Ebike Chain Lubes

[m@Robertson]

it does? been a long time I read there bottle. I forgot you could use it on a wet chain. I usually get a few hours at least.

• For best results, allow your chain to sit a few hours or lube the night before. However, if right after lubing, you have to ride, you have to ride, so go for it. Giving the lube a chance to set gives the lube a bit more life by allowing the protective membrane to fully set-up. Remember, to wipe off you chain after riding regardless if you’re going to re-lube or not. This keeps the chain clean and looking great!

Huh thats news to me as well. I have been using Rock and Roll Gold for years. I usually pick a day when I have some time and detour to a park, sit on a bench with the ducks and the squirrels and lube the chain there, mid-ride. Beats the hell out of sitting in the garage.

I get a couple-three weeks out of it. So... 2-300 miles depending on how much riding I'm doing. Thats fine with me. If like today I go the dirt trail route I'll get a week before I'm sick of looking at the dusty chain and clean it. Since I get about 3000 miles out of an ebike chain on a BBSHD I'm pretty content with that. Just squirt on chain and wipe away. Job done. No need to sing it a song or go get it blessed by the local parish priest

 

[Johnny]

What is everyone using for wet lube though? I've only been using dry lube for this time of year, but no clue what to use in winter or fall.

Depends on how the winter conditions are. I haven't tried waxing in salt and snow but it help up well under rain.
For lube a thick lube is probably the way to go, light lubes like rocknroll are horrible for snow/ slush etc.

Read good things about Silca's wet lube. https://silca.cc/collections/happy-riding/products/synergetic-wet-lube

I've also been using Muc Off C3 ceramic dry lube on my Frey CC with good results but I'm somewhat torn. My chain doesn't show stretch after 2.5K miles but the lube seems to attract a lot of dirt for a dry lube so I'm having to clean it pretty frequently which is a pain. Tempted to switch to Rock 'n Roll Gold.

Let it dry before you ride if you are going to ride under dusty conditions. When the carrier is still wet it attracts dust. On pavement, meh I don't think there will be a huge difference.

That being said why don't you give waxing a try. Rock n roll is ok but it is nowhere close to waxing, not cleanliness not durability. It is much easier than you think also clean ups are much faster.

Btw my first wax batch was a very small one, ptfe + wax formula. It gave me great results. over 2k miles and the stretch is still measuring around 0.14 (started 0.8-0.1). At this reate I won't be able to wear out this chain. For my next batch I got some WS2 and will try WS2 + paraffin.

 

[Handlebars]

I wonder if a simple way to compare chain lube properties could be to give one of the cranks a strong spin backwards and see how many rotations it gets.

 

[Handlebars]

I started using Chainsaver several weeks ago and so far I like what I see. This wax-based Teflon enhanced chain lube goes on wet and sets up dry to the touch. It repels water, grime and doesn't fling or drip. Recommend starting out with a clean drivetrain for best results. That being said, it's distributed by Finish Line so I can only speculate that it's based on the same formulation as their own line of Teflon dry lubricants. Chainsaver won't likely be found on the shelf of your LBS and I purchased an 11 oz. aerosol can for $14.99 Cdn at my local Lowes while browsing the hardware aisles. Since it's cheaper than the dedicated Finish Line product I'll likely keep using it.

http://www.performancelubricantsusa.com/files/DuP_InfoSheet_CHAIN SAVER_1511.pdf

I'm buying a can of that today. Thanks for mentioning it. For my street riding bike I wanted to try waxing the chain but I don't want to do the process, I want the product to take care of helping clean out the debris after repeat applications so that is what I'm aiming for now.

 

[Nomad]

What is everyone using for wet lube though? I've only been using dry lube for this time of year, but no clue what to use in winter or fall.

I rode all winter last season northern new england ran finish line wet full synthetic on the road but six days a week even in snow storms. Cleaned the chain once a week and applied a coat mid week on the occasion that it was a wet week. Dirt not a factor that time a year.

 

[Handlebars]

The first thing I did was to heavily spray the chain with ACF-50 to help clean it out. I'm going to repeat for a few days until it stops releasing the black stuff. The exterior of the chain is always pretty clean anyway. Then I'm going to try the ChainSaver.

 

[TrailSeeker]

So, waxed-based chain lube is good to use right after cleaning the chain? Is it like a protector and you still use regular dry lube before you ride, or is it in place of your regular lube?

 

[Nomad]

So, waxed-based chain lube is good to use right after cleaning the chain? Is it like a protector and you still use regular dry lube before you ride, or is it in place of your regular lube?

when you switch you just run wax.

 

[DDBB]

I use Maxima Chain Wax in an aerosol can. It's made for motorcycle chains, goes on wet and then dries quickly to a parrafin like surface. It's quite thick. I just changed the OEM chain on my 10 speed Haibike trekking 6.0 that has Yamaha PW motor. My chain stretch tool showed .5 after 2100mi. and not wanting to ruin the cassette, I changed it before it got worse. KMC e bike chain installed now. FWIW, I get 30,000 mi. from my motorcycle chains but they have o-rings to seal in the lube

 

[Nomad]

Today I installed my 1st hot waxed drivetrain with absoluteblack took a short ride was very smooth. Very Promising initial results I'll be looking at the long term real world not in a vacuum will

 

[Handlebars]

I never did any complete degreasing cleaning of any chain. I have switched to Chain Saver and it seems good. I use paper towels to remove the old and then spray new on. That's it. One year in.

 

[DDBB]

I'm happy with 2,000mi. on a mid drive ebike for chain life and that was just to .5, I could have probably gone another 1,000mi. I rarely degrease, the waxy coating from the maxima chain wax attracts far less dirt than oil. I think my brake pads will go another 1,000mi. but that's a different subject

 

[Marcela]

Liquid soap works good on the wear test. Anybody try that?

 

[Handlebars]

Liquid soap works good on the wear test. Anybody try that?

What's the idea?

 

[Jason Knight]

I'm a huge advocate of hot wax + TPFE. It is so ridiculously superior to "lube in a tube" garbage. I mean, this is my Aventure at around 400 miles:

And I've not had to even think about lubricating or even cleaning it with anymore more than a dry towel. It's so superior that conventional lubes -- aka "dirt magnets" -- seems idiotically dumbass by comparison. Particularly when dust, dirt, and grime are the leading causes of wear. You eliminate that, and things are just so much better. Lands sake post-ride my rims are dirtier than my drivetrain!

I did a cassette swap a little over a month ago with roughly 550 miles on the bike, didn't even bother cleaning the old one before tossing it in a drawer in my garage... Later today I'll go pull it out and snap a pic.

Cold applicated lubes should be treated as an ancient relic. Akin to freewheels, ashtabula cranks, and incandescent light bulbs. The majority of "lube in a tube" companies would be put out of business if chains came hot waxed from the manufacturer.

 

[Jason Knight]

Just hit me, I have this pic:

Which is at about 480-500 miles on the bike. The most I've done to the chain and chainring is a wipe down with a dry towel. The chainstay is dirtier than the chain and chainring.

And it rides as smooth if not smoother than any tube-lube I've ever tried. Hot wax for the win.

 

[Marcela]

What's the idea?

Be easy to wash off?

 

[TrevorB]

Just hit me, I have this pic:

Which is at about 480-500 miles on the bike. The most I've done to the chain and chainring is a wipe down with a dry towel. The chainstay is dirtier than the chain and chainring.

And it rides as smooth if not smoother than any tube-lube I've ever tried. Hot wax for the

Why I wax my chains (and how to wax your own)

A complete guide to immersive chain waxing, and whether it’s right for you

www.bikeradar.com

Having to redo it after every wet ride is hassle and 300-400kms come around very quickly. I'll stick with applying Rock &Roll every 80km, only takes 5minutes.

 

[Jason Knight]

Why I wax my chains (and how to wax your own)

A complete guide to immersive chain waxing, and whether it’s right for you

www.bikeradar.com

Having to redo it after every wet ride is hassle and 300-400kms come around very quickly. I'll stick with applying Rock &Roll every 80km, only takes 5minutes.

It's WAX. that means it repulses water. Which means it repulses rain, mud, even regular dirt. Therefor there is NO "redo it after every wet ride". That's what makes the "apply every 80km" rubbish such a scam compared to hot waxing.

And why I probably won't have to "redo it" for another two to four YEARS. I'm 500 miles in and it looks and behaves like I applied it last week. AFTER wet rides, after traversing mud. Again, the most I've had to do in the year since I waxed the chain is to towel it off with a dry cloth.

Seriously one waxing is good for 1500 to 5000 miles -- that's 2500 to 8000km for countries that haven't been to the moon -- depending on your riding conditions.

That article's claims of 300-400km is utter gibberish unless he's doing it all wrong. Especially the "wet ride" part. His slopping wet lubes -- which have a solvent in them -- on the chain is akin to spraying WD-40 on your drivetrain. He's washing away the good wax with bad! That he even talks about rust forming indicates he's done something really really wrong when waxing, or he's using chains even cheaper than mine.

I just crossed the 650 mile (1050 klicks) mark, and my waxing is still as good as when it settled in. No signs of needing to redo it.

And even if it were more frequent, a quality reusable master-link makes it easy-peasy lemon-squeezy, so the "high maintennance" part leaves me going "dafuq you say?!?" Sure as shine-ola easier than constantly having to scrub muck off the chain, cassette and chain-ring!

 

[Jason Knight]

Also I hear a lot of nonsensical BS about wax, like "get the smaller granules it melts faster" -- when wax conducts heat faster than air, so the solid pieces typically melt faster, not slower. Placebo BS. I'm often horrified at people's lack of understanding junior-high (or what was Jr. high in the '80's) levels of thermodynamics. Again see some of the rubbish people say about rotors and heat.

Or the people who only use wax without an additive. Again TPFE being a water repellent and lubricant greatly increases the time between re-waxing, just beware that - at least in my own experiments the past five or six years -- anything past about 15% sees diminishing returns. Do NOT use graphite as it can actually cause wear, and for the most part the off the shelf pre-mix waxes specifically for bikes are a ripoff. Likewise the whole tungsten disulfide thing seems to be utter nonsense, at least in my experience. Doesn't work any better than just straight wax, and nowhere near as good as TPFE.

If anything tungsten disulfide seems to bond to the metal making a surface the wax won't stick to, defeating the point of waxing. Or maybe I used too much?

And FFS waxing the chain is just half the equation, you need the drivetrain to be sparkly clean too. A degreaser followed up by some denatured alcohol (to drive out moisture) is a must.

And as I said above, adding tube lubes -- even the ones claiming to be "dry" or "wax" -- after the fact is just going to compromise things. If you feel the "need" for that you didn't apply the wax right.

That's why the "Oh I need to re-apply after a wet ride" should be 100% fairy tale nonsense, and if that is a thing, you did something wrong along the way like adding tube lubes after the fact. Dry it, crack it, put it on a CLEAN bike, and forget about it for a year or 1000 miles, whichever comes first.

Oh, and to check if you need to re-wax, pull the chain, feel how smooth the links move. If any feel like they're binding, then you re-wax. They move freely, it's still good.

Which is why my beach cruiser hasn't had to be lubricated in four years.