all his armor and stuffs those heating packets in his shoes and whatnot, but he told me on the coldest ride , again I'm guessing it was around 5 degrees, he was going downhill and the portion of skin not protected above his glasses and between his eyes hurt so bad he thought he'd been shot. He wished he'd worn goggles Well, some of my buddies joined me for a spin class the same morning and told me they saw two knuckleheads out riding. I told them I knew the two, which made them think I was a bit crazy myself, just cuz I knew them.
Anyway, our weekend looks very promising so off I'll go.
Later...
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Mikemets
new member
Reged: 12/24/03
Posts: 9
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knucklehead? Hey I resemble that remark. :-)
Well I actually did 329 in January and 406 in February (outside miles that is)
The ride Kevan is referring to was on January 10th I think, and was 1F, without the windchill factor, and the winds were over 20 mph...I hit a top speed that day of 38...wonder what the actual windchill was? That morning was a bit extreme, even for me. But here is the kicker...I had a riding partner.
My real motivation to ride outside in most anything is to stay off the trainer.
Nice to see some familiar "faces" again..hope we can keep this forum a little more active.
side note: just got a wagon, and now my bike can travel inside :-)
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easypedaler
contributor
Reged: 02/08/04
Posts: 149
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I am not known to many members but I recognize the names and the writing style from the old board. All you guys/gals helped me decide to take the plunge on Calfee...Thank you.
Have always used lemon pledge on my Ti bike and will now try it out on my Calfee.
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jeffw
new member
Reged: 03/12/04
Posts: 5
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Hey Kevan,
Nice (?) to see your still alive.
Regarding cleaning your bike, I find if I ride fast enough (average speed around 50-60 mph) the dirt never has a chance to accumulate on the bike since the wind velocity blows it right off. I'm not sure what a slower rider like you should do.
Love and kisses......
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Lon
sage
Reged: 12/20/03
Posts: 595
Loc: Pittsburgh, PA
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I hate to appear any more dumb than usual...you mention you are hanging out at the Serotta Forum...where is it? I don't see a listing here. I'm just curious. Plus how did you find your way over to there? I just waited for our forum to be reinvented.
Thanks. Happy Riding.
P.S. I defer to Mike. I is definitely more nuts on winter riding than I. 5 degrees...now way...now way....I'll run first! No wind chill factor involved as fast as I run!
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Mikemets
new member
Reged: 12/24/03
Posts: 9
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5F was one of the warmer rides 
1F was cold 
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Kevan
journeyman
Reged: 12/22/03
Posts: 70
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Lon,
What did I tell you about Mikemets?!
Serrotaland can be found here:
http://www.serotta.com/forum/
JeffW,
50-60 mph huh? Jeff, most folks ride their bikes, not leave them on car roof racks. Don't tell me you have you've returned to installing your bike's computer on the family van. What some people will do to bump up there numbers. How you doing guy? Ain't seen you in a dog's age.
Edited by Kevan (03/15/04 09:40 PM)
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Lon
sage
Reged: 12/20/03
Posts: 595
Loc: Pittsburgh, PA
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Thanks for the link. You just mentioned Mike had been riding and you were in touch. Mike fell out of sight as along with you. Does Bruce hang out there also? I'll have to wander over some crappy day when I can't ride. Hopefully there will not be many.
Take care.
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Kevan
journeyman
Reged: 12/22/03
Posts: 70
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Lon,
Bruce is out there somewheres. He's been actively upgrading the club's website and doing some racing, I hear secondhand. My guess is he pokes in here occasionally to see if an Shimano lover has infiltrated COG. You know him.
Hey Easypedaler,
Welcome to the club. And to everyone, this lazy no-count found the lemon pledge trick to be the bestest idea. Thanks!
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vaxn8r
contributor
Reged: 12/19/03
Posts: 222
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Just an update to an old thread. I had been using Lemon Pledge based on a tip from my local shop. Recently I went to the old tried and true auto wax. No question which is better, the wax. I may use Pledge sparingly as an in-between waxing treatment because it is quick. Pledge attracts more dirt (though it is easy to get off after Pledging). Wax works best when you want a great finish and paint protection (easiest to clean up after a dirty ride). With wax, not much sticks to it in the first place so it stays better loooking longer.
Long story short.....use auto wax baby!
As for after riding in the rain and gunk: I do this a lot. Yes, hose it down gently right when you get home. Then let it air dry. Then, later when you want to clean it it's a breeze. If you let the gunk dry on the frame you'll have a chore ahead of you.
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dhoward
new member
Reged: 01/31/04
Posts: 22
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vaxn8r,
Thanks for the update, I was just reviewing this thread yesterday.
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Bruce
contributor
Reged: 12/27/03
Posts: 133
Loc: North of NYC
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Lon,
I don't hang out at the Serrota forum. I just post when Kevan gives me the heads up, like where there was a Rocket 7 discussion. Kevan is right, I have been busy writing a membership system for our club. It will be really cool when it is done. I also did a few races in the spring, but didn't place, unlike last year. I think that is because our awesome spin instructor left for the wild fires of CA last year. Oh well. I saw Kevan last on his Luna as he passed our A ride in the parking lot after we finished. Couldn't tell if his bike was clean or not.
As for cleaning the bike, I just tried a bit of amonia in water. It works great, is cheap and does not streak. Then wipe down with 303. Nude baby! Yeah!
Bruce
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Lon
sage
Reged: 12/20/03
Posts: 595
Loc: Pittsburgh, PA
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Bruce,
It is great to see you back.
I rode the New England Classic with a mother and daughter one year. The mother bought a bike for the ride. She did not ride but was into spinning.
We did back to back centuries and on the second day we climbed the Kank at about 85 miles. I think it is something like a 12 mile climb. I'll never forget watching the mother spin over the top at about 90 RPM not realizing that she was probably one of the only riders who did or could.
The moral is spinning builds more than I think a lot of people realize. I've never tried it at I travel a great deal so I don't belong to any groups or gyms.
Take care. Good luck
Lon
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superunleaded
captain
Reged: 12/22/03
Posts: 223
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did you ever hook up with that guy named Cory or something?
man let us know wazzup:)
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***Regular Unleaded - 4.99
***Special Unleaded - 7.99
***Superunleaded - Arm & a Leg
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Bruce
contributor
Reged: 12/27/03
Posts: 133
Loc: North of NYC
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Cory never contacted me. As they say in Texas, All hat and no cattle!
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Hey Kevan
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Thanks Kevan