What are you using as a lubricant?
3 in 1 oil or sometimes i buy more expensive chain oils such as Finish Line wet lube. It is for a mtb used off road so gets wet, muddy and gritty. No rear cassette to worry about as it is a Rohloff in hub gears so a single sprocket at the rear and a single ring at front.
I use Squirt now on all the bikes, road or mtb . It’s very good.
Thanks for the top tip. Sounds very much like the lubrication you see on a brand new chain out of the box.
It's actually much less sticky - it's water based so an emulsion i guess. I've tried wax lubes before but this stuff is the best i've found, seems to have more staying power. You have to fully degrease your chain before applying it and it's best if you can let it dry before using in anger.
The first MB I had, a 2010 E200, W212 cdi, had had its chain replaced early in its life ( about 60'000 Mile / 100'000 Klms ) it was one of the selling points pushed by the salesman. Now I'm om my 2nd MB, again Eclass but 220 this time. It has now 222562 Klms on it, full MB service history ( inc dreaded emission "update") but no mention anywhere in the service of any chain work. So when I see any mention of "OMI651" timing chain issues, I'm all ears. If it does need replacing, will it make plenty of noise in advance? And statistically, what are the chances of it going, given its been regularly serviced and by MB at that. ( I know , I know...you cant trust any of them these days, and unfortunately. that includes MB as well. ) I'm in with a chance as long as it will not behave like the BMW N47 timing chains... Anyone here on the forum have cars with mega miles done on the OM651 engine? One driver I met at the supermarket had driven his 297000 Klms on the original engine...no problems with it at all, and credited to frequent oil and filter changes. Personally, I'd have more faith in Duples chains though.
A chain oil has to penetrate to the pin bush area (via a solvent that later flashes off) and be tenacious. Lubricants designed to lubricate industrial wire ropes where the brief is to penetrate to the core of the rope and lubricate the strands - not merely an external coating - are worth a look.
Thank you. This is the chain lube @ChrisHGTV recommended and it uses water instead of a solvent to deliver the wax coating. Sounds worth a try.
www.squirtcyclingproducts.com
Chain stretch is internal wear and a coating does nothing for that.Thank you. This is the chain lube @ChrisHGTV recommended and it uses water instead of a solvent to deliver the wax coating. Sounds worth a try.
Squirt Chain Lube Range • Squirt Cycling Products
Get the best chain lube for your bicycle chain. Squirt Cycling Products Chain Lube range will prolong the life of your drivetrain.
So chain wear in a wet muddy gritty environment (cycle chain) is just going to happen. Best you can do is clean degrease and regrease after every ride. I imagine industrial lubricants would cost more than the chain and sprockets.
This! Though an advantage I’ve found with say Squirt is that it almost works like a grease nipple. So yes if I can I’ll clean, dry and re-lube after a particularly dirty or wet ride. But if you’re touring or on a multi-day ride that’s not always possible. So with squirt you can wipe the worst of the crud off and re-apply. As it’s water based its miscible with the water still on the chain, so the wax still gets to penetrate into the rollers etc, so helps to flush out the old Lube and gunk. With an oil based lube the new oil tends to just sit on the water still on the chain and just forms a claggy mess. So I don’t agree a water based lube is ridiculous, the water is just a solvent and acts as a carrier for the wax, no different to a hydrocarbon based solvent wax lube. The disadvantage of these lubes is that they’re not miscible with water so your chain has to be perfectly dry when applying them. Bike chains are essentially sacrificial as they’re generally much cheaper than chainrings and sprockets. I use a chain stretch guide and swap them out when they reach a set limit. I think a challenge for a bike chain lubricant is that it’s not a contamination free environment like inside a car engine - there’s a lot more mechanical action from grit etc to contend with as well. A thick, oily lube just attracts this stuff and you end up with a grinding paste. Motorcycle chains are quite different in construction of course with loads of seals. On a bicycle chain having all these seals would likely cause too much drag/friction which might affect the gear changing? With modern 11 and 12 speed drivetrains there’s also not a lot of room!
I don't know the price of the chains and sprockets - it's down time that is priced where industrial lubricants are used. I could offer you industrial lubricants and a choice of application methods but the MOQ would undo it. Your options though, would be....
www.google.com
Very interesting. Thanks for sharing your professional knowledge. Good price for that Cool Run chain lube as well.I don't know the price of the chains and sprockets - it's down time that is priced where industrial lubricants are used. I could offer you industrial lubricants and a choice of application methods but the MOQ would undo it. Your options though, would be....
One way to go is to immerse the chain in a quality gear oil that has the ability to penetrate the pin bush areas of the chain, is tenacious so won't fling out, is water resistant so wont wash out and has a load bearing capacity that actually keeps the wear surfaces apart.
Another option is to apply via aerosol either an oil or grease with the above properties which has a solvent carrier to bring the lube to the pin bush area.
In ether method the start point is a clean chain. Once the lubricant is applied the internals of the chain stay clean the oil/grease stay in place excluding water and debris. The lubricants I'm referring to were developed in and for drag line mining - it doesn't get more arduous than that. I have customers running chains under water (dredging filth) and the chain survives.
However I'm not going down that route. Instead, have a look at the link below for Cool Run chain lube. I've seen that run on karts - where when it's dry its dusty and when it rains the chains get soaked - with good results. Circa £8/can the last I heard - worth a shot. A clean chain is the start point though. Once a chain is contaminated internally, unless it's washed in solvent it's trashed - which is why using lubes that keep the water and dirt out are essential.
Cool Run chain lube - Google Shopping
