What type of oil?
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What type of oil to usew for the chain and gears on a bike? Do you just use any Castrol Grease
or some WD40? Sure, I bet there is some dead expensive stuff that is recommended thats basically
the same !!
Any offers?
"The Oracle" <kojaknospam@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
news:bdnak4$u01ie$1@ID-179018.news.dfncis.de...
> What type of oil to usew for the chain and gears on a bike? Do you just
use
> any Castrol Grease or some WD40? Sure, I bet there is some dead expensive stuff that is
> recommended thats basically the same !!
>
> Any offers?
>
>
Loads of options, but I use plain, cheap old GT85. Have done for the past 4 years and it's done me
proud. Light squirt every couple of hundred miles (once, twice a week for me) and away I go. Every
now and then (depending on the weather) I split the chain, dump it in some white spirit or diesel
along with the cassette rings and shake it about for a few mins. Dry 'em off, put 'em back on,
squirt of GT and off I go again.
And you bet right, you could spend a fortune on lubrication...and I don't mean in the chemists!
--
Mark
"Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak"
On Sun, 29 Jun 2003 19:19:57 +0100, "The Oracle" <kojaknospam@ntlworld.com> wrote:
>What type of oil to usew for the chain and gears on a bike?
It's more important to keep the crud off than to use some ultimate lubricant. You want something
with moderate lubrication, definitely not sticky, and ideally proof against a little rain.
You also want it in a dripper bottle, because it's good for chains, frequently bad for tyres and
definitely bad news on rims or brakes.
So I'd suggest going to a bike shop and trying some "Finish Line". Comes in summer and winter grades
(one is a bit more weatherproof) and is a fiver or so for a bottle that will last for years.
To clean it, search this back on ng. But a quick link is definitely a good idea.
"The Oracle" <kojaknospam@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
news:bdnak4$u01ie$1@ID-179018.news.dfncis.de...
> What type of oil to usew for the chain and gears on a bike? Do you just
use
> any Castrol Grease or some WD40? Sure, I bet there is some dead expensive stuff that is
> recommended thats basically the same !!
>
> Any offers?
For a road bike use a light oil - bike shops will sell you stuff at £5 a little bottle. Light engine
oil is more like £10 a gallon. For off road I use chain saw oil at £4 a gallon. You don't need much,
I shall be leaving some of my gallon to my relatives.
John
I use Finish Line. I clean the chains and sprockets in diesel which leaves them lubricated anyway
"The Oracle" <kojaknospam@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
news:bdnak4$u01ie$1@ID-179018.news.dfncis.de...
> What type of oil to usew for the chain and gears on a bike? Do you just
use
> any Castrol Grease or some WD40? Sure, I bet there is some dead expensive stuff that is
> recommended thats basically the same !!
>
> Any offers?
"The Oracle" <kojaknospam@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
news:bdnak4$u01ie$1@ID-179018.news.dfncis.de...
> What type of oil to usew for the chain and gears on a bike? Do you just
use
> any Castrol Grease or some WD40? Sure, I bet there is some dead expensive stuff that is
> recommended thats basically the same !!
>
> Any offers?
>
>
Please dont use WD40, its not a lubricant its a penatrative spray it does exactly the opposite of
what you want.
Cheers Michael
Michael Kent wrote:
> "The Oracle" <kojaknospam@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
> news:bdnak4$u01ie$1@ID-179018.news.dfncis.de...
>
>>What type of oil to usew for the chain and gears on a bike? Do you just
>
> use
>
>>any Castrol Grease or some WD40? Sure, I bet there is some dead expensive stuff that is
>>recommended thats basically the same !!
>>
Tri-Flow rocks! oringinaly oil for sewing machines. Some how it has found its way onto bike chains
and gears. Hard to get in the U.K., but Cycle Surgery in London should be able to help. Teflon
based, smells like pear drops and lasts for an age.
>>Any offers?
>>
>>
>
>
> Please dont use WD40, its not a lubricant its a penatrative spray it does exactly the opposite of
> what you want.
>
> Cheers Michael
The Oracle wrote:
> What type of oil to usew for the chain and gears on a bike? Do you just use any Castrol Grease
> or some WD40? Sure, I bet there is some dead expensive stuff that is recommended thats basically
> the same !!
Ask 10 cyclists, get 15 different answers. The perfect product would be inexpensive, lubricate and
last well, without attracting dirt. Unfortunatley, there's absolutely nothing like that on the
market! So find your own compromise or be prepared to sacrifice one or more of those attributes.
Good luck!
I'm currently trying Halfords* Chain Wax - which seems to be a /reasonable/ compromise so far - but
could be better in every department.
* seems exactly the same as Castrol Chain Wax
~PB
>> Please dont use WD40, its not a lubricant its a penatrative spray it does exactly the opposite of
>> what you want.
I agree in this case, but to be pedantic, WD40 does contain some light oil which is a lubricant (but
not really enough for chain, and the solvent will disolve any existing thicker lube). GT85 seems to
be similar just with added PTFE/Teflon.
~PB
"The Oracle" <kojaknospam@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
news:bdnak4$u01ie$1@ID-179018.news.dfncis.de...
> What type of oil to usew for the chain and gears on a bike?
What kind of bike? What kind of riding?
For a mud-plugging offroader chainsaw oil is reckoned to be the lube par excellence. If you like
your chain clean then wax is Very Good Indeed. Some old roadies swear by boiling their chains in
Castrol GTX and cleaning them in paraffin occasionally. Some people like teflon spray lubes,
others find that they attract dirt and turn it into grinding paste. I have tried a lot of
different lubes and settled on White Lightning Raceday wax for my bikes, which are used almost
exclusively on paved roads.
With wax lubes you buy some advantages:
- crud drops off
- the chain is less mucky
- you need to clean the chain less frequently
For this you get some disadvantages:
- needs frequent re-application
- usually needs time to settle before use
- more expensive
For me, topping up the lube of an evening a couple of times a week is no problem.
The one thing I wouldn't touch for chains is Shimano Slippery Spit. Works fine for parallelogram
pivots and freehubs, but is fantastically messy on chains.
--
Guy
===
WARNING: may contain traces of irony. Contents may settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.com (http://www.chapmancentral.com/)
"Just zis Guy, you know?" <spamdump@chapmancentral.com> wrote in message
news:bdp14i$cln$1$830fa79d@news.demon.co.uk...
>
> For me, topping up the lube of an evening a couple of times a week is no problem.
>
I have recently starting using wax but a thought occured.
Wax is relatively expensive, say £2.50 a bottle which wouldn't last long topping up 2 times a week.
New chains come with a good lube on that lasts a couple of months. a PC48 chain only cost £5.99.
So why bother cleaning and lubing chains why not just put a brand new chain on every two or
three months.
"Frank X" <sep1752@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message news:bdp1mj$ugnc9$1@ID-103389.news.dfncis.de...
> Wax is relatively expensive, say £2.50 a bottle which wouldn't last long topping up 2 times a
> week. New chains come with a good lube on that lasts a couple of months. a PC48 chain only cost
> £5.99. So why bother cleaning and lubing chains why not just put a brand new
chain
> on every two or three months.
First, the chains on my bike cost £60 per set ;-)
Second, the lube on new chains doesn't actually last that long IME, and if you let the chain start
to wear you'll get through cassettes at a rate of knots.
--
Guy
===
WARNING: may contain traces of irony. Contents may settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.com (http://www.chapmancentral.com/)
"Just zis Guy, you know?" <spamdump@chapmancentral.com> wrote in message
news:bdp3st$cu8$1$8302bc10@news.demon.co.uk...
> "Frank X" <sep1752@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message news:bdp1mj$ugnc9$1@ID-103389.news.dfncis.de...
>
>
> > Wax is relatively expensive, say £2.50 a bottle which wouldn't last long topping up 2 times a
> > week. New chains come with a good lube on that lasts a couple of months. a
PC48
> > chain only cost £5.99. So why bother cleaning and lubing chains why not just put a brand new
> chain
> > on every two or three months.
>
> First, the chains on my bike cost £60 per set ;-)
>
I knew you'd say that, but for us on the light side, with cheap 8 speeds.
> Second, the lube on new chains doesn't actually last that long IME, and if you let the chain start
> to wear you'll get through cassettes at a rate of knots.
>
Well its not going to wear in 3 months is it, and if we are going to replace it we don't have to
worry about dirt so the cheapest oil is ok if the initial oil doesn't last.
I do like a clean chain, but is it really important if it will be swapped before it wears.
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