Bulk Lube

[Shredhead]

Anyone got a line on a good, inexpensive lube. I ride everyday and need something that won't break the bank. I've been using Pedro's dry all summer and will be changing to Finish Line Cross Country Wet now that its winter.

[crashnburn'd]

Triflow. I suppose it's not chain lube, but it works well.

[snow_slider]

I am a triflow junkie. I use that stuff for everything. It's great for chains and is also a great coating for the downtube - easier to get mud off after a ride if you coat the downtube with triflow.

[m1e448]

I 3rd triflow, you can buy a 4 oz bottle at the hardware store for $2.79

[gravitylover]

Tri Flow = yuck!

Teflon just ain't where it's at. Try Pedros Road Rage, Pro Link Gold or DuMonde Tech. They are polymer based and actually bond to metal parts instead of coating them. Other lubes just coat stuff and end up attracting grit and gunking things up. Of these three the Pro Link is the lightest and probably will be the best in cool/cold weather, the Road Rage is my favorite all around lube and the DuMonde Tech is awesome for cables, derailleur pivots and wet conditions. With any of these (as with any lubes) make sure you wipe off the excess and your drivetrain will sparkle and your shifting will improve dramatically. The other great thing about polymer based lubes is you don't have to do it nearly as often as with ANY other teflon or synthetic based stuff. DuMonde Tech says with a road bike you're good for 300 miles between applications. Of course this depends on the conditions you're riding in but it does far outlast anything else I've ever used.

[Pedro]

the DuMonde Tech is awesome for cables, derailleur pivots and wet conditions.

Not to Hijack the thread, but these are two things that i do not do, but can see why you would want to. How do you lube the cables

[bagtagley]

Not to Hijack the thread, but these are two things that i do not do, but can see why you would want to. How do you lube the cables

A thin layer before you install works well, just wipe off the exposed sections. If it's already clipped and capped, you can undo the cable at the derailleur which gives enough slack to pull the housing from the stops and sorta finagle some lube onto the cables.

On the other hand, you could just run full length housing. I've got 2 seasons on the same cable on my Bullit and though it needs to be replaced, it still feels a hell of a lot better than it ever did after a muddy ride. Unless you're a weight weenie, I see no reason not to run full length to the rear mech at least.

[gravitylover]

You don't even have to undo the cables from the der. and brake clamps. Just shift into high gear in the back and low gear in the front and release the brakes. Now turn the pedals and with your fingers push the der.'s to the stops and there will be enough slack in the cables to pull them out of the housing stops, same with the brake cables, don't forget to pull the housings out of the shifters and brake levers and do this too. Put a few drops of lube on the cables where it enters the housings and slide the housings around a bit then reinstall into the stops. I use a syringe to lube the der. pivots (yeah I'm a bit anal) and also put a few drops of lube where the cables go under the bottom bracket if you have downtube cable routing. This will dramatically improve the performance of your shifting and lighten the action on your brakes. It will also extend the life of these parts as you won't be asking the springs to do all the work of pulling the cables through the housings anymore. I actually don't wipe the excess off the exposed cables because the lube will keep it from corroding.

[m1e448]

Dumonde is expensive though. I don't use the teflon Triflow. Just the normal. Dumonde comes in two different weights, which should be noted as well, one green, and yellow I think. Cue me in here GL. Which do you perfer. I haven't used it, but a friend of mine swears by it.

[El Chupacabra]

Triflow here too, for the last 15 years. Cheap and works better than every other chain lube I've tried.

Key to keeping chain clean, long-lived, and shifting well: when you get a new chain, degrease it in a jar with Simple Green overnight, slosh it around every time you walk by. Clean the degreaser off, lube well, you're set. This is particularly important if you feel the need to use Shimano chains, since they come coated in sticky nasty grease. SRAM chains (fks Sachs/Sedis chains) aren't coated in this goo, plus they're a lot stronger chain --> my preference.

[gravitylover]

Dumonde is expensive though. I don't use the teflon Triflow. Just the normal. Dumonde comes in two different weights, which should be noted as well, one green, and yellow I think. Cue me in here GL. Which do you perfer. I haven't used it, but a friend of mine swears by it.

Yeah it's a bit pricier than most other lubes but worth every bit of the difference. I actually prefer the yellow (light) because I keep things clean. the darker one is actually for wet conditions and doesn't last as long. The additives in the green actually gum things up if you don't wipe things down when you're done lubing, it also stinks. The only issue I have with their stuff is the actuation temperature is pretty high so unless you shift frequently and pedal constantly (to keep the material surface temperature high) it's not as efficient as Pedros Road Rage or the Pro Link Gold.

Most other lubes on the market actually use solvents to keep the lubricants in a liquid state so they are "self defeating." This means that you need to use more. This is especially true of wax based lubes like White Lightning and Pedros Ice Wax. Those are really only meant for "race day" or extremely dusty conditions. There is a similar effect for teflon and silicon based lubes.

The Extra Dry lubes are great for clipless pedals but not much else.

As far as lubing new chains - This is the only time I'll use tri flow. The solvents in it will help to break down the chain wax that the chains are packed in. Soaking them doesn't actually help because it pulls everything out and most people don't use enough real lube to get down into the rollers afterwards. One shot with tri flow and then the next (and all subsequent after that) with one of these three and you should be set for "life." I generally hate Shimano chains but the one on my mt bike is going on five years and looks like new. I agree though that SRAM chains kick ass. If you ride in wet conditions more often than not though take a good long look at Connex or Wipperman chains. They are stainless and will far outlast everything else on the market but you will pay through the nose for them.

[biggins]

11 posts, and not one dirty quip about BULK LUBE!

Somebody's gonna have one hellova weekend. AwwwwwYeeeaaaahhh.

[AfroMullet]

Dumonde is expensive though. I don't use the teflon Triflow. Just the normal. Dumonde comes in two different weights, which should be noted as well, one green, and yellow I think. Cue me in here GL. Which do you perfer. I haven't used it, but a friend of mine swears by it.

I use the green religiously. It works.

[DougW]

How about lube for winter riding when sometimes snow, wet, a lot more sand on road and theat deicing chemical/salt. One year got tired of relubing every day so went to motor oil . worked and cheap but quite job to clean up mid and end of winter riding season. Been using Finish Line liquid.

[m1e448]

I generally hate Shimano chains but the one on my mt bike is going on five years and looks like new.

How often do you ride your mountain bike. I replaces my chain every season to season in a half. I guess thats because I'm racing on it, but still 5 years, thats old!

[Arty50]

For my chain, I use ATB (Absolutely the Best). It's difficult to find sometimes, but it works really well. It doesn't cause the chain to get gunked up like other lubes do. It also lasts a long time.

[Spats]

The cheap and easy way to clean, if you need to clean a lot of chains and have the room to set it up semi-permanently:

-Buy a bottle of Simple Green and a bottle of appx. 80W gear oil (for manual transmissions, available at any auto parts store).
-Get two small (1-2 gallon) plastic buckets, with lids. You can use cut-off plastic milk jugs if you're really cheap, but then you don't get to cover them when not in use.
-Remove chain. Clean the worst of the guck off with a rag.
-Put chain in first jug. (You did buy a SRAM or KMC chain, didn't you? Shimano people are SOL here.) Dump in enough Simple Green to cover the chain.
-Slosh it around. Let it soak for a while. Slosh it again. Poke it around with a stick. Let it soak overnight if it's really nasty.
-Pull chain out and rinse it off.
-Drop it in the second jug. Add enough gear oil to cover the chain.
-Slosh it around. Let it soak. Slosh some more.
-Pull it out and let the excess drip off. If you can hang it above the bucket to drip-dry a while, so much the better.
-Reinstall.

You can keep reusing the oil bucket because only clean chains go in there. The Simple Green you have to change fairly often because it gets nasty.

(I don't do this because I don't ride my mountain bikes enough to justify it: I just use the Supergo chain cleaner and a spray can of Tri-Flow. I ride my road bike every day, but road chains stay clean a lot longer.)