Rust free/resistant chains

[Bonefishblues]

YABAN make a high end titanium chain which has chromium carbide coated pins and chromium molybdenum alloy plates so should be extremely resistant to corrosion, it comes in 11 speed that I know of and works with Campagnolo and Shimano drivetrains AFAIK.

Daft question - what is ti then?

[The utility cyclist]

YABAN make a high end titanium chain which has chromium carbide coated pins and chromium molybdenum alloy plates so should be extremely resistant to corrosion, it comes in 11 speed that I know of and works with Campagnolo and Shimano drivetrains AFAIK.

Daft question - what is ti then?

I'm not flogging it, I'm just repeating what they call it.

[Bonefishblues]

YABAN make a high end titanium chain which has chromium carbide coated pins and chromium molybdenum alloy plates so should be extremely resistant to corrosion, it comes in 11 speed that I know of and works with Campagnolo and Shimano drivetrains AFAIK.

Daft question - what is ti then?

I'm not flogging it, I'm just repeating what they call it.

Looks like the rollers are 'titanium material'.

[The utility cyclist]

Daft question - what is ti then?

I'm not flogging it, I'm just repeating what they call it.

Looks like the rollers are 'titanium material'.

So the chain fits the OPs request for something that is rust resistant then?

[Bonefishblues]

I'm not flogging it, I'm just repeating what they call it.

Looks like the rollers are 'titanium material'.

So the chain fits the OPs request for something that is rust resistant then?

I wasn't debating that - besides, the OP only wants to hear about first-hand experience with products, it has been made clear - I was just musing on its description by the manufacturer when it's mostly not ti, that's all

[alexnharvey]

It's amazing I've posted this question on other forums and some people here and there still feel the need to tell me what they put on their chains or how rubbish THEY think my method of chain lubrication is.

The question was:

Does anyone have any recommendations for rust resistant/free chains?

The question wasn't what do you put on your chain to prevent rust?

I don't wish to offend but if you haven't used a rust free chain and/or have no experience of the current crop of rust free chains then you are not helping me at all.

I wondered what sort of suggestions you got on other forums. Did anyone have a rust free chain?

[Brucey]

At this time of year, wet salt will corrode pretty much any material that might be used to make a chain. If a chain was made entirely of a titanium- or nickel-base alloy, or perhaps a high chromium (22%-plus duplex grade) stainless steel, then corrosion might be resisted but the cost would be sky high and the material might not be hard / wear-resistant enough for the application.

Corrosion-resistant coatings will inevitably wear off inside the links, when subjected to abrasive road grit and when the links are penetrated by salty water they will corrode.

At the moment, after any wet commute/ride, I dry my chain thoroughly with kitchen towel and re-oil with wet lube and even then some corrosion is occurring overnight. Once a week I'm immersion cleaning the chain to remove any mud/grit and also the iron oxide itself, which is also a very effective abrasive.

I just can't see a shortcut to avoiding chain care unless the bike has a hub gear and can use a drive belt or full chain case.

this is absolutely correct and also the reason why you can't ignore lubrication; without lubrication the most important parts of the chain don't have any corrosion protection either.

IME chains which don't obviously corrode externally (which is pretty much all those 'corrosion resistant' ones on the market) merely fool you into thinking all is well within the bushings, even (or especially) when it probably isn't.

cheers

[bgnukem]

YABAN make a high end titanium chain which has chromium carbide coated pins and chromium molybdenum alloy plates so should be extremely resistant to corrosion, it comes in 11 speed that I know of and works with Campagnolo and Shimano drivetrains AFAIK.

Daft question - what is ti then?

I'm not flogging it, I'm just repeating what they call it.

Judging by the gold colour of the rollers as shown, the 'titanium material' is possibly just a titanium nitride wear-resistant coating rather than solid Ti. Better than steel for corrosion resistance but not as good as pure Ti or a Ti-base alloy.

Also 'chromium-molybdenum' for the side plates sounds a lot like good old Chromoly steel, with some sort of PTFE-based coating, possibly for low friction. Once the coating wears off, which it will do first where the inner and outer side plates contact each other, the steel will happily corrode away as usual.