Cleaning inside of frame tubes?

[muppetman]

This might seem a daft question, but does anyone clean the inside of their frame tubes? And if so, how? The reason I ask is that I've spent the last couple of evenings removing the seatpost from my Scott, and I've dumped the best part of a can of oil and penetrating fluid down the seat tube and it looks pretty gunky inside now I've removed the seatpost - how do I get this gunk out?!

Probably don't need to do anything about it, but don't really want to leave all the gunk in. Ideas?

 

[dyna-ti]

It requires remarkably long fingers

You could spray down a degreaser.REMEMBERING to first remove the bottom bracket

 

[dyna-ti]

It requires remarkably long fingers

You could spray down a degreaser.
REMEMBERING to first remove the bottom bracket

Then a cloth wrapped round the end of a stick.

 

[coomber]

I use one of those brushes designed for cleaning inside of bottles. Ie long wire down middle and brushes fold inwards. Available for a quid from any hardware shop.

 

[chriscl]

I have had occasion to do this, and used one of the cheapo (i.e. couple of quid from Wilkos) fluffy duster thingies; one of those that usually clips to a plastic frame that you hold in your hand.

I just stick a couple of long bits of dowel into the fluffy bit and poke it down the tube.

Works a treat!

 

[muppetman]

Thanks for all the suggestions! I know its going to bug the cr#p out of me if I don't do it properly, so a combination of the methods suggested might be in order.

Cheers.

 

[GoldenEraMTB]

I used a couple methods to clean out tubes on my Fats:

1. for a mild cleaning, take an old bed sheet, or some thin longer rag. Cut it into a couple long strips, wide enough that they won't fit in the tube without twisting it, and long enough that it will be about twice as long as the tube.
2. soak it with B9 Boeshield or something similar.
3. Begin twisting it down the tube, making sure you have enough to rub the inner walls all the way down, and keep twisting it till your tube is stuffed nice and tight. Let it sit for a while, turning it occasionally.
4. Remove, check, and repeat with another strip as necessary. Using a rust inhibitor and remover is a good idea since it leave behind a nice thin coat.

For heavier duty cleaning, rust dust removal. I had one of those collapsable snow removal devices for clearing the roof of a truck. Took it apart; used a self-threaing screw with a flat head to screw on to the thin metal pole a nice strip of old denim. Soaked the seat tube with B-9, then worked the denim round and round- it's a good course material, while still being cotton, so it won't damage the inside of the tubes, and does a great job at removing light rust.

These are ghetto fab methods