types of oil on chain?

radio raheem

Is it ok to use car engine oil on your bike chain?

nicklouse

NO.

use a Cycle chain lube.

radio raheem

such as? I used to use vaseline but that wasn't as effective as previous oils.....

nicklouse

any cycle chain lube is better than anything you have mentioned yet.

Finish line, wet or dry. White Lightning or..... any.

radio raheem

ok sound-where is the cheapest place to get hold of this?

nonnac85

free delivery

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Bran ... =PRICE_ASC

radio raheem

Spot on

Cheers.

Marjory Stewart BAxtor

radio raheem wrote:

Is it ok to use car engine oil on your bike chain?

dare you to try it. i dare you!!

if it doesn't work, spit and polish will get it off.

cunning-stunt

radio raheem wrote:

I used to use vaseline

This is a joke. Right?

biftek

car oil is too thick
in the past tried out a few different tyle of chain lube , settled on sewing machine oil(pick it up at your local supermarket) does the job just fine

omegas

Chain oil needs to be inside the chain , very little is needed on the outside as a properly lubricated chain the rollers spin and do not drag across the sprockets.

A lot of chain lubricants now contain solvent so they are low viscosity and the lube will run into the rollers and then evaporate off , using oils is ok but there is a lot better chain lubricants on the market that have been developed of the years and cost next to nothing to buy.

z000m

i would never use oil on my chain,

cee

i prefer to use porridge

Gwaredd

I use car oil on my chain (10w/40 to be precise) & it works great. Recommended by my LBS who's been riding over 20 year & never had a problem with it yet. Chain lubes are overpriced & overrated IMO.

z000m

chain lube cost less than 10w/40 motor oil, tell ur lbs i said hes a jerk

xtreem

I used car oil before but that is too thick and it collects a lot of dust, mud and that kind of stuff on the chain and cassette. Now I use WD-40 (it writes on it that is for 1000 home usage) and when I lubricate it cleanes the chain ahd remains clean. Great stuff.


PS It writes on it that is produced in England.

god1406

i use oily oil...

and grease that lives in a powdered milk tub which was 'borrowed' when my grandad worked for the coalboard.

Andy B

WD40 is not a lubricant, it's a Water Displacer. It evaporates quickly & leaves no residue to protect your drivetrain from wear & tear.

The best thing to use is the correct stuff that was designed for the purpose, something like Finish Line (which is very good & long lasting so quite cheap in the long run)

god1406

http://www.wd40.co.uk/index.cfm?articleid=1519

''LUBRICATES: WD-40's lubricating ingredients are widely dispersed and hold firmly to all moving parts''


meh.

Anonymous

wd 40 is clearly a lubricant, it is just so thin that it will be thrown from the chain in a very short while.

i dont see what is wrong with engine oil as a lube, if it is good enough for the moving parts in your engine, it cant be "bad" for a bike chain.

i use a halfords wet lube on my chain and i reckon it is much thicker than most engine oil. it does however do a supperb job of lubricating and lasts for ages. i think it cost a fiver and it is spot on.

i also use it on my forks to keep the seals nice and stiction free.

Andy B

WD-40 stands for Water Displacement, 40th formula

# 50%: Stoddard solvent (mineral spirits, somewhat similar to, but not the same as, kerosene) Will evaporate quickly
# 25%: Liquefied petroleum gas (presumably as a propellant, carbon dioxide is used now to reduce considerable flammability)
# 15+%: Mineral oil (light lubricating oil) Ooh that's lots of lube

radio raheem

Glad we got that resolved!

What do you do if your chain develops a little bit of rust on 1 or 2 chain links...... Should this be removed somehow before applying lubricant or should it just be ignored and left to sort itself out through general use after having added said item.......?

god1406

oil the rusty links along with the rest of the chain and the rusty colour goes.

astroglide is my lube of choice...

capoz77

I use Purple extreme its about £15 for 2 bottles, lasts ages, drys like a wax so doesnt attract crap and "Purple Extreme was originally formulated to protect drive chains in the mining business and on offshore oil rigs, in some the harshest conditions imaginable, for months at a time." Sells it for me.

Take a look, once youve tried it there is no going back

# High Mileage Per Application – Most cyclists Experience 400+ Miles of Road Riding Between Applications of Purple Extreme

# Best Value For Your Money! One Bottle of Purple Extreme Provides Three or More Times the Mileage of Most Competing Products

# Runs Clean – Doesn't Attract Dirt

# Originally Designed To Run Chains In Salt Water – Will Not Wash Off In Rain, Mud Or Snow

# Smooth Running - Reduces Drivetrain Noise

# All Conditions Lubrication Security – Protects From Wear Up To 400° F. and Down To -100° F.

# Does Not Harden in Cold Conditions

# Ultra High Film Strength – Prevents Metal To Metal Wear

# Stays In Place – Does Not Shed or Fling Off

# Penetrates Quickly To All Parts Of The Chain

# Helps Prevent Corrosion – Stops Rust From Ruining Your Drivetrain

http://www.purpleextreme.com/

cjw

capoz77 wrote:

I use Purple extreme its about £15 for 2 bottles, lasts ages, drys like a wax so doesnt attract crap and "Purple Extreme was originally formulated to protect drive chains in the mining business and on offshore oil rigs, in some the harshest conditions imaginable, for months at a time." Sells it for me.

Take a look, once youve tried it there is no going back

# High Mileage Per Application – Most cyclists Experience 400+ Miles of Road Riding Between Applications of Purple Extreme


http://www.purpleextreme.com/

I've seen this quoted before but how does the lube take to being washed. I wash the bike thoroughly after a muddy ride (ie most rides) using Fenwicks (or similar). Does this remove Purple Extreme which would then need reapplying? I've found with other lubes that after a good wash - especially involving getting the mud from the drivetrain you need to re-apply. Is this stuff different?

KonaMike

Ive never heard of using car oil on bike chains :? I use Finish line Wet or dry ,depending on the time of year,last for ages and keeps everything smooth.

I use GT 85 too but only for polishing my frame up!

The Big Cheese

KonaMike wrote:

Ive never heard of using car oil on bike chains :? I use Finish line Wet or dry ,depending on the time of year,last for ages and keeps everything smooth.

I use GT 85 too but only for polishing my frame up!

Same as that - I only use finish line lubes - bloody great imo.

Also - as above ^^ GT85 for the frame and to drive out water from my chain/cassette after they have been scrubbed (prior to lubing)

I don't get why it's so hard to get the proper material for the job.... and it's not exactly expensive ( but I do understand that people have budgets - before I get lynched) but if you need lube for a bike chain - buy lube for a bike chain. Not trying to find a reason to use lard.

Bikes, cars etc need maintaining so the cost never stops - and if you want the best for your rig, treat it with care and use the right product(s)

Will Snow

id love to see a load of bikes go past me with chains lubed with engine oil, wd40, chip fat, ky jelly, soap, bannana (very slippery), and all this other weird stuff

wiffachip

just gettin back into cycling after a canny long break - can you still get LPS3 and LPS cleaner ?

Cheshley

every few weeks I treat my chain to a drop of ZX1 friction reducer on each link. It's a bit tedious but seems to work better than just using chain lube.

http://www.zx1store.co.uk/departments.cfm?id=4

Blundell

I have to admit, I use good old oil (actually says carlube on the side of the bottle). I find that it runs pretty damn well. Okay I only really notice any problems come the dusty summer as fine silty paticles tend to gunk up the chain over time. But saying that I do tend to clean my bike excessively in any case, so for me it isn't an actual issue.
I'm pretty sure that the actual major lubricant in both lube and oil is essentially the same, however, I would suspect that the 'high tech' lubes put a very small amount of surfactant into the oil to make it more water repelant or slightly charged so that it repels small sand / silt grains from getting incorporated into the main body of the lubricant.