Chain Lube suggestions

venster

Just bought myself a nice new shiny DA 9 sp. chain.

What I need now is a kube that doesn't turn the chain black and grimy after every ride. At the moment I'm using a lube for dry and dusty conditions, probably not the best for this weather.

Can anybody suggest anything that keeps it nice and shiny and silver ?

onbike 1939

Pro link Gold will keep it lubed and clean, but I'd look for something more for wet conditions such as Finish Line lube for use in protracted wet weather conditions.

APIII

The Finish Line Cross country is good stuff for the current weather conditions. The flip side of having a weatherproof lube, is that it tends to collect more grime, so you may find you need to degrease and reapply more often.

giant_man

You need a dry lube and not a wet one, cos as already stated, it does collect grime.

JWSurrey

In agreement with the dry lube brigade.
I recently tried Finish Line wet lube (green label) - Bike transmission, chainstay and me ended up covered in oily gritty grime that was extra difficult to remove with the chain cleaner.
Going back to the Finish Line red label (or gold label) dry lube I used last winter.

DavidTQ

I use a dry lube (thats supposed to be all weather) Weldtite TF2 plus, Ive been using it for nearly a year now, not had any problems so far. The chain does go black in the rain from road crap, but not due to the lube - the Lube is opaque white . I dont know if there is a lube out there that actually lubes well and keeps your chain shiney and silver on the rainiest of days.

synchronicity

I use finish line krytech on my personal bikes. Only cause the drivetrain looks cleaner.

feel

giant mancp wrote:

You need a dry lube and not a wet one, cos as already stated, it does collect grime.

I'm no expert, but was under the impression that wet lubes are better than dry in wet conditions and that dry lubes are best in dry dusty conditions. So a wet lube is probably best choice in winter and a dry lube for summer, (unless the bike is not used in the rain).

DavidTQ

feel wrote:

giant mancp wrote:

You need a dry lube and not a wet one, cos as already stated, it does collect grime.

I'm no expert, but was under the impression that wet lubes are better than dry in wet conditions and that dry lubes are best in dry dusty conditions. So a wet lube is probably best choice in winter and a dry lube for summer, (unless the bike is not used in the rain).

My dry lube says its for all conditions, the wet or dry is the state of the lube itself I believe rather than its intended use

feel

DavidTQ wrote:

[
My dry lube says its for all conditions, the wet or dry is the state of the lube itself I believe rather than its intended use

yes that is right, and some dry lubes do profess to be all weather, but according to this in general a wet lube is more effective in the wet. It does however seem if you read enough on this subject you come across people saying the exact opposite of each other and everything inbetween

DavidTQ

feel wrote:

DavidTQ wrote:

[
My dry lube says its for all conditions, the wet or dry is the state of the lube itself I believe rather than its intended use

yes that is right, and some dry lubes do profess to be all weather, but according to this in general a wet lube is more effective in the wet. It does however seem if you read enough on this subject you come across people saying the exact opposite of each other and everything inbetween

When I was a kid my bike chains got a good dose of everyman 3 in 1 oil once a year whether they needed it or not...

dazzawazza

I'd prefer to renew the chain more often and use dry lube.
I used Finish Line wet lube last year and the chain became black and grimy in no time. Even though I was careful the grime ended up on my shoes, clothing and house furniture (my back garden is only accessible through the house).
These items were very difficult to clean as well as the chain itself.
I now use Finish Line dry lube (red container), and apply it more often.

Lucky Luke

dazzawazza wrote:

I'd prefer to renew the chain more often and use dry lube.
I used Finish Line wet lube last year and the chain became black and grimy in no time. Even though I was careful the grime ended up on my shoes, clothing and house furniture (my back garden is only accessible through the house).
These items were very difficult to clean as well as the chain itself.
I now use Finish Line dry lube (red container), and apply it more often.

I agree totally . The Cross Country does do its job as a lube but it's too messy for my liking . I've a spare bottle almost full of the Cross country (green top) if anyone wants one you can have it If you pay the postage just PM me .

Jeff Jones

I've had good results this winter with Finish Line wet lube, provided I wipe down the chain with a dry cloth after each ride. That avoids all the build up of gunk and also the need to use degreaser.

I need to do a km comparison but last winter I was using a chain cleaning tool + degreaser regularly followed by lots of lube. I'm pretty sure it led to an early death of the chain.

venster

Jeff Jones wrote:

I need to do a km comparison but last winter I was using a chain cleaning tool + degreaser regularly followed by lots of lube. I'm pretty sure it led to an early death of the chain.

This why I ask, I regularly degreased and lubed the chain, probably more often than I should, and reckon it trashed the chain after only a year....

Steve I

I've tried a few of those wet lubes, they're not much different to 3 in 1, you might as well use that. Any wet oil seems to attract a ton of dirt and flings off all over the rear wheel, frame and your shoes, nice. Last year I bought a can of Multi Lube by Finesse Products, from wiggle, big mistake, think liquid grease in a can. I've never seen the back end of my bike in such a dirty state, give it its dues though, the transmission did run very quietly for the first 20 miles.

I use a dry lube after the occasional degreasing I give the chain. Following this I use Weldtite cycle spray as required until the next time I degrease, Gt 85 is just as good and despite what some people say, it is a lubricant.

redddraggon

venster wrote:

it trashed the chain after only a year....

I wouldn't keep the chain on for that long. 4 or 5 months on an expensive (eg chorus) chain before changing it. I'm on my 4th 8 speed chain since June for my commuting bike - due to various reasons - cheap enough to discard if there's any problems.

JWSurrey

The problem with wet lubes is that they seem to be designed on the premise that they are glupe, don't wash away in the rain readily, and penetrate the "bearing surfaces" better.
From personal experience, the wet lubes I've used seem to be more like grit magnets which are then difficult to flush/clean off.

If you want to preserve your chain, perhaps consider buying two with something like a Connex link on each - keep one in a cleaning bath of your chosen potion, and one to ride.
That way you always have a clean chain standing by.

I'm sticking to dry lubes and my regular chain cleaning regime - works for my chains.... I also run a rag round the derailleur wheels and scrub the cassette with a long cassette brush and some degreaser - as long as you're careful, it shouldn't get in the wheel bearings. Spray it on the brush rather than the cassette if you're concerned.

nickwill

In the past I've made the mistake of equating a 'clean' chain with an efficient chain. It's no use having a gleaming chain, with no internal lube. I used to regularly degrease my chain, but I've now stopped. Wax based lubes last about 30 miles in persistent wet Cumbrian weather. GT85 (as a lubricant) as suggested above led to the complete trashing of a new chain within 200 miles.
Finish Line Cross Country is a good lubricant, but IMHO it is too much of a grit magnet.
Personally I like Pedro's Syn Lube for Winter conditions, and Pedro's Road Rage for the Summer.
To clean the chain I spray the aforementioned GT85 on to a cloth and wipe the chain while turning the pedals. If the sprockets are grotty, I wipe them using a cloth again with GT85 sprayed on it. This way I get things externally clean without the internal lube being removed. I then lube the chain sparingly.
Even being careful, I'm lucky to get more than 2000- 2500 miles from a 10 speed chain, so am amazed that anyone could keep one for some of the periods suggested above.

dennisn

I use "Rock and Roll" extreme lube on my road bike. Couple times a week if I'm
riding a lot. It's more of a wax lube than oil (I think). Really keeps the old driveline quiet
and pretty clean. Don't know if it's available across the water.

Dennis Noward
USA

APIII

Even being careful, I'm lucky to get more than 2000- 2500 miles from a 10 speed chain, so am amazed that anyone could keep one for some of the periods suggested above.

Really? I got 4,500 out of my last chain and I only changed it becasue I switched to a compact.

nickwill

APIII wrote:

Even being careful, I'm lucky to get more than 2000- 2500 miles from a 10 speed chain, so am amazed that anyone could keep one for some of the periods suggested above.

Really? I got 4,500 out of my last chain and I only changed it becasue I switched to a compact.

What state was your cassette in though?