Chain Lube?
- Thread starter meowcatz
- Start date
Oh god nooooooooooo!
Let the games (or is it flames?) begin....
Seriously though, any lube is better than no lube and a clean chain is better than a dirty chain.
Personally I prefer the wet style lubes becasue they actually flow into where they are needed (under the rollers) where surface tesnsion keeps them in place. Dry and wax lubes get pushed around and can't flow back into spaces they were sqeazed out of (since they are dry solids).
The key to clean and well lubed chains is to remove as much excess, post lubrication, as possible. The lube is only needed under the rollers. If it looks wet on the outside then there's too much on there.
Let the games (or is it flames?) begin....
Seriously though, any lube is better than no lube and a clean chain is better than a dirty chain.
Personally I prefer the wet style lubes becasue they actually flow into where they are needed (under the rollers) where surface tesnsion keeps them in place. Dry and wax lubes get pushed around and can't flow back into spaces they were sqeazed out of (since they are dry solids).
The key to clean and well lubed chains is to remove as much excess, post lubrication, as possible. The lube is only needed under the rollers. If it looks wet on the outside then there's too much on there.
SRAM (chain manufacturer) recommends oil.meowcatz said:
I've used Pedro's Road Rage. It's wicked messy on my V-Rex, chain, cassettes, cranks, derailleurs, frame, idlers, shorts, legs, etc.
T9 Boeshield, on the other hand, gets applied, dried for two hours, excess wiped off. It stays where I put it, doesn't attract dirt, and seems to lubricate well. It's my current favorite.
In the past, I used White Lightning. That seemed to migrate more, and drips on the rims were nearly impossible to get off (bye bye brake pads). It did protect the chain pretty well.
With any of this stuff, if you shove newspaper between your cluster and spokes before oiling, covering the rim to catch the drips, you will save your brakes.
You're welcome.
ProLink, but get a needle-point oiler to apply it where it's needed, so you use less. You can find the empty bottles online or in tool/craft stores. But clean everything off the new or old chain before you lube it. That means a degreaser bath, brushes, a couple of final solvent baths, and then drying it.
The lube is needed where you cannot see it: where the rollers do their work, inside the chain's hundreds of little moving parts. Anything on the plates or the outside of the rollers will attract and hold dirt. The funny thing about people lubing chains is that they think the lube is needed between the chain and the teeth, but that's just wrong.
The lube is needed where you cannot see it: where the rollers do their work, inside the chain's hundreds of little moving parts. Anything on the plates or the outside of the rollers will attract and hold dirt. The funny thing about people lubing chains is that they think the lube is needed between the chain and the teeth, but that's just wrong.
Prolink for me as well. I just use the bottle it comes in, one drop per bushing. Even doing that, the 2 oz bottle lasts a season for me, over 4000 miles.
I don't mess with chain cleaners very often. Had to clean the chain after a big trip out to NM/CO when it picked up a lot of sand, but around here that's normally not a problem. All I do is Prolink about every 100-200 miles, and wipe the chain with a rag if it looks oily on the outside.
Personally, I believe evidence of oil on the outside is a sign there is plenty of
lube in the chain bushings. A buddy I ride with believes a shiny chain and cassette is the sign of a well-cared for bike, but I think my drivetrain shifts better and lasts longer without all the zealous cleaning. In the end, a lot of it just comes down to personal preference.
I don't mess with chain cleaners very often. Had to clean the chain after a big trip out to NM/CO when it picked up a lot of sand, but around here that's normally not a problem. All I do is Prolink about every 100-200 miles, and wipe the chain with a rag if it looks oily on the outside.
Personally, I believe evidence of oil on the outside is a sign there is plenty of
lube in the chain bushings. A buddy I ride with believes a shiny chain and cassette is the sign of a well-cared for bike, but I think my drivetrain shifts better and lasts longer without all the zealous cleaning. In the end, a lot of it just comes down to personal preference.
From the late Sheldon Brown:
The ShelBroCo Bicycle Chain Cleaning System-April 1, 2007
But seriously, I recommend ProLink too.
The ShelBroCo Bicycle Chain Cleaning System-April 1, 2007
But seriously, I recommend ProLink too.
Decided to go with the T9 Boeshield after the mechanic at my LBS recommended it. Will put it on tomorrow after giving everything a thorough cleaning.
I should be good as long as I don't light a match next to it (the bottle says its highly flammable)
Thanks for your help!
I should be good as long as I don't light a match next to it (the bottle says its highly flammable)
Thanks for your help!
There is all sort of good lubes out there today...except for any wax lube.
A new lube I'm trying, and so far I like it, is Chain-L lube. It does take some preparation to get a chain ready for this lube. It works best on a new chain, but you can use it on an older chain if you clean it real well first. All current lubes on the market require about 4 to 8 hours for the lube to set once applied, this stuff will require about 24 hours, though the instructions say only 10 minutes but this is just to sell it to the impatient crowd. Otherwise follow the directions. This lube is claimed to last 700 miles or more between lubes and chain and gears will last way longer then with any other lube on the market currently. In fact Richard Sachs is highly endorsing this product, and Mountain Biking News Reviews writer used it and declared it the best ever made.
I just started using it when I got a new chain for the Trek, so duration testing is still not available, but it is quiet, but then again my driveline on the Trek always was quiet.
The secret to long chain life though is making sure the chain stays clean, and smooth pedaling.
Home Page Chain-L High Mileage Bicycle Chain Lubricant
A new lube I'm trying, and so far I like it, is Chain-L lube. It does take some preparation to get a chain ready for this lube. It works best on a new chain, but you can use it on an older chain if you clean it real well first. All current lubes on the market require about 4 to 8 hours for the lube to set once applied, this stuff will require about 24 hours, though the instructions say only 10 minutes but this is just to sell it to the impatient crowd. Otherwise follow the directions. This lube is claimed to last 700 miles or more between lubes and chain and gears will last way longer then with any other lube on the market currently. In fact Richard Sachs is highly endorsing this product, and Mountain Biking News Reviews writer used it and declared it the best ever made.
I just started using it when I got a new chain for the Trek, so duration testing is still not available, but it is quiet, but then again my driveline on the Trek always was quiet.
The secret to long chain life though is making sure the chain stays clean, and smooth pedaling.
Home Page Chain-L High Mileage Bicycle Chain Lubricant
Woah, bashing wax, that hurts. Sounds good though, I think I'd be too impatient to let it cure for 24 hours though. The 8 hours I sleep, I can wait, but I'm not sure if I can go a whole day without riding...The wax based seems to work well enough for me, lasts around 500 miles, even then the only reason I regrease it is because it finally got dirty enough to warrant cleaning.
serra said:
I've used every brand of wax base crud there is and NONE last anywhere near 500 miles...try 50 miles!
Froze said:
50? That would a bit sad. I clean it and re-lube it about once every month or so. It doesn't normally last quite that many miles, that's the most I've gotten out of it. I suppose the average is more around 3-400. I've only used it for 4 months, because I got sick of tri-flow conjuring black gunk from the darkness beyond, and it tends to make loads of noise on my bike. I'll probably go back to it in the winter though, apparently waxes are terrible in anything but clean dry weather.
I'd prefer to stick with things that I can buy locally, vs online. Cheaper, and it seems to work nearly as well.
Well I just did some honest googling, and perhaps I'm not cleaning my chain as often as I should. Oh the shame
I got so used to tri-flows tell-tale black gunk, I've waited for that to show up before cleaning it. Glad I checked, that would have been a fun surprise later when the teeth were ground off my gears. I feel so enlightened! Perhaps it only does last 50 miles heh, I should look a bit closer from now on, thanks for questioning me and making me think!
What I hated about the wax based crud was that I had to take a bottle in my seat bag of which ever brand I was trying at the time so I could reapply it on long rides! And how could I tell it was time to reapply you scream...chain noise. The only advantage to wax based crud is that it keeps the chain from turning black, but is that a good thing? not if the chain starts making noise it's not; and remember-where there is noise there is wear.
TriFlow is not really bad stuff, while it's not the best it's still pretty good. You have to clean your chain more often so you don't get the black crud you spoke up.
So far though I'm really impressed with the Chain-L lube, check it out on line.
TriFlow is not really bad stuff, while it's not the best it's still pretty good. You have to clean your chain more often so you don't get the black crud you spoke up.
So far though I'm really impressed with the Chain-L lube, check it out on line.
I love Dumonde BCL-Lite. (Use it on my road bike). Keeps the drive train very clean, and smells pretty good as well!
Review here
Review here
Cipher said:I love Dumonde BCL-Lite. (Use it on my road bike). Keeps the drive train very clean, and smells pretty good as well!
You know, before my last lube, I found a bottle of Dumonde chain lube--the original version--that I couldn't remember buying, so I thought I'd give it a try. I was out of Prolink anyway. Dumonde is a bit of a pain to put on, as they say you have to clean the chain before each application (With ProLink, in the desert, I can just put the ProLink on every 100-150 miles or so and wipe the chain down. I almost never need to clean the chain.). Still, I can't argue with the results: after 475 miles, the chain is still quiet across the gear range. I'll stick with it for a while to see how it does with chain wear and in the monsoon.
