Marc
New member
Yes, the title of this thread was intentionally written the way it was. Chalk one up to post ride low sugar levels.
Annnyhow, I'm just curious to know what other people use for chain lube, how often you apply, and how often you degrease (if ever).
Myself, I find that I do it a lot less than I should because I'm lazy. But when my MTB is considerably muddy or dirty or dusty, I will generally rinse off first, then spray the drivetrain with a healthy amount of Simple Green. I let it sit and then spray it off again, and it will take the bulk of the dirt and old lube off. If the chain, sprockets and chainrings need degreasing, I use a stiff bristle plastic brush (the ones made for cleaning grout work well) with a bucket of water with a bit of Simple Green mixed in and scrub everything down. Once or twice a season I will remove the chain and soak it in degreaser or gasoline, or just replace it and I'll clean out the jockey wheel and idler pulley on the derailleur as well as clean out their bushings. As of late I've been using Pedro's Ice Wax and another Pedro's dry lube variation, because they were free winnings of a couple races. That goes on the chain. I spray on silcone based lube on both derailleurs as well as any pivots on the brakes. Also on the fork legs to keep the wipers from drying out and cracking. Once a year usually I'll go through all my cables, take off the housings, clean the cables and regrease with white lithium. I'll also clean the seatpost and put a little bit of grease on it (sparingly).
On my road bike I do essentially the same, minus the mountain only eqiupment. Obviously this stays a little bit cleaner.
I try to add some chain lube before every ride, especially if I haven't ridden in a while.
Nate used to work for a bike shop that swears by Phil's Tenacious Oil. He could tell you more about that. I don't notice much of a difference in what I use save for the dry lubes attract slightly less dust in dry conditions than using a wet lube would.
So what's your routine? Methods, products, etc. I'm curious.
Annnyhow, I'm just curious to know what other people use for chain lube, how often you apply, and how often you degrease (if ever).
Myself, I find that I do it a lot less than I should because I'm lazy. But when my MTB is considerably muddy or dirty or dusty, I will generally rinse off first, then spray the drivetrain with a healthy amount of Simple Green. I let it sit and then spray it off again, and it will take the bulk of the dirt and old lube off. If the chain, sprockets and chainrings need degreasing, I use a stiff bristle plastic brush (the ones made for cleaning grout work well) with a bucket of water with a bit of Simple Green mixed in and scrub everything down. Once or twice a season I will remove the chain and soak it in degreaser or gasoline, or just replace it and I'll clean out the jockey wheel and idler pulley on the derailleur as well as clean out their bushings. As of late I've been using Pedro's Ice Wax and another Pedro's dry lube variation, because they were free winnings of a couple races. That goes on the chain. I spray on silcone based lube on both derailleurs as well as any pivots on the brakes. Also on the fork legs to keep the wipers from drying out and cracking. Once a year usually I'll go through all my cables, take off the housings, clean the cables and regrease with white lithium. I'll also clean the seatpost and put a little bit of grease on it (sparingly).
On my road bike I do essentially the same, minus the mountain only eqiupment. Obviously this stays a little bit cleaner.
I try to add some chain lube before every ride, especially if I haven't ridden in a while.
Nate used to work for a bike shop that swears by Phil's Tenacious Oil. He could tell you more about that. I don't notice much of a difference in what I use save for the dry lubes attract slightly less dust in dry conditions than using a wet lube would.
So what's your routine? Methods, products, etc. I'm curious.
It was created by three guys in 1953, BTW...
