Tech/Maintenance

[Mattlikesbikes]

Anyone here doing the whole hot wax chain lube?

And does it matter for a singlespeed without concern for shifting performance?

[mack_turtle]

I bought a tiny Crockpot at a thrift store for one dollar. I clean the chain as best I can and drop it in there with a chunk of Gulf Wax. it takes at least an hour to fully melt. remove with a metal hook while the wax is still hot and let the chain cool. it's really stiff at first and then limbers up when you put it on the bike. give it a few spins and wipe off the excess wax. runs smooths for months after that with only the occasional application of chain lube.

This is probably not the best way to wax a chain. there are additives I should use in the wax, but I don't. 

Edited July 9, 2021 by mack_turtle

[Kyle]

I've done the chain wax thing for years with wax from HEB.  Recently with the last batch I went hog wild and added molybdenum and PTFE powder, but I can't say it's revolutionarily better than just plain wax.

The best things about it are that it lasts a long time and the whole drivetrain stays super clean.

I use a tiny crockpot too.  I microwave it for 3 minutes to give it a head start and it hasn't blown up yet.

[Mattlikesbikes]

Off to Goodwill I go.

 

[AntonioGG]

I've been wanting to do this for ages, even going as far as buying an ultrasonic cleaner.  I've read adding graphite is a good thing to do.   I definitely want to do this on my trainer, since it's in my bedroom and I'd rather not use stuff with VOCs in my bedroom.

[mack_turtle]

52 minutes ago, Mattlikesbikes said:

Off to Goodwill I go.

Savers and ReStore seem to have more fun stuff. most Goodwill stores are horrible now. tangent: there's a store called Thrift Center just south of Ben White on S. First that always has cool stuff, more of a curated selection and not just all the garbage that people donate. 

[Mattlikesbikes]

27 minutes ago, AntonioGG said:

I've been wanting to do this for ages, even going as far as buying an ultrasonic cleaner.  I've read adding graphite is a good thing to do.   I definitely want to do this on my trainer, since it's in my bedroom and I'd rather not use stuff with VOCs in my bedroom.

I'm leaning towards buying a specific wax and not the diy mix it yourself.

[AntonioGG]

9 minutes ago, Mattlikesbikes said:

I'm leaning towards buying a specific wax and not the diy mix it yourself.

https://takeahikeshop.com/products/absolute-black-graphen-wax-lubricant-hot-melt?currency=USD&variant=39287591993380&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google Shopping

[Kyle]

https://www.heb.com/product-detail/gulf-wax-household-paraffin-wax-16-oz/156662

[Barry]

I was tempted to go the wax route before I started using Smoove. Now between my bikes and my wife's,  we're getting about 6000 miles out of a bottle while somehow managing to increase chain life by about 30+%. I used to apply various lubes after each reasonable ride, and now it's about weekly--or about every 4 or 5 rides. And the application is much faster than other lubes as well. 

[AustinBike]

6 hours ago, Barry said:

I was tempted to go the wax route before I started using Smoove. Now between my bikes and my wife's,  we're getting about 6000 miles out of a bottle while somehow managing to increase chain life by about 30+%. I used to apply various lubes after each reasonable ride, and now it's about weekly--or about every 4 or 5 rides. And the application is much faster than other lubes as well. 

Knowing the mileage you put in I'll be interested in trying that in the future. Just got a new bottle of Rock and Roll Gold yesterday in the mail so it won't happen for a while, but if you say it has staying power, I am in.

[TAF]

8 hours ago, Barry said:

I was tempted to go the wax route before I started using Smoove. Now between my bikes and my wife's,  we're getting about 6000 miles out of a bottle while somehow managing to increase chain life by about 30+%. I used to apply various lubes after each reasonable ride, and now it's about weekly--or about every 4 or 5 rides. And the application is much faster than other lubes as well. 

https://www.theonion.com/get-smooved-1819584148

[June Bug]

19 hours ago, Barry said:

I was tempted to go the wax route before I started using Smoove.

Where do you source your Smoove? It's on Amazon for $16 a bottle.  Sounds like it works if you start with a CLEAN (degreased/dewaxed) chain. 

Get Smooved: "To make up for all the foolish things I said, tomorrow night, I will escort you to my crib, where I will prepare for you a romantic meal comprised of succulent lobster from the finest sea. We will both eat the lobster and enjoy a side dish of rice with it. There will also be a baked potato waiting for you, and some butter for you to place upon that potato. In addition, there will be sour cream, which you may also put on the potato if you so desire."

Rice + potato = complementary starch perfection

 

Edited July 11, 2021 by June Bug

[AustinBike]

I have found the best way to get a really clean chain is an old water bottle half full of simple green. Drop the chain in and shake it for a few minutes. Pull it out and wipe it down, letting it dry. That has been my go to trick for years, works great. For really dirty chains, multiple rounds. You know when it is clean when the last round of simple green is still green.

[Barry]

14 hours ago, June Bug said:

Where do you source your Smoove? It's on Amazon for $16 a bottle.  Sounds like it works if you start with a CLEAN (degreased/dewaxed) chain. 

I get it from Amazon. Using a chain checker, I used to pull a chain at about 900-1000 miles for me, and a little more for @Jessica. Now I'm going around 1300 and the checker still says its good! I change them anyway just to be sure. 

This is my process. When I get a new chain I go ahead and put it on. I like to get 1 to 2 rides off the factory grease. It's free and works spectacularly well for a short time. And super quiet. Anyway, after that ride or 2, I pull the chain off and degrease. I'm currently using WD40 Degreaser, but simple green works well. I like to use a zip-lock to minimize the amount of degreaser needed. I then flush it with water and allow to dry completely in front of a fan. If I'm in a hurry, I'll saturate it with alcohol to displace the water before putting it in front of the fan. That dries real fast. 

Smoove seems to apply even easier if you heat it up. I run water into a mug from my Keurig and put the bottle in for a few seconds. The application is the simple 1 bead per roller rule, and it takes about 30 seconds. Then you spin the chain through a couple of times and DO NOT wipe the chain. I do wipe off the rollers and chainring though. Then I hang the bike up for tomorrow's ride. I have applied it in the morning for an afternoon ride, but if you're one of those folks who like to apply lube at the trailhead before a ride, Smoove ain't for you. 

Smoove seems to work better and quieter with multiple applications.  And I don't do the degrease process unless the chain gets really messy. Maybe after 500 or so miles. And if gunk starts building up on the components, you're applying too often. 

[AntonioGG]

Smoove seems like chain-L no. 5 as far as process and how good it is.

If any of you can, I highly recommend a heated ultrasonic cleaner.   I use Zep orange degreaser in it and the chains come out as clean as new.  I rinse in hot water, blow it dry, then heat gun it or in the oven to get rid of any remaining moisture. For something like chain-L, I lay it flat on newspaper and put a drop per link and let it sit like that.  I then wipe it in the morning.  For me it's the only lube that will make it 24 hours without needing re-application and I was also getting 1300 miles out of the chains (I go to past 0.5, not all the way to 0.75).  Sadly Chain-L is no more so I may have to look into Smoove, though I do have a new bottle of muc-off dry and muc-off wet lubes that I haven't tried yet.

[Teamsloan]

Umm…haven’t degreased a chain of mine in years.

Years.

RocknRoll blue on the MTB, RocknRoll yellow on the road bike. Follow the directions on the bottle. Quiet and clean chain as a result.

How many miles do I get out of a chain? Like, a lot or something.


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[Barry]

3 hours ago, Teamsloan said:

RocknRoll blue on the MTB, RocknRoll yellow on the road bike. Follow the directions on the bottle.

You see crazy claims about Smoove online. Folks saying 700 miles per application. Folks saying they lube once and it lasts the lifetime of the chain. That seems like nonsense to me. But I do rekon between my bikes and her bikes, we're getting 8000-10,000 miles per bottle. How many miles per bottle do you think you're RocknRolling?

[Teamsloan]

You’re an extreme case. [emoji846]

Admittedly, I don’t come close to your mileage. I would probably go with something like smoove too if I did.

But for the average weekend warrior, the RocknRoll stuff is greatness. I probably go through 2 16oz bottles in a year. [emoji2371] maybe less


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[Kyle]

Using miles to compare anything in MTB terms doesn't make a lot of sense.  More like miles, rider weight, climbing per mile, belligerence multiplier.

[Teamsloan]

My belligerence multiplier is strong.


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[AustinBike]

Also trails. My guess is that if you spend most of your time on Walnut Creek or Suburban Ninja you don't have any of the impact that repeated GB and Brushy (main trails) can give to a chain. The constant sharp ups put way more stress on the bike overall.

[ATXZJ]

This seems to be the best one i've used for here and the desert southwest. I dont do much more than a wipe the chain down, then another application of prolink

https://progoldmfr.com/product/prolink-chain-lube/

 

Eagle GX chain can be had for under $30, and my time is worth a lot more to me.

[mack_turtle]

1 hour ago, Kyle said:

belligerence multiplier.

that had better be a metric on the next Garmin Edge firmware update!

[Barry]

2 minutes ago, ATXZJ said:

This seems to be the best one i've used for here and the desert southwest. I dont do much more than a wipe the chain down, then another application of prolink

https://progoldmfr.com/product/prolink-chain-lube/

Eagle GX chain can be had for under $30, and my time is worth a lot more to me.

I used ProLink for probably 15 years. Largely in NY, and then for a bit in TX. But when I couldn't get through more than 10 miles of Palo Duro without having to re-apply, I knew I had to start looking. At the time I started using Prolink in the wetter months and FL Dry in the dryer months. But then in the worst of the mood dust at WC, I was having trouble getting through one of my typical rides without either lube collecting the dust and hearing the chain protest.

I appreciate that my process sounds like a lot, but on average it's way less time than I used to spend re-lubing after every ride, or sometimes during rides. More often than not now, I just hang the bike up after a ride. I used to never get away with that. And when I do apply it goes a lot faster because the lube is so thick, you can spin the chain fast to get it on every roller without spilling it everywhere. The added chain life is just bonus. The other bonus is going though about $25 of lube every year instead of $60+. 

I'm not saying that Smoove is for everyone. But I ride all over the state. A lot. And so far as I can tell, it's the easiest/best/fastest/cheapest solution for me.