Chain lube
 

I got my bike last August and did some light riding at the end of the season. I have started riding heavily this season and had my first race a few weeks ago. It was rainy and cold out and as a result my bike was caked with mud after the event. I live in an apartment so I can't really spray down my bike or get down and dirty with it unless I bring it outside (which I haven't had a chance to do with my work schedule). Most of the mud/grime has dried and I'm getting a grinding noise/sensation when I pedal. I have never washed the drive train so I think it's long overdue.

What chain lube do you guys use and trust? I'm looking for something that's reliable in nasty weather.

You haven't lubed your chain since August? How many miles are on that thing with all of its gnarliness?

I use Simple Green with warm water to clean, dry with rags, and lube with Finish Line teflon oil. If it's really dirty, clean it, dry it, lube it, and then do it all over again. You will see a lot of dirt come out of the chain when you lube it the first time, and less the second time. If you ride in the wet you are going to get a lot of grit in the drive train and you should be cleaning often if you want your chain and cassette to last a reasonably long time. After each significant rain ride I would at least rinse down the chain and gears to get most of the grit off it and relube even if you don't take the time to clean it.

Dry Teflon Lube from Performance.

There's no point trying to lube a dirty drivetrain. At the very least wipe down everything you can (chain, cassette, derailleurs, etc) with paper towels, remove as much black grime as possible. If you have time and tools, take it completely apart and soak in a plastic bucket with degreaser (simple green or krud kutter), then make sure to lube all bearings. To take off the cassette, you need a chain whip and a cassette lockring tool, there are a few different lockring tools and you need to get the one that matches your bike. To take off cranks and front rings, you'd need custom tools too, but you may be able to get away with unscrewing and taking off some of the rings without removing the crank.

If you're worried about doing this inside the apartment (and for a good reason - bike grime is very hard to get out of the carpet), Home Depot sells plastic sheeting for something like $1 per 10x10 foot sheet. Look in the paint department.

I still use Tri-Flow.

Thanks, guys. I'll pick something up today at my LBS. I plan to go on a long ride tomorrow so I'd like to get it in somewhat of a better condition.

A few hundred at this point. I only really started training seriously this March.

This subject has been covered numerous times...but why not have it again???!?!!!?!?!?!?!

I personally used to use the White Lightening Dry lube and wax lube, I think they are named Epic and Dry or something like that. They are OK I've found. I personally don't use them any longer on my chain.

I use ProLink chain lube exclusively now. I really don't clean my chain. I simply lube it, one drop per link, then wipe it off real well, spin it around awhile, wipe more. I do that about once every week/two depending on how many miles I've done.

That typically gets most of the dirt/junk out. Since I do this often, I really only truly "clean" the chain with mineral spirits maybe 2x during the life of the chain. Kind of a waste of time IMO when you ride/race and the chain wears out in a season easily to keep using mineral spirits to strip the chain of lube/dirt, and relube over and over IMO. YMMV.

The other reason I like Prolink chain lube, it keeps the drivetrain noise down lower and seems to make it run smoother compared to white lightening light/dry lubes. It is audibly quieter and just runs smoother when shifting.

Now I use the leftover White Lightening wax/dry lube to do the derailleur joints and cables sometimes just to use it and get my money out of it.

I'm thinking of trying some other lubes, some people swear by a few other brands out there. I forget a few of the names of the brands people swear by, have to search I guess!

I use whatever they're stocking at the hardware store, might even be 3-1 oil. My most recent grab was a can of spray lube for chains.

wow, just wow. :)


you can get a chain cleaner that works without removing the chain. they're decent and IMHO a minimum for a chain in the condition you describe. you will also need to use an old toothbrush and some degreaser (included in the linked cleaning kit) to clean the cassette, rear derailleur jockey wheel, and chainrings. spread out old magazines underneath the bike and you can do this even in an apartment.

there are many threads about chain lube. I hate lube that is too thin and too wet-- most of it flies off and what is left attracts a lot of gunk.

I use White Lightning Clean Ride, which is a wax-based lube and you have to apply and re-apply correctly. But when you use it properly, it stays grime free the longest and also doesn't need to be re-applied that often-- maybe once every 12-15 hours of riding.

i would never "spray" my bike down. i live in an apartment too and usually clean stuff with rags and paper towels.

any chain lube is better than none....(for the love of god, wd40 is NOT chain lube)

Is there a difference in motorcycle chain lube and bike lube?

I use Chain-L.

Viscosity and marketing/labelling.

I lube my chain with an oil product and clean it with a rag and a cleaning product.