Originally Posted by
tatfiend
Returning to the OPs original question.
Per FranK Berto in the 80s professional bike tour mechanics did not clean or lube chains. He claimed this information was from a professional team mechanic. They typically just threw on a new Sedissport chain, the cheapest narrow derailleur one that Sedis made. Teams bought them by the gross.
With most pro teams now having Shimano, SRAM or Campy as a sponsor I suspect that at the professional team level things may very well not have changed but now they use the provided sponsors chains.
Yes. but that's racing and racing has a lot of throw way items and chains are once such item their not going to keep on a bike for 8,000 miles or more. Thus with the chain only being on for the course of one or two races the factory lube was more then up to the task. So of course they bought chains in gross lots, they were replacing them far more frequently then any one on this forum would ever consider.