newbie lube anxiety

[JohnRedcoRn]

i notice my chain and various gear parts all look worryingly clean and shiny....bikes about 3 months new and regular road + cycle path use.

chain still feels waxy, but how soon should i lube my chain / gears etc ? i saw this couple in town t'other day, tourer types, and noticed their sprockets and chains were black and very oily.

have given my bike one wash with hot soapy water+rinse, and i spray it with a hand held wter sprayer (not high pressure) after riding in rain/mucky roaDS. i havent yet given it a proper scrub with a toothbrush etc

dont want to clean+lube the chain etc uneccessarily soon but i also want to look after me bike properly*****

****interestingly i remember as kids our bikes seemed to go for years never got cleaned and carelessly chucked about and rode on all sorts of horrible terrain, yet they never seemed to have any problems except having to tighten nuts n bolts occasionaly and punctures !

thanks

 

[Blue]

If the chain is clean and not squeaking (by being too dry) I would leave well alone. The waxy coating on a new chain is as good as it gets with respect to lubes.

If a chain is too oily it will attract dust which will turn the excess oil into an abrasive goo which won't do the drivetrain any good at all.

 

[Fab Foodie]

Read Here...
http://www.kmcchain.com/index.php?ln=en&fn=service

2 schools of thought...complete degrease methods or the alternative (known around these parts as the 'mickle-method' (Wipe-Lube-Wipe again).

It's the pins INDSIDE the chain that wears, what's on the outside IMO is of little consequence, but others believe that a well lubed chain creates grinding paste causing rapid wear, thus a full solvent clean removes all grit and grime. This may be true, but it will strip the lube out where the pins are, the question ism, when re-lubed can you get the lube in the pins? Mickle et al believe that the dirt in the lube on the outside of the chain really has little or no effect on the pins in the chain. Regularly remove by wiping over, re-lubing and removing the excess that flies everywhere is the best way to maintain lube where your chain needs it. IMO, you can't over-lube a chain, but you can under-lube...

Let the debate rage on!

 

[swee'pea99]

'The debate' essentially divides those who believe in dunking a chain in solvent and giving it a good shake around before drying off and re-lubing, and those who think this strips out the factory-fitted lube that's inside the links and is better than anything you could replace it with. Seems a pretty sterile debate to me. But it's worth noting the near-unanimity - across both camps - on the value of proper chain lube (rather than WD-40 or 3-in-1) from the like of Finish or (my personal pref) Progold. A fiver should see you through a couple of years - well worth the investment. However you use it.

 

[palinurus]

For the bike I use in the winter the Mickle method wins every time for me. It's quick and I can get back in the warm sooner.

I like my race bike to look really clean so that gets a degrease, run through a sponge with plenty hot soapy water, dried and re-lubed. Still no more than a 10-minute job (and I don't need to do it in the winter since it doesn't go anywhere except on the turbo)