If you love your bike, you surely want to take good care of it and make sure that all your riding experiences are top-notch. Longer periods of use often cause bike gears to get rusty. Rusty gears cause your bike to not function properly and make your rides uncomfortable.
Anytime rust is formed on your bike gears, they should be removed as soon as possible. Removing rust is not much difficult and only needs some very simple steps performed. Continue reading to find out the of removing rust from bike gears. If left untreated, rust may spread and cause some severe damage.
Why Should I Clean the Rust?
A lot of you may be wondering if you can leave the gears as they are and not get involved in any rust cleaning at all. Let us talk about why cleaning rust is important.
- If left untreated, rust often can cause structural damages that are beyond repair and will be very harmful to your bike
- Rust on your bike ruins the whole look of the bike
- Damage caused by rust will negatively affect the performance of the bike, which in turn will make your riding experience negative
How Can I Remove the Rust?
Let us take a look at the several tried and tested methods that can be obtained to remove rust. Bike users all over the world follow these methods and only have rave reviews.
1. Various Types of Oil
The first obvious method that you may have guessed already is using oil. Auto engine oil works just fine for cleaning up some rust. Some people even use sewing machine oil! The trick is to put some drops of oil on every part of the gear and wipe it with a cloth.
Putting a whole lot of oil all at once on the entire gear part will not help you clean up rust very well. Mostly rust tends to go away after a good oil wipes down. A general disadvantage is the oil is greasy, which causes it to attract dirt and dust easily.
Read More: Can You Use Olive Oil on Bike
2. Lubricants and Degreasers
Professional grade lubricants and degreasers are also top choices among avid bike users. They often contain ingredients that also condition the chain and takes care of it. Many different types of lubricants from different brands are used and preferred by bike users as well as repairmen.
But we cannot disagree that everyone’s top choice of lubricant brand is WD-40. You can apply any lubricant by using a wire brush and brushing off the rust. For very heavy rust, it is generally recommended to soak the affected part in lubricant and then afterward rinse it with hot water.
Read More: Best Grease For Bicycle
3. Using Ingredients Available at Home
Some very popular and widely used home remedies often work well when it comes to getting rid of rust. Many people use vinegar, and some even use Coca-Cola. These two ingredients are said to work best when they are sprayed.
Baking soda is also a much-used ingredient. Some prefer mixing baking soda with vinegar and cola. But you can also use a paste made of baking soda and water, which can be applied with an old toothbrush.
For those who want to finish things quickly, you can soak bike gears in your desired mixture and wash them off afterward with hot water. Lemon is another commonly used home ingredient that is generally applied with the help of steel wool.
Protection Against Rust
Besides learning about the various ways to remove rust, it is also important to know how rust can be prevented. Taking necessary steps to ensure that rust formation is prevented saves your money, time and makes sure your bike stays in a better shape.
Let us take a look at some very necessary tips that can help prevent your precious bike from getting rusty.
- Make sure your bike stays as clean as possible. Try to clean your bike regularly. After cleaning, make sure that the bike is dried thoroughly.
- Use oil or lubricant to lubricate the gear and chain of your bike regularly
- Store your bike properly in a shaded and covered area. Leaving it out in the open where it is exposed to rain, snow, sun, etc., will only increase the likelihood of rust being formed.
- Some people also get their bike pressure washed professionally to ensure that better care is taken.
- Tuning up your bike is a good way to ensure maintenance and preventing rust formation
- Replace chains on time before the rust and damage on them spreads to other parts
- Make sure it is not inactive for a very long period of time
Final Words
After reading this article, we hope you have learned how to remove rust from bike gears. Always remember that taking proper care of your bike will only extend its life.
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