Best winter lube?

[SnoTurtle]

Hey, its getting to that time of year, i have been a white lightning fan for well over two years. Is there a better lube to use in the winter? or should i keep on using the white lightning? What do you use, and why?

[regulard]

I have a road bike (my baby) and 2 mountain bikes. One for off road winter and summer, the other is used for strickly on road in winter only.

The white lightning is by far the best for my road bike and off road MTB.

But for on-road in winter....weeelllll that's a differant story. I use car motor oil, and apply it to a clean chain using a syringe.

all the salt and crap on the road in winter does baaad things to a bike, and you need a lube that sticks, and I find motor oil the best. keep your chain clean as you can, I clean mine once a month, and I ride on road to work every day (about 10km round trip) to apply to a dirty chain drop it on the inside of the chain, or on the top of the chain nearest the ground while back pedaling your chain. that way you flush out the crud from the chain.

[punkrock]

for all my bikes i use Pedro's Syn road lube.its an oil based lube so it won't ice up.also if you put one of the White Lighting neddle applicator on the bottle and you can use it to lube just about anything.

i must commend you for cleaning your chain as much as you do. i do this stuff for a living and don't clean my chain every week. speaking from experience motor oil is not the best thing to use. the viscosity and temp range of motor oil is wrong for bike chains. the build up that is left behind by motor oil will gunk up your chain (even if you clean it every week). if you use bike oil you wont have to clean and lube your chain as much. there are tons of oil based lubes out there, pick up a bottle of anything at your shop and try it out(it cant hurt any thing). you are on the right track oil is the best thing to use.

[mike]

Most of us agree that winter conditions require special lubrications which are different from most the bicycle specific lubes. The salt, moisture, and gunk that winter bikes are subjected to is so much more damaging than during mild weather conditions.

I live in Wisconsin where the winter road conditions are slushy, salty, and gritty at the best of times.

For winter lube, I abandon normal bike lubricants all-together and switch to automotive grades. Automotive grades are designed for heavy demands and seem more suitable for winter conditions.

For grease, I use Slick 50 One Grease. Try this stuff if you have not. It gives superior moisture protection. After repacking your bearings, you will have a tough time washing this grease off of your hands with soap and water.

For chain oil, I use Solder Seal Gunk brand "Cycle and Farm Equipment Chain Lube". It is properly viscous in winter and clings well to the chain.

A better protectant is the same brand of chain lube, but with Moly. It is much more water repellant. However, it was dark and tended to rub off on my clothes, so I gave it up. Curiously, I did not notice that it's thicker properties had any more tendancy to collect dirt than any other lube.

Ride on,

Mike

[Snowplug]

Over the years I have tried just about everything. The key is to never lubricate a dirty chain and use a lubricant which penetrates, without leaving a residue which attracts dirt. Oil, combined with even a small amount of dirt, immediately turns into a grinding compound, which drastically reduces chain and cassette life.

I use an industrial grade airosol silicon lubricant, which penetrates well, has excellent water resistance and does not leave a sticky residue on the chain. After lubrication, I normally get around 600 miles, before the chain again needs attention.

Snowplug
http://www.exclusive-cycling.com

[Jean Beetham Smith]

My experience with silicon lubricants includes the discovery that they melt nylon. (Ruined the zipper on my husbands down coat) I would worry about getting it on some of the plastics used in the deraillers. Am I just very sloppy or do you have some way of keeping the spray where you want it?

[Dobsonfly]

Regarding the silicone lube that melted the nylon zipper: what melted the nylon was probably not the lube, but the solvent. Many spray lubes contain solvents and/or propellants that will melt some types of plastic.

[roadbuzz]

Finish Line Cross Country
"For extreme weather and long distance riding"
costs about $7.00 for 4 oz. Supposedly it was developed in response to the growing cyclocross crowd. It's a "synthetic lubricant" they rate to -20 farenheit, and rated for "wet" use. I've been using it on my commuter this year, and I have no complaints, although my usage wouldn't qualify as extreme.

[Monkey Spud]

I know winter is pretty much passed, but i work in the auto parts business, there is this spray called LPS 2 or 3 (forget which one), its a dry lube that is water resistant and just might do the trick. Its a bit pricey, ive seen it all the way up to 9 bucks a can.