I think what's missing from this whole video is that suboptimal maintenance is almost always better than no maintenance and that cosmetic damage is not the same as functional damage. Even the WD40 thing was specifically in that context. Degreasing and lubing your chain with WD40 or washing your bike with dish soap is still going to be a lot better in the long term than skipping on cleaning your bike, which is the real alternative for most people. If you're actually causing meaningful damage (not cosmetic) to your bike by using dish soap that will become obvious over the lifetime of your bike, you're washing your bike too often of doing something else very wrong. Totally agree on recklessly leaning your bike on important components, best to avoid that.
actually I find soap dishwasher a good way to clean the bike. mix it with water to soften it up and not too concentrated. removes all the dirt and oil easily
Haha...I admit to using WD40 on the chain (after degreasing and rinsing chain with water) and washing up liquid to get muck off the frame and it hasn't done any harm to my bikes in 40 years of cycling experience. As you rightly say, it's far worse not cleaning the bike at all.
62,000 km on two bikes in 8 years and I use bags sometimes (eg London to Paris and back). In rain all too often. On dirt roads. One is 15 years old. They both look like new because I look after them. Everyone have some pride in your bike.
You sound so precious about the bikes. lol: the bags stuff and the resting on bars... If I can't afford a minor damage to a thing it's a sure sign I should never have bought that thing in the first place. I live by that principle and I'm always chilled. Basically I try to not be owned by the stuff I own. e.g.: being overly cautious all the time or spending too much time and efforts in maintenance. If it wears out I replace it, simples. Money buys peace kind of thing. Now I still take the valuable advice on lube and clean, thanks.
Much better to lean against the top tube than the saddle or bar foam. Saddle and foam get damaged more easily (and you touch them directly with your body), the bike is much more likely to fall over, and unless you’re riding cheap ass plastic bikes (like those ones with carbon fibbers in) you’re at worst gonna scratch the paint, which is how you know a bike is actually getting used.
Feel like my paint work gets way more damaged from getting constantly blasted by debris from the roads than from most of these thing though to be honest haha
3:14 “Don’t use washing-up liquid … it’s going to damage…” - don’t like when sponsors use these channels to spread fear, to make people buy overpriced washing-up liquid. I’ve been washing my bike for over 4 years with a plant-based, baby-safe dish soap that biodegrades significantly faster(hours instead of weeks/months) than “bike products” and it did absolutely no “damage” to the color or shininess of the bike, and no, there is no “rusting”(heard that one when they invited the sponsor), just like your utensils are not rusting if not scratched and not left in water.
I agree, Dawn dish soap is used to clean aquatic animals because it is so gentle and safe, if my bike can't handle the same detergent as a sensitive skin sea duck, then I'm buying a different bike.
Agree with all of this except the sarcasm on the bike bags. 😄 I know how to put my bags on in a way that doesn't damage my precious Colnago, but it seems like Ollie was more annoyed at bag carriers in general. Hey man, I can't put snacks in my back pockets, they're directly in the sun, on my sweaty back! And I don't want my keys mashed up against my body either. There are plenty of legit reasons to have a bike bag. And what about bikepacking?!
If you bike solo, especially solo remote, you need bags to carry all the spares and tools to save you when eventually you have a mechanical; spare tube, chain, chain tool, wrenches, zip ties, gloves, paper towels, etc. You also need fuel...snacks. Then there is layered clothing if you ride in varying conditions...say leave early when it is cold and then ride into the heat of the day...or get back later when temperatures plummet. Finally, I much prefer pulling my phone from a side zipper in my bag pocket than trying to wrestle it out of my jersey pocket.
@@stevewilliams5428 You may want to calm down Steve, and consider the *amount* of salt involved. When diluted in the wash water it's basically a homeopathic concentration. Maybe equivalent to 1ml of sea water in 5 liters of fresh and of course even that will be rinsed. Likely the mineral concentrations of your tap water are more corrosive. Millions of people wash their steel cutlery every day without ill effect.
The thing with Dish soap is people dump about half a pint of the stuff in a one bucket of warm water (so it gets all foamy), if you must use it you just need a quick squirt maybe a couple of teaspoons worth in the bottom of the bucket with HOT water to break surface tension. Oh and people that go straight in with the sponge with dry or partly dry dirt/mud still visible on the frame, why? You may as well get the sand paper out.
Ollie being upset with people actually using bikes as practical transportation, and calling them “hipsters” for doing so, is pretty funny. How dare they? 😂 Those paint protection films he recommends don’t hold up very long against constant abrasion, in my experience. At a certain point, one just has to choose whether their bike is a vanity art piece or a tool. Not saying one shouldn’t try their best to keep their bike looking nice. But let’s not start calling people names for choosing to bike to haul their vinyl 😂
Exactly. My bike is used for a wide variety of things. Pleasure riding to to doing errands (groceries, hardware store pickups, etc). I’ll clean it with whatever I have available. Sometimes cleaning is just wiping water off the chain and using WD-40. My mountain bike is 35 yrs old, is used near daily spring to fall, is cleaned all the wrong ways, yet chain, cassette, and bearings last many years despite my “improper” maintenance (also original paint and stickers still look good except on underside). Incidentally I just saw a video about why we should do group rides. I don’t do group rides because there’s always an “Ollie” gatekeeper judging me and my bike and what I’m wearing (I wear cargo shorts over bike shorts because I need-and like-pockets for carrying stuff).
Lacquer is not used for finish coatings anymore. Modern paint systems use Urethane clear coats over thin layers of color pigmentation. But you are right that dish detergents and degreasing agents will dull the topcoat finish.
we all know that WD40 it's bad for the bike, it's just question of time and luck. don't use that shit, your bike must be still fresh from factory, try using that on aged bike and you'll notice the damage
@@leart78 of course you will notice the damage, as it penetrates rust and shows how damaged the bike is. Putting a lube, oil or anything thicker muffles the sound of grinding.
Seriously Washing up liquid? A few dollars buys a high quality CAR SHAMPOO and this will normally have wax for that hydra static effect and will make the bike look great. If you only have a bike, it will last years but if you have a car you care for, then BONUS. Use SIO2 liquid wax after drying the bike (and the car) with proper microfibre towels (one to put the wax on and one to buff it off). Never spray wax on the bike, it will go on to the tires and brake surfaces.
Some, not all washing up liquid had aggregate in it so it gets burnt food off your dishes, but will scratch your paint. Alot is also acidic... It depends how much you care...
Difference is washing up liquid contains chemicals that will remove protective films and wax. Automotive washing liquids are very different and are formulated not to remove protective films and waxes. It’s not about strength, it’s about the chemical formulation.
Literally nothing as divisive as "this is how you wash your bike RIGHT!" Every time y'all do this kind of advice there's like 50 comments saying something different. So I still honestly don't know how to wash your bike proper 😂Use Muc-off, don't use Muc-off. Use wax, don't use wax. Cover your discs, no need to cover your discs. Don't use a pressure hose, it's fine to use a pressure hose. All I know is that I'd rather have a clean bike than a dirty one. You should have some kind of bike washing competition on your bike festival and have them judged by professional bike washers or something.
Ollie - About washing your bike - a surfactant has to be included in the bike wash to break down the water tension and remove dirt. Any other additives in the cleaning solution, no matter how well meaning, will have a negative effect. A small amount of ordinary washing up detergent applied at a low pressure, such as with a mitt, has to be the best compromise.
Olile is being paid by bike product cleaning companies, that is obvious. Look at the products he is using for his hair --LOL -- it is a clear a give away!
I washed my bike last week after accidentally riding through 2” thick mud across the road. I used my pressure washer to get most of the mud off, and a microfiber towel to wipe other areas. No soap used. Bike looks great.
I always use a small dash of washing up liquid in a bucket to wash our bikes. I don’t think it damages the paintwork as much as you say (maybe because Fairy don’t sponsor GCN ?). I also use a detailing brushes for awkward areas on a bike. They’re also used on high end cars so your argument seems wrong. High pressure hoses are a real bike killer. Isopropyl alcohol on discs, rims etc cleans them well. As for lube, I always say that if you can see the lube on a bike it’s not doing anything, apart from attracting dirt. It’s internal, metal to metal where it’s needed.
The argument has been raging for years in the car world, the issue is with an electrostatically attracted, super high pigment, robot controlled, uniformly baked on factory paint job, applied to a brand new near sanitized surface it will have near zero effect unless you are using way too much. On a respray or aftermarket clear coated finish it will overtime "attack" the paint/lacquer as its just not as chemical or abrasion resistant. Back in the day bike frames where stove enamelled and later powder coated usually after being "dipped" in a strong solvent to remove contaminants, this gives a final finish with similar properties to a factory car finish. However modern carbon can't be prepped or coated with those methods and the final finish is more akin to a car respray and more susceptible to damage. I suspect this is why we see a lot of matte/satin/semi-gloss finishes on modern frames as "dull" finishes can use more pigment an require less prep/finishing work to be pleasing to the eye. Having said all that a cap of washing up liquid in full bucket of water isn't gonna do much, if any damage.
Ollie has lost it over this one, lol, and some contact with reality. That reality is: 90% of people don’t have custom paint jobs on 12k+ bikes with premium racing components. Most of us ride a second hand sub 1k bike with calliper brakes, using an old 105 that’s been already scratched and we don’t care how we lean it and and how we clean it - as long as we clean it lol That aside, only valid thing I’m guilty of sometimes is too much lube or putting it right before a 100k+ ride rather than night before…
Bollocks! I understand that you now need to boost overpriced Silca bike wash liquid but you have a degree in chemistry, so please name the SPECIFIC chemical ingredients in dishwashing liquid that are good enough for car paint but will destroy the lacquer on your bike?
Think we now need Ollie to give us a full on bike detailing video from start to finish, in detail, to remove all the micro marring that we've inflicted and then the ceramic top coating etc. To get it back to showroom finish. Also what to do about fixing marring on a matt finish bike.
@@gcntech Please no. There are enough of these videos for which you are obviously sponsored but never say so. Those ones about the fancy and extortionate coatings are crap. The wear and tear is in the moving parts and not the finish of the frame
@@jeremynorth wrong. bikes are ALWAYS in the sun. the coating is JUST like a car, including clear coat. Therefore it must be treated as such. The clear coat needs wax, and cleaning, just like a car.
You can’t fix matte finish. Once it’s rubbed to the point of being shiny, it stays that way. My road bike commuter with almost 20,000 miles has a few shiny spots on the matte finish. Just have to live with it.
I wonder what Ollie is looking at when he does his habitual stare at his four o clock, then he does that odd little jaw waggle. Don't tell him but it's a bit annoying
In 2005, I bought a Specialized Allez. I have a couple other bikes that I ride, but this is my "daily driver". I ride it at least 4 times per week for 18 years. That's over 40,000 miles outdoors and nearly 20,000 miles indoors. I'm guilty of all these things and more - yet my Allez is in better shape and more enjoyable to ride than it was when it was new. Does any of this really matter? Should we take long-term maintenance advice from someone who gets a brand new bike every couple of months?
I’m absolutely behind you on all of these! For crying out loud, your bike is an expensive, intricate piece of equipment! Treat it as such and you’ll get so many years of excellent performance from your attention to detail. The most incredible benefit of caring for your bike is being able to put your hands on it. You’ll see and feel possible problems before they become obvious.
i dunno, i've use mild dish detergent on my bikes for maybe ten years now.... and it works just fine. and no, its not too powerful for your bike. glossy bikes, matte bikes, everything in between. maybe if you're using it straight up undiluted. who knows. but just a quick squirt into a big bucket of water. more than enough to clean everything.
Here's a tip: if you don't want to get royally reamed by bike companies marketing you 10 quid bottles of bike wash that they buy by truckloads of IBCs (1000 litres for a couple of hundred quid, then bottle & mark up 700-1000%), use wool wash detergent. It's about the same chemical composition, give or take. Even the off-brand stuff won't affect your paintwork nor the lube on your pivots or bearings. 1 cap per bucketful is plenty.
Nonsense -a capful of dishwashing detergent in a gallon of warm water. is perfect for the job. It contains the surfactants that you want -just like the overpriced products "designed" for the job. The *method* of cleaning is what causes issues, and Ollie is spot-on there. No power-washing. and no brushes on the paint.
I liked the bit at 4:28 when Ollie mentioned putting lube in the wrong places, then the editor followed it by showing a clip of someone putting lube on top of the chain.
Added tip, when putting lube on it is better to drip it on the inside of the links not the outside as shown in this video as rotating the chain will throw the lube off if on the outside, preventing it from penetrating the links whereas putting in on the inside of the chain will drive it into the link more.
Yep that’s how I do it. I use Triflow with the tiny straw and apply one drop to each roller along the bottom run of chain. I do the whole length between chain ring and cassette, then rotate the crank backwards to the next section of chain and keep going round.
Agree about the background music, far too intrusive. Gmbn also guilty of this, they use loud rock music 🎵 when showing bikes racing along tracks/descents. It detracts from what is excellent video content…..rant over!
As an adult onset roadie, I picked up some bad habits from my BMX and inner city fixed gear days. Went literally years without maintenance 🤷🏻♂️if it pulls and stops, I'm good 😂
No it doesn’t. He’s easily the most irritating and of the presenters. This video is borderline unwatchable. Tbh I rarely watch GCN on RU-vid these days. Has gone downhill badly and videos such as this are a prime example.
If all these things can damage a bike so easily, actually riding a bike must be inherently unsafe. I better just mount my bike on the wall of the living room as a piece of delicate artwork with a sign that says, "look but don't touch." Of course the hangers to display it will likely also cause structural damage. Maybe manufacturers could build them like they did in the old days. Almost indestructible.
@@mrflaxtv81 It's a tiny amount of salt. A few CC of soap in a pail of water -- even if the soap was pure sea water, the resultant mix wouldn't be that salty. And of course the soap is mostly NOT salt; a small amount is there just to adjust the viscosity. It's an insignificant amount of salt and pales in comparison to the mineral content already in your tap water. So unless you're washing with distilled water there's no practical difference.
@@BixbyConsequence I meant ammonia and bleach salts, rather than a common sodium compound. Combined with UV from sunlight exposure it can weaken and crack the top coat protecting paint, then dull the paint etc. For the sake of a few quid, I'll stick to Muc-Off to wash the 3k steed...
Dishwashing liquid has worked very well for me for over 15 years with zero negative effects on my clear and matte finished bikes. I clean my bike(s) every 3 rides, which means about 40 times every summer... are there better products? Sure. Do you need them? That's another question entirely.
@@TanManFixes how does dishwashing liquid dissolve a clearcoat? Certified chemist here. There's nothing in there that attacks finishes. But let's say for argument's sake that you're right. I have a 2005 giant tcr czero that has been ridden hard and washed over 40 times a year since I bought it and it looks as shiny as the day I got it. The "damage" caused by the mild soap I'm using is clearly negligible if it can't be seen after all those years and hundreds of washes. Marketing is not a reliable source of information, especially scientific information.
A lot of people are complaining about audio levels. To whoever is editing the video there is often presets for RU-vid loudness in your editor. In Davinci it’s in the fair lite tab towards the right when you click on the dots above the metering. Select RU-vid and this should help you adjust the audio levels to stop compression when uploading. But the most effective change would just be ducking the audio when Ollie speaks. You can also widen the stereo separation of the music to make more room for Ollie’s voice on a mono track as well as using the EQ on the music track and lowering it on the frequency Ollie’s voice sits at to make more room for him again. Hope that helps :) 👍🏻
Ollie, need your opinion. I wash my bikes by filling a bucket of warm water, to which I add a cap full of car wash, applying with a 50 mm soft paint brush (used soley for the purpose of) Then allow the bike to dry by the sun. After that I bring bike into garage, to cool off. Sun can be very hot here in Aust. With my carbon frame bike, I then apply motor vehicle wax over frame/fork. Is that ok ? Just trying to preserve the carbon material.
@@ynie1 Squealing brakes are an odd combination of embarrassing and useful. Useful because you needn't use a bell or shout to make people ahead aware of your approach. Just squeak your brakes a bit. 🤪
Don't use WD 40 as lube. But you're going to be fine using a bit of dish soap in water vs some random overpriced muc off or silca stuff. You're gonna rinse it and wax it anyway, aren't you?
Man, here's an old-timer who learned to work on bikes when 7-speed cassettes were the thing. When I recently bought a twelve speed carbon bike I wish some young guy at the bike shop had dope-slapped me and said, "lookit, Pops, there's stuff you need to know about 12-speed drive trains and disc brakes and all this wonderful new stuff. And now you have dope-slapped me. Thanks.
I scratched my top tube this morning before a ride, but it was because I bumped it accidentally and it rolled, then tipped over onto the stone corner of my house. I was and am so mad and ashamed all at the same time. Sorry Ollie, I tried to do it right, but I was clumsy. Now I don't know what to do with my formerly pristine frame. Guess I'll have to start call it it "patina" now.
100% on the tips (gripes?) and grab one of those car mitts which make cleaning easier. But I’m going to stick up for dry lube - less expensive and less faff than wax.
You should thoroughly clean your drivetrain at regular intervals, and only apply new lube when it's totally spotless; completely agree. Obsessively avoiding brake rotor contamination is also a very good idea. Dish soap? I don't agree with that one; it's not going to damage anything on your bike if you don't use ridiculously hot water. If it doesn't scratch porcelain, it's not going to scratch a powder coated bike frame. I particularly don't agree with the bike bag rant. It's a bike, not a museum piece; it's meant to be used, and that involves a certain degree of wear and tear.
The cheap 1" paint brushes that you can find anywhere and Maguires Liquid Ceramic Wax will clean your bike to perfection. I never use water or detergents on my bikes. Some spray Silicone also is a must on your derailleurs to lube and protect the pivot points, not oils. Di2 requires special care because it's not water proof and if you want to get a long life out of it don't get it wet any more than you can help it.
I think its easy to talk about the last topic when you are commuting on bike friendly places or not even commuting with the bike. I hate the fact that I have to lean in places that is in contact with my frame, but when I do, I have no choice! 😅
In bike friendly places the bike racks are better designed so I can lock my bike to.... my frame & tire. Which means metal against my frame. City commuters are going to get scratches. No way around it. And today in a less friendly place, I had to lock to a metal rail fence. Yep.... leaning my frame against hard metal. So that last point he made is pretty preposterous for any ride where you have to lock up and leave your bike somewhere unless it is a pristine vault, which most of us don't have.
YES! The leaning the bike against a top tube!!!!!! Party foul for sure. How about flipping the bike over on to the saddle and bars to take a wheel out….?
Isopropyl alcohol and a microfibre cloth is perfect for cleaning your pads and discs, I do the discs at least weekly (or if a squel starts) and the pads probably bimonthly (or if a squel starts) this is also a great time to check for wear and tear, if you are just wiping the discs off you don't even need to take the wheels off and this also works for rim brake bikes.
Indoor trainers....I wonder if the frames where ever made to be loaded like that. Looking at how the rear and front section gets bent....not the same as with wheels on
I suspect learning how do clean your bike will involve yet another (expensive?) product. For those of us who don’t have a bottomless pit of cash, hot water with a small squeeze of dishwashing liquid, topped and tailed with the garden hose jet nozzle does the trick perfectly well. I also use a very soft brush from from a household brush and pan set, once the initial hosing has been done. My disc brakes are cleaned with rubbing alcohol, cheaply available. 6 years on, my beloved beast still looks brand new.
No and NO! Car wash liquid is cheap enough and infinitely better than dishwashing liquid. Dishwashing liquid actually contains abrasives that can destroy your topcoat. Ever see those cars where the top coat is peeling?
@@kevinc9528 when you say "dishwashing liquid" are you referring to the stuff you put in your dishwasher appliance, or the liquid soap you typically put in a sink with hot water? The former does contain abrasives, the latter does not.
I feel like you would cry if you saw my bike. My drivetrain is dirty, my bar clamps are rusted from sweat, my frame is worn from bags, I do everything wrong I guess. But I have fun doing it!
Olie thank you. Seen it all in the bike shop - as a 69 year old commuter (hypster😂) I rather enjoy wearing my bike out. My 20 year old Bianchi castro Valley with leopard seat saddle(fake) has about 90,000 miles on it. Its got three layers of stickers such as “bike thieves suck”. My pretty bike is reserved for sunday best rides. Love your channel.