how to clean freewheel cassette without removing it

We'atomic number 75 all aware of IT. The unsurpassed elbow room to washed your cassette is by taking it sour and washup and scrub it in a degreaser solution. Only let's totally face it, we'rhenium lazy. We privation quick results. So hither are a couple of ware hacks that will make your life easier, and keep your cassette shinier.

One side note, you'll definitely want to make positive you moral and lube your chain and your chainrings (these tips employment for chainrings too) first. Otherwise, your freshly cleaned cassette leave get a stain newly coating of whatever dust was already in the chain and rings.

Our Favorite Hacked Cassette Cleaning Tools

An old toothbrush (or an enemy's new toothbrush):

A patronise rag operating theatre microfiber cloth (or an enemy's favorite t-shirt)

A shoe lace (operating room an ene. . . nevermind)

A sock. (I be intimate, sounds screwball, but it kit and boodle. And you credibly have a few that are live the single life.)

Degreaser – your favorite kind

Of track, you prat also buy specific tools operating room accessories for this purpose:

Finishing line Gear wheel Floss is really really cool. It's extremely good for running through your shaft wheels and such, and I generally take four uses out of each dental floss since it's washable. Easier than cutting a betray rag into strips, but you gravel similar results.

Park Tool's Gear Clean Sweep gets all the big sludge out and off of your cassette, and information technology's definitely good for reaching into those potty spaces.

How to Clean Your Cassette Without Bothering to Take away It

1. Remove the wheel (yep)

2. Pick your favorite DIY cleanup tool from preceding, and get it soaked with degreaser. Not too soaked, but enough to helper calve the grime.

3. Lay the roulette wheel downfield flat, cassette in the lead. With a store apron on, I unremarkably just put the steering wheel in my lap up. Do what's almost cofortable for you. You can also fare what's most uncomfortable, but that's your call.

3. Bulge at the biggest sprocket, and operate the rag (or shoelace/floss, etc.) the whole way in toward the hub. The technique present lies in operative with the freehub–pull your cod left to collect the grime and so accurate to move over to a new section of the cassette.

4. Repeat 'tween each cog until you've got the totally cassette clean up and shiny again.

5. Replace your wheel (after you've cleaned the chain, of course), lube your chain, and you'ray intellectual to go.

You'Re Done

It's in the main best to perform this maintanance after a bait, and let your bike sit overnight before riding information technology–otherwise it will be best friends with all the road muck.

Those are our tips, what are yours? Whatsoever other DIY tools you use to clean a cassette or chainrings? Lease us know!

cleaning a cassette
diy cleaning tools
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SLO Cyclist's former chief editor and recovering road snot, Bek made sure everything ran swimmingly or so Hera. She was also the unmatchable who reminded the States not to return ourselves too seriously--unless IT involves black socks. Shameful socks are always serious.