Chain [etc] Lubrication

[Slioch]

Wonder if anyone can advise me. I have a new touring bike and am looking for something to use as a chain/gears lube. I'm a bit bewildered by the "wet", "dry", "dirty" etc descriptions which various makers [esp. Finish Line] give to their products.
Can anyone suggest a general purpose chain [etc] lube for this time of year and, assuming we get a summer, an alternative for that season for a touring bike getting fairly regular mileage?
Thanks in advance.

[reohn2]

Wonder if anyone can advise me. I have a new touring bike and am looking for something to use as a chain/gears lube. I'm a bit bewildered by the "wet", "dry", "dirty" etc descriptions which various makers [esp. Finish Line] give to their products.
Can anyone suggest a general purpose chain [etc] lube for this time of year and, assuming we get a summer, an alternative for that season for a touring bike getting fairly regular mileage?
Thanks in advance.

Finishline wet attract grit and road much like a magnet and when its time to clean the transmission it sticks like the proverbial,Muck off does shift it too well but White spirit does.

Finnishline dry washes off all too easily and unless you're prepared to lube every ride is useless.Its easy to get the drivetrain clean though .

I've been using TF2 spray for about four years now and am finding it a good alround lube it doesn't attract road dirt/grit like some,it will wash off in heavy prolonged rain but not in a showery weather,cleaning the drivetrain isn't a problem with White Spirit in either a chain bath or by brush then hot water with plenty washing up liquid in.Chain and sprocket life is much better (last chain 6,000miles).

MickF will be along soon

[Mick F]

No I won't.

search.php?keywords=chain+cleaning&terms=all&author=Mick+F&sc=1&sf=all&sk=t&sd=d&sr=posts&st=0&ch=300&t=0&submit=Search

Sorry, Slioch, I'm a bit well known about this subject.

[Trigger]

Apparently the stuff that SRAM chains arrive coated in is Fuchs GLEITMO which is a dry film lubricant, I wonder if it's possible to buy some for reapplication? It's certainly good stuff.

[fatboy]

The only way to find out is by trial and error. My personal take is this

1. Dry lubes need frequent re-application
2. Wet lubes tend to be sticky and need regular cleaning
3. My chain rusted when using White Lightning (favoured by someone on here apparently )

I actually quite like Finish Line Wet lube but I do have mudguards and a front mudflap. Finish Line Dry lube I found to be pretty useless. Prolink Gold was my favourite for a while but it's quite hard to get hold of and also needs frequenct reapplication and tends to coat my garage floor in the process!

Whatever you do be prepared to lubricate often and clean often too. But most important check chain wear as a worn chain can wreak havock on your drivechain.

[Mick F]

....... But most important check chain wear as a worn chain can wreak havock on your drivechain.

Slightly more important, is to buy a decent chain.

I bought the cheapest SRAM chain and within a month it was worn beyond the minimum!
I smelled a rat, so I measured the links I'd removed when I fitted the chain, only to find that even brand new links were at the max limit!!!

Honestly they were, so buy a good chain. Cheap isn't good.

Please read this thread:
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=34602
It would appear that the Sram PC830 was at the top end of tolerance when new, and if it were Campag, you are to immediately replace it!

Rubbish chain!

[reohn2]

Just to redress the balance I've found Sram chains (PC870-8sp,PC971-9sp)to be good quality long lasting chains.

[david143]

I use
http://www.performancemotorcare.com/aca ... _1223.html
all year round.

Works for me and my chains so bought a few years supply at one time.

[rjb]

An interesting article from CJ reprinted below.

What's in a chain – 2005.07
Seeking more information than he could find on their website, CTC member Peter Faulks mailed Sram about the differences between their various models of chain. Whether 8-speed or 9-speed, there's quite a choice and a twofold or even greater difference in price. Specifically he asked what we'd all like to know: does money buy longer life? And he got a refreshingly frank reply from no less a personage than Mark Pippin, product manager for chains at Sram Corp!

Use the following link to read Peter and Mark's full question and answer, meanwhile here's the gist: What you get when you pay more for a chain is stronger riveting, shinier side-plates and maybe lighter weight, and none of those things are likely to make it last longer!

Stronger riveting is nevertheless of benefit to those who tend to break chains through rough shifting etc. But if that's not your problem you don't need anything more than the usual "step" riveting. For most of us chains simply wear out: they apparently stretch due to wear at each pivot. Durability of a chain, as Mark says, comes from the hardness of the pins (rivets) and of the inner links that ride on them. He goes on to acknowledge that the underlying materials are the same; and although he says that heat treatments may differ, we can see from the website that every chain above the very cheapest (PC38 or below) receives Sram's "Delta" hardening treatment. Whilst plating on the side-plates of the more expensive chains may boost corrosion resistance, it's mainly for show, makes little difference to the life of the chain and no difference at all if it's kept well lubricated. As for slotted sideplates and hollow pins: they save 26 grams – so long as the slots and hollows remain free from dirt!

So buy a fancy chain if you're brutal or vain. Otherwise Sram's PC48 will do perfectly well for anything up to 8-speed or PC950 for 9-speed.

Chris Juden

Heres the link referred to above. http://www.ctc.org.uk/resources/About_t ... achain.txt

CJ I hope you don't mind me reprinting this but the general information is still relevant today.

[andrew_s]

I bought the cheapest SRAM chain and within a month it was worn beyond the minimum!
I smelled a rat, so I measured the links I'd removed when I fitted the chain, only to find that even brand new links were at the max limit!!!

I reckon this is an example of the drawbacks of using a chain checker, rather than any problem with the chain.
How did you measure the chain?

The rollers are a loose fit on the inner link bearings. How loose has no bearing on the function of the chain, unlike "stretch". Likewise wear to the roller itself doesn't matter.
A chain checker measures the distance between a roller pushed to the left, and another roller pushed to the right a few links further along. On a new chain, that will be n x 0.5" + roller slop, so whoever made the chain checker has to make an estimate both of the initial roller slop, and the ratio between chain pivot wear and roller wear. If on your chain, the estimate differs from the real slop, the checker will give the wrong answer.A new chain slipping on the old block despite the checker saying the old chain was within limits is going to generate more complaints than a chain being discarded when it had useful life left in in, so the estimate is generally on the safe side and may, as you've found, lead to a new chain showing as being worn out.

By all means use a checker for convenience, but check actual wear using a ruler before throwing your chain out.

[CREPELLO]

I've been quite impressed by Wilko's maintenance spray (although they've helpfully swapped the package picture from one of a Halfords clunker to one of a speeding sports car). It leaves a good waxy/greasy (not dry wax) finish and has ceratinly stopped my SPD's from rusting.

[Mick F]

I bought the cheapest SRAM chain and within a month it was worn beyond the minimum!
I smelled a rat, so I measured the links I'd removed when I fitted the chain, only to find that even brand new links were at the max limit!!!

I reckon this is an example of the drawbacks of using a chain checker, rather than any problem with the chain.
How did you measure the chain?

Yep.
You're right.

I bought a chain checker some time back and I'm waiting for it to lie to me.

So far, I haven't worn a chain out, so I can't prove anything yet. I usually measure a chain over its whole length with a 39" steel rule. This is the ONLY way to be certain. Pull it tight alongside the rule making sure you look along the whole distance to see if the links go out of phase with the Inch markers. Simple.

The cheap Sram chain, I measured in the same way, but only after using the chain checker because the chain was jumping on a sprocket. I saw red, the chain had only done 180 miles.

I got hold of the original and new length that I cut off when I fitted the chain. There was quite a length because Raleigh Choppers have short chainstays. I used a vernier caliper to prove the new chain was on the limit.

Read my thread on the story:
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=34602 and scroll through to page 2 to see the Campag instructions for measuring chains and how I did it.

[Mick F]

PS:
Basically CJ's article is right I would think. It's not the full story!
Sram have not been telling the whole truth.

(Quoting CJ): What you get when you pay more for a chain is stronger riveting, shinier side-plates and maybe lighter weight, .......

........ and accurate pitch!!

[andrew_s]

I bought the cheapest SRAM chain and within a month it was worn beyond the minimum!
I smelled a rat, so I measured the links I'd removed when I fitted the chain, only to find that even brand new links were at the max limit!!!

I reckon this is an example of the drawbacks of using a chain checker, rather than any problem with the chain.
How did you measure the chain?

I got hold of the original and new length that I cut off when I fitted the chain. There was quite a length because Raleigh Choppers have short chainstays. I used a vernier caliper to prove the new chain was on the limit.

Those Campag instructions are checking wear in the same way that a chain checker does - including roller slop.
The 132.6mm figure quoted as a wear limit may be a good figure for Campag chains, but misleading for a chain of a different brand that has looser fitting rollers.
That the discarded chain measured the same as the spare links means it wasn't detectably worn.

Shimano do a chain checker that measures between a roller pushed to the right and another roller pushed to the right, using 3 prongs rather than 2, but it's expensive enough (about £45, from memory) that a ruler seems a better option.

[iconoclast]

SQUIRT LUBE does it for me. All through the last lot of weather my chain is fine, no rust and still running smoothly. A bit of prior preparation required if you want a long lasting solution to the perrenial lube problem, not an issue if fitting new chain, simply degrease fully. I've commuted through the worst of the weather with Squirt Lube on my chain, guards and studded tyres, the chain is fine and doesn't appear to require any cleaning. When it does then a low pressure hose wash will suffice, superb! I'm a comparitively recent convert to this lube but it's been a Damascene conversion for me. Try it you'll never use owt else!

Happy trails