Bike spring clean - any suggestions

Hello
now the summer is here I have got out the Mercian and so compared to my beater bike the difference in the resistance when peddling is quite amazing - the gearing is the same so I can only presume it is down to the parts on the bike - probably being gunked with winter crap. I was going to spend this weekend cleaning it up but was wondering about a few points to make it smoother and faster and wanted to check about the best way to do it.

1. The Chain - chain is in ok-ish condition apart from being filthy. After about a years use is it better to replace or clean it? For £10 I'm thinking replace

2. Pedals - the pedals seem to not be as smooth as they used to be - how easy is it to clean the bearings up? They are odyssey/bmx style pedals

3. Bottom bracket - cheap shimano un54 - is it false economy of scale to replace this perhaps once a year or best to invest in a better bb and then service it?

4. Wheels - front is sweet as a peach and about to stick a new one on the back and has been running fine.

Was there anything else I should do to get it back up to a decent level? Tyre pressure was the only other thing I can think of.

Thanks for pointers or any other ideas

Always think it's worth picking up a chain wear tool. A worn out chain can rather quickly wear out your whole drivetrain. Often seems best to replace the whole drivetrain in one go, as one worn part quickly spreads the damage....

Don't have a bad thing to say about the un54 bb, both of mine are still going strong.

do you never clean your chain - the road grime paste is what wears components out.

replace bb when it dies, leave it in until then

many bbs are sealed units designed to be used to destruction

different tyres can make a difference, is the position on the two bikes different - this will engage different muscles etc

Aye, riding position is a bit more upright on the Quinn but definitly needs cleaning up. I used to have a chain cleaner for the MTB. Might be silly question but whats the best way to clean a single speed chain? In the past I tried putting it into a bottle and shaking it about but it was crap at cleaning

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/chainclean.html

Being lazy i think tinternet purchase more likely

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BMX-CHAIN%3a-KMC-Kool-Single-Speed-_W0QQitemZ400162085176QQcmdZViewItem?rvr_id=222266669575&rvr_id=222266669575&cguid=b11d048512c0a0aa17325af2fcda8d0d

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/chainclean.html

what? is he having a laugh? april fools right.

i whould never do this, bit of lube now and again. replace when needed.

Sheldon knows. You don't.

That has to be the most OTT cleaning exercise i've seen. And i've just been polishing my spokes.

The date guys, the date :p

As fot chain cleaning three secret is not to get it dirty. Use decent lube and in miniscule amounts.

and +1 the wear tool, death spreads quickly throughout your drive chain so keep on top of it.

Bb, modern ones are usually sealed, as already said, ride it to death then replace.

hubs if they are cup and cone then strip em an rebuild with decent grease, sealed = ride em til they die

i say , if it moves clean it.

I've recently started NOT cleaning my racing bike very often. I tend to get any mud or sand off the drivetrain and frame after each long ride, make sure its dry and then lube the chain and the derailleurs. Job done.

Seems to be doing the trick and if I give the frame and wheels a wipe over with some window cleaning wipes that I bought at the pound store, the bike generally looks perfectly clean.

So far, after a few months of hard riding (fnar), it doesn't need a thorough clean although I did used to be an overcleaner who tended to remove and degrease everything so perhaps this isn't exactly groundbreaking news.

...a clean bike...!

Not sure about anyone else, but my bike has been battered by wind and rain in recent weeks. Caked with mud and the chain squeaking...

Cleaned it up good on Sunday and it rolled like a dream machine today!

I cannot stand a dirty bike, tend to clean it up once its been caked by rain, or following a big ride out in surrey - it never goes more than a few weeks without one.... Anyone else as nuts as me about cleanliness?!

^ Candace had this option outside their shop when I was there last weekend.

Every few weeks? Most peeps clean their bikes after every ride.

You kidding?

Twice a year at best here.

You kidding?

Twice a year at best here.

Hope that's a leap year.