Drivetrain hygiene

[Done]

What do people do to maintain their drivetrains on long rides like the CTR? After one-day rides, I usually spray the dirt and grime out of the chain with a hose, run the chain through a Park chain scrubber with solvent (not every ride), let it dry, add some lube to every link (trying Finish Line Ceramic for a bit), and then rub off any extra. I’m pretty happy with this ritual, but it’s not something that I can do on the CTR. I’d love to hear what more experienced long-distance riders are doing, which lubes they’ve tried, etc. Thanks in advance!

Cheers,
Toby

[Slowerthensnot]

SS =P     i've had great luck keeping a small peace of old tee shirt in a ziplock and i use squirt lube in a small trial size bottle

[Done]

Thanks! I've got a bottle of Squirt on order. I'll let you know how it goes.

Cheers,
Toby

[HOser]

I've also had good success with the same method Dave describes.  The small bottle packs easily and I refill it at home as needed, so no wasted packaging.  A shop towel works well for me instead of a old cloth.

For races I like a good wet lube that lasts all day and keeps me going trouble and noise free (e.g. the Finish Line Ceramic you're using), but for all other riding (even very long rides) I stick with a cleaner lube and just commit to a quick wipe down/reapply session once or twice throughout the day.  A bit more time intensive, but you accumulate a lot less junk on your drive train.  Also it's a good chance to get eyes on the drive train during a long ride potentially allowing you to spot a brewing problem before it becomes critical.

[Done]

Great point about detecting problems before they get out of hand, HOser. It's pretty easy to take a bike for granted, until things start to break!

Maybe I'm just being overly paranoid about my drivetrain. When I first started mountain biking 20 years ago, I never cleaned my chain, and it seemed to work fine as long as I regularly added enough lube to prevent chain suck. But over the years I've gotten used to really cleaning my drivetrain regularly, and that's just not going to be possible on the CTR. Perhaps I just need to relax and revert to my younger self: "Yeah, it's so dirty that I can't tell if it's a chain or a noisy rope, but it hasn't fallen off yet so it must be OK!"

I'm trying some Squirt this week. Maybe it's the magic bullet!

[Done]

I ended up simply applying Pedro's Wet lube once or twice a day for the entire CTR. I didn't even bother to wipe the chain down before or after--I just squirted on a few drops per link, and then started riding.

Conclusion: Worked great! I only had one instance of chain suck, and it occurred when I was riding (in the rain!) through the red mud on the ridge before Durango. I added some extra lube, and everything was fine. I expected to wear out a chain as well, but when I measured it today (using a Park wear indicator and a ruler) it was fine. Amazing. Cogs are also in good shape. It did take some good scrubbing to get the build-up off everything, but that's pretty much to be expected after using up most of a bottle of chain lube in a week!

[carlhutch]

i heard Jeff K was using Squirt at the ctr.
What were your experiences with Squirt??

[Done]

I didn't end up using Squirt after all. I'd heard that it's not great it wet conditions, and the CTR was WET, WET, WET this year!

I'm still going to try Squirt though. The trails sure are dusty these days, and Squirt seems like it might be the answer. I'll update this thread after I try it...

[GRAVELBIKE]

I've been largely unimpressed with Squirt.  I followed the directions, and ended up with a chirping chain in less than 20 miles of off-road riding.  Same with Rock N Roll Extreme (blue).  The only lube that seems to last (for me) is Dumonde Tech.  The drivetrain doesn't look clean, but it's quiet, shifts well, and doesn't need re-lubing every 25 miles.

[redtabby]

+1 for Dumonde Tech.  I'd also used Rock n' Roll Blue and found it OK as far
as rejecting dirt accumulation.  It just didn't seem to keep the chain quiet as
long as I'd like.  (I gave up on the mfr. recommended application of squirting
half a bottle onto your chain at the cassette and instead did the drop-per link
method.)  Still using that on my commuter bike.

The dumonde seems to lubricate really, really well - and, with just a wipe after
every ride, the chain stays cleaner. 

I've also read that dumonde works well in cold weather applications where other
lubes can be too viscous (or frozen in the case of RNR) to apply.  I don't have
experience with that apart from leaving the RNR out on the porch by mistake
and finding it frozen the next morning!

[GRAVELBIKE]

+1 for Dumonde Tech.  I'd also used Rock n' Roll Blue and found it OK as far
as rejecting dirt accumulation.  It just didn't seem to keep the chain quiet as
long as I'd like.  (I gave up on the mfr. recommended application of squirting
half a bottle onto your chain at the cassette and instead did the drop-per link
method.)  Still using that on my commuter bike.

The dumonde seems to lubricate really, really well - and, with just a wipe after
every ride, the chain stays cleaner.  

I've also read that dumonde works well in cold weather applications where other
lubes can be too viscous (or frozen in the case of RNR) to apply.  I don't have
experience with that apart from leaving the RNR out on the porch by mistake
and finding it frozen the next morning!

RnR is really difficult to apply at colder temps.  When I attempted to apply it below 50f, it basically became so viscous that it "sat" on top of the chain/cogs rather than penetrating the links.  And since I live in Colorado, much of my riding is done (well) below 50f.

Dumonde Tech, on the other hand, seems to work just fine (even below freezing).  Boeshield T9 does, too, but it doesn't last as long as Dumonde.

[Done]

I'll second the Boeshield T9 recommendation. While I haven't used it in wet conditions, it works very well in dry conditions. Probably my favorite lube at the moment.

I've tried Squirt on my commuter this summer. It's really easy to apply and great in dry conditions--although it does build up some thick goop that's hard to remove. I really wish that it was "self cleaning" like it's advertised.

[JF-mtnbiker]

I use Squirt alot on day to day rides around Wyoming/Idaho. Dry most of the time. Like Toby, I try to keep my drivetrain clean in between rides. Squirt and wax based lubes run pretty clean all the time. TriFlow seems to build up dirt pretty quick...

But in 2010 TDivide, I took a good sized bottle of DuMondeTec Blue. My thinking was the snow, rain, mud and the ability to use it for cable lubrication, ect. The length of the TD will give you every type dirt, mud, sand and grime that can possibly be encountered. I thought a penetrating lube would be the best all around and would soak into dirt when I couldn't clean first. (most of the time) I also took a small rag and a Park tools cleaning brush. Whenever I had a chance to dig out my brush/rag, I gave my drivetrain a work over and soaked it w/DuMonde. I even got a guy washing his truck in a car wash to give me a 10 second blast one time when I was really caked up. haha. Sram X0 worked very well pretty much the whole way, considering... (there were major mud days but after cleaning things up, everything worked well again)

Also, knowing I was headed out for the day in heavy rain and snow fall from Butte, I rubbed in a good coat of heavy grease on the drivetrain at the Outdoorsman. I learned that from some World Cup mechanics back in the day. It works.

[ridebikeme]

+1 on Squirt! I started using this in 2009, and orginally used it only on my mtn bike. Needless to say, I've used it through the winter, wet weather both on the road and off, and have had great luck!

The main difference between Squirt and other lubes, is that you don't use it as often. If you use it to quickly, then it will make a mess... but use it ONLY when you need to adn it's great! It's great in wet weather and many of the pro cyclocross are also using it.



http://chasecyclery.blogspot.com