Originally Posted by
Slaninar
Thanks. Great knowledge and experience shared.
For all my practical and theoretical knowledge, dry lubes should be worse at wet weather performance and are not replentished on their own when pushed away from surfaces they lubricate by chain pressure and movement. However, the commercial ones (like White Lightening) are not available where I live, so I didn't have a chance to test and compare those - in terms of chain squeaking after a rain and chain mileage comparisons.
There are a lot of fallacies when it comes to wet lubricants and wet weather performance. Yes, the lubrication can "backfill" while dry lubricants can't but I would argue that this isn't necessarily a good thing. Wet lubricants are going to form an emulsion with the water that is sprayed on the chain. The water is going to churn with the water through the action of the drivetrain. Once the system sits, the water is going to phase separate and the water is going to sink to the bottom of the system while the oil rises to the top. This puts the water in contact with the steel of the chain and, since it is highly aerated...again through the action of the drivetrain..., it is going to
increase the possibility of corrosion.
The fallacy comes in to play with people thinking that the oil somehow prevents contact of the water with the metal. It really doesn't but you think it does because the oil is sitting on top of the water and it is what you see. The lubricant should still be refreshed after a rain ride so that you flush as much water out as possible.
Compare that to the action of a dry lubricant. Yes, a dry lube can't "backfill" but the dry lube stays in place better. The water has fewer opportunities to infiltrate because the spaces are filled with something that doesn't mix at all with the water. The water sits on top of the wax. Yes, it can get in and yes, it can cause corrosion but a oil lubricant and water corrodes as well. You just don't hear it as soon.
Originally Posted by
Slaninar
There's also a price to consider. Chains I use are under 20$ and using a commercial lube, even if it gave a 50% longer chain life, would still make the total cost higher I think. Using a mix of diesel and chain saw bar oil doesn't collect too much dirt (better than motor oil for example). But I'll try to make a comparative test when I find the time (and the lube).
I've used something similar in the past and I've had to deal with people's home brew lubricants at my local co-op. I've also used Tri-flow in the past. All of them are maintenance nightmares. I swear just brushing up against the chain can spread inordinate amount of black gunk on every surface within a 3 km diameter.
Originally Posted by
Slaninar
Is your chain mileage any better (or worse) after switching to dry lubes?
It's about the same. I get what most people claim for chain mileage but without all the hassle of cleaning them. I work on bikes and am a regular volunteer at my local co-op. All of my bikes are about as maintenance free as possible so I get my jollies by helping other people fit their bicycle problems.
But I really hate to clean bikes.