Preserving The Rear Derailleur

Nikola Nikolov in Bulgaria wants to know the best way to look after the rear gear, here are our suggestions for everyone because you must look after your equipment if you want it to last and do what it was made for.

Hello
I just bought a new rear derailleur, and I would like to ask you what is the best way to preserve it, and to ensure a long life for it (I mean mostly the springs, because you can always change the pulleys, when worn-off).

I know, that switching to the smallest cog and the smallest chain wheel when not going to ride for longer period of time decreases to minimum the tension in the springs of the derailleur, but is this enough, or is there another way of preserving it?

Thank you very much for taking your time to read my question, and greetings from Bulgaria

Hi Nikola.
Good to hear from you. You are correct about the pulley wheels, they can be changed when needed and using the two extremes of gears is not good for the chain, the chain rings, the cassette sprockets and the rear derailleur. Using the large chain ring with the large sprocket and the small chain ring and the small sprocket are not good.

When not using the bike, leave the gears on the small sprocket as the spring will not be under stress. Clean the rear gear (and the complete bike) well, making sure that the springs don’t have any grit or dirt, dry everything thoroughly, then after spray an oil which is better to have Teflon in it. This will lubricate and protect the springs and all the pins and moving parts.

Keep it clean, keep it oiled.