What kind of chain lube do you use?

[han-grrl]

for my mtb i use Pedro's syn lube ATB

[TriGirl]

Thanks for reminding me to clean my bike.......I am new to cycling and would like to read a good site or book on tips to easy maintenace for the winter.....anyone got any suggestions...remember I am not to techy yet ......busy mom hear...busy cleaning the house...and working...ya know......regular womens stuff..

[bikerchic]

it's the greatest for quick maintenance and repair tips. It really is a jewel!
I have also gotten the book "Zinn and The Art of Road Bike Maintenance" by, Lennard Zinn. It's very good and has lots of pictures so that helps although I still feel like I'm in way over my head if it's anything beyond lubing my chain or fixing flats, so I go to my LBS for everything. Soon they are having a bike fixing clinic and I'm first on the list! I can hardly wait I would really like to understand and feel confident enough to work on my bike myself.
Best of luck to you on your biking and being a Mom, juggling it's what we women do best!

[ayermail2]

This is so cool!!!
Took a basic maintenance class (2 evenings) at my LBS and now I can ajdust my own brakes, change my own tires (I have 1 bike that I use for road & dirt) and even put a chain back on!!

[alexis]

In the dry times, we use White Lightening... the wax product, but it creates alot of buildup and requires a lot of cleaning on the casette and derailler cage.

In the winter (for the Oregon rain) we use auto transmission fluid in an old time oiler can... doing the link by link liubricant dance.

[Hill-Slug]

Originally posted by alexis
In the winter (for the Oregon rain) we use auto transmission fluid in an old time oiler can... doing the link by link liubricant dance.

Have you tried BoShield? It's a proprietary lubricant created by Boeing. A LBSG recommended it to me for for rainy weather. According to him, an employee of the Lazy B ranch was swiping little bits of the stuff for use on his bike. So many of his friends asked for it that he couldn't keep swiping it.

I live in a dry dusty place now, so that bottle of BoShield may last me forever! 10 months out of the year, I use Pedro's Extra-Dry lube. How dry is it here? The last time I cleaned my chain, I took little pieces of tumbleweed out of the cogset.

[talouse]

I've been using Rock 'n Roll Lube the past couple months. Their lubes are awesome, but so far I have not put them to the test in rainy cold weather. I'm sure that will be coming along real soon now.

Before Rock and Roll, I used Finish Line Dry in the dry months and Finish Line Cross Country (wet) in the wet months. The latter seemed to last the longest in wet conditions.

Here's the link to Rock N Roll, downside is you cannot get it in any sstores:

Rock n Roll lubes

[missliz]

Rain, shine, hot, cold, dirt, road, I swear by White Lightning. Stays clean, sheds dirt, works for me.
As I recall, Bosheild is about the same thing as White lightning, parrafin in a solvent to go on easily. Wax is a very old chain lube, and if not the best definately up there. Just a giant pain in the butt to use when you had to melt the wax, break the chain, etc. I think Pro link is the same thing... but I could be wrong.

missliz

[bikerINco]

I never had any luck with White Lightening. it created a waxy feel to my bike's components and it doesn't seem to go away. The buildup is crazy. i now use dry lube. not sure who makes it, but i comes in a little black bottle. I live in Colorado, where it's mostly dry and it works sooo well.

[annie]

Don't know for sure about BoShield, but I don't think there's wax in it......... and sure there's not in Prolink. ProLink and Rock 'n' Roll are VERY similar. They work well in all but the wettest conditions. They are awesome lubes. Another great one is Purple Extreme. They promise 400 miles between lubes. And, you know, it's the truth. I've gone longer than that if I haven't been caught in heavy rains. I picked it up at my LBS. The owner of the shop told me he was very hesitant to get it, as he wouldn't be selling as much lube if it worked as promised. ProLink, R 'n' R, Purple Exteme........ they are are great. I'd use whichever is easiest to find. (Haven't had to buy any lubes since I started with the purple stuff last year. I still have 1/2 a bottle. Use it for road and off-road.) I've tried the wax-lubes with limitied success. They wear off so fast! I don't mind lubing my chain, but I had to do it weekly. When it's cold, as it is a good part of the year here, the wax lubes do not function very well. They gunk up pretty quickly. So maybe the ideal lube partly depends on where you live and what conditions you ride in.

annie

[anaphase]

So what is the difference between something like R&R and a product like the Park Tool Polylube? Is the Polylube for things like pedals and stuff, and not to be used on chains?

(total noob)

[CR400]

I use White Lightening. But then again I really try to take care of my drive train. I completely clean the chain by hand with a cloth then lube. Also once a month take the back wheel off and completely clean the cassette. My problem is the horrible squeak in my back brake. I cleaned the rim with alcohol until I got all the residue of I could see and the brake too the dumb thing still squeaks when used.

[RoadRaven]

LOL

I use sweat!

[CorsairMac]

I use White Lightening. But then again I really try to take care of my drive train. I completely clean the chain by hand with a cloth then lube. Also once a month take the back wheel off and completely clean the cassette. My problem is the horrible squeak in my back brake. I cleaned the rim with alcohol until I got all the residue of I could see and the brake too the dumb thing still squeaks when used.

My understanding is: when the brake squeaks, the back of the brake is striking first instead of the front. Change the toe in on your brakes and that should stop the squeaking. (courtesy of Bicycling Mags Basic Bike Maintainence!)

[SadieKate]

My understanding is: when the brake squeaks, the back of the brake is striking first instead of the front. Change the toe in on your brakes and that should stop the squeaking. (courtesy of Bicycling Mags Basic Bike Maintainence!)

In addition to checking the toe-in, be sure to deglaze the pads with an emory board (which explains why my purse and car are filled with ugly black emory boards with not a clean one to be found).