Originally Posted by
FlashBazbo
I believe in bike maintenance, but if I did this to my chain every 150 miles, I would be doing it once or twice a week. I would probably cause more wear and slack by installing and removing the connecting link than I was saving by the OCD maintenance routine.
I know this will shock and horrify . . . I ride over 7,500 miles per year. I ride rain or shine. I lube a chain (on the bike) about every 2,500 to 3,000 miles. Chain works great. On its birthday, I replace chain and cassette, just because. (Gives you cold chills, doesn't it?)
Roller chains are incredibly robust pieces of kit. They are used in industrial, agricultural, and automotive applications that exert vastly greater loading and speeds than a bicycle can ever conceive -- and they last for years in those applications. (In truth, I probably replace mine a lot more frequently than necessary.)
Yes, this just about describes my usual routine as well. Don't really keep track of how often I add lubricant but I think it averages more often than your 2500 miles. And at the annual chain replacement I have a cassette ready to go but only change it if the chain ends up skipping on the old one - about half the time it does.