# Recomend me a good chainlube for PNW weather



## bacoes (Feb 27, 2004)

The past few years, I've been ignoring routine seasonal maintance for a multitude of reason. (SS drivetrains, switching between 3-4 bikes for any ride). Now I find myself still riding the same frankenbike mtb for the last 4 months (a new record) and the rainy season about to begin. What do I need to buy next time I'm at the shop for a bike that gets alot of rain duty.


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## AndrwSwitch (Nov 8, 2007)

A traditional wet lube. I'm not sure that I buy into the idea that any particular one is better for staying on in rain.


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## woodway (Dec 27, 2005)

Seattle area commuter here. I have tried several lubes and always come back to triflow. It's cheap, easy to apply and seems to work the same as the more expensive stuff I have tried.


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## CommuterBoy (Oct 4, 2007)

I don't get your kind of moisture, but I do get sloppy snow/slush, and a good amount of wet in the winter. Maybe I'm nuts, but I'm a huge fan of wax-based lubes, even for the wet. A large part of this might be because part of my commute is on dirt...but when I use wet lube, the mess is just not worth any benefits that it creates. It's a horrible sloppy mess, and anything the chain touches gets nasty. Plus, it attracts sand and grit from the dirt road, so I don't see any major benefits. 

I use White Lightening's original recipe stuff, and I love it. I'm getting 2k plus miles out of a chain through the worst sloppy winters on my dirt road, and it's approximately 1/16 of the mess of a wet lube. There is never grit stuck to my chain, wereas when I use the wet stuff, it's like a corn dog.


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## AndrwSwitch (Nov 8, 2007)

My first winter here, I stuck with White Lightning for my commuter. Seattle streets are filthy. While it's true that wet lubes are messier, there's a tipping point where I think they start to make sense again. If the climate is wet enough to rinse out even a wet lube every week, usually my chain will run pretty clean. Some weeks in a Seattle winter have made me relube multiple times.

I also make a habit of wiping my chain after every ride. I keep a rag where I store my bike, so it doesn't add time to my day and I think it makes a big difference.


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## woodway (Dec 27, 2005)

AndrwSwitch said:


> I also make a habit of wiping my chain after every ride. I keep a rag where I store my bike, so it doesn't add time to my day and I think it makes a big difference.


Agree with this 100%. I will sometimes use baby wipes to cleanup my chain. They work great.


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## CommuterBoy (Oct 4, 2007)

That's a good idea. I don't make a habit of wiping it down unless it's noticeably nasty. A quick daily wipe, especially when the weather is bad, would probably get you a lot more life out of your entire drivetrain.


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## Dogbrain (Mar 4, 2008)

I've used tri-flo for years, and it's still my favorite summer MTB lube. The problem is that it washes off in one wet ride, so I had to reapply on the commuter basically every day. I use Finish Line Wet on the MTB in the winter, but it gets a little nasty on the pants and with the road grit I usually have to clean the chain more often than I'd like on the townie.

Last winter my buddy at the LBS turned me on to Demonde Tech. I've got to say I'm pretty impressed. It's a little bit of a pain to apply, but you only do it once every couple months. Basically you completely clean your chain (soak in solvent and scrub) and then dry. Then you put on a tiny bit of lube and work it in, let it "dry" then repeat a few times. It says not to re-lube until you can hear your chain, which for me takes 5-8 weeks. It doesn't get all over your pants and it doesn't pick up too much grit. YMMV.


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## BigE610 (Oct 24, 2007)

anyone use a mixture of mineral spirits and chain saw lube?


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## Canonite (Oct 11, 2011)

I used to live just above you (Victoria, BC) and had great luck with Phil's Tenacious Oil. I used it for years and years and I commuted quite a bit and was always satisfied with it. Not a mainstream lubricant, but a good number of local shops carried it.


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## CommuterBoy (Oct 4, 2007)

BigE610 said:


> anyone use a mixture of mineral spirits and chain saw lube?


Very curious... I have a spare gallon of bar/chain oil laying around all the time.


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## newfangled (Sep 13, 2010)

^ I've been using straight bar oil for the last two months or so. It's this stuff which is all-weather, so pretty lightweight and doesn't seem to need thinning.

And I'm pretty impressed. It goes on kind of thick, so I apply it to the inside rollers, spin the cranks a few times to spread it around, and then wipe it all off. Without wiping off the excess at the start it could get gross.

But I'd been liking Prolink Gold, and the bar oil lasts a lot longer than super-thin prolink and the chains stay just as clean. And my chains are way cleaner than when I was using Triflow. 
I'd also used Phil's a few times, but it was way too thick for my weather. And I never used wax, so I can't compare that.


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## Walt Disney's Frozen Head (Jan 9, 2008)

BigE610 said:


> anyone use a mixture of mineral spirits and chain saw lube?


I used to use 5w-20 (1/3), synthetic mostly because that's what my vw ran, and mineral spirits (2/3) when I lived in Seattle. Oddly enough, it was applied from an old white lightening bottle. Lube doesn't come much cheaper than that.


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## jetta_mike (Feb 26, 2007)

BigE610 said:


> anyone use a mixture of mineral spirits and chain saw lube?


No but I use a 50/50 mineral spirits and 10w-30 motor oil.

Goes on easy and lasts for what seems ever. I live in Abbotsford BC, about 1.5hrs north of Seattle and ride all winter.


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## Mr. Lynch (Jun 11, 2010)

I personally switched to chainsaw bar oil and I love it. It last a long time and doesn't pickup a ton of grime like most wetlubes do. Plus it is really cheap. I rode Tiger twice last week in the rain, and my chain still looks pretty clean and is slient.


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## Straz85 (Mar 20, 2009)

BigE610 said:


> anyone use a mixture of mineral spirits and chain saw lube?


A lot of people on RBR use mineral spirits mixed with motor oil. I'll probably try that once I finish up the Pedro's stuff I have.


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## CommuterBoy (Oct 4, 2007)

Well I'm going to have to try it... it will go well with my home-brew tubeless tire sealant :lol:

Where do I get mineral spirits? Does it involve any weird ritualistic stuff? Because I'm not really into that.


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## unicrown junkie (Nov 12, 2009)

BigE610 said:


> anyone use a mixture of mineral spirits and chain saw lube?


 I've never tried that, but I used to mix grease with some types of whatever lying around occasionally, mainly for off-road riding early in the year up at Stevens and vicinity due to the mud/grit combo.

The past two years its been back to trying three different things: 1) Tri-Flow; 2) Singer sewing machine oil; 3)Chevron 15weight oil in sampler packages I picked up at Fish Expo years ago.

Hands down favorite is the Chevron. Its clean, wipes easily, and applies well since it comes with a squeeze tube applicator that you can cut down to size.

Sewing machine oil is good, but messy and doesn't wipe well.

Tri-Flow is overrated, but always available. I like it for the ability to use on shifter cables as well. Also, it doesn't clean as well as the Chevron.

So, here we go, another Seattle winter!!!!


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## caseyallen (Aug 16, 2011)

any place that sells paint should have mineral spirits. hobby stores, discount stores, hardware stores etc.


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## Canonite (Oct 11, 2011)

mineral spirits = mineral oil? Or two different things?


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## caseyallen (Aug 16, 2011)

Two different things. Mimeral spirits are a paint thinner of sorts


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## umarth (Dec 5, 2007)

Just use the bar/chain lube. I switched over and while it isn't perfect, it is soooo much cheaper.

I think wiping down your chain daily is a sure way to need more lube asap. Just like it tells you when the the chain is too dry, a chain will start making noises when too much grit gets picked up. Wipe then.


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## BeastRider (Oct 20, 2011)

bacoes said:


> The past few years, I've been ignoring routine seasonal maintance for a multitude of reason. (SS drivetrains, switching between 3-4 bikes for any ride). Now I find myself still riding the same frankenbike mtb for the last 4 months (a new record) and the rainy season about to begin. What do I need to buy next time I'm at the shop for a bike that gets alot of rain duty.


I have been using a product called Purple Extreme for many years now. It has worked out great for me. A simple google search will turn up their web site. And, if you have ANY questions, call the toll free number and they will be happy to answer any questions that you might have. BUT....be forewarned.....if you happen to get the owner of the company expect to be on the phone for a while as he DOES like to chat!!!!!


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## Sizzler (Sep 24, 2009)

Every three to four weeks, lightly oil the chain. Then dip it in flour and fry it for a real taste treat.

Bicycle-Safety Tips | The Onion - America's Finest News Source


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## Ziemas (Apr 11, 2005)

I've found that Finish Line Wet works the best for me in rainy/snowy conditions. It coats well but doesn't gum up like some lubes do.


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