Of course. Every time I break in a waxed chain. Seems kind of obvious based on the way you framed the question. Maybe I could hire somebody to break in my chain for an exorbitant fee… to bolster my street cred by helping put someone else’s kid thru college? I see a business opportunity… have a former pro rider break in a waxed chain for people to make them think they’re faster.
I personally wax my chains for drivetrain longevity instead for speed. I don’t really worry about the break in time. I find it breaks in about 30-60 minutes, so I get an extra 30-60 minutes of riding out of my wax.👍🏻
Basically what I do (I don't race so who cares). I also immersion wax on a bike with a half open chain guard, so there the stiffness actually helps me getting the chain around the chainring, it's a little less awkward running it through the chain guard. Then a bit of smalls-smalls on the stand, ride around the block on my way to the shed, run though all the gears in a minute or so and that's it for me. Start of the next ride is a bit rougher, but hey nobody is timing me.
The best pre-race protocol I’ve found is to wax the chain two days before the race, complete an event prep ride (for me, 60-90 minutes), come home, clean the chain with a dry microfiber cloth, and top up with Super Secret Drip the night before the race. This setup feels like the fastest and quietest I’ve experienced so far.
@@christoph1ideal for freewheeling at high speeds next to busy a sidewalk and scaring the crap out of everyone (and bringing joy to any cyclist on said sidewalk)
"You're not doing it right because you're you're not paying Silca ££££ for their badge-engineered version of something you can make/source yourself for 1/5 of the price" is the sum total of most of your videos about waxing. At what point does 'journalism' turn into meretricious advertorial? GITB.
The issue I have with Silca is their instruction to put one chain into each packet of wax. That's total BS. I did three chains with one bag"s worth. could've probably done four.
If you have a bike repair stand, just hang up the bike and pedal away. I found that switching gears for some lateral movement additional helps the break in.
Also don't remove the chain from the pot before it has had a chance to heat up to the same temperature as the wax, otherwise old wax and dirt may not melt off and the layer of wax may be too thick and have adhesion issues and flake off. Give it at least 5, ideally 10 mins, as a cold chain will cool down the wax in the pot too.
I actually do a few passes with boiling water to remove the old wax followed by a wash in clean isopropyl alcohol to reduce the water prior to going into hot wax. I will agree that you should still let the chain temperature equalize with the melted wax, but it's for good penetration rather than crud removal.
@@christopheroliver148 I agree and do the same, though it's surprising how much dirt still comes out during swishing and builds up in the bottom of the wax pot over time. Also if rinsing a chain in meths / alcohol be let it dry properly before putting it in the hot wax, otherwise it will boil off and make some pretty intimidating noises... flammable gasses boiling out of hot flammable wax! I learned that the hard way... fortunately no fire involved! 😃
When it's due for a re-wax I take my chain off the bike and straightaway put it on top the cold set wax and turn the pot on, then as the wax warms up it also warms the chain up. I don't bother washing the chain with hot water first, it goes in "dirty", yes the white wax goes grey and yes the chain will require replacing sooner than if I had washed it each time but it's still lasting much much much longer than when I used to use a drip lube and I avoid the minor hassle of the hot water wash and the alcohol wash and dry and it's a trade off I'm happy with.
@@andyarchitect Agree about waiting a bit before putting the chain into the hot wax; I hang my chain for a short while after the drying bath., and isopropanol evaporates pretty quickly. I also agree that despite best hygiene, the wax still gets pretty cruddy over time. Happily, I'm not too concerned about the 0.14W savings from the WO2, and a block of Gulf canning wax is very cheap. I do want to add a grater to my tools so I can gouge off the bottom layer of settled garbage when the block has cooled.
Remove saddle. Replace the seatpost with a candle of the proper diameter, do not put back the saddle and...start pedalling. You will definitely be faster!!!
This is old tech…young man…after you wax your chain put it in the oven for a few minutes just to let the wax get into the chain not on the chain? You won’t have pieces of wax all over the place,and your chain will be ready! No slow chain or wax buildup on derailleur! We were doing this with Sidisport and Regina chains and Regina freewheels ! And it was perfect…and that was for 10 cents! Two candles! Now it’s in fancy packaging and cost a lot more than 10 cents! Put it in the oven until you don’t see any wax on the outside of the chain then remove it and let it cool….and your chain will be ready ! Clean no wax on the floor or carpet. Very good for chains with cutouts or hollow pins! All of that will melt away and only the parts that need it will have wax…this stuff was in Winning bicycle magazines? In the 80s
@@ernestporee3697 We were hot waxing in a pot on the stove in the 1970s, and waxing with paraffin had been around before that. I don’t really know how long, but I’d bet for a long, long time. Having to use a chain rivet tool was the only drawback. We also used to add some molybdenum disulfide powder. Silca is too expensive, but Molten Speed Wax is very good, pretty cheap, and a bag lasts a long time.
What a whole load of nonsense. Cyclists keep trying to find ways of over complicating very simple things. Breaking in a chain wouldn’t take more than the ride to the start line. Pls find more relevant things to say
Newer waxes are better in sand and dirt, but oil is much quieter and lasts longer on clean tarmac. If I wasn't doing a lot of beach riding I'd use heavy mineral oil.
Waxing instead of wet lubes keeps everything so much cleaner, including your own right leg. i used wax (not Silca) for a 100 km gravel race in a sleet and snow storm, on a steel bike with full fenders, and took third overall, besting many good athletes 20 to 30 years younger. Wax in wet dirt? Sure did’t hurt me. (Never been so hypothermic, though.)
@@randalbladel2817 There is no reason to give yourself a chain tattoo on the leg ever. The trick is to put your left leg down at stops instead of your right. There are some advantages to wax if you are looking for marginal gains, if you are poor, or if you are riding in sand but it's not the end all be all for every situation.
I was originally thinking that waxing idiotism is something to do with cross country skiing, but GCN brings it to new area and new level. Pure alchemy.
Hardly alchemy. Really old technique. We were doing this in the 1970s, and it certainly predates that. problem was back then is that power links for derailleur chains had not yet been invented, so you had to use use a chain rivet tool every time.
The benefits of waxing are well understood and well-quantified. It has its drawbacks, but at this point the extraordinary claim that it’s alchemy would require extraordinary evidence.
@@owensnicholas there is nothing wrong with waxing on its own. But this is a simple process, and GCN always finds the way to make things much more complex. Just to make some content.
I Use Bananawax Drag & Friction TdF Racing Chain Wax. Ive Always put my chain in the oven along with the wax for about 5mins just to pre heat the chain. When you dip the chain the wax drips off nice and easy, so you don't end up with clumps of excess wax left on the chain where it's cold, or it flaking off when set.
Also, always a good idea to clean your rear mech and wheel after waxing your chain as the wax tends to fly off the chain and stick to stuff down wind of it.
Give it a try, and you'll probably never go back to oil. I was skeptical at first as well, but wax really is amazing. Who doesn't like to save money, go faster, reduce maintenance, and keep their hands & bike clean?
There's me, putting my bike with its freshly waxed chain onto the car roof and driving off to the French Alps. Two hours of heavy rain in the North of France, at motorway speed was enough to wash ALL of it away!
It's much easier than oil. Clean the drivetrain the first time and then wipe the chain off after every ride. Every couple rides put some drip style on the chain (depending on ride maybe sooner). Every couple months do a full immersion wax which is super easy. Some will also pour boiling water over the drivetrain to clean it, maybe someday I'll do that, but I've never had it pick up much dirt. Overall it's much cleaner and easier to maintain than oil. The main downside is you can't leave your drivetrain wet or it'll rust quickly, though I suppose you shouldn't do that anyways.
@@mikemazzantini6397 meanwhile with oil, I clean my drivetrain once a month and reapply the oil. If it's looking like rain, I add a little bit of oil to the chain before heading out.
I also like to get a couple of wax cycles on a chain before a big event as I find that the wax penetrates better on a slightly worn in chain rather than a brand new one.
I tried everything to clean my chain and wax it, tried multiple different times and methods of cleaning and waxing. I’ve also used different chains(new) and the results were all the same. My chain would be quiet for 20km then back to sounding a bit noisy and eventually getting louder if I don’t add drip wax. There is so much faff involved for waxing and now you’re saying we need to break them in? I have gone back to Silca synergy lube and no more noisy drivetrain. A bit greasy but I wipe my chain after a ride so I don’t get it on my legs or socks. I have to say for now its only silca lube for me!
@@凸Bebo凸 Before I moved to wax, I was I HUGE fan of Chain-L. You're right about how quiet it is! It's messy as hell, but I mostly managed to keep things somewhat clean by frequently wiping down the drivetrain. Like other wet lubes, though, it attracts dirt like crazy. I wish that ZFC would test it, because I think it might be a great option for those who need to do multi-day ultra races in the rain, but I don't have solid data to back up that claim.
@@SnaxNoCo The bike industry just tries to pretend Chain L doesn't exist, it's too good. The only thing its bad at is mountain biking and beach biking, and I'm doing all beach biking right now so I'm on wax. Rock and Roll Holy Cow is a better option for beach riding for acoustics over wax, but I am just enjoying how clean wax is for right now.
My tip is using an old cateye computer magnetic spoke sensor attached to a piece wire that i swish about in the hot wax pre and post chain dipping process to pick up any metallic debris to lessen chain contamination as much as possible. I tend to re-use the wax and keep topping it up with new batches of wax/teflon etc. I also take out the chain reasonably slowly so any hot wax stays inside the links/rollers as much as possible until cooling solidifies it.🙂
Broke in my last waxed chain by wiggling each link with my fingers after removing it from the wire - DO NOT DO THIS: I had the biggest blisters on my fingers the day after 😬
I did this last evening and regretted it. I also picked off the big lumps (wax too cool when I withdrew) with my thumbnail. Ouch, I won't be doing that again... like splinters under the fingernail torture! (1st timer errors)
Interesting and timely as I’m swapping and relaxing chains today 👍🏽 I noticed that a couple of links still hold a slight bend even after ~350km ridden. I follow the Silca protocol with my crockpot and thermometer, though I think I might pull the chain a tad earlier based on this video.
Interesting topic wrt your last comment. I've been playing around with varying the chain tension through B-screw adjustment during use of the waxed-chain. I'm running SRAM so the chain tension can be a faff to get right, yet required. Something else to consider is that your quick-link condition contributes to it and so sometimes 5 reuses often quoted is hard to realise in the real world in my conditions (though I am a heavier rider pushing more watts). Chain waxing temp: I like to go for slightly higher temps for the bath because I feel like I can keep the chain in there for a bit longer, then pull it out fast to keep the wax on the surface to a minimum for more cleanliness as the chain inevitably does attract some junk from the mechs and road.
Done mine for the first time. Silca instructions are to slowly remove as wax temp has cooled. I think I'm going with your method next time, so there's less caked on and, therefore, less to pick off. Should make the hand break in part easier also.
"Breaking in" your newly wax chain doesn't take hours. You make it sound like it's something that would... In less then 2 min you chain is broken in... Stop "Fear mongering" people on silliness like such.
I never break in the chain. I have to ride like 100-200m, and I think it is broken in better than if I would do that by hand. (e.g. it stops dragging the rear derailleur when I pedalling backwards)
Very sensible. Putting a cold chain into hot wax immediately causes the wax to precipitate on the chain, and you have to wait longer for it to re-melt, before taking it out.
there's finally a worth while use for all those 3d printed chain keepers that kept doing the rounds a few years back,; as a break in roller for waxed chains.
I just did the Grand fondo to whistler this weekend, Waxed my chain the night before but I broke it in by riding to the start line about and hour soft pedaling from my house. I did the Forte which is around 155k + 15k from my house to the start line and it worked out perfectly for me. I was a bit concerned about the wax lasting for the full event but it still seemed fine towards the end for me.
My chains go directly from the cooling rack to the bike. Running it in biggie-smalls very hard for a couple minutes whilst still in the stand does about 90% of the needed break in.
I don't compete. so I can just throw it on the bike and ride... but now you have my mind going. I could just hook a couple bike sprockets in a loop with one hooked to a small brushless motor and let it run to break in the chain.
Uh huh. Well perhaps in theory but consider viscosity shear in engine oil. How may hours of engine operation (heat, pressure, mechanical forces) does it take for a relatively thin oil to shear back? LOTS. So going a few degrees under or over for a ten minute waxing session is unlikely to shear back the WAX. Think about it… if the viscosity of the wax changed that dramatically, wouldn’t it become runny instead of re-solidifying during cool down?
Wax doesn't have long molecules especially when compared to a good synthetic oil which is why it measures much worse in shear testing. It doesn't flow at normal temperature, so when it is pushed out of contact points under high load it doesn't flow back.
@@sjbechet1111 Paraffin, upon which most chain waxes are based, is a very long chain hydrocarbon… with the formula of CnH2n+2. Its name means “lacking reactivity and its boiling point and density are far higher than motor oil. Some paraffins contain double bonds and cyclic chains containing upwards of 38 carbon atoms. This is what makes it so durable and *chemically stable*. A block of paraffin wax will last virtually indefinitely, whereas the shelf life of motor oil is about a year or two before showing signs of degradation. But the real proof is in heating and cooling it, where it returns to solid form. This demonstrates its lack of temperature shear (again, don’t confuse this with flow) and low oxidation. You misunderstand the term “shear”, which has nothing to do with flow. It has to do with the durability of its chemical bonds relative to its starting and ending viscosity. In other words, it’s resistance to a permanent change in viscosity from bonds being *permanently* broken. But don’t let this change your mind. Believe what you will and don’t burden yourself with the apparent inconsistencies presented by the fact that paraffin wax will not undergo any significant change over decades of storage.
I do wax my chain but not for watts, I daily commute and rotate my chains once a week when the bike gets a clean. It’s easier and quicker to keep your bike running well. I don’t think the ease and cleanliness of waxing chains is ever advertised as much as watt saving. I don’t think I would notice 5 watts as much as the weight of my bag
@@robsarahs1 Sorry Rob I was trying (and failing) to be funny. Rotate your chain once a week as in one revolution of your chain and wheel. Yes it’s not very funny! 😄 I wax my chain and definitely won’t notice 5 watts one way or the other. Mind you it is an ebike!
@@martinlong8739 ahhhhhhh, 😂 tbh, it’s a flat ride a some mornings I see how far one revolution will take me, if theirs a tailwind people think I’m one of those illegal e-bikes 😜
Oddly enough, I bought a pre-waxed chain from Silca and there was so much wax caked on one side (like they dried it laying down) my local bike shop had to manually scrape a bunch of wax off to make it fit properly.
It's pretty amazing that there are so many people willing to spend their time jacking around with waxing their chains. Like bro, just spend 60 seconds to throw some lube on the chain and get out there riding, it's not going to make a noticeable or meaningful difference unless you're in a race and on the edge of winning.
B-but my chain is much cleaner now!1!!1! 😰 And I only prepare 10 chains in beforehand on my wife's boyfriend stove, so the effort is insignificant!! Don't you dare criticising waxxing 😡😭
@@schninzent8914 It's not that big of deal man, you just need to start with a brand new virgin metal chain that's been sanitized and decreased. After that you simply need to spend an hour or two to rewax it every 50-250miles of riding. Don't worry about how a bag of wax costs as much as a new chain, not important or relevant at all.
OMG all that faffing just to wax a chain! It's just a bike chain, you're not trying to calculate the optimal matter/anti-mater intermix ratio for the USS Enterprise's warp core!
Right. You should probably never adjust your saddle height--it's just a saddle! You should probably never check your tire pressure--it's just a tire! You should probably never adjust your gears--they are just cogs! You should probably never worry about buying the right size shorts--they are just pants! Feel free don corduroy pants, hop on Huffys, and stop "trying to calculate the optimal matter/anti-mater intermix ratio for the USS Enterprise's warp core!" Many of us, however, appreciate efficient, fast, clean, and well-maintained bikes.
@@SnaxNoCo The point is it's quite simpler to adjust your saddle and the benefit you get from it much greater relatively than a few more watts going through all those steps to wax your chain, when lubing achieves 90% of the benefits with 5% of the effort. What else are you going to say now, that punching holes in your bank card is worth the 2 grams you save in weight?
@@WarHammerWH I was skeptical as well at first. But once I tried waxing, I was amazed at how little effort it actually takes, and how great the results are. I'll never go back to wet lube. But, hey, feel free to stick with what you already know.
@@SnaxNoCo I'm sure I'm making it looks more complicated than it is and underestimating the benefits, but I'm just not willing to do that first step...
@@WarHammerWH I understand. I was reluctant as well--for probably 2-3 years. In hindsight, I wish that I had just made the plunge. Especially with Silca's Strip Chip and chain prep products, it's just gotten so easy.
All videos about waxing chains make it seem very complicated. It isn't. Since my very first bike, after 6 months of chain tattoos, dirty hands and grease all over my car, I switched to drip on wax. Heaven! Since this year I started hot waxing and it made my process of keeping the bikes clean and ready to go so much easier. I have multiple chains in use at the same time and can do 300-ish km on every chain. Once they are all used, I heat the pot with the wax, throw boiling water over the chains to clean of old wax, put the chains in the pot for 10 minutes, take them out and let them hang to cool for 15 min. And I'm ready to go for a month. Nothing to it. And no heavy degreaser or anything else needed. Oh and OT, 'breaking in' = riding for 5 minutes.
... i feel room temperature, curvature of the earth relative to the equator and alignment of the moon with Stonehenge are often overlooked factors when considering chain Waxology.
Ollie, any luck yet in getting Si to wax a chain? He's always saying "what's it all about" and that he has never waxed a chain (I assume he has at least given up on his infamous WD40 cleaning method). Go on, have another go before the winter weather arrives ... oops, could be too late
What Dr. Bridgewood neglected to tell you is to Remove your Chain From the Packaging before Hot Waxing! This is another tip that Ollie discovered through his scientific investigations. There will be another GCN video soon on the topic!
What makes a waxed chain slower is hanging it to dry while it’s hot and the majority of the wax you dipped it in drains off lay it flat in a small container so the majority of wax remains amidst the links and can’t drain away. Take the time after it’s cooled to loosen the links manually. Gee whiz seems like a simple idea to me
"5 watts slower" or "1 watt faster" doesn't make any sense, like compared to what? Power to speed ratio isn't a thing without comparison point. Don't wanna sound like an a-hole but please be specific and scientific. I understand that comparison point is unwaxed chain, but how would one know how much power loss that causes, if you get my point. "I ran 100 metres one foot faster than the one that finished second."
My tip is to put the chain back on the bike while it is still hot to touch and still flexible. Then if you run the chain backwards on the bike before it has a chance to stiffen, it remains flexible.
The timing of this is perfect Ollie! I've just hot-waxed my first chain. Woohoo! ...but realise the wax was too cool at the point of withdrawal because the wax was caked on. After manipulation and breaking off the excess, the chain jumped off the chainring twice whilst running it on the bikestand. Fortunately, no damage to paintwork. During the break-in ride, it was jumping sprockets in middle of cassette. After 10 miles, it has improved greatly. Question; should I persevere, or remove chain and repeat process, but this time withdrawing before the wax gets the crusting/glazing as per silca's instructions?
Persevere. Umm when you saw the wax was "caked" on, why didn't you just put the chain back in the wax, let it heat up a bit to the point where it didn't "cake" and then take the chain out of the wax ? Next time, don't let the wax cool before you take the chain out. Capillary action will hold the wax in the chain bushes.
I actually performed the process twice and result was same. Hence thought this might be normal (I was following instructions). Will defo not leave it in so long after the cooling process has started next time.
I just thought of something. Silka could have had optimized there wax pot setup with a cooling fan on the rear stand. With a cooling fan less of the wax that's inside the chain would be lost. It's something one can try at home. I think the cooler the airflow the better. Or have I missed something?
Shock horror though that Si drops the bombshell that he doesn’t have a waxed chain and doesn’t like them! I’ve just waxed mine and it’s awesome if nothing else to look great!
Waxing sucks, the only reason I do it right now is cause I'm riding on the bike path at the beach and mineral oil sucks for sand. Proper tarmac its mineral oil all the way for the silence. I'm halfway tempted just to use Rock and Roll Holy Cow for less chain noise but I've been liking how clean my chain is recently.
@@凸Bebo凸 I've had good results with yellow Dumond Tech light chain lube keeping the chain pretty clean. And anything that does get on the chain wipes right off. I get a good 200 miles of riding on clean roads, a bit less on dirt roads and trails before needing to reapply. Smells like death, but seems to work. I use the regular green Dumond Tech on my off road bikes.
@@robbybeauchamp Best oil I've tried is Chain L, very heavy with high pressure stabilizers. Lasts 1000-2000 miles depending on conditions. Don't ride this stuff in the dirt or sand though, not good for that.
I've gone back to drip wax, this is far too much faff! 🤣 1 minute adding it every few rides, you're still looking after your chain and it'll last well, for the sake of 1w I simply can't be doing with all that.
Sorry still not conviced re waxing. Not the benefits (at least them being measurable under certain parameters), but the constant faff. Occasional scrub with big cheap bottle of de-greaser and bit of quality lube (I do use the Silca one) - so simple to keep on top of.
What faff ? Inbetween waxes I don't have to touch my chain. And when it needs a rewax, take chain off, pop it in the wax pot and turn it on, go watch telly, hour later, take chain out of pot, hang up chain, turn pot off, make a cup of tea, break the chains links in my hands, put chain back on bike, she's good to go. Chain lasts forever.
I bought the Silca wax melter and now don’t really find this an issue - the 75C thing makes a difference. But also, I only wax every 1000km and use drip-on in between, and i find drip-on runs in super fast - 5 mins maximum.
Well, moto cross riders wax their non-O-ring chains since decades in nice large and flat tin cans which you can heat directly on your stove with 500g of wax for a fraction of the price of silca or the other crazily overpriced bicycle stuff. I use putoline, the wax is slightly softer and it is perfectly silent without "breaking it in" right from the start. And guess what, motocrossers ride their bikes in much more hostile environments than road cyclists. They know which wax makes the chains last even when run in sand or mud. But they simply do not buy the lie that more expensive is always better.
Make sure you agitate the chain a LOT when it's in the hot wax! You have to get the wax between the plates. I typically go 250-300 miles now between re-wax.
Owt wrong with some 3-in-1 if you give the chain a good wipe with a clean rag after you’ve applied and run the chain around to let the oil sink into the rollers and between the plates. The oil only needs to be in the out of sight areas.
Nobody is saying oil based lubes like 3-in-1 don't lubricate, but what they also do is collect contamination (particles of dirt). This makes your golden oil lube turn into a black grinding paste which wears out the bushes (where the oil that you can't see is) and rollers in your chain and sprockets far more quickly than a waxed chain. This saves you money and time (and dirty fingers).
@@joystation1 I’m not convinced, it’s just new bling. I’ll stick to my system, it’s worked for decades. I don’t go through chains any quicker. Keeping a chain clean is easy enough, if you don’t lather it in oil to begin with. The oil turns black because of aluminium oxide from the chainring wearing, not necessarily dirt from the road. No dirty fingers here.
After the Olympic Games 2021 in Tokyo, Ollie made a video about the top 10 track cycling innovations since the 2016 Rio Olympics. Now that the Paralympic Games have also wrapped up, will there be a video like this about the innovations from Tokyo to Paris?
Any tips on how to remove the chain from the pot to hanging out to cool, without getting wax dripping everywhere (floor walls). ? There are loops in the chain that i try to undo so i can wipe it down at the start cooling, which is when the drips happen.
Any tips for removing the wax from the hollow pins of a Dura Race chain? I've been waiting for the wax to cool and then pushing an iPhone sim card removal tool through the holes one by one...
I wipe the chain with a disposable rag as soon as it comes out of the pot. No wax flakes to deal with and you are not wiping any wax off that is doing anything anyway.
I'm going to guess that if colder temperatures adversely affect your chain then a chain that feels broken in on your indoor trainer might not yet be optimal for outside use (if its cold outside) and would therefore need a longer break in time before use?
I think they still make these waxing bs videos to help silka get rid of there overpriced sh*t. Imagine being new to cycling and ur searching how to lube chain and stubbble on this one😂
I was a skeptic at first as well. But I started waxing this year, and I'll never go back to oil. Wax is faster, cleaner, more efficient, and saves time & money.
Overpriced ? mmm debateable. Shit ? No. And anyone new to cycling who stubbbles on this one will see negative comments from people who do not immersive wax their chains and positive comments from people who do immersive wax their chains. Q E D
Not sure this is a good idea. Hard wax is a terrific lubricant, wax that is hot is soft and so pressure on the links from spinning the chain around your drive train will squeeze the soft wax out from the bushes
Oil lube if applied correctly wouldn't flick off, no, waxed chains last much much longer than oil based drip lubes and waxed chains are clean so you don't get chain tattoos or oily fingers when working on your bike. Rear brake rotor and pad contamination is usually due to touching those parts with oily fingers, overspray from aerosol lubricants, cross-contamination when washing your bike (you can pick up oils from other parts of your bike on your cleaning cloth / brush which ends up in your bucket of detergent and is then transferred to the brake rotors) and crap off the highways.
Dripping chain oil on a chain is too simple, we need to spend our time, money and space setting up an expensive Silca waxing station and juggle around multiple chains and quick links because some Australian guy sponsored by a chain waxing brand goes around spamming youtube with long diatribes about how the amateur research he does alone in his basement proves every major lubricant manufacturer on earth with their teams of engineers got it wrong.
Because waxing saves time due to less cleaning and a lot of your money due to less drive train wear. It virtually ensures that your drive train will last the run of your bike. Besides having a cleaner bike and avoiding oily dirt and black fingers. Having biked for 50+ years I consider waxing easier and less time consuming than oil.
@@SnaxNoCo I use standard mineral oil. I’ve looked at wax but it wouldn’t be economic as I run an 8 speed block, the chain is wider for one thing, cheaper to buy and my HG cassette can tolerate up to a 1% stretch where as 10/11 cassettes can only go to .75%. Means my riding is very affordable.
I don't get it. Why create a mess in my flat? Just put the waxed chain to a bike and ride it for 2 hours ouside and break-in will be finished. All wax flakes will stay outside your room.
Have you ridden with an 'unbroken' chain?⛓💥
Of course not. I flog my chain with another chain until it submits to my every wish.
Of course. Every time I break in a waxed chain. Seems kind of obvious based on the way you framed the question.
Maybe I could hire somebody to break in my chain for an exorbitant fee… to bolster my street cred by helping put someone else’s kid thru college?
I see a business opportunity… have a former pro rider break in a waxed chain for people to make them think they’re faster.
Yes, I have ridden all the time with an unbroken chain. Riding with a broken chain is VERY difficult. 🤣🤣
of course I did, moreover, all my rides are on unbroken a chain, and when it gets broken, I wax it up again
I personally wax my chains for drivetrain longevity instead for speed. I don’t really worry about the break in time. I find it breaks in about 30-60 minutes, so I get an extra 30-60 minutes of riding out of my wax.👍🏻
I can assure you that chain waxing mistakes arent what makes me slow
Are you sure? 100% sure?
@@gcntech I only ride to school but my school is in the 60's so it's uphill both ways :(
With a waxed chain you could be as slow but faster!
Chain waxing issues aren't making you slow but not wearing aero socks does!
You’re leaving the chain in the wax too long!
Break-in a waxed chain on a trainer? Just ride it outside for a few minutes so you dont have to clean up wax flakes off the floor.
Or worse..off the rug. Did this in my bedroom and now have tungsten disulfide specs as a new decoration.
But it’s an excuse to clean the cereal flakes off the carpet.
But, but, but, but...is it environmentally friendly????? I am calling Gretta Thunberg to check.
Right, let the excess wax coat the rest of the drivetrain for even greater wear.
Basically what I do (I don't race so who cares). I also immersion wax on a bike with a half open chain guard, so there the stiffness actually helps me getting the chain around the chainring, it's a little less awkward running it through the chain guard. Then a bit of smalls-smalls on the stand, ride around the block on my way to the shed, run though all the gears in a minute or so and that's it for me. Start of the next ride is a bit rougher, but hey nobody is timing me.
The best pre-race protocol I’ve found is to wax the chain two days before the race, complete an event prep ride (for me, 60-90 minutes), come home, clean the chain with a dry microfiber cloth, and top up with Super Secret Drip the night before the race. This setup feels like the fastest and quietest I’ve experienced so far.
"noise is a sign that there is greater friction.:" Finally Ollie, the great freewheel sound fan, acknowledges it: A silent freewheel is better !!
faster maybe but not better. my freewheel sound doubles as my bell
@@christoph1ideal for freewheeling at high speeds next to busy a sidewalk and scaring the crap out of everyone (and bringing joy to any cyclist on said sidewalk)
@@christoph1Pedestrians definitely hear it better than a bell. It doesn’t blend into the background noise like a bell does
Depends. Not producing noise can help. Dampening noise can add friction.
I have always thought this. Noise is energy.
But wouldn't the half hour break in time just be covered by your warm Up prior to the event? Surely you're not starting cold off the gun.
I almost always place better racing cold without a warmup. Go figure.
@@roadcyclist1 Ok...but we're talking _normal_ people here 🙂
Yeah my thoughts as well, I've often "broken in" a freshly waxed chain on a warmup.
How many videos can a channel dedicate to one subject...?
Silca have got to be a major sponsor by now.
Silca are 1 of 18 declared sponsors. For the full list click on the word "more" just below the "subscribe" button at the top.
"You're not doing it right because you're you're not paying Silca ££££ for their badge-engineered version of something you can make/source yourself for 1/5 of the price" is the sum total of most of your videos about waxing. At what point does 'journalism' turn into meretricious advertorial? GITB.
The issue I have with Silca is their instruction to put one chain into each packet of wax. That's total BS. I did three chains with one bag"s worth. could've probably done four.
If you have a bike repair stand, just hang up the bike and pedal away. I found that switching gears for some lateral movement additional helps the break in.
That's exactly what I do.
This!
Do you enjoy cleaning the flakes from your floor afterwards?
crikey, so many questions/views on chain waxing!
Also don't remove the chain from the pot before it has had a chance to heat up to the same temperature as the wax, otherwise old wax and dirt may not melt off and the layer of wax may be too thick and have adhesion issues and flake off. Give it at least 5, ideally 10 mins, as a cold chain will cool down the wax in the pot too.
I actually do a few passes with boiling water to remove the old wax followed by a wash in clean isopropyl alcohol to reduce the water prior to going into hot wax. I will agree that you should still let the chain temperature equalize with the melted wax, but it's for good penetration rather than crud removal.
@@christopheroliver148 I agree and do the same, though it's surprising how much dirt still comes out during swishing and builds up in the bottom of the wax pot over time. Also if rinsing a chain in meths / alcohol be let it dry properly before putting it in the hot wax, otherwise it will boil off and make some pretty intimidating noises... flammable gasses boiling out of hot flammable wax! I learned that the hard way... fortunately no fire involved! 😃
When it's due for a re-wax I take my chain off the bike and straightaway put it on top the cold set wax and turn the pot on, then as the wax warms up it also warms the chain up. I don't bother washing the chain with hot water first, it goes in "dirty", yes the white wax goes grey and yes the chain will require replacing sooner than if I had washed it each time but it's still lasting much much much longer than when I used to use a drip lube and I avoid the minor hassle of the hot water wash and the alcohol wash and dry and it's a trade off I'm happy with.
@@joystation1I do the exact same. Even if it's not optimal, it was still a huge improvement over wet lube.
@@andyarchitect Agree about waiting a bit before putting the chain into the hot wax; I hang my chain for a short while after the drying bath., and isopropanol evaporates pretty quickly. I also agree that despite best hygiene, the wax still gets pretty cruddy over time. Happily, I'm not too concerned about the 0.14W savings from the WO2, and a block of Gulf canning wax is very cheap. I do want to add a grater to my tools so I can gouge off the bottom layer of settled garbage when the block has cooled.
Remove saddle. Replace the seatpost with a candle of the proper diameter, do not put back the saddle and...start pedalling.
You will definitely be faster!!!
The real trick to increased performance is to light it first.
I always bring the chain to the Brasilian for getting it waxed.
This is old tech…young man…after you wax your chain put it in the oven for a few minutes just to let the wax get into the chain not on the chain? You won’t have pieces of wax all over the place,and your chain will be ready! No slow chain or wax buildup on derailleur!
We were doing this with Sidisport and Regina chains and Regina freewheels ! And it was perfect…and that was for 10 cents! Two candles! Now it’s in fancy packaging and cost a lot more than 10 cents! Put it in the oven until you don’t see any wax on the outside of the chain then remove it and let it cool….and your chain will be ready ! Clean no wax on the floor or carpet. Very good for chains with cutouts or hollow pins! All of that will melt away and only the parts that need it will have wax…this stuff was in Winning bicycle magazines? In the 80s
@@ernestporee3697 We were hot waxing in a pot on the stove in the 1970s, and waxing with paraffin had been around before that. I don’t really know how long, but I’d bet for a long, long time. Having to use a chain rivet tool was the only drawback. We also used to add some molybdenum disulfide powder. Silca is too expensive, but Molten Speed Wax is very good, pretty cheap, and a bag lasts a long time.
Silca should make a 3 jockey wheel plate that bolts to the chain hanging stand. The wax that falls off may make it back into the wax pot.
Bolt two jockey wheels to a long wooden board and join your chain together. Put a handle on one of the bolts and turn away
Suntour Mountech 7 speed FTW. Don't give Silca any more snake oil ideas.
In other words, just ride the bike for a bit... 🙄
It took Ollie 7 minutes and 21 seconds to say what took you about 10 seconds to type !
What a whole load of nonsense. Cyclists keep trying to find ways of over complicating very simple things. Breaking in a chain wouldn’t take more than the ride to the start line.
Pls find more relevant things to say
just ride it for a few minutes it will get loose right away.
It takes about 3 minutes of riding, if that, to "break in" a waxed chain.
3min! You sure you’re waxing your chain cor🧐 It usually takes my chain a min 20min before I can feel it starting to roll freely.
How many watts are we really talking versus Silca wet lube? 1-2 watts! I don't feel is worth all this. Am I missing something??
Newer waxes are better in sand and dirt, but oil is much quieter and lasts longer on clean tarmac. If I wasn't doing a lot of beach riding I'd use heavy mineral oil.
Waxing instead of wet lubes keeps everything so much cleaner, including your own right leg. i used wax (not Silca) for a 100 km gravel race in a sleet and snow storm, on a steel bike with full fenders, and took third overall, besting many good athletes 20 to 30 years younger. Wax in wet dirt? Sure did’t hurt me. (Never been so hypothermic, though.)
@@randalbladel2817 There is no reason to give yourself a chain tattoo on the leg ever. The trick is to put your left leg down at stops instead of your right. There are some advantages to wax if you are looking for marginal gains, if you are poor, or if you are riding in sand but it's not the end all be all for every situation.
I was originally thinking that waxing idiotism is something to do with cross country skiing, but GCN brings it to new area and new level. Pure alchemy.
Hardly alchemy. Really old technique. We were doing this in the 1970s, and it certainly predates that. problem was back then is that power links for derailleur chains had not yet been invented, so you had to use use a chain rivet tool every time.
The benefits of waxing are well understood and well-quantified. It has its drawbacks, but at this point the extraordinary claim that it’s alchemy would require extraordinary evidence.
@@owensnicholas there is nothing wrong with waxing on its own. But this is a simple process, and GCN always finds the way to make things much more complex. Just to make some content.
@@demidrol0 I think, then, that you should be aware that engaging in any way with content you don’t like only encourages them to make more.
I Use Bananawax Drag & Friction TdF Racing Chain Wax.
Ive Always put my chain in the oven along with the wax for about 5mins just to pre heat the chain.
When you dip the chain the wax drips off nice and easy, so you don't end up with clumps of excess wax left on the chain where it's cold, or it flaking off when set.
Also, always a good idea to clean your rear mech and wheel after waxing your chain as the wax tends to fly off the chain and stick to stuff down wind of it.
The "big mistake"? Believing the hype on wax in the first place.
Give it a try, and you'll probably never go back to oil. I was skeptical at first as well, but wax really is amazing. Who doesn't like to save money, go faster, reduce maintenance, and keep their hands & bike clean?
There's me, putting my bike with its freshly waxed chain onto the car roof and driving off to the French Alps. Two hours of heavy rain in the North of France, at motorway speed was enough to wash ALL of it away!
Who puts his precious bikes ON the car?! 😮 They should be IN
@@dikketinus because familly and their luggage were IN. Wind yer neck in numbnuts.
After watching this video and reading all the comments, I think I'll just stick with normal oil based lubricants
It's much easier than oil. Clean the drivetrain the first time and then wipe the chain off after every ride. Every couple rides put some drip style on the chain (depending on ride maybe sooner). Every couple months do a full immersion wax which is super easy. Some will also pour boiling water over the drivetrain to clean it, maybe someday I'll do that, but I've never had it pick up much dirt. Overall it's much cleaner and easier to maintain than oil. The main downside is you can't leave your drivetrain wet or it'll rust quickly, though I suppose you shouldn't do that anyways.
@@mikemazzantini6397 meanwhile with oil, I clean my drivetrain once a month and reapply the oil. If it's looking like rain, I add a little bit of oil to the chain before heading out.
I also like to get a couple of wax cycles on a chain before a big event as I find that the wax penetrates better on a slightly worn in chain rather than a brand new one.
I aint waxing my chain for anybody, I don't care if it makes it look longer
I tried everything to clean my chain and wax it, tried multiple different times and methods of cleaning and waxing. I’ve also used different chains(new) and the results were all the same. My chain would be quiet for 20km then back to sounding a bit noisy and eventually getting louder if I don’t add drip wax. There is so much faff involved for waxing and now you’re saying we need to break them in? I have gone back to Silca synergy lube and no more noisy drivetrain. A bit greasy but I wipe my chain after a ride so I don’t get it on my legs or socks. I have to say for now its only silca lube for me!
Thats an odd experience. I suspect that something is wrong with your process.
Wax is by far the loudest lubrication option. Quietest lube on the market is Chain L, very dirty and thick but nothing can beat it on acoustics.
@@凸Bebo凸 Before I moved to wax, I was I HUGE fan of Chain-L. You're right about how quiet it is! It's messy as hell, but I mostly managed to keep things somewhat clean by frequently wiping down the drivetrain. Like other wet lubes, though, it attracts dirt like crazy. I wish that ZFC would test it, because I think it might be a great option for those who need to do multi-day ultra races in the rain, but I don't have solid data to back up that claim.
@@SnaxNoCo The bike industry just tries to pretend Chain L doesn't exist, it's too good. The only thing its bad at is mountain biking and beach biking, and I'm doing all beach biking right now so I'm on wax. Rock and Roll Holy Cow is a better option for beach riding for acoustics over wax, but I am just enjoying how clean wax is for right now.
@@SnaxNoCo you are possibly right, however it just never worked. Maybe one day I will try with silcas new degreaser additive for hot wax.
My tip is using an old cateye computer magnetic spoke sensor attached to a piece wire that i swish about in the hot wax pre and post chain dipping process to pick up any metallic debris to lessen chain contamination as much as possible. I tend to re-use the wax and keep topping it up with new batches of wax/teflon etc.
I also take out the chain reasonably slowly so any hot wax stays inside the links/rollers as much as possible until cooling solidifies it.🙂
Broke in my last waxed chain by wiggling each link with my fingers after removing it from the wire - DO NOT DO THIS: I had the biggest blisters on my fingers the day after 😬
Wear vinyl gloves when you wiggle the links, no sore fingers.
I did this last evening and regretted it. I also picked off the big lumps (wax too cool when I withdrew) with my thumbnail. Ouch, I won't be doing that again... like splinters under the fingernail torture! (1st timer errors)
I use the 'Uncle Fester ' method, still faster and easthat dipping method. Ready to go straight away.
@@Spongeblunt I always do this, never had an issue. When the day comes, I will remember your words :)
ouch!
Interesting and timely as I’m swapping and relaxing chains today 👍🏽
I noticed that a couple of links still hold a slight bend even after ~350km ridden. I follow the Silca protocol with my crockpot and thermometer, though I think I might pull the chain a tad earlier based on this video.
Interesting topic wrt your last comment. I've been playing around with varying the chain tension through B-screw adjustment during use of the waxed-chain. I'm running SRAM so the chain tension can be a faff to get right, yet required. Something else to consider is that your quick-link condition contributes to it and so sometimes 5 reuses often quoted is hard to realise in the real world in my conditions (though I am a heavier rider pushing more watts).
Chain waxing temp: I like to go for slightly higher temps for the bath because I feel like I can keep the chain in there for a bit longer, then pull it out fast to keep the wax on the surface to a minimum for more cleanliness as the chain inevitably does attract some junk from the mechs and road.
Done mine for the first time. Silca instructions are to slowly remove as wax temp has cooled. I think I'm going with your method next time, so there's less caked on and, therefore, less to pick off. Should make the hand break in part easier also.
"Breaking in" your newly wax chain doesn't take hours. You make it sound like it's something that would... In less then 2 min you chain is broken in... Stop "Fear mongering" people on silliness like such.
To loosen the chain, uose a wooden dowel that you name Andy. Andy MC dowel.
I never break in the chain. I have to ride like 100-200m, and I think it is broken in better than if I would do that by hand. (e.g. it stops dragging the rear derailleur when I pedalling backwards)
Good test running backwards. I do break in the chain but i also check by running the chain backwards to make sure.
Interesting. Can you do a video on watt loss and loud freehubs?
we will see what we can do!
@@gcntech 👍🚴♂️🚴♀️🚴
I warm chain up in the oven before putting it in to the wax
Very sensible. Putting a cold chain into hot wax immediately causes the wax to precipitate on the chain, and you have to wait longer for it to re-melt, before taking it out.
I put my "cold" chain on top the wax in the pot and then turn the pot on, then as the wax warms up it also warms the chain.
there's finally a worth while use for all those 3d printed chain keepers that kept doing the rounds a few years back,; as a break in roller for waxed chains.
I just did the Grand fondo to whistler this weekend, Waxed my chain the night before but I broke it in by riding to the start line about and hour soft pedaling from my house. I did the Forte which is around 155k + 15k from my house to the start line and it worked out perfectly for me. I was a bit concerned about the wax lasting for the full event but it still seemed fine towards the end for me.
Wax should last you much, much longer than the distance you went.
My tip when waxing is to do the wake-up (1hour or whatever) on a fresh chain the day before the race.
My chains go directly from the cooling rack to the bike. Running it in biggie-smalls very hard for a couple minutes whilst still in the stand does about 90% of the needed break in.
I don't compete. so I can just throw it on the bike and ride... but now you have my mind going. I could just hook a couple bike sprockets in a loop with one hooked to a small brushless motor and let it run to break in the chain.
Just put on some vinyl gloves and bend each link back and fore once, a couple of minutes later and you're good to go.
If the wax is too hot, the long molecules will be broken which will minimise lubrication. You should know this, Ollie. 😊
Uh huh. Well perhaps in theory but consider viscosity shear in engine oil. How may hours of engine operation (heat, pressure, mechanical forces) does it take for a relatively thin oil to shear back? LOTS. So going a few degrees under or over for a ten minute waxing session is unlikely to shear back the WAX.
Think about it… if the viscosity of the wax changed that dramatically, wouldn’t it become runny instead of re-solidifying during cool down?
Wax doesn't have long molecules especially when compared to a good synthetic oil which is why it measures much worse in shear testing.
It doesn't flow at normal temperature, so when it is pushed out of contact points under high load it doesn't flow back.
@@sjbechet1111 Paraffin, upon which most chain waxes are based, is a very long chain hydrocarbon… with the formula of CnH2n+2. Its name means “lacking reactivity and its boiling point and density are far higher than motor oil. Some paraffins contain double bonds and cyclic chains containing upwards of 38 carbon atoms. This is what makes it so durable and *chemically stable*. A block of paraffin wax will last virtually indefinitely, whereas the shelf life of motor oil is about a year or two before showing signs of degradation.
But the real proof is in heating and cooling it, where it returns to solid form. This demonstrates its lack of temperature shear (again, don’t confuse this with flow) and low oxidation.
You misunderstand the term “shear”, which has nothing to do with flow. It has to do with the durability of its chemical bonds relative to its starting and ending viscosity. In other words, it’s resistance to a permanent change in viscosity from bonds being *permanently* broken.
But don’t let this change your mind. Believe what you will and don’t burden yourself with the apparent inconsistencies presented by the fact that paraffin wax will not undergo any significant change over decades of storage.
@@paulgrimshaw8334 Long is a relative term and wax is orders of magnitude less effective under shear - the test results are undeniable.
Use a wooden dowel.
I do wax my chain but not for watts, I daily commute and rotate my chains once a week when the bike gets a clean. It’s easier and quicker to keep your bike running well. I don’t think the ease and cleanliness of waxing chains is ever advertised as much as watt saving. I don’t think I would notice 5 watts as much as the weight of my bag
Rotate your chains once a week?
You either pedal very slowly or have an extremely large chain wheel! 😢
@@martinlong8739 not sure what you mean, unless you’re peacocking about the amount of miles you do in a week,😂 I’m a bit past those conversations 😉
@@robsarahs1 Sorry Rob I was trying (and failing) to be funny. Rotate your chain once a week as in one revolution of your chain and wheel. Yes it’s not very funny! 😄
I wax my chain and definitely won’t notice 5 watts one way or the other. Mind you it is an ebike!
@@martinlong8739 ahhhhhhh, 😂 tbh, it’s a flat ride a some mornings I see how far one revolution will take me, if theirs a tailwind people think I’m one of those illegal e-bikes 😜
What a performance
Oddly enough, I bought a pre-waxed chain from Silca and there was so much wax caked on one side (like they dried it laying down) my local bike shop had to manually scrape a bunch of wax off to make it fit properly.
@@garbanzomeme I get my butler to do that before my bike goes to the shop to have the air in the tires changed.
Dude came into shop, "my chain is noisy since you worked on it" (looks at chain covered in 2mm of Squirt chain wax) uhhhhhhhh😂
"....Before you......... race on it" lmao
It's pretty amazing that there are so many people willing to spend their time jacking around with waxing their chains. Like bro, just spend 60 seconds to throw some lube on the chain and get out there riding, it's not going to make a noticeable or meaningful difference unless you're in a race and on the edge of winning.
B-but my chain is much cleaner now!1!!1! 😰 And I only prepare 10 chains in beforehand on my wife's boyfriend stove, so the effort is insignificant!! Don't you dare criticising waxxing 😡😭
@@schninzent8914 It's not that big of deal man, you just need to start with a brand new virgin metal chain that's been sanitized and decreased. After that you simply need to spend an hour or two to rewax it every 50-250miles of riding. Don't worry about how a bag of wax costs as much as a new chain, not important or relevant at all.
@@Dreamweaver94 [sanitized and decreased] Is that a typo, or did the truth jump a gear?
Even then it won’t make a winning difference. But Keeping your head tucked out of the wind will.
@@stephensaines7100 It's all 100% sarcasm
OMG all that faffing just to wax a chain! It's just a bike chain, you're not trying to calculate the optimal matter/anti-mater intermix ratio for the USS Enterprise's warp core!
Right. You should probably never adjust your saddle height--it's just a saddle! You should probably never check your tire pressure--it's just a tire! You should probably never adjust your gears--they are just cogs! You should probably never worry about buying the right size shorts--they are just pants! Feel free don corduroy pants, hop on Huffys, and stop "trying to calculate the optimal matter/anti-mater intermix ratio for the USS Enterprise's warp core!" Many of us, however, appreciate efficient, fast, clean, and well-maintained bikes.
@@SnaxNoCo The point is it's quite simpler to adjust your saddle and the benefit you get from it much greater relatively than a few more watts going through all those steps to wax your chain, when lubing achieves 90% of the benefits with 5% of the effort. What else are you going to say now, that punching holes in your bank card is worth the 2 grams you save in weight?
@@WarHammerWH I was skeptical as well at first. But once I tried waxing, I was amazed at how little effort it actually takes, and how great the results are. I'll never go back to wet lube. But, hey, feel free to stick with what you already know.
@@SnaxNoCo I'm sure I'm making it looks more complicated than it is and underestimating the benefits, but I'm just not willing to do that first step...
@@WarHammerWH I understand. I was reluctant as well--for probably 2-3 years. In hindsight, I wish that I had just made the plunge. Especially with Silca's Strip Chip and chain prep products, it's just gotten so easy.
How many silca wax shilling videos we already got in this year? Are they so desperate to push the wax?
No Silca product placement, no Silca sponsorship money and thus no more pathetic GCN content, we can dream.
Oh. I’ve ridden to all my events that were less than two hours away :-)
All videos about waxing chains make it seem very complicated. It isn't. Since my very first bike, after 6 months of chain tattoos, dirty hands and grease all over my car, I switched to drip on wax. Heaven! Since this year I started hot waxing and it made my process of keeping the bikes clean and ready to go so much easier.
I have multiple chains in use at the same time and can do 300-ish km on every chain. Once they are all used, I heat the pot with the wax, throw boiling water over the chains to clean of old wax, put the chains in the pot for 10 minutes, take them out and let them hang to cool for 15 min. And I'm ready to go for a month. Nothing to it. And no heavy degreaser or anything else needed.
Oh and OT, 'breaking in' = riding for 5 minutes.
... i feel room temperature, curvature of the earth relative to the equator and alignment of the moon with Stonehenge are often overlooked factors when considering chain Waxology.
Ollie, any luck yet in getting Si to wax a chain? He's always saying "what's it all about" and that he has never waxed a chain (I assume he has at least given up on his infamous WD40 cleaning method). Go on, have another go before the winter weather arrives ... oops, could be too late
What Dr. Bridgewood neglected to tell you is to Remove your Chain From the Packaging before Hot Waxing! This is another tip that Ollie discovered through his scientific investigations. There will be another GCN video soon on the topic!
This waxing voodoo is getting ridiculous. Thumbs down.
What makes a waxed chain slower is hanging it to dry while it’s hot and the majority of the wax you dipped it in drains off lay it flat in a small container so the majority of wax remains amidst the links and can’t drain away. Take the time after it’s cooled to loosen the links manually. Gee whiz seems like a simple idea to me
I just pay someone to ride the bike for me until the chain is running at peak efficiency. That's how important it is to me. Oh, wait...
Another Silca ad
Do you recommend breaking in new tires before a race? Or are fresh tires the best?
My neighbor knows it's a race day when I come to say Hi! to him and instead of door bell there's grinding sound from door lever.
So you're basically saying to have everything running at optimum level before a race. Fair enough.
i go quiet at the pub when i’m ready to go
No one would race with a brand new waxed chain. This is just stupid GCN crap yet again.
"5 watts slower" or "1 watt faster" doesn't make any sense, like compared to what?
Power to speed ratio isn't a thing without comparison point.
Don't wanna sound like an a-hole but please be specific and scientific.
I understand that comparison point is unwaxed chain, but how would one know how much power loss that causes, if you get my point.
"I ran 100 metres one foot faster than the one that finished second."
My tip is to put the chain back on the bike while it is still hot to touch and still flexible. Then if you run the chain backwards on the bike before it has a chance to stiffen, it remains flexible.
Ever wondered what has happened to the wax that would've made the chain stiff ? It' doesn't just disappear, or does it ? Cue X-files music.
The timing of this is perfect Ollie! I've just hot-waxed my first chain. Woohoo! ...but realise the wax was too cool at the point of withdrawal because the wax was caked on. After manipulation and breaking off the excess, the chain jumped off the chainring twice whilst running it on the bikestand. Fortunately, no damage to paintwork. During the break-in ride, it was jumping sprockets in middle of cassette. After 10 miles, it has improved greatly. Question; should I persevere, or remove chain and repeat process, but this time withdrawing before the wax gets the crusting/glazing as per silca's instructions?
Persevere. Umm when you saw the wax was "caked" on, why didn't you just put the chain back in the wax, let it heat up a bit to the point where it didn't "cake" and then take the chain out of the wax ? Next time, don't let the wax cool before you take the chain out. Capillary action will hold the wax in the chain bushes.
I actually performed the process twice and result was same. Hence thought this might be normal (I was following instructions). Will defo not leave it in so long after the cooling process has started next time.
Wax your legs instead of your chain! Possibly faster, definitely sexyer!!!
Definitely ‘sexier’ 😄
I just thought of something. Silka could have had optimized there wax pot setup with a cooling fan on the rear stand. With a cooling fan less of the wax that's inside the chain would be lost. It's something one can try at home. I think the cooler the airflow the better. Or have I missed something?
Shock horror though that Si drops the bombshell that he doesn’t have a waxed chain and doesn’t like them! I’ve just waxed mine and it’s awesome if nothing else to look great!
Waxing sucks, the only reason I do it right now is cause I'm riding on the bike path at the beach and mineral oil sucks for sand. Proper tarmac its mineral oil all the way for the silence. I'm halfway tempted just to use Rock and Roll Holy Cow for less chain noise but I've been liking how clean my chain is recently.
@@凸Bebo凸 I've had good results with yellow Dumond Tech light chain lube keeping the chain pretty clean. And anything that does get on the chain wipes right off. I get a good 200 miles of riding on clean roads, a bit less on dirt roads and trails before needing to reapply. Smells like death, but seems to work. I use the regular green Dumond Tech on my off road bikes.
@@robbybeauchamp Best oil I've tried is Chain L, very heavy with high pressure stabilizers. Lasts 1000-2000 miles depending on conditions. Don't ride this stuff in the dirt or sand though, not good for that.
What a massive pain in the arse. 🤦♂️
I've gone back to drip wax, this is far too much faff! 🤣 1 minute adding it every few rides, you're still looking after your chain and it'll last well, for the sake of 1w I simply can't be doing with all that.
There is a plastic handle bar wrench on the left you can just reach out to avoid the metal bar... I use a hammer handle myself.
Thanks for explaining the "chemistry word" Ollie, but most people know what viscosity means 😂
ZFC roast incoming...
ZFC is a joke, no regulatory body verifies their data. Pre waxed chain snake oil salesman they are.
this is ridiclous effort for almost nothing gained except wasted time I should be bbiking
Sorry still not conviced re waxing. Not the benefits (at least them being measurable under certain parameters), but the constant faff.
Occasional scrub with big cheap bottle of de-greaser and bit of quality lube (I do use the Silca one) - so simple to keep on top of.
What faff ? Inbetween waxes I don't have to touch my chain. And when it needs a rewax, take chain off, pop it in the wax pot and turn it on, go watch telly, hour later, take chain out of pot, hang up chain, turn pot off, make a cup of tea, break the chains links in my hands, put chain back on bike, she's good to go. Chain lasts forever.
Waxing is only worth it if you are riding in sand or racing, enjoy your oil. Try Chain L instead of the Silca it lasts twice as long.
Oz Cycle clearly explains how to prep and wax your chain.
I bought the Silca wax melter and now don’t really find this an issue - the 75C thing makes a difference.
But also, I only wax every 1000km and use drip-on in between, and i find drip-on runs in super fast - 5 mins maximum.
Well, moto cross riders wax their non-O-ring chains since decades in nice large and flat tin cans which you can heat directly on your stove with 500g of wax for a fraction of the price of silca or the other crazily overpriced bicycle stuff. I use putoline, the wax is slightly softer and it is perfectly silent without "breaking it in" right from the start. And guess what, motocrossers ride their bikes in much more hostile environments than road cyclists. They know which wax makes the chains last even when run in sand or mud. But they simply do not buy the lie that more expensive is always better.
My waxed chain is silent in first 10 to 20 km then it starts been noisy. It needs to be rewaxed every 100km at most.
Make sure you agitate the chain a LOT when it's in the hot wax! You have to get the wax between the plates. I typically go 250-300 miles now between re-wax.
@@3866TIM >300 miles between rewax.
Bro, you must be deaf or you put 100W.
KMC chain by any change?
During summer, up to 700km or more on race bikes, gravel a little less. Rain can a problem after a while, rain and gravel will be a problem.
Use a proper lubricant.
Owt wrong with some 3-in-1 if you give the chain a good wipe with a clean rag after you’ve applied and run the chain around to let the oil sink into the rollers and between the plates. The oil only needs to be in the out of sight areas.
Nobody is saying oil based lubes like 3-in-1 don't lubricate, but what they also do is collect contamination (particles of dirt). This makes your golden oil lube turn into a black grinding paste which wears out the bushes (where the oil that you can't see is) and rollers in your chain and sprockets far more quickly than a waxed chain. This saves you money and time (and dirty fingers).
@@joystation1 I’m not convinced, it’s just new bling. I’ll stick to my system, it’s worked for decades. I don’t go through chains any quicker. Keeping a chain clean is easy enough, if you don’t lather it in oil to begin with. The oil turns black because of aluminium oxide from the chainring wearing, not necessarily dirt from the road. No dirty fingers here.
After the Olympic Games 2021 in Tokyo, Ollie made a video about the top 10 track cycling innovations since the 2016 Rio Olympics. Now that the Paralympic Games have also wrapped up, will there be a video like this about the innovations from Tokyo to Paris?
Any tips on how to remove the chain from the pot to hanging out to cool, without getting wax dripping everywhere (floor walls). ? There are loops in the chain that i try to undo so i can wipe it down at the start cooling, which is when the drips happen.
Any tips for removing the wax from the hollow pins of a Dura Race chain? I've been waiting for the wax to cool and then pushing an iPhone sim card removal tool through the holes one by one...
I wipe the chain with a disposable rag as soon as it comes out of the pot. No wax flakes to deal with and you are not wiping any wax off that is doing anything anyway.
Your giving away the secrete sauce Olie! Fortunately there’s lots of sauces
I'm going to guess that if colder temperatures adversely affect your chain then a chain that feels broken in on your indoor trainer might not yet be optimal for outside use (if its cold outside) and would therefore need a longer break in time before use?
I think they still make these waxing bs videos to help silka get rid of there overpriced sh*t. Imagine being new to cycling and ur searching how to lube chain and stubbble on this one😂
I was a skeptic at first as well. But I started waxing this year, and I'll never go back to oil. Wax is faster, cleaner, more efficient, and saves time & money.
Overpriced ? mmm debateable. Shit ? No. And anyone new to cycling who stubbbles on this one will see negative comments from people who do not immersive wax their chains and positive comments from people who do immersive wax their chains. Q E D
Mate, just put it somewhat hot on the drivetrain with some gloves, spin it a couple of rounds, youll be good to go.
Not sure this is a good idea. Hard wax is a terrific lubricant, wax that is hot is soft and so pressure on the links from spinning the chain around your drive train will squeeze the soft wax out from the bushes
Is the push for waxed chains because normal oil flicks off and contaminates the rear disc brake?Hmmm
No. Oil is messy and ruins your drivetrain faster with all the crap it picks up. Just use wax once and you will never want to go back to oil.
Oil lube if applied correctly wouldn't flick off, no, waxed chains last much much longer than oil based drip lubes and waxed chains are clean so you don't get chain tattoos or oily fingers when working on your bike. Rear brake rotor and pad contamination is usually due to touching those parts with oily fingers, overspray from aerosol lubricants, cross-contamination when washing your bike (you can pick up oils from other parts of your bike on your cleaning cloth / brush which ends up in your bucket of detergent and is then transferred to the brake rotors) and crap off the highways.
Just eat an extra cookie to gain that 5 watts.
#askgcntech What should I do with transmission and chain after riding waxed for 100-300 km to repeat the process?
Wait! Why not just use oil, huh? Why all this complexity?
Dripping chain oil on a chain is too simple, we need to spend our time, money and space setting up an expensive Silca waxing station and juggle around multiple chains and quick links because some Australian guy sponsored by a chain waxing brand goes around spamming youtube with long diatribes about how the amateur research he does alone in his basement proves every major lubricant manufacturer on earth with their teams of engineers got it wrong.
Well put Mate.@@mountaindweller4514
Because waxing saves time due to less cleaning and a lot of your money due to less drive train wear. It virtually ensures that your drive train will last the run of your bike. Besides having a cleaner bike and avoiding oily dirt and black fingers. Having biked for 50+ years I consider waxing easier and less time consuming than oil.
Yes, but then you'd have buckets of unused neurosis left over.
@@mountaindweller4514 You are so wrong on every aspect.
What is the optimum temperature range of the wax when you remove the chain - for Silca Super Secret?
did you watch the video?
Talking of breaking in chains does anyone know where I can buy a pre-stretched chain?
lol! Good one...
Since I started waxing, I don't seem to generate as many stretched chains--so you'll have to check with the guys who have greasy bikes and hands. ;)
@@SnaxNoCo I use standard mineral oil. I’ve looked at wax but it wouldn’t be economic as I run an 8 speed block, the chain is wider for one thing, cheaper to buy and my HG cassette can tolerate up to a 1% stretch where as 10/11 cassettes can only go to .75%. Means my riding is very affordable.
I don't get it. Why create a mess in my flat? Just put the waxed chain to a bike and ride it for 2 hours ouside and break-in will be finished. All wax flakes will stay outside your room.