I have a scotoiler - do I still need to CLEAN the chain?

[thor]

and if yes, how often?

Thanks :)

[wyrdness]

Yes, and when it gets dirty.

[thor]

How do I tell when it's dirty enough? It just looks kinda oily at the moment.

[wyrdness]

How do I tell when it's dirty enough? It just looks kinda oily at the moment.

Clean a small section. If it looks remarkably different to the rest of the chain, then it needs cleaning.

[thor]

Ok thanks - I'll get some cleaner.

[embee]

with the scottoiler I find that the chain is usually moist enough to just wipe it clean with an oily rag.

You're only really wiping dirt off the sideplates if the scottoiler is delivering enough oil to keep the rollers clean. It can't do any harm, though if you do use a cleaner or paraffin I'd suggest oiling it manually afterwards rather than just relying on the Scottoiler since it only gives a drop a minute or so.

It probably depends on the use it's getting and how dusty etc it is.

As the others say, if it looks dirty and a trial bit cleans up a lot, then yes it probably needs it.

[Red ones]

why? Scottoiler is supposed to do away with the need to clean because the oil is not sticky like normal oil (unless you are recycling your old engine oil)

[hutchy]

why? Scottoiler is supposed to do away with the need to clean because the oil is not sticky like normal oil (unless you are recycling your old engine oil)

Depends on the conditions you ride in - My SV only comes out with the sun and I don't do dirt tracks so I don't expect much dirt on the chain.

[SVeeedy Gonzales]

I only ever gave/give the chains a wipe with a rag. The oil should do most of the cleaning for you as it's a thin oil, not like the thick, sticky chain waxes and lubes that attract dirt. If it looks cruddy then clean it, but with the scottoiler and loobman I've used in the past, the chain always looked nice and shiny, even with a low rate of flow (got to keep that back wheel shiny...)