[ad3]
Back in October we paid a visit to Maxima USA in San Diego, CA to check out their factory. They were nice enough to send us home with a bunch of products to keep our bike running clean and smooth. Although we’ve been using just about everything in their lineup we wanted to review two things we’ve been using the most commonly : Bio Wash and Chain Guard.
It all starts with a dirty bike. In this case, a really really dirty bike.
Biowash is completely biodegradable, but to avoid all chances of howling brakes or any contamination, we generally just take our rotors and pads completely off when performing a super deep clean on our bikes.
We always start with a quick rinse to get 90% of the dirt and mud off.
Big bottle of Bio Wash. So far we’ve been really extremely pleased with this stuff. It’s eco friendly and fully biodegradable. It does a damn good job of cleaning our bikes up and breaking down grease without roaching our bearings or messing up paint and finishes. It’s safe to use all parts of our bike. Two thumbs way up.
This cleaner is surprisingly strong so we actually like to pour a little bit into a bucket of hot water to use along with a scrub brush and pipe cleaner. Use your best judgement in terms of cleaner to water ratio, but a little bit goes a long ways.
We won’t hesitate to spray Bio Wash directly onto the bike’s drivetrain if it has excessive buildup.
…and a light misting on the rest of the bike when we’re doing a deep clean. We only do this if it’s really dirty.
A mid sized scrub brush is nice on the rims, tires, frame tubing and other large parts.
We recommend getting a pipe cleaner for the hard to reach spots.
It’s best to give the drivetrain a bit of extra attention to remove all of the grit and buildup.
After a really thorough rinse, bounce the bike and spin the wheels a few times to get as much water off as you can. Before waiting too long, make sure to dry off the bike with a rag. Most importantly, dry off the drivetrain bits : particularly, the chain.
We’ve been really happy with the “Chain Guard” wet formula chain lube from Maxima, particularly after a wash. It seems to penetrate well, which is good to prevent rusting – but unlike a lot of wet lubes it really stays put nicely and sticks to the chain well. It smells great and the applicator is genius. The bottle’s top comes to a nice narrow point and features a quick open/close orifice. Super dialed.
It’s always best to apply chain lube to your chain and cycle it through the gears a few times as soon as the bike is dry.
Clean happy bike. Time to get it dirty again.
Check out Maxima’s full line of bike products here. We’ve been really stoked on everything they’ve had us testing thus far so we’re quite happy to see that they’ve entered the cycling market.
[ad45]
