Gege-Bubu

I have a small bottle (black) of the chain lube (Finish Line 4 oz?) that I bought 3 or maybe 4 years ago. I shook it and something is still in there. I am wondering why it is last for so long. Maybe I do not lube my chain enough? But I do it at least once a week. Or maybe I do not put enough miles?
How long is your chain lube lasts?

andr0id

if you apply it sparingly to just the rollers once a week, it lasts a pretty long time.

I used ProLink in a 4oz bottle and it lasts probably a year or so for me.

SevenTwentyNine

I strip my bike down (i.e. (1) take apart cassette and clean each cog and tooth, (2) degrease, wash and re-lube chain; (3) wash and wax frame) after every 200-250 miles of riding so I have no exact idea how long the chain lube should last since I usually put a thin layer of dry lube on it anyways. Depends on what you do.

Gege-Bubu

Wow, if I would do that I will have no time to ride

so, when did you buy chain lube last time?

SevenTwentyNine

I know what you mean - when I first started doing this it was a whole afternoons work.
Now I can easily complete this entire process in 60 - 90mins depending on how motivated I am.

I bought a whole battery of FinishLine products in bulk a long time ago because it was on sale so I've got liters of bike wash soap, degreasers, lube etc so it's hard to tell as I don't really use the 4 ounce bottles anymore except to refill and I haven't kept track of that.

ILUVUK

I use White Lightning Clean Lube...wax-based. I apply it before almost every ride because it is so simple to do so. Probably overkill in dry conditions, but I don't care as it literally takes 10 seconds. On occasion, I do strip it down and clean the drivetrain, but not as much as I should.

gregf83 

Rock & Roll Gold lasts a few rides for me. I use thicker oil in the winter which lasts longer if it doesn't rain but if it rains I have to do the chain after every ride.

loimpact

I'm about ready to bite on some Rock & Roll Gold. I actually have a full bottle of White Lightning but am hearing more & more good things about the RR Gold. (last a little longer than White Lightning & lubes better?)

merlinextraligh

doing that every week would cost me 10% of my riding time. Some pro link and a rag after it rains.

Vicegrip

i like working on the bikes but I have no desire to strip the bike down every 7 to 10 days. Lube the chain after each time it gets wet or once a week. I also rag clean and lube the chain whenever I am working on the bike. A dry chain is double plus ungood.

colnago62

I use a synthetic lube from 3in1. It costs about $3.00 for a small bottle. I like it because there is zero build up. The down side is that I need to use it after every ride. It is very easy to put chain lube on a chain when the lube doesn't attract dirt or build up. I apply after every ride, takes 30 seconds.

gregf83 

Sorry no experience with White Lightning but I'm sold on R&R. Easy to apply, you dry it all off so the chain stays clean. It's very thin which is why it doesn't last long and if you really care about every last watt (I don't) it performs better than most.

halfspeed

Chain lube lasts until the drivetrain makes noise.

cthenn

Do you mean the bottle or one application? If the latter, then that's way too infrequent. I use Prolink and I reapply probably every 3-4 weeks.

Campag4life

A tip. Go see a doctor about your OCD and take all that wasted time and invest in riding if you want to improve.

SevenTwentyNine

About 10mins - Set up i.e. bringing out the tools, setting frame on the work stand, taking apart the cassette, installing dummy hub etc.
About 15mins - Degreasing then cleaning the cassette @ 11 cogs (11-25).
About 10mins - Installing chain scrubber then degreasing and washing chain.
About 10mins - Washing frame (including crank) and drying the frame.
About 15mins - Applying frame protectant and buffing frame.
About 15mins - Re-installing everything, reapplying lube and putting away tools etc.
Total about 75mins - And I was being generous with the time by rounding up to whole numbers/blocks to make for easier addition.

Of course there are additional things that could easily add some time too like brake adjustment with alignment and tensioning etc.

But generally it doesn't take more than just a bit over an hour to do this for about a week to a week and a half or even two weeks worth of riding - basically roughly 1 hour a week or two caring for the bike.
Granted when I first started this whole process due to inexperience it meant I had to write off my afternoon to do it but with purchasing the right tools and repetition time is really not an issue anymore.... and to me nothing beats the sound of dead silence from your drivetrain as you pedal.
Freewheeling noise when coasting is cool but dead silence or that gentle hum from the drivetrain when pedaling is something I love.

I love my OCD's.... quite a lot. Like never riding unless I got on my bike from the left side and if I mysteriously/miraculously get on the bike from the right side I dismount and remount from the left. That's just one a many OCD's I love and adore having ... it's not about "improving" it's about keeping something in pristine working order.

RR3

I go thru two 20 oz bottles of Rock N Roll Gold every year.

The chain gets lubed every 200-500 miles depending upon road conditions and my degree of laziness. It needs take off and put into solvent right now but I gave it a lick and a promise cleaning last night.

Time for the long ride.

Willbird

I'm feeling it it. And this is something that can be done during a time when we would not be riding anyway, in the evening after the riding is done, or when it is so purely nasty outside that only the truly insane would ride out into it.

I do not tear the cassette apart....I use windex on the bike...and floss in between the cogs, really just wiping the chain with Chlorox wipes (no bleach in them) and reapplying lube, then wiping the chain again. But it is not taking any "riding time" away for me.

Bill

TheManShow

I have been using White Lightning for over 15 years. I reapply it at end of each ride. BTW Wal-Mart now sell it.

loimpact

Since I have it already, I might try WL for a few months, then try RR Gold for a few months and see which lasts longer/works better/keeps drivetrain cleaner for an end-all comparison.

woodcraft

So if you rode 5k miles, that would be ten lubes at 2 oz. each. At 10k miles, still 1 oz. per application. Wow!

Maybe they were 2 oz. bottles?

Clipped_in

Rock-n-Roll Gold. I re-apply about every 100 miles. That's about twice per week in season. I apply it liberally (as per mfrs. instructions) because it cleans as well as lubricates. Apply the night before riding for best results. I go through one 16 oz. bottle per year.

I've tried most of the popular lubes and this is by far my favorite.

koconcept

Is the white lightning thicker then the wd-40 dry lube. By that I mean does it stick to the chain better. I started using some the WD-40 bike chain lube cause they sell it at sun and ski but its very thin. It doesnt inspire confidence that its staying in the rollers when the chain gets moving because its watery thin.

Willbird

I was using the WL epic ride from Mao mart and re applying every ride, would wipe chain with moist wipe (chlorox) after every ride then re apply epic ride. Worked fine but switched to pro link applied once a week, not much to wipe off 2 rides after application. The epic ride was picking up all kinds of black crap every ride.

Bike Gremlin

I use motor oil. 20w60 (or gear oil SAE 90) in the summer, in the winter fully synthetic 5w40, or 0w30 motor oil. Wipe chain with a rag, re apply the lube, wipe excess off. No noise, no much gunk on the drivetrain, no problems. Cheap. One liter bottle lasts ages.