"Self cleaning" lubricant for touring - Prolink, Smoove etc.
jameses
Posts: 653
A friend and I are heading off for a 5 day ride around Scotland next month, any recommendations for a decent chain lube to take with us? I've seen a few wax based lubes that claim to be self cleaning, which sounds ideal since we're not going to have a full degreaser/chain cleaner setup with us.
We'll be doing about 100 miles each day, anticipating some rain along the way (it is Scotland, after all!) Maintenance will likely be limited to a wipe down and re-application of lube at the end of the day.
I've seen a few options out there - Progold Prolink, Smoove, Squirt, Boeing-T9. Any others I should look at? Some real world experience would be much appreciated!
Cheers,
James
We'll be doing about 100 miles each day, anticipating some rain along the way (it is Scotland, after all!) Maintenance will likely be limited to a wipe down and re-application of lube at the end of the day.
I've seen a few options out there - Progold Prolink, Smoove, Squirt, Boeing-T9. Any others I should look at? Some real world experience would be much appreciated!
Cheers,
James
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Comments
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Would add Rock n Roll extreme to your list, has worked well for me.0
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i have used ProLink exclusively for 15 years. It's great stuff. However, while it may claim to be self cleaning, there's only so much you can do against road grit/dirt/sand etc. My suggestion would be to take along a pile of rags/wipes etc. every evening, drizzle prolink on the chain, link by link (it ain't cheap), then run the chain through the rag. You'll be amazed at how much gunk comes out. Apparently it has some mineral spirits in it. (There was a long thread long ago in a long lost forum on making your own ProLink -- it was something like motor oil and turpentine...)
Compared to a dry lube / wax it doesn't last as long -- 100 miles is pretty much the maximum in dry conditions. If it's wet/muddy etc you might need to reapply a little bit well before that depending on how your chain sounds.0 -
I've used Squirt for last 3 years or so and it's great but I ride 99.9% of time in dry. Wouldn't use for rides when expecting rain. Again, supposes to "self clean", ie dirt drops off with wax. Anyway, chain is a LOT cleaner after 100 miles than if using wet lube.0
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Progold is fantastic stuff. It’s been getting used on my bikes all year since I discovered it in 2011.
As above, take a few rags with you and you’ll be sorted. I’m posting this from the Northern Alps where up until a few days ago we were getting sporadic very heavy rain (it’s now 35C) and I’ve only done one reapplication.0
