On 12/5/2018 6:06 PM, wrote:
On Wednesday, December 5, 2018 at 11:55:48 AM UTC-8, AMuzi wrote:
On 12/5/2018 11:49 AM, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On 12/5/2018 12:16 PM, wrote:
On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 7:26:52 PM UTC-8, Frank
Krygowski wrote:
On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 5:37:55 PM UTC-5,
wrote:

Frank - how often do you clean your chain and re-wax?
How much off-road riding do you do?

I think I re-wax maybe every 500 miles or so. With my
method, there
is no separate "clean your chain" step. I just add
wax/oil mix
using a propane torch while the chain is on the bike. The
only
cleaning is backpedaling the chain through paper towels
once the
entire chain has gotten it's fresh wax.

These days I do only a little off-road riding. Until
recently I was
on the board of trustees of our local forest preserve. I
would ride
through the trails once in a while to see if there were
problems,
and I would cut through on my way to certain
destinations. There
are a few other gravel roads I would use on occasion, but
most of
my riding is paved.

BTW, I had two hospital stays this year, and associated
recovery.
It's been a terrible year for cycling. I don't think I've
done the
chains since February.

- Frank Krygowski

Well, from my experience I cannot understand how you don't
get wax build-up on the cogs and rings. This isn't some
build-up, inside of 500 miles I have to take the cassette
and rings off because you cannot clean them without
scraping and then a final wash with acetone. I don't buy
acetone to keep something highly volatile around the house
but because it's necessary.

It may be that final step, backpedaling the chain through a
handful of paper towels to polish off the excess. But even
the little bit that eventually appears on the chainrings is
easy for me to wipe off. Maybe it's softer because of the
small amount of oil I've mixed into the wax.


For several weeks I have been completely unable to ride
because of bronchitis. This is the worst I've ever had
with coughing all night.

sigh I've been fighting that for several years, and
dreading winter because of it. Fortunately, it skipped me
last winter. My fingers are crossed this year.

But I think it triggered other problems - that is,
antibiotics affecting my gut microbiome. C. Diff is no fun.
Email if you want details.


Sounds awful but at least you lived. Best wishes on a speedy
recovery.

The Great American Inscrutable Billing Machine ( a.k.a.
'health care') kills about 35,000* people every year with
hospital-acquired infection. Not infection, mind you, but
rather specifically hospital-acquired infection. Visit at
your peril; financial, biological, existential.

*I've seen estimates double that and higher but 35K is
commonly cited.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

My wife babysits the grandkids and stuff that bounces off of them in school hits us.

Our kid calls her kids "little virus bombs."


--
- Frank Krygowski