Read this article: A NEW BREED CHAIN LUBES ARE NOW AVAILABLE - Bike Test Reviews

Wait just a second - you can also read some detailed technical tests of bike lubes here.

Your question is kind of like "What is the best flavor of ice cream?" but there is some data out there.

I don't do much riding in the rain either, and was seduced by dry lube as possibly collecting less road grit. But dry never seemed to last for me and I didn't really see much difference in dirtiness of the chain. I've been using Finish Line Ceramic Wax wet lube for the past few years and have been happy and it isn't that expensive - finished slightly above average in the test data.

Before that, I'd been using the same bottle of Phil Woods Tenacious Oil for about 20 years - it seemed to be regenerating inside the little plastic squeeze bottle, but finally ran out. - and the chart shows only a fraction of a watt of difference.

I've been using Morgan Blue Syn Lube for years on my bikes. It's thick and gloopy and it turns black within a few yards but works very well, particularly in wet weather (although I rarely ride in the rain). I recently decided to try a different lube and went for Muc-Off C3 Dry Ceramic lube. I noticed the difference immediately across all of my bikes. It doesn't attract too much dirt and the drivetrain feels a little smoother during pedalling and shifting. What I find really good about the Muc-Off C3 Ceramic is that it's really easy to apply, only needs to be applied to the inside surface of the chain links, and it contains a UV marker which lights up with the supplied UV flashlight so you can see exactly where it's been applied. Downside: it's really only for riding in dry weather and it's very runny so some drops will fall onto the floor.

Of course, everyone has their own favourite chain lubes, but I'm just going by real-world 'feel' which is the most important criterion for me.

If you go online to study further, you might find that lubricants based on petroleum has in its ingredients, a detergent. That is what makes the lube to turn dark after use. So its not necessarily all from dirt.

Chain lube thread.

NFS, next question.

Never seen a modern chain last 3000 miles. Mostly see 1000-1200 miles on 10 spd chains. 8 speed chains around 1500 miles, once in a while 2000, but that is rare. I suspect it has to do with riding conditions, power output, and maintenance periods. The most I ever got out of a chain was 2000 miles, Sachs 7 speed back in my racing days. I was a maintenance nut and cleaned it weekly, even if it didn't need it!

need some summer lube. all I have at home is "wet" lube, left over from the winter. kept using it this spring & summer but it's too goopy & isn't getting washed off by any precipitation. took a rag to the chain this morning with some paint thinner to get the excess off the chain & rollers. should help reduce the ‘Fourth Cat Tattoo’ ... yuk

Yep.