SRAM PC850 sticky

[mgarl10024]

Hi,

I recently bought a SRAM PC850 chain, and fitted it - and it's working a treat.

However, when fitting it, I noticed how sticky it felt. Predictably, after 150miles of commuting, lots of bits have stuck to it and it's looking like it's in need of a clean. I tried holding a rag around it and running the chain through, but it was so sticky it just pulled the rag out of my hands!

I'm tempted to just give it a chain bath, stripping off whatever is on there, and applying my normal dry lube. However, Mr. Brown says:

This factory lube is superior to any lube that you can apply after the fact.
Some people make the bad mistake of deliberately removing this superior lubricant. Don't do this!
The factory lubricant all by itself is usually good for several hundred miles of service if the bike is not ridden in wet or dusty conditions.
http://www.sheldonbr...com/chains.html

I'll accept that I have ridden in dusty conditions, but 150 is not "several hundred". I've also read reports of people immediately stripping off this lube and putting their own on.

What do you guys do, and what do you recommend?

Thanks,

MG

 

[Moodyman]

I use GT85 or similar - it's a great degreaser. Spray on cloth and wipe down new chain with it.

The factory lube is indeed better than anything else, but you don't want it on the outer surface as it attracts all sorts.

 

[fossyant]

Use some chain oil - like a wet lube, and use that on a rag to clean off. You don't want to be removing the factory oil from the insides.

Manufacturers initial lube is sticky. Don't degrease it or spray anything on the chain directly other than an oil. GT85 will be fine on a rag.

 

[summerdays]

I did the same with my chain... used a bit of wet lube to remove the sticky stuff once there was a good coating of dust on it. No idea if it was the right thing to do ... but it had got to the point where it was looking horrible.

 

[Cheule]

I have the PC850 and 890, both were sticky at first but its no biggy, once it wears off just wipe off and wipe on your new lube.

And like you I found it didn't last that many miles before needing a relube, then again it did rain non stop at the time.

 

[Davidc]

Hello. I don't like that stuff much, but have found that it comes off with normal maintenance.

I more-or-less use the Mickle Method to keep chains in good order, and on a new chain, up to around 250 miles, reckon to do it about every 50 miles. After that it's 1 to 2 weeks depending on distance and conditions.

For those first few I use Finish Line wet lube and make sure some goes on the outside of the chain, which seems to loosen up the factory gooey lube so some comes off on the cloth.

With apologies to Mickle, for the first 3 or 4 times only put one dose of oil on and do one wipe off. With the factory lube there any more is just a waste of oil.

BTW - my past experience with that grade of SRAM chain has been excellent. I put one (+SRAM cassette + SRAM chainset) on a no suspension 21 speed 1990s mtb I inherited from my son some years ago (a lowish grade Raleigh bike) and it lasted me nearly 10,000 miles to the measured worn out state, then it did another 7,000 before I sold the bike with it still on there.

 

[mgarl10024]

Hi all,

Just wanted to thank you for your responses.

The factory lube lasted, I reckon, no more than about 250 miles (same as some said on here). Beyond that, the drive chain was getting very noisy and the chain itself looked grimy.

At this point (and please don't tut!) I reached for the chain bath. I degreased it, washed it, dried it, then applied some Finish Line Dry (my normal lube). After that, it was then working a treat - smooth and silent.

I've so far been very impressed with the SRAM chain. Not bad at all for a tenner - although at 450ish miles it is still relatively new.

Thanks once again

MG

 

[fossyant]

I'd not recommend a chain bath at all, unless you really lube the chain up after. Don't use it often though.

Glad you got it sorted and lubed it up.

I hate the sticky manufacturers stuff, but it's needed to maintain the chain in storage.

Many years ago, Shimano's manufacturers lube was the business, and I managed to get some of their factory lube - came in a 'pump' actioned dispenser (i.e. you pump up the air pressure) and it was great, but the sticky stuff is OK if you've got wet rides to contend with, but a mare at the moment with the dusty rides.

 

[fossyant]

Took my brother and my son out on a 10 miler last weekend, he was on a normal wet lube, and I on a dry wax. As the weather had been so dry, the route we took was dusty as hell - his chain was a mess at the end, so I cleaned off with a rag, and re-lubed with a dry wax. I mentioned he'd soon need to re-lube though (he's a runner, not a cyclist, so limited oils/kit etc..) as the wax is rubbish in the wet, although great in snow !

 

[mgarl10024]

I'd not recommend a chain bath at all, unless you really lube the chain up after. Don't use it often though.

I'm quite surprised at that.

My (basic) understanding is that the rivets and the links gradually wear (as shown here: http://sheldonbrown....ain_wornpin.gif taken from here: http://sheldonbrown.com/chains.html). The result is a rivet with a groove in it where that part of the link sits, and a hole on the link that gradually gets wider. This gives the stretch.

So, if you have lots of grit or metal particles in that moving joint, I'd imagined that this would really accelerate the wear. These particles are trapped in the lube, whether it is wet or dry. So whilst the metal on metal contact is lubed, the lube contains nasties that'll wear the metal components away.

However, by degreasing, you destroy the lube, freeing the particles to be collected by the chain bath. Thorough lubing afterwards is essential (I even run my chain through water in the chain bath afterwards and then thoroughly dry it so that the new lube isn't broken down my degreaser left on the chain).
I do it every couple of months or so, and the chain ends up gleaming (any more frequent and you'd spend more on degreaser than you gained on extra chain life!).

My thinking is that just wiping would only be cleaning the outside of the chain, and not touching all those particles trapped in the lube, inside the chain. So, from my original question, unless I degreased, I'd never get rid of the bits stuck inside.

Happy to have my thinking corrected

MG