bike info.

dazzzer

Getting my new bike today and just wondering If the chain should be oiled? If not how long should i leave it before oiling the chain?

cooldad

No and when it needs it. Really no time interval.

dhobiwallah

Thousands of threads on this with no consensus!

Factory lube is thick and usually completely coating the internals. Unfortunately as it is so thick it tends to pick up rubbish externally too. Dirt + lube = grinding paste wearing your drivetrain.

In this weather you will prob need to clean your drivetrain after every ride anyway (which will then require re-lubing). In better conditions it will go a lot longer!

Some swear by thorough degreasing the chain to get rid of all the dirt/lube mix inside the links. Others point out that you won't get the lube back inside the chain effectively so you shouldn't bother...

Halfway house - If you can see visible crud sticking to the chain then clean it off the surface. Relube with wet lube at the moment (doesn't get washed off as easily) and dry lube in the summer (dust doesn't stick to it so stays clean longer).

Frequency is practically unaffected by time - much more by distance/conditions. If you ride 50m in a day in the rain/mud you will prob need to lube it mid ride - if you ride 50m in a year you prob won't need to at all!

diy

These are not sealed units with o rings, so I don't understand why you cannot re-lube as effectively as the manufacturer?

I stick mine in a paraffin bath every couple of months to flush the dirt out and then in a light oil bath, before wiping it down and refitting. I'll add chain lube every ride.

Anonymous

A little lube every rid, more if wet, always dry lube, wipe down with a rag after washing the bike and relube, very rarely a proper clean and never degreased.

Seems to last as long as anyone else's. If not longer. Shifts fine, runs fine, and I rarely snap chains yet seem to give my spare links out to everyone else.

IT66T

Excuse me for seeming like an idiot but what do you use for a dry lube as i've only just got back into mtbing and i'd never heard of dry lube before .

dhobiwallah

diy wrote:

These are not sealed units with o rings, so I don't understand why you cannot re-lube as effectively as the manufacturer?

I stick mine in a paraffin bath every couple of months to flush the dirt out and then in a light oil bath, before wiping it down and refitting. I'll add chain lube every ride.

The second half of your post is the 'won't' as opposed to 'can't' re-lube as effectively as the manufacturer - the missus wouldn't allow a variety of oil or paraffin baths lying around her kitchen while chains are penetrated...

But presumably the manufacturers stuff is thicker than yours so would have to be heated during application to penetrate effectively?

nicklouse

diy wrote:

These are not sealed units with o rings, so I don't understand why you cannot re-lube as effectively as the manufacturer?

I stick mine in a paraffin bath every couple of months to flush the dirt out and then in a light oil bath, before wiping it down and refitting. I'll add chain lube every ride.

Because what you are doing is all based on hope.

You hope you get all the crud out.

You hope all the solvents dry out of the chain.

You hope that lube get to all the places you want it to be.

Long_Time_Lurker

IT66T wrote:

Excuse me for seeming like an idiot but what do you use for a dry lube as i've only just got back into mtbing and i'd never heard of dry lube before .

Most companies do 'dry' and 'wet' versions of their lube now. It all depends on the conditions you are riding in.
The 'dry' version (while still literally wet), isn't as sloppy and greasy as the 'wet' version. Wet lube is designed to be used in wet conditions, as it is harder to wash off in mud and water.
The dry version is easier to wash off, but is designed to withstand dust and grit (which tends to stick to the wet lube).
Or something
See here: http://www.finishlineusa.com/frequentquestions/index.htm

Anonymous

dhobiwallah wrote:

But presumably the manufacturers stuff is thicker than yours so would have to be heated during application to penetrate effectively?

This.

As I understand it.

Long Time Lurker wrote:

Most companies do 'dry' and 'wet' versions of their lube now. It all depends on the conditions you are riding in.
The 'dry' version (while still literally wet), isn't as sloppy and greasy as the 'wet' version. Wet lube is designed to be used in wet conditions, as it is harder to wash off in mud and water.
The dry version is easier to wash off, but is designed to withstand dust and grit (which tends to stick to the wet lube).

Yep. The problem a lot of people get into is they look out the window, it's a bit of rain, on goes the wet lube. Wet really is more ideal for continual riding through relatively clean rivers and puddles (in my opinion), because otherwise dry won't wash off much with regular muddy wet or bit of a shower and the wet will get dust, grid and crud deep into the chain that's a nightmare to clean if not is abrasive to the chain, cassette and rings. After wet you need to clean and degrease to get the stuff off before applying dry, and the degrease will strip out the good stuff from inside the chain so it needs a thorough oil soak and work the oil into the rollers, but it won't be as good as new.

In short, in my opinion you almost always can just use dry. Wet just seems to serve the purpose of flogging an additional item people don't need. As much benefit as a can of GT85 I've concluded (and I'm not the only one).

IT66T

Long Time Lurker wrote:

IT66T wrote:

Excuse me for seeming like an idiot but what do you use for a dry lube as i've only just got back into mtbing and i'd never heard of dry lube before .

Most companies do 'dry' and 'wet' versions of their lube now. It all depends on the conditions you are riding in.
The 'dry' version (while still literally wet), isn't as sloppy and greasy as the 'wet' version. Wet lube is designed to be used in wet conditions, as it is harder to wash off in mud and water.
The dry version is easier to wash off, but is designed to withstand dust and grit (which tends to stick to the wet lube).
Or something
See here: http://www.finishlineusa.com/frequentquestions/index.htm

Wow that's cracking stuff 8) and i never saw anything like these lubes back in the 80's as all i use to use back then was light oil and a chain bath with a citrus cleaner when required .

Thanks for the info .

Anonymous

IT66T wrote:

back in the 80's as all i use to use back then was light oil and a chain bath with a citrus cleaner when required .

Yeah, that will do. Chains haven't really changed, or the weather

IT66T

deadkenny wrote:

IT66T wrote:

back in the 80's as all i use to use back then was light oil and a chain bath with a citrus cleaner when required .

Yeah, that will do. Chains haven't really changed, or the weather

Some how i kinda noticed the weather hadn't changed but i will be giving the dry lube ago as i'm curious to see what it's like and then decide if i prefer it to the light oil lol .

cooldad

Wax or dry lube works fine in all weather, just have to apply more often when it's horrible.
I use Squirt Lube - you might not want to google that on a family computer so
http://www.in2dust.co.uk/

Follow the directions and it's the best I've tried.

tonionio

http://is01.thegumtree.com/image/extrabig/127047781.jpg

Can someone recognise the model please?

cheers

IT66T

cooldad wrote:

Wax or dry lube works fine in all weather, just have to apply more often when it's horrible.
I use Squirt Lube - you might not want to google that on a family computer so
http://www.in2dust.co.uk/

Follow the directions and it's the best I've tried.

Thanks for that cooldad , i'll give that a try as it looks dam good stuff .

cooldad

tonionio wrote:

http://is01.thegumtree.com/image/extrabig/127047781.jpg

Can someone recognise the model please?

cheers

Ask the seller.

cooldad

IT66T wrote:

cooldad wrote:

Wax or dry lube works fine in all weather, just have to apply more often when it's horrible.
I use Squirt Lube - you might not want to google that on a family computer so
http://www.in2dust.co.uk/

Follow the directions and it's the best I've tried.

Thanks for that cooldad , i'll give that a try as it looks dam good stuff .

Bikeradar seem to think so too
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/ ... lube-32098

Although as I said I use it all year round. Just quite a lot when the weather's really sh1t..

IT66T

cooldad wrote:

IT66T wrote:

cooldad wrote:

Wax or dry lube works fine in all weather, just have to apply more often when it's horrible.
I use Squirt Lube - you might not want to google that on a family computer so
http://www.in2dust.co.uk/

Follow the directions and it's the best I've tried.

Thanks for that cooldad , i'll give that a try as it looks dam good stuff .

Bikeradar seem to think so too
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/ ... lube-32098

Although as I said I use it all year round. Just quite a lot when the weather's really sh1t..

That's a very impressive review and the comments all very positive to which is all reassuring and not to be ignored lol .