Originally Posted by
Burton
I work on a regular basis in shops that stock whole shelves of those products you`re referring to. Some are better suited to offroad use than others. Regardless of any claims made by any manufacturer - I have yet to see any that don`t pick up dirt. And I`m basing that comment on the hundreds of mtb bikes that have gone through the shops and the competition machines I`ve seen up close and personal on site at Monte Ste Anne and Bromont. There`s no such thing as a clean chain unless you just cleaned it or don`t ride it. Otherwise the chain is black within a few kilometers - try the white glove test.
Granted the amount of dirt can be reduced by some products, but it can also be reduced by proper application and by wiping off all excess from the exterior of the chain afterwards. An ocassional wipe with a rag to remove residue is a good habit to develop - and just as effective as proper lubing to keep grit out of the innards of the chain.
The 'dirt' you get is highly dependent on the lubrication. Wax lubricants may become slightly black due to some metal wear. That's unavoidable. But oil based lubricants like motor oil are guaranteed to attract chunks of rock, sand and other stuff. Even wiping off the outside of the chain using oil for a lubricant isn't going to protect you from attracting dirt because the low viscosity oil will migrate to the lowest point upon standing. Wiping excess away doesn't keep grit from getting into the chain since you aren't really interested in the stuff you can see. It's the microscopic bits that are going to do the damage. But if you have macroscopic bits on the outside, the chances of having microscopic bits on the inside are much, much higher.
Try this test (much more illustrative then a white glove): Take a wax lubricated chain and an oil lubricated chain and lay them in sand. Pick them up. How much sand is clinging to the wax lube and how much to the oil? How easy is it to shake any clinging sand off? The oil lube will be coated with sand that won't come off without solvent. The wax lube may have a few bits of sand on it but a light shake will remove them.
Here are 3 drivetrain pictures of my bikes that have had nothing but White Lightning used on them for their entire lives. The first on is a mountain bike that has been used heavily off road and during inclimate weather for several years. The second one is a touring bike that is the original chain from 2003 and has been used for a few thousand miles of touring. The third one is my (nearly) daily commuting bike and dates to around 2006 with about 9000 miles on it.
I am not fastidious about cleaning my bikes. I don't floss cassettes. I don't wash my chains weekly in solvent. I was the chains in solvent out of the box, lube them with White Lightning and reapply WL when the chains start to squeak. They don't start to squeak after 5 miles or 100 miles or a single ride. I can go for 600 to 1000 miles without having to reapply.
When I do apply WL, I flood the chain per their instruction and I let them dry. That's all. What you see is after, literally, years of use. I can even handle my chains without worrying about my hands being black or putting the dreaded chain tattoo on my leg.
Can you say the same about oil lubed chains? I've never seen one as clean as those above without a whole lot more wiping and cleaning.