Chain Lubricants

PJ1 vs BelRay

For many years I have used the PJ1 chain spray which
- Does look like lubricant (black)
- The Chain does run very sweetly after application (It sounds sticky!)
- Does fly off (despite manufacturer's claims) on the rim

Recently I have bought some Bel Ray Superclean Chain lube which
- Does not look like a traditional lubricant (white)
- Does not have that nice sticky sound after application
- Appears to stay on the chain (It may be because it is not black in color)

I managed to wear out a new heavy duty non O ring chain and sprockets in 5000 miles on a cross country trip using the Bel Ray lubricant. Now it could have been my fault - Once I let it run for 800 miles without any relubricating. I always wiped the chain after application - probably removing the film off the rollers hence leading to the process. Unfortunately I do not have a controlled comparison - I have never worn a chain and sprockets out that fast and I have never crossed the country before doing 400 mile days.

Any experiences?

I never seem to get more than about 5000 miles on a chain no matter what lube I use. Probably because I'm not doing it correctly. Most people say to apply lube when the chain is hot, and I never do that. Maybe someday I'll learn.

And I've not yet found a lube that doesn't mess the rim.

ludwig said:

I used to cook the chain in a kind ob black , solid grease .

Click to expand...

hi ludwig i used to use same thing ,link life i think it was called, when i boiled it for a while i used to fish it out the tin and hang the chain over the tin to drain the excess off , was messy but good stuff

I use the standard simplex chain and get well over 10K, I just avoid the rain etc ( OK I'm a whimp). The one thing to look at, make sure you are setting the chain with the centres of both sprockets and swinging arm in line. ie with the chain at its tigthest position.

Cash

This is my first non-O-ring chain in thirty years, but its seems to be holding up well - going on 6000 miles with 2 adjustments. I use something called 'chain wax', which seems to stay on pretty well. It's a paraffin-based lubricant, but still slings a bit. I got it at Cycle Gear, a national chain here in the US, black and tan label.

One thing that's minimized chain sling-off is the fiberglass chain guard extension. I don't know if its a Mk1 piece, but my bike came with the chain guard that has the holes for the extension. Back of bike is much cleaner since I put that thing on, though it took quite a bit of grinding on the inside of the extension to get the spring buttons to fit.

I like to run my chains on the loose side - right at the loose end of recommended adjustment. I don't think there's anything to gain with a tight chain except excessive wear on sprockets and bearings.

I swear I've tried them all over the years but by far my favorite is the Maxima Chain Wax BillT mentions. Great stuff - I use it both to clean and to lubricate chains.

I've tried these new teflon-based "white" lubricants but I don't like them as well.

Conventional wisdom has always been to apply to a warm, just-run chain so that it seeps into the spaces between end plates and rollers where it's needed most. That's always been my practice, and still is (force of habit more than anything else) now that I run x-ring chains, with respect to which it probably doesn't matter.