Silca Chain Stripper

[RoosterCogset]

How much different is this than Silca's Bio-Degreaser, which cost-wise is only $25 but for 32 ozs?

[bshell]

Point #1 above!!!

I did a dozen chains when I switched over and it was messy and unpleasant. I tried the gatorade bottle approach I saw in the videos and that -sucked- because it holds one chain at a time and that chain gets folded up inside the bottle and won't come out of the bottle neck easily.

Next I tried a large, wide mouth peanut butter jar to do multiple chains but the lid was not water proof so paint thinner was weeping out all over the place. Ugh. I had nothing that was truly leak-proof when shaking.

The canning jar in Josh's video would have been nice but ideally I'd like to use/store this solution in plastic if anyone has a good suggestion?

Thankfully, I won't need to do that again for a loooong time.

[RoosterCogset]

Originally Posted by bshell

Point #1 above!!!

I did a dozen chains when I switched over and it was messy and unpleasant. I tried the gatorade bottle approach I saw in the videos and that -sucked- because it holds one chain at a time and that chain gets folded up inside the bottle and won't come out of the bottle neck easily.

Next I tried a large, wide mouth peanut butter jar to do multiple chains but the lid was not water proof so paint thinner was weeping out all over the place. Ugh. I had nothing that was truly leak-proof when shaking.

The canning jar in Josh's video would have been nice but ideally I'd like to use/store this solution in plastic if anyone has a good suggestion?

Thankfully, I won't need to do that again for a loooong time.

I've used a Hellman's (30oz) plastic mayo jar.. Seemed leak-proof when I shook.

[eddief]

watching that video. That stuff sounds good enough to drink.

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by joshatsilca

From our perspective, this is solving 2 customer issues while also creating a new feature in the drivetrain maintenance realm.

1. The biggest complaint/deterrent to waxed drivetrains is the initial cleaning. Requiring at least 2 chemical solvents and at least a few hours of time/effort, even days according to some recipes. There is also huge risks here as some solvents like Simple Green can cause actual damage to the chain leading to cracks or failures.

2. In California and most all of the EU, the solvents that work best are either unavailable, diluted to nearly useless, or are terribly expensive and hard to find.. our customer service box is full of people asking about various chemical substitutions for their particular region as they can't get the standard stuff.

This product solves both of those, it's a single, biodegradable product, not regulated by government that requires only 1 container and 10 minutes to get the job done. Believe me, if you're a WorldTour mechanic stripping 20 factory chains at a time, anything involving soaking for 2 hours and blow drying with a compressor or scrubbing with a brush.. none of that is happening. We've solved both of those issues with this.

But maybe most importantly, the product 'residue' is an actual wax adhesion promoter, which is why you don't need a second solvent to remove it.. so not only is it a 10 minute clean, but it's a longer lifespan for the wax as well.

Josh,

Is the product ORM’D or can it ship via airmail?

[MikeD]

Zero Friction Cycling recommends this: https://zerofrictioncycling.com.au/p...eed-ufo-clean/

It says it also removes wax. How does this compare to the Silca product?

[fmradio516]

not sure if it was mentioned, but this is only effective enough on brand new chains??

from my little experience, the new chains were easy to prep for waxing... it was the USED chains that were a PITA! I wonder how this product stands up to used, nasty chains... as that is the real enemy.

[herb5998]

Josh, would you also recommend this as a prep for those who use the synergetic lube? While I wax some chains, I still have some use cases where a traditional type lubrication makes more sense


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[m_sasso]

I find it very difficult to believe the claim Silca Chain Striper will convert the petrochemical oil previously used on a chain to some inert material that is a safe, non contaminating pollutant that can be poured down the drain without risk or harm. At some point the encapsulated petrochemical is going to be released by its encapsulator into the environment and will be no diffrent than dumping oil down the drain.

Oil and petrochemical remediation and reclamation initivates will surely be a thing of the past if Silca Chain Stripper can do what Josh claims!

[sg8357]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

ridiculous.

I get that when you run a company, you need new products to drive sales, but seems like at least every month Silca has a new $$$ product that you simply need for chain maintenance.

Silca has still not matched ShelBroCo, $199 for Shimano
and $249 for SRAM

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/chainclean.html

Me, I use old red wine to cut oxidized California organic olive oil.

[visusest]

Originally Posted by bshell

The canning jar in Josh's video would have been nice but ideally I'd like to use/store this solution in plastic if anyone has a good suggestion?

Old 1L wide mouth Nalgene bottles are perfect for this. I have one with UFO clean in it and another for water rinsing.

Originally Posted by herb5998

Josh, would you also recommend this as a prep for those who use the synergetic lube? While I wax some chains, I still have some use cases where a traditional type lubrication makes more sense.

Zero Friction Cycling recommends stripping factory grease on all chains regardless of lubricant used. His preference is CeramicSpeed UFO Clean. Silca’s new cleaner should also work as it’s a direct competitor to UFO Clean.

[fmradio516]

Originally Posted by visusest

Zero Friction Cycling recommends stripping factory grease on all chains regardless of lubricant used.

If not waxing, does submerging the chain in a cleaner like these affect the grease inside the chain that should stay put?

I have ultrasonic-cleaned a chain before and it definitely felt worse than before; i think because all the lube inside was cleaned out. Could have just been a me problem though

[Dave]

Water based degreasers and isopropyl alcohol that contains water makes no sense. All you need is mineral spirits or naphtha. Neither one leaves any residue that would prevent wax adhesion. They both dissolve paraffin. What's inside a new chain is a poor lube compared to paraffin.

[Nomadmax]

Today's "biodegradable" is tomorrow's lawyer commercial for those seeking compensation.

[oldpotatoe]

29 posts about bike chain maintenance..I’d say 50 posts easy, maybe more