Chain lube for silver chains

acf8181

Whats a good, not too pricey lube to use that doesn't turn the chain and cassette black?

chrisw333

Squirt.

It's a wax lube so you never have to degrease. But you need to get it right when you first use it - thorough de-grease of your drive train first.

ej2320

The reason the chain and cassette are going black is probably because you haven't cleaned/degreased them properly

I use finish line, does the job for me and pretty much everywhere stocks it

peter413

Squirt is useless when it's pissing wet and you're out for more than a few hours. I've had the chain get surface rust before I was finished riding. Pretty good in the dry though. I find Finishline Wet Lube to be decent, it's cheap, isn't too sticky but stays on the chain when it needs too. I swap between the Finishline and Squirt depending on the weather. Never degrease or clean the chain between swapping lubes, just look outside and if it's dry I grab the Squirt and if it's wet I grab the Finishline.

No need to degrease your chain and cassette if you apply the lube properly. I always apply it liberally, wait a while and then thoroughly run the chain through a rag or I skip the rag if I'm using the Squirt. After every hose down the chain gets a re-lube. I don't know how people go for weeks without having to re-lube their chain in the wet but that's when you always see the huge build up of black cack.

njee20

finish Line XC not too sticky?! Hahahaha, good one! It's like crude oil!

Squirt for dry weather. White Lightning Wet Ride in the wet and clean your chain.

WindyG

I'm trying Finish Line Dry Teflon lubricant which seems to be working quite well in most conditions.
That Finish Line XC is total crap might as well use engine oil.
+1 for squirt but dry only and only on a well degreased chain.

chrisw333

peter413 wrote:

Squirt is useless when it's pissing wet and you're out for more than a few hours

Hmm, I wonder why?

peter413 wrote:

. Never degrease or clean the chain between swapping lubes, just look outside and if it's dry I grab the Squirt and if it's wet I grab the Finishline. No need to degrease your chain and cassette if you apply the lube properly. I always apply it liberally, wait a while and then thoroughly run the chain through a rag or I skip the rag if I'm using the Squirt

oh.

Squirt needs to be applied on a bone dry totally clean (degreased) chain. It needs to be left to dry off ideally overnight and maybe even a second layer applied.

It's not as hard wearing as motor oil, but I've used it in very wet rides (including 6 hours Peaks epics in torrential rain and with axle deep puddles) with no major issues. It will wear off in the we though and you do need to reapply after a wet ride. Once you have the routine sorted, squirt is an outstanding product.

njee20

. Never degrease or clean the chain between swapping lubes, just look outside and if it's dry I grab the Squirt and if it's wet I grab the Finishline. No need to degrease your chain and cassette if you apply the lube properly. I always apply it liberally, wait a while and then thoroughly run the chain through a rag or I skip the rag if I'm using the Squirt

So you're not using the product as it needs to be, and it's the product that's crap? Oooook.

peter413

I've followed all the nonsense degreasing etc when I first started using it and it didn't make the slightest difference. The Finishline is a good compromise, there's some far stickier lubes out there that no matter what you do always pick up every little bit of dirt possible. I know a few people have had the same issue with Squirt as well but good for you if it works ok for you, just telling my experience.

chrisw333

If you're just adding liberally and then going out to ride then you are not letting it dry. The whole point is it needs to dry to a hard protective finish.

It does wear off on a wet ride, but is far more durable than you are making out.

peter413

chrisw333 wrote:

If you're just adding liberally and then going out to ride then you are not letting it dry. The whole point is it needs to dry to a hard protective finish.

Where did I say I did that? It's always left overnight at a minimum.

chrisw333

peter413 wrote:

chrisw333 wrote:

If you're just adding liberally and then going out to ride then you are not letting it dry. The whole point is it needs to dry to a hard protective finish.

Where did I say I did that? It's always left overnight at a minimum.

peter413 wrote:

I swap between the Finishline and Squirt depending on the weather...just look outside and if it's dry I grab the Squirt and if it's wet I grab the Finishline.

rockmonkeysc

No lube is ever going to work properly unless it's applied to a clean chain running on clean cassette and chain rings.
If you apply it on top of old or dirty lube then it's the old and dirty lube in contact with the metal parts and the new lube is doing nothing.
Any dirt or dust on a chain will turn your clean lube in to a grinding paste.

Angus Young

I'm pretty impressed with Squirt.

cooldad

I think the problem a lot of people have with Squirt is they are used to seeing stuff on the chain, which is not where you want it, you want it inside the rollers.
And assume if the chain is basically bare metal, they need to add more gunk.