couple questions about maintenance

[blarf]

ok, i'm getting ready to do couple maintenance tasks on my bike:

i'm about to repack my silcencer (fmf), i got some fmf repacking materials, how many times do i need to go around with the sheet? how tight does it have to be? also how tight the masking tape has to be?

how to you clean and lube your chain? to lube the chain, do you keep it on or off, same for cleaning.
could i take the chain off, clean it with soap and water and wire brush, put wd40 and then lupe it with some chain lube???

let me know

thomas

 

[fatboyslim]

For repacking your silencer you just need to make it so that the packing is NOT so tight that it can't move around the core, but at the same time it's needs to be tight enough so that you can slide the outer part of the cylinder on. Just wrap the tape around it so that it is secure and won't blow out or anything.

For cleaning your chain you need to take it off, soke it in gas for an hour atleast and then wash it off with clean, hot, soopy water. DO NOT USE WD-40. That will rust it. For lubing it just out the bike on something so the back wheel can spin freely. Spin the rear wheel and apply a continuous spray along the whole chain while spinning the wheel. Make sure not to use to much.

 

[crrod]

For cleaning chain, I've seen more often than not, that Kerosen is the cleaning solution of choice. Take the chain off. If it is an O ring chain, don't use a wire brush. For lubing, use a chain lube appropriate for your chain.

Gasoline could harm O-rings. If you don't have an O or X ring chain, gasoline would work fine, other than what it will do to your skin. I've alway heard the less water around your chain the better, and to use Wd-40 to keep the rust off if you do use water.

There you have it. 2 different answers.

 

[blarf]

thank you guys.yea, i do have an O-ring chain. instead of a wire brush, could i use like a tooth brush?