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Tech The Chain Lube Thread - what's on your bike?

bawbag

Maximum Pace
Mar 20, 2013
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Seeing as I'm now Shimano'd up with the newer unidirectional version of the 6800 chain, I can no longer pop off my chain and sling it in a bowl of molten paraffin to clean/lubricate it, so I've got to to back to the joys of using a degreasing tool and then reapplying lube every few hundred kilometres.

Instead of just grabbing a bottle of Finish Line Dry Teflon Lube, I decided to see what everyone is using. I thought it'd be a good thread for us to again pool our resources and throw out recommendations of stuff that isn't necessarily on everyone's radar. A case in point is the frankly massive range of lubes from AZ, one of Japan's biggest (and cheapest) lubricant manufacturers. You can find their greases in every single home centre, but I never realised they did a load of bike-specific stuff until I came across this stuff, which is apparently on a par with Wakos' and Kure's offerings:

9004_00081371I1.jpg

This led to this handy/useless little chart of the lubes they offer, including some mental "time trial" lube called "Bank":
9004_00081371I2.jpg


Anyway, I'm going to give the stuff in the above linked image a dig and see how it goes.
 
As long as it is made of Urea I am not bothered.
 
Babies bum cream from the local super drug store!
That ceramic wax goes hard in winter and wont run unless placed in the bibs to warm up!!
 
I just use Finish Line Dry Lube (the red one) and clean my chain after every ride.
 
finish line dry is a safe bet. Morgan blue race oil is smooth but looks dirty after 5 minutes. :sick:

My current favourite is the Muc-off C3 dry lube. Doesn't attract much dirt at all (looks cleaner longer) and it smells good too. If you get stuck out in rain it washes off really easy tho.
Looking forward to the new Muc-off lube to be released soon that has been developed with team sky.
 
Boeshield T9. Lasts longer then the wax based lubes and doesn't attract too much dirt. Seems just in between a dry and wet lube.
 
That ceramic wax goes hard in winter and wont run unless placed in the bibs to warm up!!
I know! I use it as a powerful excuse with visible evidence why I need to bring the bike indoors for maintenance.
Boeshield T9. Lasts longer then the wax based lubes and doesn't attract too much dirt. Seems just in between a dry and wet lube.
Do you import that? I have not seen it here in Japan.
 
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I second (or third) the Finish Line dry lube, and nix on their ceramic lube--stopped using ceramic after I found I had to use a hair dryer to "melt" it after it had been out in the cold shed.
 
I won a bottle of that stuff at the top and have been using it recently.

It seems to be really long lasting. Which is good if you want to put it on for a long race in wet conditions. But for general training I find it makes everything really dirty as the dirt sticks to it and you can't get it off.

I find the finish line stuff to be good.

In the summer months I just use cheap oil from Musashi. Wipe the chain with a rag after every ride. Apply some oil. Let it settle in. Wipe off the excess.

Repeat after each ride.

Andy

www.jyonnobitime.com/time
 
Rock n Roll 'Gold' chain lube was my fav.

http://www.rocklube.com/
Danny, is that stuff available in Japan?

I usually use muc off c3 dry (as recommended to me by @saibot ) . Very clean and quiet, but any sign of water and it washes off very easily. I use blue Morgan race oil if I think there is any chance of rain or just even standing water but it does get really dirty, really quickly.
 
Finish Line Dry Lube. Apply every one or two rides and wipe the excess off after it released the dirt.

I've used the Boeshield T9 a couple of times. First time on a KMC chain with small weight-saving slots, but it seemed to accumulate dirt in them :merde:!! - went back to Dry lube and no issues. Second time was yesterdday night when I thoroughly cleaned up a 6mth-old SRAM Red chain (without slots) and thought I'd give the Boeshield a second chance. Changed the derailleur jockey wheels at the same time. At the moment one of them is making a lot noise....
 
CRC or WD-40, Spray on, wipe off. It's wet gooey oil that attracts dirt so you really don't need to leave much on the chain(wet conditions aside) Good cleaning of the chain with citrus cleaner every month or so.
 
CRC or WD-40, Spray on, wipe off. It's wet gooey oil that attracts dirt so you really don't need to leave much on the chain(wet conditions aside) Good cleaning of the chain with citrus cleaner every month or so.
WD-40 isn't actually a true lubricant. WD stands for "water displacing" and its main use is as a solvent or rust dissolver.

The lubricant-like properties of WD-40 come not from the substance itself, but from dissolving components. And the effect doesn't last.

WD-40 can be a good substance to start with — it can help clean up rust or other grime. But depending on what you're working with, you should probably follow up WD-40 with use of a true lubricant such as one based on silicone, grease, Teflon,
 
WD-40 isn't actually a true lubricant. WD stands for "water displacing" and its main use is as a solvent or rust dissolver.
I've heard this claim before. WD-40 is obviously* a lubricant that lubricates. So I checked with the manufacturer. Sure enough, they say...

http://wd40.com/cool-stuff/myths-legends-fun-facts

A QUESTION OF LUBRICATION
Myth: WD-40® Multi-Use Product is not really a lubricant.

Fact: While the "W-D" in WD-40® stands for Water Displacement, WD-40® Multi-Use Product is a unique, special blend of lubricants. The product's formulation also contains anti-corrosion agents and ingredients for penetration, water displacement and soil removal.

BIKE FRIENDLY
Myth: WD-40® Multi-Use Product should not be used on bike chains.

Fact: While WD-40® Multi-Use Product it is not a grease, it is formulated with strong lubricating oils and other ingredients, and is a terrific product to use for bike maintenance. It does not attract dirt or moisture to metal surfaces – just be sure to wipe off any excess WD-40® Multi-Use Product before riding.

For long-term lubrication and other specialized bicycle maintenance needs, check out WD-40® BIKE. Developed specifically for cyclists and mechanics, this high-performance line of bicycle care products is sure to become a mainstay in the toolboxes of bike mechanics for decades.​

I wonder where the myth started. Maybe a competitor such as the folk who make Astroglide**.

As CRC 5-56 is the same stuff in a different can, I would say that's a lubricant, too.

* To me.
** Do not lubricate your bike chain with Astroglide.
 
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an annoying old friend of your Dad said:
. . . The only advice about chains is to keep them oiled. Modern lubricants work fine but there is still merit in old-fashioned oils.

I wonder again at the cost of spray chain lubs, two cans and you could have bought a new chain. That is amazing economics, although I understand some cyclists buy expensive, hi-tech chains. I am one of those heathens that uses standard Sedisport chains with engine oil. Ugh, I hear some of you say, oils attract dirt and the bike looks a mess covered in black gunge. Well perhaps this is true but my chain's demise is usually dictated by side plate stretch not roller wear. I clean the gunge off the stays once or twice a year, but with vertical drop-outs and an accurately made frame, wheel removal for punctures is a clean process. On long tours, particularly in mid-Wales, the Lake District or Scotland, where perpetual rain washes any lubrication away, I seek fresh oil from the discards of motorists. I go along to the nearest garage and politely ask if I can ferret through the waste bins and use the remains of oil cans. You must think me mean by now; perhaps so, but I cannot see the point of carrying yet another unnecessary item around with me on tour.

Tony Oliver, Touring Bikes: A Practical Guide (Marlborough, Wiltshire: The Crowood Press, 1990), pp. 125-126
 
I've heard this claim before. WD-40 is obviously* a lubricant that lubricates. So I checked with the manufacturer. Sure enough, they say...

http://wd40.com/cool-stuff/myths-legends-fun-facts

A QUESTION OF LUBRICATION
Myth: WD-40® Multi-Use Product is not really a lubricant.

Fact: While the "W-D" in WD-40® stands for Water Displacement, WD-40® Multi-Use Product is a unique, special blend of lubricants. The product's formulation also contains anti-corrosion agents and ingredients for penetration, water displacement and soil removal.

BIKE FRIENDLY
Myth: WD-40® Multi-Use Product should not be used on bike chains.

Fact: While WD-40® Multi-Use Product it is not a grease, it is formulated with strong lubricating oils and other ingredients, and is a terrific product to use for bike maintenance. It does not attract dirt or moisture to metal surfaces – just be sure to wipe off any excess WD-40® Multi-Use Product before riding.

For long-term lubrication and other specialized bicycle maintenance needs, check out WD-40® BIKE. Developed specifically for cyclists and mechanics, this high-performance line of bicycle care products is sure to become a mainstay in the toolboxes of bike mechanics for decades.​

I wonder where the myth started. Maybe a competitor such as the folk who make Astroglide**.

As CRC 5-56 is the same stuff in a different can, I would say that's a lubricant, too.

* To me.
** Do not lubricate your bike chain with Astroglide.
Yeah, it lubricates well and like I said just wipe of the excess.
 
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