Lube

[Mart]

Hi everyone
Given my recent disappointment with Finish line wet lubes over the winter with both the green stuff and the ceramic versions picking up loads of grit and crap. Never have i had a drivetrain so messy

I’ve now giving Purple extreme a try in the hope that i can keep it cleaner for longer

Have tried Squirt in the past and wax lubes like white lightning before and whilst they kept it cleaner overall, i found they tended to run out quickly

What’s your experiences - what do you use and why? any recommendations??

[Pirahna]

Winter, Weldtite TF2.

Summer, off road Smoove, it's like Squirt but stays on a lot longer. On the road bikes it's either Squirt or Prolink Gold.

[Mart]

have tried smoove - was ok but still found it wore off quickly. will need to check out the tf2

[AlexGold]

I mainly ride road, but want long lasting and clean-ish, with good performance - there's only one clear winner for me which is actual wax, melted in a slow cooker and the chain taken out when it's cooled quite a bit (if you take it out at operating temp all the wax just drips off before it's set. See this bit of video for example: https://youtu.be/UXuWxehSl-s?t=1016)

This setup normally gets me 600-1000k depending on conditions, I do 3 chains at once so need to repeat every 2-3 months - less if I top up with Squirt in between dunks.

It's not a setup for everyone but if you have space/time/etc I'd recommend it.

EDIT: Forgot to mention, I use the frictionfacts recipe which has some PTFE powder and a bit of MoS2 (https://tailwind-coaching.com/2016/08/0 ... e-process/)

[Bearbonesnorm]

I like Smoove generally but in proper winter conditions, the only thing I've found which doesn't wash off at the first sign of a river or wet knee high tussocks is motorcycle chain lube. 'Tis very sticky and doesn't 'fling' at bicycle speeds but does make a bit of a mess.

[whitestone]

There's a balance between the lube staying on and gunk building up. In summer I prefer using dry lubes wherever possible but a muddy pool or two soon strips it. In winter I just go with Finish Line wet lube and accept that chain and cassette will get filthy and will need cleaning at regular intervals.

[lune ranger]

Off road it's always Finishline Wet. Where I ride it's always muddy somewhere, always puddles to splash and rivers to ford. The chain getting dirty from the lube is low on my list of wirries. Besides, I'm a Rohloff user so the drivetrain cleans up in a few minutes with a rag and a run through a chain bath.

[redefined_cycles]

I like Smoove generally but in proper winter conditions, the only thing I've found which doesn't wash off at the first sign of a river or wet knee high tussocks is motorcycle chain lube. 'Tis very sticky and doesn't 'fling' at bicycle speeds but does make a bit of a mess.

That sounds just like the ChainL I once tried. Such a sticky thing was that - like applying very hot chewing gum when you step on it with the foot and goes everywhere - but lasted well. That MTB lube that has the blurb 'by mtber for mtbers'is similar and its just sat in shed waiting a day to be used (been there over 5 years now!...

I've just ordered some baming on wax stuff (Molten Chain Wax) buy need to figure out how to bake it on as the missus has just categorically said that I'm not using her slow cooker (9r so she thinks)...

MCW... Meant to be the holy grail!!

[Lazarus]

also use a wax based chain lube for longevity

IME whatever you use it will get worn off and the chain is going to get covered in crap [ even if unlubed ] as mud is sticky. wax seems to work the best though its a faff to apply.
Commuter chain just gets some aldi special lube and its noticeably more "wet and sticky" than the waxed chains.

[TheBrownDog]

Ive settled on Muc-Off Wet Lube for year round duties. It's cheap (ish) lasts pretty well and comes in some very, very small bottles that stash nicely in your tool kit if you need to reapply it.

[ScotRoutes]

Muc Off Wet is what I've also been using. Lasts well (VERY well) but does lead to a bit of a claggy buildup on the outers. Still, rather that than stuff like Squirt that needs to be applied every few miles.

[redefined_cycles]

For me, to ensure long intervals between app, its been (in order of preferance)

Cyclestar Nano.

Apparently has nano balls in it that sit between the chain outer/inner interfaces (you know, the bits that move ). Worked well for me byt bit expensive. Managed to get 700 miles (no really) of winter riding between applications. Didnt try as much off road but I seem to remember it would last at least 300 miles (cant remember if that opinion or actual checking and running). Nice and silent running between those long intervals. Come rain or shine and was (AFAIR) used with similar exp by Ian Fitz.

Bit expensive and tiny bottles. Also, not being oil based and the long intervals between applications, when I left bike in shed for a week after the Festive500, came back to a totally rusted up chain but it was time to swap the whole drivetrain anyways as everything had taken a couple of winters beatings
_______
ChainL

Applied from a friend on both the mtb and roadie and seemed to give over 200 and 400 miles respectively. A pain getting it on as it seemed to get everywhere (think stepping on chewing gum on a hot summers day). Felt similar consistency as the MTB lube of old (with that blurb and in a simple large bottle: "by mtbers for mtbers")
_______________
Smoove Lube

Soon as I had managed to get almost a year of the above. Smoove had been released so I bought as the next best thing. Especially since it was highly rated by one of Stu' reviews. Probably because I was running it on the road bike.

Worked well and silent on the mtb for countless miles (I'd pribably guesstimate that I could get over 200 nasfy mtb miles between applications), but on the road bike the chain mice would attack after only 10 or 20 (maybe 40) miles for some reason. Spoke with Thomas at CycloRise about my prob and he said he had a few issues like this but only with the mechanically minded lot (I took that to mean the OCD riders) as they seemed to be overthinking the application. Maybe I had a bad batch and from all the reviews I have read it seems I was the only one in the world with said issue...

Kept a small amount (for experimentation purposes or when I become unOCDd) but gave the main bottle away to a friend

________
Juice Lubes all weather (blue looking liquid with yellow top)

Bought when Josh Iberhart said he'd be taking around the world as its his goTo...

In my opinion its just rubbish and a glorified White Lightning Dry version. But without the grit shedding properties. On the ride to London (approx 200 miles) the chain mice (squeak squeak) hit at around the 180 mile mark I would say. Not too loud and rectified with a few dabs of my trusty micro weldtite bottle(s).

On the mtb and the dryish Mary Townley Loop for example, the chain mice hit at 40 miles and a few squirts of the Weldtite sorted it.

Hate it (somewhat) as it seems to just create a thick dry wax coating all over the chain and jockeys and cassette. After chain bathing it I have to resort to a tooth brush to ungunk it all...

Based on all the above and was just about to invest in some more Smoove but decided (after reading here which I know isn't as real world as we want but) with this the Molten Speed Wax and picking up a slow cooker tomorrow off Sphock (missus said her cooker is off limits to my sterile chain

https://zerofrictioncycling.com.au/lubetesting/

[Wilkyboy]

Finish Line Ceramic Wet for me all year round.

Most of my miles are audax, so quite a distance in a day (I've six months' double-century days (one a month) behind me, building up to the year), all on fixed. Wet stays on for Quite A Long Way, even in wet conditions — last time I topped up was near the end of the ride on Saturday; the time before that must've been January or perhaps even December (which was about 1,000km ago).

SJS Cycles sells 18ml bottles, iddy-biddy things, and I take one with me in my [mandatory] Carradice [audax, innit]. Refillable if you're careful.

I use the same on my MTB and it works just as well. A bit scroggy after a few hundred kilometres, but nothing a spray with MucOff degreaser can't handle.

I've tried the dry-wax version and it didn't work — a bit of moisture and it was all gone, which is useless on audax when we may see four seasons in a long day, although usually just the three wet ones


ps. Anyone else notice that Finish Line lube bottles make good meths containers?

[PaulB]

Squirt and MSW here in the Peak. I do like Pro Gold but more expensive and have plenty of stock of the others, around 10 chains on the go, so a bit of a production line when re applying.