Jed19

About time again for the regular chain lube thread

I have always used either Prolink or Boeshield T9 on my chains. The lube that works best, and last longer for me though, is three parts Odorless Mineral Spirits and one part Mobil 1 Synthetic 5W-20 oil. I drop exactly one drop on each roller using a really fine lube dropper I have. The problem is the dirt it attracts and having to constantly wipe the chain down after each ride. No comparison though, in terms of lubing interval,quietness of drivetrain and cost. I have the oil and mineral spirits on hand at all times, as I use the oil on my truck.

I just applied the home-brewed mixture again about a month ago, rode yesterday, and the drivetrain is still as quiet as can be. Prolink and Boeshield don't last that long. And finally, with all the wipe downs I've done over the month, my cassette is shiny again.

Anybody else with similar experience?

Flyingblind9

If the riding conditions are wet I need to wipe my chain down regularly. I once created a concoction of transmission fluid, 3 in 1 oil and a small amount of bar and chain lubricant for viscosity and it was wonderful for being quiet, however the tacifier in the bar lube not only kept the lubricant on the chain, but also every last particle of dust too. My chain would be black after 20 miles. I will sometimes use Finish Line Teflon dry lubricant and it kept my chain cleaner over time but i need to lubricate the chain more frequently because it's not as good as many motor oil mixtures in terms of lubrication.

Jamminatrix

That's pretty much chain lube in a nutshell. Anything that is viscous enough to keep the chain quiet, and tacky enough to stay on the chain, will also attract dirt and grime the easiest. There's no way around it, it's just the reality.

There are some okay in between solutions, like T-9 that leaves a dry film coating...just enough to keep chain quiet(ish) and lubed, yet not collect so much dirt. It's what I use on my MTB, though I find using it on my road bike requires relubing frequently.

Right now I pretty much use either Finish Line Wet (drip bottle) or Morgan Blue Syn for our road bikes, regardless of weather elements (mostly ride in dry). I get about 200 miles/five rides/week before I wipe the chain clean with a towel and relube. And I do complete drivetrain washes at around 500-750 miles. It works for me, but I'm sure it won't work for everyone.

Ultimately I think just finding a system that works for you, and sticking with it, is the best solution.

rydabent

Actually it remains that if you use a high quality oil, such as Mobil 1, you will minimize wear and save money. IMO all of the "wonder" lubes are extremely high priced mouse milk. A quart of Mobil 1 costs $6 and will last for years. OTOH some wonder oil can cost $10 or more for 3 or 4 ounces. A fool and his money are soon parted.

loimpact

I used to use bar & chain oil and it worked well, but a bit messy. I could thin it with mineral spirits, but I figured why bother. Only issue is it definitely attracted dirt like nobody's business. I wouldn't hesitate to go back to it though, it's a great cheap solution made specifically for......well......chains!

My current trend is TriFlow. It's a bit cleaner, smells wonderful and quiets my drivetrain nicely, if not for a shorter period of time. That's fine to me cuz it forces me to lube more often.

And I typically wipe the chain down with half of a blue paper towel folded over several times til it's filthy and the chain looks silver again. This method keeps my drivetrain clean & lubed.

Of course, other options are as endless as shampoos for your hair.....a million ways.

(shrug)

cyccommute 

Minimize wear based on what measure? People flood their chains with oil because that's what their Daddies did or because they are under the mistaken impression that if the chain isn't dripping oil, it's not lubricated. All that having oil dripping off your chain accomplishes is to make you clean your chain, bike and self much more often which takes away from actually riding a bike. It doesn't make the chain last longer than other chain lubes.

I get just as much wear out of my chains that aren't an oily mess as any of you using messy oil does. And I don't apply them any more often than many of you do. After reading dozens of these interminable "chain lube threads" on the Bike Forums, I probably apply my dry lube less often than oil people do. I certainly spend a lot less time and effort on keeping my bike clean.

jyl

My main goal is to lube as seldom as possible. I can't be bothered to wipe down my chain after every ride, or even every week - sometimes not every month.

ThermionicScott 

I wipe my chain down about three times per lubrication: once right after reinstalling on the bike, once after the first ride, and then again after a couple rides. That's about all it takes to be all it takes to keep it reasonably clean until it needs cleaning/relubing 500-1000 miles later.

cyccommute 

I share the same goal. I don't wipe my chain down after every ride nor ever. I have no need. I also don't have chain tattoos from dirty chains nor dirty rings. Nor do I have to clean my bike every week. I can put my bike in a car without getting black oil all over everything. Basically, I like to smart up front so that I can be lazy down the road.

This is typical of a winter bike in the depths of winter




I assure you that the chain has been cleaned once and hasn't been cleaned since it was installed. The chain there has about 4000 miles on it.

I realize that the Northwest makes different demands on chain lube but I have ridden all over the nation in all kinds of weather with wax based lubricants...including Portland to Astoria...and never had to apply lube much more often than I do here in Colorado. My daughter used White Lightning in Seattle during two years of grad school as well. She never had a problem with it not working there nor did she use anything else. "Daddy" didn't tell her to use it but it was the only thing she had ever used and it did just fine.


Right there is what I'm talking about. I never wipe my chain. Not even after application of the lubricant. And I don't need to clean after 500 miles. I never clean the chain at all. During dry weather, I go a whole lot longer than 500 to 1000 miles between application as well. Even in winter, I don't think I apply every 500 miles

Phloom

My first response to any chain lube thread. I was a wet lube use, 1 part 30W motor oil with no detergent and 2 parts orderless mineral spirits. I work in a hospital and I park my bike in my office. The wet lube looked bad. As long as nobody complains, I can continue parking my bike in my office. I saw on one lube thread, someone recommended Dupont Chain Saver. I cleaned up my chain by using the ultra-sonic cleaner. The Chain Saver went on rather thick because of the spray can but when it dried, the chain looked like it did not have any oil. Just the look I was trying to achieve. Now, I give it a spray about once a month. Chain is really clean and very quiet with virtually no effort.

ThermionicScott 

I tried to show how little work I do compared to some, but I knew you'd be able to top it.

Grand Bois

I just paid $10 for a quart of 0W 40 Mobil 1. I'd like to know where I can get it for $6!

Wanderer

Mobil 1 Fully Synthetic Motor Oil (Grade: 5W30) at Blain's Farm & Fleet

10 Wheels

Try bamboo oil.

PatrickGSR94

lawds I pay $26 for 5 quarts of Mobil1 0w-30 at Walmart. I think the individual quart bottles are around $6 or so.

seeker333

Yep. Not so long ago you could get a 5 qt bottle for ~15 bux at W. And you could get SRAM PC-59 chains from Nashbar for 5 bux (long sigh).

I've used M1 synthetic motor oil for 26 years exclusively now with favorable results. I've always practiced 5,000 mile oil/filter change intervals to a. reduce cost of M1/filter and b. reduce labor/save time. I changed to 10,000 mile intervals a couple years ago (after M1 debuted their 10K product), so far so good. I do nearly all my own auto repairs, and I'm no longer as enthusiastic about this work as I used to be.

Re. bike cleaner/lube, I make/use DIY lube consisting of 1 part M1 to 3-4 parts mineral spirits aka paint thinner. I apply it about once every 50 miles, and at times more often. It takes <2 minutes and a couple paper towels but worth it IMO, just like airing tires to proper pressure, fresh charge on lights, etc.

I began using DIY lube over a decade ago ago after trying several bike lubes, including White Lightning and ProGold. Since I always have the components for DIY cleaner/lube on hand (motor oil, paint thinner, paper towels), this was an easy as well as economical decision. I believe DIY lube is superior to wax lubes in that it does not hold dirt as well and convert itself into a drivetrain grinding paste. ProGold was better than waxes in this regard, but incredibly expensive (they're all expensive compared to DIY). DIY lube does not hold up well to a strong rain, but then hardly any commercial lube does, and the drivetrain is generally filthy afterwards and in need of a good clean anyway.

DIY lube is very good for cleaning the chain, which is critical to drivetrain performance/longevity. I used to remove chain (SRAM link), place chain in puddle of paint thinner or gasoline, brush and air dry, then lube (this was after giving-up on fancy chain-cleaning gizmos). Since proper chain cleaning is a PITA I didn't do it often. Now, with DIY, I'm cleaning and lubing in a single step at much greater frequency. My bicycling is 95% pavement nowadays, and my bikes have full fenders. I measure chain stretch regularly and replace them between 0.50-0.75% stretch. I get 12-15,000 miles out of chains, and comparable long life from rings (or cranksets) and cassettes. I'm not sure the savings in bike components justifies the time I put into maintaining them, but I keep my drivetrain clean more because the bikes pedal and shift with less effort, have hardly any problems, and they're quieter. I rarely am sidelined by a mech failure - just flats, and those are .....whoops nearly jinxed myself.

Earl Grey

Let's have no more of that sort of talk!

cyccommute 

Say what!? Oil based chain lubricants are perfect vehicles for holding dirt. Look at my pictures again. Chains that have been lubricated with oil wouldn't be as shiny without a whole lot of cleaning. That chain, cogs and chain wheel haven't been cleaned at all. Wax doesn't hold dirt because there's nothing for the dirt to stick to. I don't have black oil covered components on my chain because the chain isn't being ground into dust by gravel trapped in the lubricant.

DIY...and any other kind of oil based lubricant...has to be good at cleaning the chain because you need to clean the chain. The White Lightning I use cleans the chain but that's only a byproduct of the carrier in for the lubrication. It doesn't need cleaning like oil based lubricant does. There's nothing to remove because the metal doesn't get ground into dust by trapped particulate.

I also do not replace my components any more frequently than you do. And I would bet that my drivetrain is cleaner than yours is. I can touch mine, can you?

The difference is that I don't futz over my drivetrain all the time. Those pictures are of my off-road bike that saw (it's semi-retired now in Arizona) lots and lots of off-road as well as winter use.

davidad

and to be sure

SquidPuppet

This is not an attack, just an observation. In the pics above, the drivetrain may not be "wet", but it appears to my eyes to be utterly filthy. It looks like a dry tacky sludge has replaced a wet sludge. The chain plates and cogs are covered with buildup. It may not be "slippery", but it's still there. At least that's what I see. Maybe my eyes are failing.

cyccommute 

Yes, there is some build up but it pales in comparison to what I see on a regular basis from people using oil based lubricant...especially DIY oil lubricants. I can run my hand across the chain and come away with my hands mostly clean with but a smudge of wax on them. I usually can't do the same with an oil lubed chain.

Wanderer

I use "oil", and my drivetrain is never that dirty. Just sayin!

BikingGrad80

Any reason why people use Mobil one or more generally synthetic motor oil over regular for the homebrew?

DrIsotope

Wax lube is simply not an option for me. I've never managed to get an application of it to last even 30 miles before the chain starts getting all clickety. A single application of ProGold Extreme (that's one drop per chain link end) lasts 200+ miles and builds up minimal deposits. Jockey wheels stay remarkably clean. Wax/dry lubes... not so much. And I was a devout White Lightning user for many years. After the first use of ProGold, never going back. A true living example of "YMMV."

loimpact

I can't speak to ProGold Extreme (I use TriFlow lately) but while I believe cyccommute to have a smart head on his shoulders, I thought it was well understood that despite wax's cleanliness, it is simply too short-term for most folks unless there are high-maintenance interval cleanings and recoatings happening. Or unless cyccommute, you've found a recipe that can stay with the chain a longer than average?

(shrug)

Regardless of what I've ever used, I always tend to wipe the chain down with a little WD-40 on a rag whenever it gets a little dirty. A few flips of the rag or blue paper towel with some WD-40 on it and the chain is looking pretty clean. (Just cuz it's kinda hard to not have it get a little messy after doing a single-drop per link of any oil)