If I'm using a liquid chain lube I always apply it to the inside of the chain links, i.e. the top of the lower run. This is so that centrifugal force, created by the chain rotating, will draw the lubricant through the chain. I use Squirt lube which is a wax that is applied as a liquid which then solidifies. No need to mess around with melting the wax first. My chains last forever... well a really long time and 3 times longer than when I was using an oil based lube.
I use Squirt as well, and this video seems to support that product choice. 90% of my rides are dry, sometimes a little dust, and I use product about every 30-50 miles.
@@grahamaustin9085 Last SRAM AXS chain was still measuring OK after 14,000 km. I eventually replaced it because I was changing the cassette for larger sprockets.
Which quick chainlock do you recommend for Shimano 10 gear Ultegra/105? I take it the chain must be rewaxed ever 300 km or so, so getting it on/off easy is critical.
Great video. And after you have cleaned and lubed your chain, check for wear. New chain links are exact 1 inch apart. So get a ruler in inches and precisely measure 10 links with the clean chain on the bike. If your 10 th link is 1,5 mm or 1/16 inch off, put on a new chain. Thats about 0,6% “stretch”. Some say replace the chain at 0,5% some say at 0,75%. And because a chain is so much cheaper than a cassette or chainring and far more easy to replace, just replace your chain early. So clean and lubricate your chain as shown in the video. And replace your worn chain in time. And you don’t need a chain checker, just a ruler in inches. That is so much more clear and easy. Enjoy your diy. 🚴🏻♂️🔧
I use an upgrade to Si's WD40 hack. It's rhe WD40 Specialist White Lithium protective grease. Works like a champ you just spray it on liberally and wipe any excess off with an old sock. Chains are quiet, last a long time and no need for all the faff. Time is money
I've gone through the motion of lubing my chain, but this is the first time I'm understanding why I'm doing what I'm doing and whether I'm doing it correctly or not. There are a million videos telling us what to do - "lube your chain", "pay attention to your recovery", "do zone 2 rides!", etc. but without explaining why these things are beneficial, the advice is hard to stick. so would love more videos like this that not only talks about what to do and how to do it right, but more importantly why it's important.
100% brill, my dude. Molten wax.. undisputedly the best lube method. Silca Secret Chain lube.. arguably the best molten wax, top shelf either way. Imo the next best is drip on wax. My chain is so clean and quiet I feel privileged to use this stuff.
It appears to me that one way to shorten the life of a chain is to "clean it too well". By cleaning down to and into the factory lubricated part of the chain, we can actually be removing quality lubricant and replacing it with inferior lubricant. Worse still, road dirt and grime will have easier access to the working parts of the chain. As in everything, there is a balance between clean and too clean.
Factory lubricant was good 20 years ago. Now it is terrible. If you are using any modern product, you should remove all of the factory grease before applying. See Zero Friction Cycling.
What a great video Alex! Really well explained, I wanted to immediately go clean and re-lube my bike chain 😊 Do you have any tips on cleaning the chain on a direct drive turbo trainer? I’m reluctant to do to much cleaning in case it drips and messes with the electronics.
Great video, thanks Alex! You mentioned reversing rotating the crank backwards after applying lube to the cleaned chain. I may of missed it, but curious the reverse action as opposed to normal forward rotation - what’s the reason? Cjeers
Hi Guys, I use to clean the chain with a thin motoroil like SAE 5W and a microfibre cloth every 100-200km. That of course includes the cassette, chainrings and rollers. Then, in winter, I just use the same oil for a slight lubrication. In Summer, I lubricate with transmission oil SAE80 instead to make it stick better. Smells a little though. Big advantage is that these oils are cheap and never harden. Which means that you do not have to spend even more money and time on degreasing. Just clean and lubricate and wipe the excess oil off with a clean microfibre cloth. My chains last about one year until they approach the wear limit after about 6000-7000km, cassette and chain rings twice as long. Considering the money I do NOT spend on expensive special products, this seems a good compromise to me. Remember: A new chain costs less than a new can of expensive lube plus degreaser. I did a lot of Enduro & MC when I was younger and that are really chain murdering conditions. But the same applied: A seasonal selection of thick and thin engine or gearbox oils if applied frequently do the trick at a fraction of the cost of expensive special products. Think of the camchain in an internal combustion engine, which lubrication does it get? Correct. And If you are environmentally conscious: Use bio-degradable chainsaw oil. Or olive oil in winter. Also smells much nicer than gearbox oil.😀 But avoid other natural oils like sunflower, they harden quickly, olive oil is best.
But engines are not usually subject to the same level of external contamination that chains are to create a grinding paste (& they have a filter to deal with eg soot) so not really a good comparison
Isn't engine oil optimized for the higher temperatures found inside engines? Having said that, I imagine your method works fine as long as you clean the chain regularly. I find some of the expensive waxy lubes don't last long (sometimes less than a single ride before the chain gets that dry, unlubricated feel to it).
by the time you've gone through the phaff of cleaning your chain and lubing each link, you might as well bite the bullet, clean your whole drivetrain and switch to waxing !
I'm surprised that magnatech that used in some engine lubricant is not in chain lube. Also, the additives that clean while lubing. Seems ideal for a chain ✌️
Hi Alex, a big thumbs up from me. I used to use oil but have recently changed to hot wax (I hope i did it right, lets see Ollie's vid). I have found it great. Quieter, better shifting, altogether better. The only draw back i have encoutered is, because when not being ridden, my bike lives in a damp shed (best I can do at the moment) the wax has worn off the outer surfaces and a thin rust film formed. What can I do?
Before you put the bike away, run the chain backwards through a rag made wet with WD40, it will displell any water without affecting the wax on the inside. Do not spray WD40 onto your chain, it goes everywhere, including onto your disks/rims.
Agree, at the end of a wet ride, just dry off any excess water on the chain with a rag. The good thing about wax is the rag won't get filthy like it would with an oil-based lube.
Wax all the way. When my chain starts to make noise I drop it in the pot. I have a dedicated small crockpot ($13 on Amazon) that I use. It does take a couple of hours to get the wax and chain up to temp but the results are worth it.
Do agree that the cassette does not need lube. However, just leaving it clean later shows small spots of rust on it. How do I prevent it (Campy Veloce groupset)?
The reason for keeping your chain clean is not the chain, it is the more expensive sprocket. Chains are disposable and much cheaper than a good cogset. Keep your chain clean so your cogset lasts longerNever mind the chain, really. 😉
#gcntech on a long travelling as 2500km how the best way to do chaine maintenance? Because we can t take all poduct like degreaser, soap, etc in my bags🤔
Just take some chain lube stuff with you and wipe it off with an old rag before lubrication. You can't ride in laboratory conditions if you do such a long ride. My 8 speed hub motor e bike chains typically last 5k km without extensive cleaning once per month.
It's not so much a problem for me on my road bike, but how can I preserve my chain in cold and wet conditions, even if doesn't get too wet and dirty? I have a city bike and regularly clean my chain with one of those fancy-named park tools, also lubing it link-per-link and getting rid of any excess lube. However, after a few rides in winters conditions, it already shows some rust on out the outer plates, even though I have a towel to dry it after rainy rides and it's relatively clean. I really don't think special coating or something like that pays off on my old bike with a low-tier group set where the chain costs less than 20€ but I still want to get some decent mileage on it... is the material on these chains (Shimano 7/8/9 speed) so bad compared to 105 upwards?
I had the same problem as you especially in the winter I found the best way around this problem is to use chains that are nickel-plated from KMC and there are other manufacturers that use the same process. There are also other options like titanium and other metals but are for more expensive. It is that top coating flash Rust. And the cost is not that much more.
@@damian33dc Thanks for the tip. I think, the bike even had a KMC chain on coming from the factory. I also measured the chain and if I can trust my chain gauge, it has more wear than my road bike's 105 chain with 5-10 times the mileage. Let's try KMC on the next swap.
Chain lube has some impact on wear. Good luck measuring it. It matters little to me anyways. I change my chain yearly due to stretch (i.e., lengthening of chain as the bushings wear against the pins). My plan: Save money on "magic" lube and replace chains as needed when they stretch past 0.5% 🔬.
Finally, someone at GCN who knows how a chain works and explains is correctly. Just remember, roller wear does not make a chain longer. It might make it shift a bit sloppy, but it’s only the pin to pin bore wear that makes a chain measure longer.
But they fail to appreciate that a chain ridden off road or in inclement weather on road gets dirty IMMEDIATELY. So getting it "pristine" through degreasing is really a waste of time. It's as much a waste of time as is scrubbing your tires perfectly clean after every ride. Why? They're dirty within minutes on the next ride, with all that "abrasive sludge" wearing things out right off the bat. Take care of your chains, but don't overdo it. They're consumable items that wear out. Change before elongation gets too bad and you're fine. The only exception to this is immersion waxing. I've spent 45 years cleaning chains with all the different traditional lubes, wet and dry. Finally purchased bulk wax & powder tungsten disulfide to make my own chain wax. Can't wait to finally enjoy drive trains free of gunk (even though I've always taken care to prevent the build-up).
Dude on Bike, when your chain gets dirty immediately, is that dirt immediately getting past lubricant & onto inner surfaces? Is it getting past the Molybdenum Disulphide or Tungsten Disulphide additives that chemically bond to the metal to reduce friction? Nope. There's more to cleaning a chain thoroughly before lubricating than just keeping mud at bay. Read up on it from Silca or Zero Friction Cycling
@@mikeburgess5760 yes, but it doesn't "get past" lubricants. They aren't barriers. Dirt combines with the lubricant and creates an abrasive paste. If you understand capillary action of liquids, you quickly realize that grimy lube, water & mud work their way into the links and rollers almost immediately. The lube doesn't act as a barrier - it's an attractant for grime. The advantage to wax is that it doesn't form an abrasive paste. Nor do dry lubricant powders, so they perform their function without the drawbacks of liquid lubes. And yes, I've read a lot on the subject.
I have used approx. 25 different chain lubes over the last 30 years looking for the holy grail. The conclusion is it does not exist. I need to lube every 300km on average. I put 350 to 500km per week on average during the season. I clean my chain with mineral spirits (Varsol) until clear 3x then rinse with denatured alcohol. three years ago I tried wax. A real pain in the ass. Two seasons ago I was using Silca's secret sauce. It would last about 300km, but the chain would be black to the touch and I would have to clean the chain completely otherwise the product would not adhere to the chain if I wanted to do a touch-up to the chain. On the recommendation of Chris Horner (winner of Vuelta 13'), I tried the Squirt product. Best so far and it allows for touch-ups. After 8000km my chain has very little wear as measured with digital calipers. I run Record chains on my bikes. If Campy had a reusable quick link I would use an ultra-sonic cleaner.
I've been using immersive melt wax for over 30 yrs, but the last few years I've been using Silca Super Secret wax. I "hot wax" about every 1000 miles, but in between I wipe down the chain and apply their drip wax every 200 miles.
I’ve used Silca hot wax for over a year now and absolutely love it. I don’t have to worry about remembering to degrease/clean my chain and reapply drip lube every couple rides. I’ve even gone as far as waxing my wife’s and kid’s bike chains.
Dyan Johnson just uploaded a great video on this topic on his TH-cam channel. Zero Friction Cycling is a great place to go to decide which lube is best for you. Wax based is the only way to go. Silca Super Secret, Silca Synergetic or Rex Black Diamond look like great options for people or do not want to do the heated wax treatment.
Excellent video! I expected this to be the typical 'keep your chain clean and lubed techniques' video. Anything but typical, Alex gave a pro level presentation giving us a better insight into the mechanics of our chain and why to lube the proper way. Thank you GCN tech. I use Boeshield T9 lube and have for the past 20 years.
I don't think anyone has mentioned the quality of the chain itself. Often the ones that come stock on bikes are not the greatest. I usually wait for the inevitable chain wear and then replace with an Ultegra chain which lasts much much longer. Also, have modern narrower chains (a result of going from 5-cogs in 1980s to 12 cogs today) made the chain wear problem greater? I wouldn't be surprised.
Fully degreasing a chain is counter-productive. You're removing the lubrication from where it's needed. It will take a LOT of re-lubrication to get the new lube back into the rollers if you fully degrease a chain. Plus, why get a chain "pristine" clean when it may be covered with dirt & mud within the first 20-30 minutes of your next ride? Mountain biking throws all sorts of stuff at your chain. As does wet road riding. A three, four, five, or more hour mountain bike ride entails riding with a LOT of dirt on & in your chain! So that "dreaded abrasive paste" will be inside your chain DESTROYING IT!!! OH THE HUMANITY!!! So stop the hype. Adding fresh lube to a wiped down, but "still dirty" chain is fine. This is how everyone's been doing it for over a century. Chains wear; they're consumable. And you can't keep 'em pristine very long anyway. That said, immersion wax with additives is the way to go. However, many engineers & experts argue that wax isn't really a true lubricant. We could debate it endlessly. Regardless, waxed chains tend to stay far cleaner and last as long, if not longer. PS But if you ARE washing your bike thoroughly, then do spend a bit of extra time on the chain to rinse out contaminants. That plus compressed air is a great way to renew your chain during a wash.
I've only very recently begun to dive into the finer details of lubrication, and I've learned that I've been using a less than ideal lubricant thus far. I'm in the process of switching over to waxing my chains, beginning by learning everything I can about the process etc.
Molten Speed Wax all the way! I never clean my drive train anymore. At least no degreasing. Wipe down some dry wax residue using a rag from time to time. Once thoroughly cleaned then waxed for the first time, no need to do any more degreasing of drive trains. pop the chain off, dunk it in wax pot, shake then dry, pop it back on the bike. Used to get anywhere from 2000-6000 kms using various chain lubes. Having converted to wax 5 years ago, last chain lasted 20,000 km to reach 0.5 wear.
I use squirt lube (wax based). Cheap and keeps the chain life long. No need to mess around with melting the wax first. Just need to fully strip the factory grease. Best of all, it's clean and shiny.
Would love to try chain waxing but Scotland is wet. For that reason I can’t be bothered going through the whole waxing process every single time after a rainy ride 😢
Great video. First time I've seen a completely dissected chain anywhere really, so touché on that. However, I respectfully disagree about the bits on not lubing the cassette, the chainrings, and the external chain surfaces, so hear me out please. I put a drop on one tooth of each cog and ring after I lube the chain, and then I run through the gears - all of them. Then, I wipe everything down with white cotton while spinning the crank. I want to see the residue decrease with each pass. There is ALWAYS something left on the cloth no matter how long one wipes. While wiping, I want my external chain surfaces and exposed parts of the cogs and rings every so slightly oiled because these surfaces do slide against each other, especially under torque. I am sorry, but I just don't see how lubing only the inside of the chain gets to these surfaces. Do I pick up more grime? I would suppose so, but I don't see it because I wash and lube my bike every week, or immediately after any wet or dirty ride. Does my bike shift better? I wouldn't know as my bikes are always clean and lubed. I also don't mind jumping on a sale of a new cassette and/or chain. I've had my Ultegra 11 speed for 8 years now and have replaced both the cassette and chain once because of a blowout sale, not because I had to. My bike with the SRAM Red hasn't seen any sales! LOL! Anyway, if you regularly clean your bike and really wipe it down after oiling, you can lube away I guess is the moral to my story. BTW, your golf club brush works perfectly!
I have been using wax for some time now and it's the best option there is. It lasts longer, it lubes better than anything else and you can touch the chain after riding and have a clean hand. Never going back to liquid lubes again.
Depends on conditions. Dry that distance should be fine but wet can wash out the wax fairly quickly. The performance of wax suspension bottled lubes should give you a good idea, a hot wax soaking is better but not massively so.
@@GSHemuli I just go by the sound of the chain, not a set number of km. But I think it could be around ~200. That said, I have an e-bike so there is more strain on the chain. It also depends on how well you clean the chain before waxing. I use melted paraffin wax without any additives so with a purpose made wax you can probably get a bit more too. Then lastly you can extend the interval by using the liquid wax lube when you start to hear squeaking without cleaning the chain or taking it off and it will last a bit longer.
@@martinmikus472 thank you for the info! I use Ultrasonic cleaner for all my chains. I will try some recommend molten wax from zero friction cycling and see how long it lasts.
i use rock&roll gold [light] to clean the chain and C3 ceramic [heavy] to lube. i have used all kinds of lube but these two combination works perfectly for both of my road and hybrid. keeps the chain clean and lubed longer and I can easily get about 4k miles out of midgrade chains before needing a change.
Wet lube all year round. I get about 2000 miles out of a chain before it hits the 1% mark on my chain checking tool (the highest is about 2800 miles, over last year's dry summer months, the lowest was about 600 miles through a particularly wet winter when I picked up a lot of rubbish off the roads and ended up with a grinding paste!) I also find that a cassette won't last much longer than 4000 miles, (measured by seeing if a new chain jumps on the sprockets when installed) but that's another story.
I estimate that I get between 2,400 and 2,800 miles on my chains and change at 0.7%. I have a cassette that still worked fine at 24,000 miles when I replaced it (when the chainwheels wore out).
That's pretty good going! I can't get 24,000 miles from one cassette (well, not from the most used sprockets on the cassette - it'd be nice if one could buy single sprockets so I could just replace the worn one). How many speeds has the cassette got? (I'm using an 11 speed, and I find it wears quicker than my old 8 speed which I still use from time to time).
I use Squirt - that’s the best chain lube ever, chain always looks clean, it never forms the dreaded paste and it’s environmentally friendly. Try it out, seriously good stuff.
It's fine, but far from the best. Check out zero friction cycling on youtube for intensive testing. Squirt comes out as an okay drip lube, but with penetration issues. Other more expensive wax based drip lubes like UFO drip are waaay better AND are cheaper when you take component wear into account.
Tried , good on kmc chains,they are made of stainless steel but not the best for shimano chains, after every wet ride shimano chains get rusty pretty quickly .
I also use it but I don’t know how often it should be applied (if used on dry conditions). Every ride (say 20 to 80 Km)? Every 100 Km? 200 Km? Currently I clean all the transmission after every ride, clean the chain with a cloth, apply wax, remove excess, done.
I've used it for a few years now on all my bikes. It has extended chain life, is very quiet, and keeps things clean. It has taken a little time to figure out how often to apply it though.
@@iggalan there is no set duration because it depends on the conditions you are riding. I normally wipe the chain at the end of every ride with a clean rag. If chain sounds dry or looks like it needs lubrication then that gets addressed. The TT bike needs it about once per season (weekly use, almost never used in the rain because that’s unnecessary misery). The ‘cross bike gets a full chain cleaning and relube every race. For the pros, it’s even every lap sometimes! With Squirt I found that excessive application lead to buildup around the jockey wheels. It didn’t need to be reapplied as often as I thought (road bike). I do not use it in bikes that will often deal with very dirty conditions like an MTB so not sure how it would fare there.
Recently have changed my single speed bike chain, 1/2" X 1/8" which caused lots of noise which It didn't have with old chain. I can't figure it out Thanks
Castrol Power1 Racing 2T 2-stroke engine oil. About 1/4 the price of the best chain oils and probably does a better job due to more and longer R&D. Very good in the wet also, you can see the water beading on the surface but its also very easy to degrease with GT85 (also much cheaper than most drive chain degreasers). You're welcome. 👍
What's interesting is that there seem to be several and often differing opinions on drive train maintenance, depending on the source of the advice. I use Rock N Roll Gold for chain lube. The directions on the bottle are in complete opposition to your instruction here. The bottle indicates that a healthy stream should be applied to the chain at the cassette. Perhaps it's because the product is a cleaner and lube combined. But it's frustrating to try to do the right thing, only to hear that I'm making mistakes. My search for knowledge has left me feeling empty.
1:24 "A Giant Grinding Paste" Is that a giant invented by Roald Dahl? & also, the pedantic "One drop per roller" technique: you realise that in a chain with 112 links, that's 224 rollers? No-one has time for that. Point your applicator nozzle at the inside of the (clean{ish}) chain, pedal backwards 4 or 5 times, wipe; done.
Rock N Roll says you should shift to the highest gear, i.e., small cog on cassette and big ring up front. Does this really make any difference? What do you think? They also say to stream on the lube over the small cog while pedaling backwards (I also asked this in the Comments of another of GCN's lube videos). Thanks!
Hi @GCN Tech: I'm Sadly missing one important thing: please precise WHERE TO APPLY the lubricant! Sometimes, it's done right, sometimes, it's done wrong in your examples in the video! If you are on the road and don't have time to let your freshly lubed chain sit over night, lube the INNER circumference of the chain! Therefor, apply the oil on the chain below the chain stay! The centrifugal force generated when pedaling then transports your lube past the pins and through the entire chain, to all those places, exactly where we want it to reach! When done wrong by lubing the chain on the outside, because of the centrifugal force generated by pedaling, all the oil is going to fling off, and there it is, where the real waste of product is talking place! Only ever apply lube on the outer side of your chain, when you have time to let it sink in and let gravity do it's job over night! And it's only the next morning, when you wipe off the excess product!
I think the oil penetrates the microscopic gaps between rollers, pins and links via capillary action and by virtue of its low viscosity. I don't think gravity or centrifugal force matters so much.
@@chriswright9096 it does indeed matter especially in racebikes if you shift the chain through all the gears.... And it is dangerous when having rimbrakes, because drops of lube could fling off the chain and hit the rim... Small but important security mesure tought at any swiss professional bike mechanic formation school.
Sorry, Alex. But I could not quit see what you were refering to. Your talk and the cameraposition didn't play. And the conclusion, where should I lube... ?
Canadian Winter, with slush and salt, will T**** your chain. I run two chains on my Winter bike; one on and one spare. The T**** spare goes into Naptha spirits to get the crap that I put on off, then is brush washed in detergent to clean the street crap off. It hangs to dry overnight, then soaks in 3 in 1 oil. When to change your chain? When it's -15 and you kick your pedal back and it goes back forward, your chain is T****ed and needs to be replaced. Don't forget the rest of your mech when your chain is off. Hose it with WD40 to clean out the salt water and wipe down.
I use racing oil on my every day racing bike, especially for wet weather. Because it better protects my chain against bad weather conditions. In the summer I use "dry lube" because it lubricates and shifts the chain well. I work in a bicycle shop and a while ago an email from SRAM went around asking not to use wax. We also notice in the workshop that a lube shifts much better and is quieter than wax.
Yeah, that's my experience too but I'm always a little scared to voice it because so many people swear by the waxy stuff (its a kind of emperor's new clothes thing).
Weldtite all weather TF2 is the best everyday bike oil by far, cheap too. Tho honestly I'd rather use engine oil than trash like muc-off, squirt, or whatever...
The best is motor oil....I tested many special chain lubricant, but regardles to chain life,the best is motor oil...and much,much cheaper....anyway....motor oil is steel number one lubricant in auto industria
Oh Boy mine has this issue as well but I thought it would break itself in I have 430 KMs on it but I’m going to loosen it up as I’m scared I may have damaged something…
8:58 you're showing a bushed chain, and all of your other explanations pertain to a bushingless chain. Also, your closeups are disjointed & a bit nonsensical. If you're going to do tech, work out a script with a bit longer lead time than 1/2hr before filming.
Wolf Tooth chain lube. Lasts longer than regular lube. Waiting for a LBS to start stocking the precision applicator. I know I end up wasting too much lube.
Rock’n’Roll Gold. Quick, easy, lasts and stays pretty clean. Wax process is too time consuming (I know it’s very good as a lubricant but it just takes too long).
Wax my chains. Haven't had to replace in 3 years. Rewax every 500-700 miles. No more grease tattoos or nasty mess when changing tires and very little wear on my wallet.
you're lubing your chain wrong and telling people how to do it also wrong You don't wipe any excess with ceramic lubes, and you lube the chain for the inner side, not the outside like you do in the video. Doing what you say and show here your chain won't be lubed at all, is just symbolic.
It does beg the question, if the side effect of a worn chain is that the roller inner diameter is slightly larger, and the post outer diameter is slightly smaller, why doesn't the roller just find it's happy place on the sprocket/chainwheel tooth as it has more freedom to find said happy place, and the real stress of the pulling forces are on the arcs of chain that cover the front of the chainring and the back of the cassette sprocket where they are already seated firmly on their teeth. We say that the spacing between rollers has increased on a "stretched" worn chain, but it's both increased and decreased without actually changing the real spacing across the entire length that runs from the Top Dead Center of the sprocket and TDC of the chainring. If the chain is still the same ultimate length, is seems illogical that a worn chain is really responsible for tooth damage, as engagement at the back of the bike is not under load, and on the front of the bike is really under stress at the whole forward half of the chainring. Could this entire theory of a worn chain causing tooth damage actually be correlation with poor chain maintenance (dirt) in general causing friction/grinding down of the teeth and not at all be causation associated with a worn chain? Let's talk to some sprocket makers. I bet they know the real story. Before we accept popular "wisdom" let's not forget that skinny tire theory was wrong for way too long, because we failed to challenge it.
If I'm traveling without the chance to wash the chain every time I need to apply lubrication, is it better not to lubricate at all? Or are there "on the go" solutions?
i’m not a bike guy. ride few times a year. my chain just broke first time i rode after oiling the chain. coincidence? or can a bad lube job cause that. Bike is like 3 years old
I use rock n roll red. It cleans and lubes in one so different approach. What do you think Alex. Chain is never dark with grease as it does not pick up dirt.
How often do clean your chain? 🤔
After every single ride, of course!
Once . I fully degrease it when new and after that i wax it . Then every 300 km i wax it .
When it's dirty or noisy 🙂
For my rode bike once about every month unless the days ride was wet and muddy. Then I will clean it that day.
I clean my whole drive chain and then lube after every ride. Cassette and chain still look silver even after 2 years.
If I'm using a liquid chain lube I always apply it to the inside of the chain links, i.e. the top of the lower run. This is so that centrifugal force, created by the chain rotating, will draw the lubricant through the chain. I use Squirt lube which is a wax that is applied as a liquid which then solidifies. No need to mess around with melting the wax first. My chains last forever... well a really long time and 3 times longer than when I was using an oil based lube.
I use Squirt as well, and this video seems to support that product choice. 90% of my rides are dry, sometimes a little dust, and I use product about every 30-50 miles.
@@morningtidefilms it will last several hundred kms in dry conditions
How many miles do you get from your chains then?
@@grahamaustin9085 Last SRAM AXS chain was still measuring OK after 14,000 km. I eventually replaced it because I was changing the cassette for larger sprockets.
@@bikebrain That’s impressive!
I've been waxing all my chains for just over three years now. I love how clean everything stays
Which quick chainlock do you recommend for Shimano 10 gear Ultegra/105?
I take it the chain must be rewaxed ever 300 km or so, so getting it on/off easy is critical.
KMC do quick links -Your mileage might vary, but I’ve reused mine in the life of the chain with no detriment
@@alexobrien8585 I have the same experience here but SRAM quick links, snapped them on and off dozens of times without issue.
Yeah, no chainring tattoos with wax.
Too much work. It's also noisy, and your chain rusts if you go through a puddle.
Well done Alex! Best demo of the inner workings of a roller chain I've seen.
Great video. And after you have cleaned and lubed your chain, check for wear. New chain links are exact 1 inch apart. So get a ruler in inches and precisely measure 10 links with the clean chain on the bike. If your 10 th link is 1,5 mm or 1/16 inch off, put on a new chain. Thats about 0,6% “stretch”. Some say replace the chain at 0,5% some say at 0,75%. And because a chain is so much cheaper than a cassette or chainring and far more easy to replace, just replace your chain early. So clean and lubricate your chain as shown in the video. And replace your worn chain in time. And you don’t need a chain checker, just a ruler in inches. That is so much more clear and easy. Enjoy your diy. 🚴🏻♂️🔧
I use an upgrade to Si's WD40 hack. It's rhe WD40 Specialist White Lithium protective grease. Works like a champ you just spray it on liberally and wipe any excess off with an old sock. Chains are quiet, last a long time and no need for all the faff. Time is money
I've gone through the motion of lubing my chain, but this is the first time I'm understanding why I'm doing what I'm doing and whether I'm doing it correctly or not. There are a million videos telling us what to do - "lube your chain", "pay attention to your recovery", "do zone 2 rides!", etc. but without explaining why these things are beneficial, the advice is hard to stick. so would love more videos like this that not only talks about what to do and how to do it right, but more importantly why it's important.
100% brill, my dude. Molten wax.. undisputedly the best lube method. Silca Secret Chain lube.. arguably the best molten wax, top shelf either way. Imo the next best is drip on wax. My chain is so clean and quiet I feel privileged to use this stuff.
It appears to me that one way to shorten the life of a chain is to "clean it too well". By cleaning down to and into the factory lubricated part of the chain, we can actually be removing quality lubricant and replacing it with inferior lubricant. Worse still, road dirt and grime will have easier access to the working parts of the chain. As in everything, there is a balance between clean and too clean.
Factory lubricant was good 20 years ago. Now it is terrible. If you are using any modern product, you should remove all of the factory grease before applying. See Zero Friction Cycling.
@@JoshuaBorrow Thanks for your reply Josh, I will check out Zero Friction Cycling for more info. Cheers, PNH
What a great video Alex! Really well explained, I wanted to immediately go clean and re-lube my bike chain 😊 Do you have any tips on cleaning the chain on a direct drive turbo trainer? I’m reluctant to do to much cleaning in case it drips and messes with the electronics.
That's how we know we've done a good job! 🙌
Great video, thanks Alex! You mentioned reversing rotating the crank backwards after applying lube to the cleaned chain. I may of missed it, but curious the reverse action as opposed to normal forward rotation - what’s the reason? Cjeers
it,s just because you can't rotate it forward when not having the bike on a bikestand. simple
Thanks Alex. I learnt a lot
Excellent and very informative video! Cheers Alex!
Hi Guys, I use to clean the chain with a thin motoroil like SAE 5W and a microfibre cloth every 100-200km. That of course includes the cassette, chainrings and rollers. Then, in winter, I just use the same oil for a slight lubrication. In Summer, I lubricate with transmission oil SAE80 instead to make it stick better. Smells a little though. Big advantage is that these oils are cheap and never harden. Which means that you do not have to spend even more money and time on degreasing. Just clean and lubricate and wipe the excess oil off with a clean microfibre cloth. My chains last about one year until they approach the wear limit after about 6000-7000km, cassette and chain rings twice as long. Considering the money I do NOT spend on expensive special products, this seems a good compromise to me. Remember: A new chain costs less than a new can of expensive lube plus degreaser. I did a lot of Enduro & MC when I was younger and that are really chain murdering conditions. But the same applied: A seasonal selection of thick and thin engine or gearbox oils if applied frequently do the trick at a fraction of the cost of expensive special products. Think of the camchain in an internal combustion engine, which lubrication does it get? Correct. And If you are environmentally conscious: Use bio-degradable chainsaw oil. Or olive oil in winter. Also smells much nicer than gearbox oil.😀 But avoid other natural oils like sunflower, they harden quickly, olive oil is best.
But engines are not usually subject to the same level of external contamination that chains are to create a grinding paste (& they have a filter to deal with eg soot) so not really a good comparison
Isn't engine oil optimized for the higher temperatures found inside engines? Having said that, I imagine your method works fine as long as you clean the chain regularly. I find some of the expensive waxy lubes don't last long (sometimes less than a single ride before the chain gets that dry, unlubricated feel to it).
1:52 Should'nt you apply the lube inside the chain (not on top),
the side that actually touches the cassette and chainring when rolling?
by the time you've gone through the phaff of cleaning your chain and lubing each link, you might as well bite the bullet, clean your whole drivetrain and switch to waxing !
I'm surprised that magnatech that used in some engine lubricant is not in chain lube. Also, the additives that clean while lubing. Seems ideal for a chain ✌️
I love the hot wax method.
I use two chains and alternate them but as a deliveroo rider using a mid drive ebike I go through them fast.
Mobil 1, 0W16
Ceramic lube from muc-off. Always dry lube even if it rains since I think it is easier to maintain.
Hi Alex, a big thumbs up from me.
I used to use oil but have recently changed to hot wax (I hope i did it right, lets see Ollie's vid). I have found it great. Quieter, better shifting, altogether better.
The only draw back i have encoutered is, because when not being ridden, my bike lives in a damp shed (best I can do at the moment) the wax has worn off the outer surfaces and a thin rust film formed. What can I do?
Before you put the bike away, run the chain backwards through a rag made wet with WD40, it will displell any water without affecting the wax on the inside. Do not spray WD40 onto your chain, it goes everywhere, including onto your disks/rims.
@@carlmullender2941 Wipe the chain off with a rag and denatured alcohol. The alcohol will not leave any residue. Follow this up with a wax drip lube.
@@carlmullender2941 Thanks Carl.
Agree, at the end of a wet ride, just dry off any excess water on the chain with a rag. The good thing about wax is the rag won't get filthy like it would with an oil-based lube.
@@andrewmcalister3462 Thanks Andrew, good advice. I haven't ridden with this chain in the wet yet. But I will follow this advice.
I never re apply wet lube. but the dry lube I will if the chain still looks clean.
Im all for that retro Casio!
Wax all the way. When my chain starts to make noise I drop it in the pot. I have a dedicated small crockpot ($13 on Amazon) that I use. It does take a couple of hours to get the wax and chain up to temp but the results are worth it.
Do agree that the cassette does not need lube. However, just leaving it clean later shows small spots of rust on it. How do I prevent it (Campy Veloce groupset)?
Maybe a light layer of wax
dry it after cleaning
The reason for keeping your chain clean is not the chain, it is the more expensive sprocket. Chains are disposable and much cheaper than a good cogset. Keep your chain clean so your cogset lasts longerNever mind the chain, really. 😉
Yeah people paying more for a bottle of oil than a good new chain are mental 😂
#gcntech on a long travelling as 2500km how the best way to do chaine maintenance? Because we can t take all poduct like degreaser, soap, etc in my bags🤔
Just take some chain lube stuff with you and wipe it off with an old rag before lubrication. You can't ride in laboratory conditions if you do such a long ride.
My 8 speed hub motor e bike chains typically last 5k km without extensive cleaning once per month.
It's not so much a problem for me on my road bike, but how can I preserve my chain in cold and wet conditions, even if doesn't get too wet and dirty? I have a city bike and regularly clean my chain with one of those fancy-named park tools, also lubing it link-per-link and getting rid of any excess lube. However, after a few rides in winters conditions, it already shows some rust on out the outer plates, even though I have a towel to dry it after rainy rides and it's relatively clean. I really don't think special coating or something like that pays off on my old bike with a low-tier group set where the chain costs less than 20€ but I still want to get some decent mileage on it... is the material on these chains (Shimano 7/8/9 speed) so bad compared to 105 upwards?
I had the same problem as you especially in the winter I found the best way around this problem is to use chains that are nickel-plated from KMC and there are other manufacturers that use the same process. There are also other options like titanium and other metals but are for more expensive. It is that top coating flash Rust. And the cost is not that much more.
@@damian33dc Thanks for the tip. I think, the bike even had a KMC chain on coming from the factory. I also measured the chain and if I can trust my chain gauge, it has more wear than my road bike's 105 chain with 5-10 times the mileage. Let's try KMC on the next swap.
I use squirt. Just don’t google it from your work computer though.
Chain lube has some impact on wear. Good luck measuring it. It matters little to me anyways. I change my chain yearly due to stretch (i.e., lengthening of chain as the bushings wear against the pins). My plan: Save money on "magic" lube and replace chains as needed when they stretch past 0.5% 🔬.
I really thought that background was a green screen lol
At 1:51 your man is lubricating the outside of the chain, I thought you always did the inside ?
Finally GCN moves away from recommending Muc-Off shit. Wax base lube is the way to go.
Finally, someone at GCN who knows how a chain works and explains is correctly. Just remember, roller wear does not make a chain longer. It might make it shift a bit sloppy, but it’s only the pin to pin bore wear that makes a chain measure longer.
But they fail to appreciate that a chain ridden off road or in inclement weather on road gets dirty IMMEDIATELY. So getting it "pristine" through degreasing is really a waste of time. It's as much a waste of time as is scrubbing your tires perfectly clean after every ride. Why? They're dirty within minutes on the next ride, with all that "abrasive sludge" wearing things out right off the bat. Take care of your chains, but don't overdo it. They're consumable items that wear out. Change before elongation gets too bad and you're fine.
The only exception to this is immersion waxing. I've spent 45 years cleaning chains with all the different traditional lubes, wet and dry. Finally purchased bulk wax & powder tungsten disulfide to make my own chain wax. Can't wait to finally enjoy drive trains free of gunk (even though I've always taken care to prevent the build-up).
Almost all info copied from Zero Friction Cycling web
Dude on Bike, when your chain gets dirty immediately, is that dirt immediately getting past lubricant & onto inner surfaces? Is it getting past the Molybdenum Disulphide or Tungsten Disulphide additives that chemically bond to the metal to reduce friction? Nope. There's more to cleaning a chain thoroughly before lubricating than just keeping mud at bay. Read up on it from Silca or Zero Friction Cycling
@@mikeburgess5760 yes, but it doesn't "get past" lubricants. They aren't barriers. Dirt combines with the lubricant and creates an abrasive paste. If you understand capillary action of liquids, you quickly realize that grimy lube, water & mud work their way into the links and rollers almost immediately. The lube doesn't act as a barrier - it's an attractant for grime.
The advantage to wax is that it doesn't form an abrasive paste. Nor do dry lubricant powders, so they perform their function without the drawbacks of liquid lubes.
And yes, I've read a lot on the subject.
I have used approx. 25 different chain lubes over the last 30 years looking for the holy grail. The conclusion is it does not exist. I need to lube every 300km on average. I put 350 to 500km per week on average during the season. I clean my chain with mineral spirits (Varsol) until clear 3x then rinse with denatured alcohol. three years ago I tried wax. A real pain in the ass. Two seasons ago I was using Silca's secret sauce. It would last about 300km, but the chain would be black to the touch and I would have to clean the chain completely otherwise the product would not adhere to the chain if I wanted to do a touch-up to the chain. On the recommendation of Chris Horner (winner of Vuelta 13'), I tried the Squirt product. Best so far and it allows for touch-ups. After 8000km my chain has very little wear as measured with digital calipers. I run Record chains on my bikes. If Campy had a reusable quick link I would use an ultra-sonic cleaner.
For those who’ve had their interests piqued and want to dive deeper, silca has a whole series of YT vids on this and more - very informative!
Zero Friction Cycling has tons of deep dive testing that correlates well to Silca’s
@@wrwicky This!
Dylan Johnson has a really nice "interview-style" video with ZFC about lubes and everything you need to know about ;)
@@Keule_from_Mars Recommend!!!
@@wrwicky This!
I've been using immersive melt wax for over 30 yrs, but the last few years I've been using Silca Super Secret wax. I "hot wax" about every 1000 miles, but in between I wipe down the chain and apply their drip wax every 200 miles.
I’ve used Silca hot wax for over a year now and absolutely love it. I don’t have to worry about remembering to degrease/clean my chain and reapply drip lube every couple rides. I’ve even gone as far as waxing my wife’s and kid’s bike chains.
Same!
Great video Alex (Bob) Glad you also went to the wax lubrication. The real crucial part is saving wear on the Cassette and chain rings.
Dyan Johnson just uploaded a great video on this topic on his TH-cam channel. Zero Friction Cycling is a great place to go to decide which lube is best for you. Wax based is the only way to go. Silca Super Secret, Silca Synergetic or Rex Black Diamond look like great options for people or do not want to do the heated wax treatment.
This!!!
zfc did a lot for the lube market
Gear oil tuppence a Gallon used for 50 years works perfectly no need for fancy crap that costs a fortune
Works better in fact, people like these waxes & dry lubes cos they don't want to get their hands or clothes dirty 😂
Excellent video! I expected this to be the typical 'keep your chain clean and lubed techniques' video.
Anything but typical, Alex gave a pro level presentation giving us a better insight into the mechanics of our chain and why to lube the proper way.
Thank you GCN tech.
I use Boeshield T9 lube and have for the past 20 years.
OMFG this man works for the GCN corpo hacks. Interesting how long he will be able to tell the honest truth.
I don't think anyone has mentioned the quality of the chain itself. Often the ones that come stock on bikes are not the greatest. I usually wait for the inevitable chain wear and then replace with an Ultegra chain which lasts much much longer.
Also, have modern narrower chains (a result of going from 5-cogs in 1980s to 12 cogs today) made the chain wear problem greater? I wouldn't be surprised.
What's the point of purchasing a hollow chain to save weight if all the voids in the chain get filled with muck megating the weight savings ?
Ancillary to this, I have found that cleaning the pulley wheels fastidiously reduces drivetrain friction quite a lot.
Fully degreasing a chain is counter-productive. You're removing the lubrication from where it's needed. It will take a LOT of re-lubrication to get the new lube back into the rollers if you fully degrease a chain.
Plus, why get a chain "pristine" clean when it may be covered with dirt & mud within the first 20-30 minutes of your next ride? Mountain biking throws all sorts of stuff at your chain. As does wet road riding. A three, four, five, or more hour mountain bike ride entails riding with a LOT of dirt on & in your chain! So that "dreaded abrasive paste" will be inside your chain DESTROYING IT!!! OH THE HUMANITY!!!
So stop the hype. Adding fresh lube to a wiped down, but "still dirty" chain is fine. This is how everyone's been doing it for over a century. Chains wear; they're consumable. And you can't keep 'em pristine very long anyway.
That said, immersion wax with additives is the way to go. However, many engineers & experts argue that wax isn't really a true lubricant. We could debate it endlessly. Regardless, waxed chains tend to stay far cleaner and last as long, if not longer.
PS But if you ARE washing your bike thoroughly, then do spend a bit of extra time on the chain to rinse out contaminants. That plus compressed air is a great way to renew your chain during a wash.
I've only very recently begun to dive into the finer details of lubrication, and I've learned that I've been using a less than ideal lubricant thus far. I'm in the process of switching over to waxing my chains, beginning by learning everything I can about the process etc.
Great video! Especially the part where you took the chain apart!!! Haven't seen this before and it really helps understanding!👍
It would be nice to have closer close ups though
That was surprisingly more informative than expected. Thanks Alex.
Really appreciate this video. As an avid but relatively new cyclist my knowledge on routine maintenance is lacking. Any tips are appreciated.
Question is: but why are you shaving half of your mustache?
Molten Speed Wax all the way! I never clean my drive train anymore. At least no degreasing. Wipe down some dry wax residue using a rag from time to time. Once thoroughly cleaned then waxed for the first time, no need to do any more degreasing of drive trains. pop the chain off, dunk it in wax pot, shake then dry, pop it back on the bike. Used to get anywhere from 2000-6000 kms using various chain lubes. Having converted to wax 5 years ago, last chain lasted 20,000 km to reach 0.5 wear.
#grindingpaste
Cameo of Hank the Tank? Thumbs go up!
Never use Simple Green to clean a chain. Simple green can and will damage chains. It might not happen on the first time but will happen eventually.
true story. eventually the chain will snap
Ultimately, the solution to dirty chains and drive trains is the carbon belt. Not perfect, but a great alternative & solution to that dreaded mess!
Im not sure its "THE" solution, but its certainly a good one if running single speed or a gearbox
I use squirt lube (wax based). Cheap and keeps the chain life long. No need to mess around with melting the wax first. Just need to fully strip the factory grease. Best of all, it's clean and shiny.
Rubbish in the wet and having to fully degrease and dry the chain everytime is a PITA.
Would love to try chain waxing but Scotland is wet. For that reason I can’t be bothered going through the whole waxing process every single time after a rainy ride 😢
do the same process with multiple chains so you can just switch out or use waxbased driplube...
Just uses CRC chain lube or the extreme duty version. It doesn't care about water.
Great video. First time I've seen a completely dissected chain anywhere really, so touché on that. However, I respectfully disagree about the bits on not lubing the cassette, the chainrings, and the external chain surfaces, so hear me out please. I put a drop on one tooth of each cog and ring after I lube the chain, and then I run through the gears - all of them. Then, I wipe everything down with white cotton while spinning the crank. I want to see the residue decrease with each pass. There is ALWAYS something left on the cloth no matter how long one wipes. While wiping, I want my external chain surfaces and exposed parts of the cogs and rings every so slightly oiled because these surfaces do slide against each other, especially under torque. I am sorry, but I just don't see how lubing only the inside of the chain gets to these surfaces. Do I pick up more grime? I would suppose so, but I don't see it because I wash and lube my bike every week, or immediately after any wet or dirty ride. Does my bike shift better? I wouldn't know as my bikes are always clean and lubed. I also don't mind jumping on a sale of a new cassette and/or chain. I've had my Ultegra 11 speed for 8 years now and have replaced both the cassette and chain once because of a blowout sale, not because I had to. My bike with the SRAM Red hasn't seen any sales! LOL! Anyway, if you regularly clean your bike and really wipe it down after oiling, you can lube away I guess is the moral to my story. BTW, your golf club brush works perfectly!
It's a bit of a hassle to clean and lube the chain properly. I think a chain cleaning tool is truly necessary.
Mark the chain with the chalk or crayon in your puncture repair kit to indicate the start and finish point when lubing up. Avoids over lubing.
Nice Hack! 🙌
Start with the master link
You wipe of excess anyway but if you using expensive stuff be obcessive for that reason.
I have been using wax for some time now and it's the best option there is. It lasts longer, it lubes better than anything else and you can touch the chain after riding and have a clean hand. Never going back to liquid lubes again.
Great to hear that you've adopted waxing your chain 🙌
How often you need to apply new wax? I am interested in this, but have doubts how they last in very long continuous rides (400-500km)
Depends on conditions. Dry that distance should be fine but wet can wash out the wax fairly quickly. The performance of wax suspension bottled lubes should give you a good idea, a hot wax soaking is better but not massively so.
@@GSHemuli I just go by the sound of the chain, not a set number of km. But I think it could be around ~200. That said, I have an e-bike so there is more strain on the chain. It also depends on how well you clean the chain before waxing. I use melted paraffin wax without any additives so with a purpose made wax you can probably get a bit more too. Then lastly you can extend the interval by using the liquid wax lube when you start to hear squeaking without cleaning the chain or taking it off and it will last a bit longer.
@@martinmikus472 thank you for the info! I use Ultrasonic cleaner for all my chains. I will try some recommend molten wax from zero friction cycling and see how long it lasts.
i use rock&roll gold [light] to clean the chain and C3 ceramic [heavy] to lube. i have used all kinds of lube but these two combination works perfectly for both of my road and hybrid. keeps the chain clean and lubed longer and I can easily get about 4k miles out of midgrade chains before needing a change.
Wet lube all year round. I get about 2000 miles out of a chain before it hits the 1% mark on my chain checking tool (the highest is about 2800 miles, over last year's dry summer months, the lowest was about 600 miles through a particularly wet winter when I picked up a lot of rubbish off the roads and ended up with a grinding paste!)
I also find that a cassette won't last much longer than 4000 miles, (measured by seeing if a new chain jumps on the sprockets when installed) but that's another story.
Change chain at 0,75% to preserve your cassette
I estimate that I get between 2,400 and 2,800 miles on my chains and change at 0.7%. I have a cassette that still worked fine at 24,000 miles when I replaced it (when the chainwheels wore out).
That's pretty good going! I can't get 24,000 miles from one cassette (well, not from the most used sprockets on the cassette - it'd be nice if one could buy single sprockets so I could just replace the worn one).
How many speeds has the cassette got? (I'm using an 11 speed, and I find it wears quicker than my old 8 speed which I still use from time to time).
@@MBeest1000 I have an 11 speed 105 cassette (it’s cheaper than Ultegra😆). I do change chains frequently though.
Ultra sonic cleaner a god send cleans chain very well dry put back on lube just like new
I use Squirt - that’s the best chain lube ever, chain always looks clean, it never forms the dreaded paste and it’s environmentally friendly. Try it out, seriously good stuff.
It's fine, but far from the best. Check out zero friction cycling on youtube for intensive testing. Squirt comes out as an okay drip lube, but with penetration issues. Other more expensive wax based drip lubes like UFO drip are waaay better AND are cheaper when you take component wear into account.
Tried , good on kmc chains,they are made of stainless steel but not the best for shimano chains, after every wet ride shimano chains get rusty pretty quickly .
I also use it but I don’t know how often it should be applied (if used on dry conditions). Every ride (say 20 to 80 Km)? Every 100 Km? 200 Km? Currently I clean all the transmission after every ride, clean the chain with a cloth, apply wax, remove excess, done.
I've used it for a few years now on all my bikes. It has extended chain life, is very quiet, and keeps things clean. It has taken a little time to figure out how often to apply it though.
@@iggalan there is no set duration because it depends on the conditions you are riding.
I normally wipe the chain at the end of every ride with a clean rag. If chain sounds dry or looks like it needs lubrication then that gets addressed. The TT bike needs it about once per season (weekly use, almost never used in the rain because that’s unnecessary misery). The ‘cross bike gets a full chain cleaning and relube every race. For the pros, it’s even every lap sometimes!
With Squirt I found that excessive application lead to buildup around the jockey wheels. It didn’t need to be reapplied as often as I thought (road bike). I do not use it in bikes that will often deal with very dirty conditions like an MTB so not sure how it would fare there.
@3:50 I was waiting for Alex to call Si out from his previous WD-40 video😁
Multiple waxed chains in rotation.
My solution to 3x. Will likely outlast the bike.
Recently have changed my single speed bike chain, 1/2" X 1/8" which caused lots of noise which It didn't have with old chain.
I can't figure it out
Thanks
Castrol Power1 Racing 2T 2-stroke engine oil. About 1/4 the price of the best chain oils and probably does a better job due to more and longer R&D. Very good in the wet also, you can see the water beading on the surface but its also very easy to degrease with GT85 (also much cheaper than most drive chain degreasers). You're welcome. 👍
What's interesting is that there seem to be several and often differing opinions on drive train maintenance, depending on the source of the advice. I use Rock N Roll Gold for chain lube. The directions on the bottle are in complete opposition to your instruction here.
The bottle indicates that a healthy stream should be applied to the chain at the cassette. Perhaps it's because the product is a cleaner and lube combined. But it's frustrating to try to do the right thing, only to hear that I'm making mistakes.
My search for knowledge has left me feeling empty.
1:24 "A Giant Grinding Paste" Is that a giant invented by Roald Dahl? & also, the pedantic "One drop per roller" technique: you realise that in a chain with 112 links, that's 224 rollers? No-one has time for that. Point your applicator nozzle at the inside of the (clean{ish}) chain, pedal backwards 4 or 5 times, wipe; done.
Rock N Roll says you should shift to the highest gear, i.e., small cog on cassette and big ring up front. Does this really make any difference? What do you think? They also say to stream on the lube over the small cog while pedaling backwards (I also asked this in the Comments of another of GCN's lube videos). Thanks!
Hi @GCN Tech:
I'm Sadly missing one important thing: please precise WHERE TO APPLY the lubricant! Sometimes, it's done right, sometimes, it's done wrong in your examples in the video!
If you are on the road and don't have time to let your freshly lubed chain sit over night, lube the INNER circumference of the chain! Therefor, apply the oil on the chain below the chain stay! The centrifugal force generated when pedaling then transports your lube past the pins and through the entire chain, to all those places, exactly where we want it to reach!
When done wrong by lubing the chain on the outside, because of the centrifugal force generated by pedaling, all the oil is going to fling off, and there it is, where the real waste of product is talking place!
Only ever apply lube on the outer side of your chain, when you have time to let it sink in and let gravity do it's job over night! And it's only the next morning, when you wipe off the excess product!
I think the oil penetrates the microscopic gaps between rollers, pins and links via capillary action and by virtue of its low viscosity. I don't think gravity or centrifugal force matters so much.
@@chriswright9096 it does indeed matter especially in racebikes if you shift the chain through all the gears.... And it is dangerous when having rimbrakes, because drops of lube could fling off the chain and hit the rim... Small but important security mesure tought at any swiss professional bike mechanic formation school.
Sorry, Alex. But I could not quit see what you were refering to. Your talk and the cameraposition didn't play. And the conclusion, where should I lube... ?
Canadian Winter, with slush and salt, will T**** your chain. I run two chains on my Winter bike; one on and one spare.
The T**** spare goes into Naptha spirits to get the crap that I put on off, then is brush washed in detergent to clean the street crap off. It hangs to dry overnight, then soaks in 3 in 1 oil.
When to change your chain? When it's -15 and you kick your pedal back and it goes back forward, your chain is T****ed and needs to be replaced.
Don't forget the rest of your mech when your chain is off. Hose it with WD40 to clean out the salt water and wipe down.
"Misstake 2 - lubricating the cassette" - said the GCN presenter... Ok, i see... th-cam.com/video/7yvIDDVF0MA/w-d-xo.html (09:30 timestamp)
I use racing oil on my every day racing bike, especially for wet weather. Because it better protects my chain against bad weather conditions. In the summer I use "dry lube" because it lubricates and shifts the chain well. I work in a bicycle shop and a while ago an email from SRAM went around asking not to use wax. We also notice in the workshop that a lube shifts much better and is quieter than wax.
Yeah, that's my experience too but I'm always a little scared to voice it because so many people swear by the waxy stuff (its a kind of emperor's new clothes thing).
Weldtite all weather TF2 is the best everyday bike oil by far, cheap too. Tho honestly I'd rather use engine oil than trash like muc-off, squirt, or whatever...
The best is motor oil....I tested many special chain lubricant, but regardles to chain life,the best is motor oil...and much,much cheaper....anyway....motor oil is steel number one lubricant in auto industria
Myth? Oil “attracts” dirt. It will hold dirt on your chain, but dirt does not “jump” onto your chain as if it is magnetic.
Oh Boy mine has this issue as well but I thought it would break itself in I have 430 KMs on it but I’m going to loosen it up as I’m scared I may have damaged something…
8:58 you're showing a bushed chain, and all of your other explanations pertain to a bushingless chain. Also, your closeups are disjointed & a bit nonsensical. If you're going to do tech, work out a script with a bit longer lead time than 1/2hr before filming.
Wolf Tooth chain lube. Lasts longer than regular lube. Waiting for a LBS to start stocking the precision applicator. I know I end up wasting too much lube.
Rock’n’Roll Gold. Quick, easy, lasts and stays pretty clean. Wax process is too time consuming (I know it’s very good as a lubricant but it just takes too long).
Interesting - but weird music playing softly in the background was distracting. Kept pausing the video to see if I'd left the radio on ...
I just use chainsaw oil lol. It's for high speed chains so.... been using it years with no problems
does anyone else get the impression that GCN films a lot of random segments then smashes them together with little disregard for fluidity?
Wax my chains. Haven't had to replace in 3 years. Rewax every 500-700 miles. No more grease tattoos or nasty mess when changing tires and very little wear on my wallet.
What chain is £80 holy crap I've seen them for like £40-50 and that's a lot what's it made of unobtanium.
you're lubing your chain wrong and telling people how to do it also wrong
You don't wipe any excess with ceramic lubes, and you lube the chain for the inner side, not the outside like you do in the video.
Doing what you say and show here your chain won't be lubed at all, is just symbolic.
Clean and lubricate often! WD, 3in1, doesn't matter; clean and lube often.
It does beg the question, if the side effect of a worn chain is that the roller inner diameter is slightly larger, and the post outer diameter is slightly smaller, why doesn't the roller just find it's happy place on the sprocket/chainwheel tooth as it has more freedom to find said happy place, and the real stress of the pulling forces are on the arcs of chain that cover the front of the chainring and the back of the cassette sprocket where they are already seated firmly on their teeth. We say that the spacing between rollers has increased on a "stretched" worn chain, but it's both increased and decreased without actually changing the real spacing across the entire length that runs from the Top Dead Center of the sprocket and TDC of the chainring. If the chain is still the same ultimate length, is seems illogical that a worn chain is really responsible for tooth damage, as engagement at the back of the bike is not under load, and on the front of the bike is really under stress at the whole forward half of the chainring.
Could this entire theory of a worn chain causing tooth damage actually be correlation with poor chain maintenance (dirt) in general causing friction/grinding down of the teeth and not at all be causation associated with a worn chain? Let's talk to some sprocket makers. I bet they know the real story.
Before we accept popular "wisdom" let's not forget that skinny tire theory was wrong for way too long, because we failed to challenge it.
The close-up portion would have been better if it was closer and continuous while Alex was talking. There was no need to cut away to show Alex's face.
If I'm traveling without the chance to wash the chain every time I need to apply lubrication, is it better not to lubricate at all? Or are there "on the go" solutions?
i’m not a bike guy. ride few times a year. my chain just broke first time i rode after oiling the chain. coincidence? or can a bad lube job cause that. Bike is like 3 years old
Should a new chain be degreased from a factory grease/lube before installing?
You guys just had Ollie put out a video about waxing the chain. I'm confused now.
I use rock n roll red. It cleans and lubes in one so different approach. What do you think Alex. Chain is never dark with grease as it does not pick up dirt.
heard this a lot but cleaning is solvent and lubing is basicly the opposit or do I missunderstand something?