Customer Reviews

Park Tool CG-2 Chain Gang Chain Cleaning System

5 star:		(62)
4 star:		(38)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

After years of manually cleaning my bicycle chains, often too infrequently, I made a worthwhile investment in a Park Tool chain cleaner. As a year round bicycle commuter in Chicago, I am often braving the elements leading to concerns over corrosion that could weaken a chain. In years past, I have snapped multiple chains, causing dangerous instability, a loss of balance, and on more than one occasion, a wipeout. Frequent oiling is one approach to mitigating the corrosion. Yet, this leads to a build-up of gunk that can increase the overall resistance. So, for me, finding an efficient routine cleaning method was extremely important, making this product a very valuable item.

When I was younger and had more free time, I would remove a bicycle chain and soak it in a coffee can full of gasoline. This was cheap, environmentally unfriendly and potentially dangerous. Now that I live in a high-rise apartment with beige carpeting, I try to keep the mess and disassembly to a minimum. The Park Tool chain cleaner is excellent for this situation as there is minimal scattering of the cleaning solution. Yet, the cleaning process isn't entirely compatible with carpeting as the cleaning fluid clings to the chain and drips off around the entire path of chain travel. So indoor chain cleaning still requires newspapers or rags to protect the carpeting.

The Park Tool chain cleaner is both fast and effective. The rotary brushes do an excellent job at removing tightly adhering grime. This somewhat surprised me because the bristles are nylon and not metal. From my unscientific observations, the results are as good or better than hand cleaning with wire brush. More importantly, it is definitely much faster. In addition to the main apparatus, Park Tool was nice enough to include a very narrow hand brush with the kit that allow for easy cleaning in between the rear cogs. With this brush and the main tool, the user can perform an end-to-end drive chain cleaning in less than 15 minutes.

One of the advantages of a chain cleaning tool like this is that it contains a reservoir that puts the cleaning solution precisely where it is needed. It is so efficient in this regard that a significant amount sediment builds up at the bottom of the relatively small sized reservoir, requiring that the fluid be changed at least twice during a single cleaning. While it only uses about four ounces per fill, the Park Tool cleaning solution is 20 times as expensive as kerosene or gasoline so there is no cost saving on the consumables front. I suspect that citrus cleaning fluids at hardware or automotive stores would work just as well for much less.

For $28, this product is definitely worth the expense from the time savings alone. While I am not a bicycle mechanic, I do own other Park Tools. In all cases, I have been rather satisfied with their quality. The prices, however, are generally out of line with conventional tools, which may be a result of high dealer markup for niche products with limited markets. In this case, the price is a bargain but I suspect that Park tries to make its profit on the cleaning solution whose expense can probably be avoided by purchasing commonly available alternatives. In total, I would highly recommend this product for both its value and effectiveness.

Pros
Very effective
Saves times
Contains mess
Inexpensive upfront cost

Cons
Expensive cleaning solution
Excessive sediment formation in small reservoir

I have two bikes: a road bike and city bike. The city bike chain was really not that dirty, I cleaned it first - not really impressed. Then I cleaned the road bike, which was really dirty. "One" word my friends: holy-moly. The chain looked just like new, I didn't think it was going to be that clean. The chain scrub and gear brush really do help in cleaning the cog, they get the gunk in-between the gears. Also, I probably will be making my own cleaner once the 8oz bottle of CB-2 Citrus Chain Brite is finished. You can find a wide variety of cleaners for less nowadays. Anyway, I'm very glad I bought this product. 100% worth the price!

I used it yesterday and it is cool. The chain looks real clean, almost new and it is two years old. The product was easy to use and just got easier as the job went on. Within ten minutes I was a chain cleaning expert. The directions are simple. I highly recommend this unit.

I bought this chain cleaner as it had good reviews and looked like it does a good job to quickly and easily clean the chain.

After performing the first cleaning my chain was nice and shinny, although getting to that point wasn't so much fun. In following the directions, "Fill the reservoir to the line" was the first mistake. In this case if you mistakenly move the cleaner too quickly to the left, cleaning fluid will pour out the left chain port and drip all over the place. The other issue is if you spin the pedals too fast the sponge inside the cleaner won't totally remove the cleaner before exiting the right chain port. This results in cleaning fluid dripping from the chain and from the front chain ring.

Overall it does a good job, but they could easily include more information on the instructions about taking it slow and easy when using this chain cleaner.

Lessons learned:
1) Fill the reservoir only until it slightly touches the main cleaning wheel (about 1/4"), not to the fill line
2) Go slow, this will allow the fluid to get picked up by the sponge and prevent spillage
3) Have plenty of rags available to pick up excess cleaning fluid.

In summary it goes a good job, I'd give it 4 stars. But due to the mess potential I'm giving it 3 stars.

Since this cleaning system has there different products (which can be bought separately), let me comment on each product:

CM-5 Cyclone Chain Cleaner: This is great! It is very easy to set up, use, and clean. After cleaning my chain with this (two minutes), the chain looked like new.

GSC-1 GearClean® Brush: This is ok. It is a little bit thin, but it does the job.

8oz bottle of CB-2 Citrus Chain Brite: This worked very well. However, there is not much in the bottle. I calculate it has enough fro 3 to 5 applications. I have three bikes, so this will not last long. Note that the CM-5 Cyclone Chain Cleaner instructions indicate that water with dish soap is a good substitute for this.

I bought this Park Tool chain cleaning system years ago (probably 10 years) and it still works exactly as it did when I bought it. This is a great tool for any cycling enthusiast and works perfectly.

The chain cleaner is great. You *can* use a water and dishwashing detergent solution, but bike-specific degreasers are much more effective at breaking down the gunk, and, if your not careful in throughly drying and re-lubricating the chain, lingering water will cause your chain to rust. Aside from the normal operating instructions, there are two additional steps that I've found make the cleaner work its best:
1. Before running your chain through the cleaner, get a rag and wipe the sides and top/bottom of the entire length of the chain.
2. The reservior needs to be cleaned out on occasion, obviously, but make sure that you throughly rinse out the foam insert after every few chain cleanings. It make the difference between getting your chain "clean" and getting your chain shiny again.

At the time of this review, it is a better deal to buy this: Park Tool CM-5 Cyclone Chain Cleaner and this: Bike Cleaner - Park Tool - Park CB-2 Citrus Chain-Brite Cleaner. That's twice the amount of solution (16 fl. oz. vs 8 fl. oz.), but no brush. However, I don't understand what the included brush is supposed to do. I've used it on my cassette. It didn't do anything. If you need to clean between the cogs on your cassette, get a rag, pull it taught, and drag the edge between the cogs.

I tend to be skeptical of cleaning tools like this, but it looked so much easier than taking the chain off to soak and scrub that I thought I'd give it a try. I'm very impressed with the results. My chain was covered with grit, but in just a minute with this cleaning tool my chain looks as clean as new. I should have bought this years ago.

This little chain cleaning kit is worth every penny. I now have five family bikes that I maintain and is this ever a time saver. The very simple process takes about 3-4 minutes per bike and the chain comes out absolutely clean and ready for re-lubing. The tool really does all the dirty work.

The chain tool and the scrubber brush are very sturdy. Don't let the picture fool you into thinking this is some fragile brittle toy. It is made of a high quality and very tough plastic, somewhat like a rigid Tupperware, the construction inspires confidence in the item. I can see it lasting for many years to come. The brush that is included works perfectly to get down in between the gears and get all the little stubborn nasty bits dislodged.

If you're still trying to clean your chain by hand or you have multiple bikes to deal with, please do yourself a favor and get one of these. You will thank yourself.

P.s. Read the instructions before the first use, it will save you some spilled cleaner the first time you use it. :) Enjoy.

PRODUCT: great product. park tool has always been very reliable when it comes to bike tools. the quality is high, its well made, and does not feel flimsy. all products included were as advertised.

USE: the trickiest part of setup, if you dont have a bike repair stand, is finding a good position for your bike while still being able to crank the chain. once i found a good position i snapped the product onto my chain with ease, filled it up with the cleaning fluid, and started cranking... first, be careful how you position the tool or you could knock the chain off the chainring, happened a couple times and made quite a mess considering i had to reposition the bike and eventially remove the product so i could re-route my chain. it does require a few refills of the cleaning fluid (depending how dirty your chain is) my chain was moderately dirty, so i ended up using 3/4 of the cleaner in the 3 refils i made. when you stop cranking the cleaning fluid will drip quite a bit so you want to do this in a designated service area (i.e. not on your wifes favorite rug). after you remove it i suggest wiping the excess fluid from effected areas and running your chain through a rag to soak up the excess. i also suggest spraying the product out with a hose after use as much sediment and gunk builds up in the resevoir and on the brushes.

OVERALL: satisfied. it got my chain cleaner than i could without it. after a long time of cleaning my chain without the proper tools its great to finally be able to get into the nooks and cranies of my chain. this product has made my maintenance routine easier and is a great invention for keeping your drive train clean.