have you exhausted your bottle of chain lube?
Need some more? Out of Pro Gold samples?
Want something that works as well or better?
Pick up some of that EVerLube. Make a gallon of your own for $10-$15. Then fill all your old bottles you have saved and share and convert your friends to this stuff. Sure it doesn't have some big fancy label or decal or brand name behind it but if an OBRA and NECX racer can agree on a lube then, it has to be good.
Dave Moulton put a post up on Friday about how to lube a chain.
I'm not a huge fan of using the gasoline, but it would work too. Mineral spirits work better for me but then again Gasoline is cheaper and may work even better. Fumes though, ugh. At least the odor-less mineral spirits are really actually almost odor-less compared to gasoline.
I mix my chain/lube in a 1:3 ratio of 0W20 synthetic motor oil to mineral spirits (the nasty kind, not the 'green' kind) following the tried and true and well vetted ErikV recipe.
I also actually use a Park chain cleaner thing (fill the chain cleaner with the lube, recycle in screw top jar after cleaning chain, top up with fresh stuff now and then and let junk settle and create sediment layer on the bottom of the jar). Followed by wiping down followed by fresh clean lube.
Or if after a cyclocross race I will hit the chain with the park chain cleaner full of my chain lube mix, then wash the bike down with water and soap. Chain is then brand new clean and silent.
Once the bike and chain are wiped down and dry I hit it with a good soaking of the lube, and if the next race is going to be a dry one I'll wipe the excess off very thoroughly, if wet and muddy I will just let it dry with the excess and sometimes add a second coating to double up the lube going into mud and stuff.
Big key to the post that caught my eye more than the lube similarity is the quick link removal trick. Many people have a problem removing quick links without the special tool. that's the other beauty of Dave's post.
And also.
GeWilli recommends running a Shimano Chain with a SRAM/KMC whatever quick link that is the right width for the chain. I've been doing it for ever even though I don't remove my chain to clean it.
have fun, get dirty, clean up and stay lubed...
heddwch
G
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5 comments:
Almost as good as my post...Almost. Truth is the lube is less important that when and how it's applied.
http://sc-velo.com/2013/02/05/spend-12-and-save-yourself-hundreds/
Agreed.
But i actually find using the ErikV lube in the blue park chain cleaner thing to actually be very effective, even if you don't follow up with washing the bike after.
wondering why you would spec a synthetic? I use regular dino oil (5W30) and never had a problem, mixed 1:3 as you do. I think synth is good for car engines because of heat (less thermal breakdown)- obviously not an issue on a bike chain. But I could be wrong as I'm not a petrochemical engineer. Maybe it's an enviro thing?
I've recently thought about making some cross country style lube with transmission oil, maybe mixed slightly thicker...like 1:2. That stuff is almost sticky and might climg the chain better in the slop. What you think?
Steve M.
Most (nearly 100%) of the synth stuff is just a cleaner Group III oil.
I always just get what is on sale annyway. $3/quart for sale stuff... the extra dollar or two for a whole gallon doesn't seem to make much difference.
Thinking is maybe it won't gum up as much or will be more stable or i dunno.
Call it part feel good, part That's what ErikV uses, and part there's just enough logic that it makes is worth the small premium.
Anyone remember Demon Semen? That lube had even Ned Overend using it in wet conditions. Chainsaw bar oil cut with TriFlow.
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