Video: Irish mechanic reveals best way to clean trickiest bike part

Here's a great tip for getting a tricky job done like the pros and with minimum effort.

There's nothing worse than turning up to train with a group, or to ride a sportive or race while feeling everyone else is turned out better than you are.

The trick to a shiny and new looking bike is regular washing and maintenance. But often tricky to clean properly are the sprockets, or block, on your rear wheel.

Many a rider has gotten out rags and cut them up into thin strips to squeeze in between the sprockets to wash and shine them.

And at the end of the job, very often there's no great improvement; especially if your block and chain are thick with black oil and you haven't done a proper wash job for a while.

But well known bike mechanic Sean McNicholl has recorded the short clip below to show us how it should be done.

McNicholl has been mechanic on the An Post Rás for the winning team on the last two editions of the race.

And long before the teams he was working with scooped the most coveted yellow jersey in Ireland, he knew a thing or two about keeping bikes clean and well maintained.

To get the block in pro condition he uses a paint brush and Veloleum degreasing product that cuts through oil and grime like a hot knife through butter.

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With the block and chain sprayed with product, McNicholl runs the gear; keeping a brush in place all the while, with the job done in a matter of seconds.

It's a neat trick that should come in handy, especially at this time of year when you really need to give your bike a quick clean immediately after a mucky winter spin to keep it in tip top shape.