Lubricating your Drive Chain - what do you use?

[themosquitoking]

Whatever is closest to me when i decide to relube. It doesn't matter though, my need to buy new things for the bike tends to run to a new chain even before the manufacturer supplied lube has worn off, mostly.

 

[tyred]

Engine oil.

 

[Nigel-YZ1]

Finish Line Wet Lube. A little on the chain before every ride.

 

[swee'pea99]

Prolink Progold is one of the few products in my life that from the very first application made me think 'hang on, this really is different!' You can try it for a fiver or so, but I ended up getting a 16oz bottle (which I transfer to my old 4oz bottle for convenience). I think I've been using it for about four or five years now, and it's getting low. When it runs out, I'll get another one.

 

[flake99please]

I use the tears of a local mermaid who frequents Portobello beach every other Thursday evening.

 

[Daniel sloan]

Finish line wet lube in winter and muc off dry ceramic lube in Sumer

 

[winjim]

The rendered corpses of countless millions of long dead sea creatures, applied dropwise with frequent wiping.

 

[Heltor Chasca]

Mackerel sliced lengthwise and held over chain with free hand. Pedal backwards. Job done. Just mind the Benny Hill, cat chase.

 

[Ajax Bay]

@User9609 - can you trot your graph out again, please? It will add data to the anecdota.

 

[MontyVeda]

I tend to go for some sort of chainwax. Currently trying this...

it was only £2.99, seems to do the job, stay on the chain and it'll last me a few years.

 

[bpsmith]

[QUOTE 5082196, member: 9609"] View attachment 387477
from left to right; Red, Blue, Turq, Pink, Green, Purple
and it was KM not Miles

so from worst to best (from memory)
Cooking Oil - felt lovely when first applied but soon felt dry, would start to sqeak after 30 or 40 mile. It also stunk, I often leave my bike in the van during the summer, and on warm days it smelt like a chip shop.
Dry Lube - the weather was not that warm when I used this and it seemed overly thick when applying it, may be not the fairest of tests
No Lube - I never used any lube on this chain. My only explanation of it performing better than the first two is; the dry lube and the sunflower oil must have damaged the grease the chain comes in.
Magnatec Engine Oil - German Top Marques synthetic car engine oil, long molecules (?) are suppose to make it cling better to metal, a nice oil to use, not that dirty, feels very smooth and performs well
Chainsaw Oil - Dirty sticky messy, feels and sounds squelchy for the first 10 miles and it manages to get everywhere, over the wheel the tyre the frame, its a messy oil but it did perform very well. Don't use this is you have a llot of pride in a nice clean bike.
Grease - It is difficult to describe the mess with this, I took the chain off the bike every week and worked bog standard lthium grease into the chain with a tooth brush / fingernail brush. It all squeezes back out when you start pedalling and it sticks to everything, I hated it with a passion and was so pleased to ut it in the dust bin, i think it only lasted so long just to annoy me.[/QUOTE]
So...we are saying that it’s a proper by design bicycle chain lube, or nothing, but not any of the others.

 

[mustang1]

I've just ordered that team sky muc off lube and will post results another time.

But so far I use either teflon lube or wet. It depends what's around. I really like the teflon stuff but during wetter months, I feel the need to apply it every few days. With wet luble, I go up tob2 weeks without applying new luble.

The teflon lube on the chain seems quite too.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Team Sky Muc Off, is that same same stuff Chris Froome uses?

 

[Threevok]

Team Sky Muc Off, is that same same stuff Chris Froome uses?

Chris Froome doesn't "own" a bike long enough to get it dirty. Let alone the need to lubricate anything

 

[bpsmith]

I've just ordered that team sky muc off lube and will post results another time.

But so far I use either teflon lube or wet. It depends what's around. I really like the teflon stuff but during wetter months, I feel the need to apply it every few days. With wet luble, I go up tob2 weeks without applying new luble.

The teflon lube on the chain seems quite too.

Been using it for a couple of years now. Got 2 brand new bottles in stock and won’t use anything else. Really good, all year round tbh.