Originally Posted by elcruxio

Using a method you assume a lot of other people use doesn't mean it's an efficient method.



Riding in the rain is an acquired taste for sure, but in Europe we have this saying: There's no bad weather, just bad gear. Personally I quite like riding in the rain.



Cost isn't really the issue, though I do hate spending money I shouldn't have to spend. Time spent sourcing and replacing stuff is the actual issue since my time is valuable. The only replacements I've had to do in the last three years have been jockey wheels.



I guess it depends on how long your rides are. A 200 kilometer ride in the rain? Sure you might have to swap a waxed chain for a fresh one depending on how dirty the ride was overall. But I usually get a solid two weeks of wet commuting from a waxed chain. Wet going in, wet coming out with salt in the mix and just leave the bike in the cold garage to "dry", only to ride it again the next day. After two wet weeks the chain might get squeaky and at that point I'll swap a fresh one in.



If that had worked, I'd probably still be doing it. But it just didn't. Wiping took ages with wet lubes and with dry lubes I'd be lubing daily and the chain still got this rusty oily sludge on it that I would have had to wash off.



A few minutes every two weeks or so isn't bad IMO.



I and my wife ride in the rain frequently and for some reason I don't spend a lot of time in the garage. But then again I'm really not that OCD about our bikes. I do what needs to be done when it needs to be done and with wax it's pretty infrequently.



Could be. But your claim of never having seen a rusted chain tells my your conditions may not have been as adverse as you seem to think they are. I frequently see bikes that have bright orange drivetrains and the lower portion of the frame has been stained orange. I've seen frames that have rusted through because of winter commuting and road salt. Our bikes had brown chains because the oil couldn't keep the rust out.

If it was colder OR warmer here, there would be far less issues because with constant below freezing there's no slush that clings on the bike. If it was warmer there'd be no need for salt in the first place. But since here it's a constant cycle of below and above freezing, it gets pretty nasty when it comes to bikes.

Now I'm not sure of the chemistry of what they're using. The latest news I read indicated they'd be swapping to calcium chloride, which seems to be pretty corrosive to steel. There's been a lot of criticism from dog owners because apparently calcium chloride hurts the paws of dogs and makes walking them difficult.