Chain lube suggestion please

[Marke]

After 18 months and 2500 km's I'm still loving my trek powerfly..... although it does seem to be drinking muc off chain lube like its going out of fashion.

5 to 10 euros for 120ml does seem a little excessive. Anyone got any better value suggestions? Can I use my motocross bike chain lube?

 

[All Mountain Coaching]

Squirt

 

[Madmatt75]

Keep your muc off bottle and fill it with gear oil. It’s much cheaper than “specific “ lubes. I use it on my triumph speed triple and bicycle chains with no problems. Just don’t use too much.

 

[Marke]

Car/ motorbike gearbox oil would be perfect as it's cheap as chips. Not sure if it's sticky enough though - i thought it might get thrown off as the chain goes round. Maybe motorbike chain lube in a muc off container? I thought their might be a oil expect on here. To be honest i don't have a clue.

 

[outerlimits]

Throw some candles in a saucepan and heat to liquid over a low heat. Add a bit of paraffin oil to the mix. Add chain and cook it. Cool, wipe off excess wax, refit and go ride.

 

[Darren Bacon]

Car/ motorbike gearbox oil would be perfect as it's cheap as chips. Not sure if it's sticky enough though - i thought it might get thrown off as the chain goes round. Maybe motorbike chain lube in a muc off container? I thought their might be a oil expect on here. To be honest i don't have a clue.

I use gear oil. Apply with old tooth brush

 

[ggx]

Decathlon budget stuff Works fine and lub

 

[steve_sordy]

Finish Line Wet.
Lasts ages and does the job.

 

[Jamsxr]

Recently switched from Muck Off to Pedro’s, it’s not any cheaper but it’s a far better product in my option. It attracts far less dirt/crap, meaning the chain + cassette don’t need cleaning as often and last longer.

 

[grover]

gearbox oil 75w-90

 

[Labrador29]

Rock & Roll Gold. Without doubt. Google E-MTB U-Tube chain oil tests. Results will surprise u.

 

[brunsje]

Molten Speed Wax or Silca Wax.

 

[RsGaz]

GT85 ptfe spray

 

[Jase]

Juice Lubes Viking Juice for me

 

[Vaau839]

Extremely outdated suggestions.... wow. Wax, drip wax is the only correct way to lubricate the chain unless you don't mind changing parts 3-10x more often.

Lubricant Testing - Zero Friction Cycling

zerofrictioncycling.com.au

 

[Bndit]

I`m a lazy guy so don`t want to lube my chains so often. i have found that Peaty`s all weather lube is best for that. It stays on for ”long” time and doesn`t attract dirt. I wash my chains with same muc off that my bike, dry them with muc off 94 after the wash and then lube them.

 

[Mikerb]

cleaning the chain is far more important than what lube to use. Regardless whether you use Mucoff or 3in1 it is not lack of lubrication that causes wear on the pins and rollers............it is dust/sand/mud etc. Far too much advice on this topic derives from road bikes that are not used in dirt, and for them a longer lasting lube with far less need to clean makes sense. For MTB if you want a chain to last it needs to be kept clean.............and just wiping it achieves nothing!!

 

[PDXRooster]

Squirt

This!

 

[Vaau839]

cleaning the chain is far more important than what lube to use. Regardless whether you use Mucoff or 3in1 it is not lack of lubrication that causes wear on the pins and rollers............it is dust/sand/mud etc. Far too much advice on this topic derives from road bikes that are not used in dirt, and for them a longer lasting lube with far less need to clean makes sense. For MTB if you want a chain to last it needs to be kept clean.............and just wiping it achieves nothing!!

Just don't use Mucoff and you're already ahead of the game by a lot. Wax, drip wax in all conditions is the reason why components last at least 5x longer compared to Mucoff

 

[jimbob]

Molten waxing as others have said. It took a while to take the plunge, but wouldn't go back. Drivetrain stays clean and lasts multiple times what it did with traditional chain lubes.

It is a bit more of a faff, but well worth it.

 

[paquo]

cleaning the chain is far more important than what lube to use. Regardless whether you use Mucoff or 3in1 it is not lack of lubrication that causes wear on the pins and rollers............it is dust/sand/mud etc. Far too much advice on this topic derives from road bikes that are not used in dirt, and for them a longer lasting lube with far less need to clean makes sense. For MTB if you want a chain to last it needs to be kept clean.............and just wiping it achieves nothing!!

this is why i use either clean ride or squirt wax often.No need to clean before application, takes 2 or 3 minutes and bike shifts perfectly again

 

[Sander23]

cleaning the chain is far more important than what lube to use. Regardless whether you use Mucoff or 3in1 it is not lack of lubrication that causes wear on the pins and rollers............it is dust/sand/mud etc. Far too much advice on this topic derives from road bikes that are not used in dirt, and for them a longer lasting lube with far less need to clean makes sense. For MTB if you want a chain to last it needs to be kept clean.............and just wiping it achieves nothing!!

It actually the bad lubes that attracts twice as much dirt what causes the faster wear rates. In that case a lube that attract less dirt and contamination is more important then a super clean chain

 

[oceanskipper]

Putoline chain wax - applied hot (90 degrees)via a small deep fat fryer. Whole drivetrain lasts many times longer (I currently have a chain with 2500 miles on it showing less then .5 chain wear) . It stays fairly clean and lasts for ages between waxings.

 

[Hobo Mikey]

GT 85 My bike gets washed down after every ride and then apply GT 85 on chain. I was thinking of trying something else like Peatys. Link lube.

 

[jimbob]

Putoline chain wax - applied hot (90 degrees)via a small deep fat fryer. Whole drivetrain lasts many times longer (I currently have a chain with 2500 miles on it showing less then .5 chain wear) . It stays fairly clean and lasts for ages between waxings.

How far do you go between waxes? I'm currently doing it every 100 miles which I think is too frequently.

 

[Tony4wd]

Oils attract dirt and the chain and sprockets turn into a gunky mess. I switched to Rock n Roll wax products and the drive train stays clean and my chain seems to be lasting well.

 

[oceanskipper]

How far do you go between waxes? I'm currently doing it every 100 miles which I think is too frequently.

I probably do it every 150 or so in the winter and maybe 300 in the summer. Depends on what sort of conditions I’ve been out in. Tbh I could probably leave it longer as it never gets to the point where the chain is noisy. I think last summer I did it once and I do 50 miles a week.

I run two chains and alternate them so I’ve always got one ready to switch over.

 

[Ou812]

Rex Black Diamond, the best lube I’ve found. They have an e-bike specific one but I’ve not tried it yet.

 

[Ark]

GT 85 My bike gets washed down after every ride and then apply GT 85 on chain. I was thinking of trying something else like Peatys. Link lube.

Pretty sure it's not thick enough to really help, especially on an ebike.
that telfon layer is leaves behind must be like 0.01microns thick
works great for polishing a frame though, especially if you have a gloss finish, it will make the frame look brand new, works good on plastics too