Chain Waxers - Gather!

If I'm feeling generous, I use hot water to clean the drivetrain (which seems to be enough to clean the wax off and gets it all spotless). I then apply plenty wax (Squirt) and I let it go on thick. I then run the chain through all the gears and the way also sits on the cassette and chain.

Seems to work for me, does mean a wee bit more wax but it seems worth it as I get 3 years out the whole drivetrain.

I have a DIY blend on the go, I'd share it but it's not quite as good as some of the commercial options so not much point (I get about 2 weeks out of it which is ~300km).

It tends to leave enough residue on the cassette to keep it from rusting though.

If I were you I'd wipe down the cassette with an oily rag or rub some wax on a cloth and 'polish' it to give it some protection.  That or ACF50 or similar?

Top up the wax after every wet ride with a high quality drip on wax lube such as Silca Super Secret or Tungsten. Seems to help the rust issues.

What sort of wax?

Given you have degreaesd everything thats your issue.  A wee bit oil on the cassette will stop it rusting

I assume it's only rusting where the chain has rested in the cassette rather than the whole cassette?

Even if it's on other spots, it's a combination of water and restricted airflow.

My usual methods are not something you'll want to employ on a commuter, but I'll take the bike indoors, sit it near the radiator or dehumidifier. I'll also remove the chain because if it's wet, I'll rinse it in hot water or because I'm about to rotate chains.

Other options would be a quick blast with a compressor, a heat dryer or a heat gun. I actually have a dog dryer that blows high velocity warm air. That's great for drying a bike in the winter.

Even wiping the chain and cassette with a microfibre cloth would help

Nope, it’s the whole cassette.  Silca Hot Wax with the endurance chip.  This is it at 180km.  It certainly doesn’t feel like it’ll do 600km.

Ah, looking at that, I'm thinking road salt. Did you get much snow your way? If there's still that much salt about, I'd probably give the whole bike a warm water rinse when I got home.

Self confessed bike maintenance tart here though.

Just spray some wd 40 on it.  But not on the chain

Ah, looking at that, I’m thinking road salt. Did you get much snow your way? If there’s still that much salt about, I’d probably give the whole bike a warm water rinse when I got home.

I’d agree. It’s a constant battle to clean the salty grey crap off the critical bits of the work van at the moment.

It’s one of those times where I have to stop mid journey to clean the headlights and door mirrors. I imagine a commuter bike won’t get anywhere near its normal distance without extra lube and attention.

It’s a weak point of wax. I prefer to run plated chains, but really on salty roads a rinse and dry with a towel works best. Love wax for the nice bikes, but for commuting I find a belt hard to beat.

Nope, it’s the whole cassette.  Silca Hot Wax with the endurance chip.  This is it at 180km.  It certainly doesn’t feel like it’ll do 600km.

Oh . I’ve just melted a bag of Silca with an Endurance chip to try and help with rust on my MoltenSpeedWax drivetrain. It wasn’t as bad as that though and I had high hopes for the Silca - I’d better be prepared to be disappointed by the looks of yours. I haven’t put the chain on yet though as I had a MSW  one ready to go on so I’ve waxed the outgoing one with Silca in readiness. I had started putting Silca Super Secret drip wax on after recent wet wintry rides and it definitely helped. I also rinse my bike in fresh water before bringing it into the warm to dry..

I’ve (tooth)brushed a little ceramic lube onto the cassette sprockets to keep me going.  My drip wax won’t arrive until after the 22nd.  I may relax the chain this weekend or simply swap to my other pre-waxed chain.  Let’s see how it goes.

@onzadog - yes, it’s been very cold here over the past few weeks.  Only a little snow, but always -5 and below so lots of grit sprayed everywhere and little to no rain or mel****er to was it away.  Yesterday was very misty around Bristol which led to a lot of surface water and suspended moisture.  The bike is utterly filthy after just 60km on road.  

Just spray some wd 40 on it.  But not on the chain

Don’t do this, you’ll contaminate the wax on your chain which will eventually find its way into your wax pot.

After a particularly wet ride I remove the chain and rinse with a couple of kettles worth of boiling water, removes the wax and contaminants.

Cassette get a good wash and left it in the open air to dry off, it only gets rusty if I leave it in the garage. Or dry it off by the radiator etc.

But none of that is particularly practical for a bike that gets used 4 days a week in all weathers at all times of the year.

Putoline might be your friend here then…

But none of that is particularly practical for a bike that gets used 4 days a week in all weathers at all times of the year.

Agreed, which is why I personally wouldn't bother on a commuter bike.

I just keep splashing lube on it.

I was trying to find a solution where, in less than 3 days I don't end up with a slightly ganky chain which often ends up leaving marks on bibs, tousers, etc and might just need a little less maintenance.

I wax on the winter bike but it pretty much only gets out once on the weekend, rest of the time it's sat on the trainer.

I've had to do the boiling water rinse and back in the crock pot after every weekend ride, that would definitely start to wear a bit thin doing it every 3 days.

Maybe wipe the chain down if it's particulary dirty when you get back, then top up with the Silca drip wax and shift it across the cassette?

I think that's just cosmetic, and you can ignore it. I do.  I haven't bought a cassette since I started using wax.  In fact, I'm annoyed because I managed to bend the cassette on my new MTB 18 months ago in a bizarre crash which slightly affects the shifting, but it shows no signs of wear so I am struggling to justify replacing it.  But it still has niggly shifting.

Agreed, which is why I personally wouldn’t bother on a commuter bike.

I just keep splashing lube on it.

It's a circular argument though.  Especially on a 'nice' bike like that.  You have a nice expensive drivetrain, so you want it to last as long as possible, so you use the best lube, and it needs doing more often.

My commuters a fixie so wax always seems to last longer anyway due to the chain line. I'm probably re-waxing it every month or so at the moment (150-250miles).  As explained below I tend to re-wax them sooner rather than later.

Don’t do this, you’ll contaminate the wax on your chain which will eventually find its way into your wax pot.

After a particularly wet ride I remove the chain and rinse with a couple of kettles worth of boiling water, removes the wax and contaminants.

My experience is chains get dirty towards the end, just before they need re-waxing.  If there's still residual wax on the outside of the chain then dirt/water won't stick to it.  So when waxing a chain just because some other bike needed it and may as well throw them all in the pot then I generally don't bother cleaning them.

It's a balance, the original point of waxing the chain is it's less faff and / or* longer lasting.  If you turn it into a faff then what's the point?

If the chains visibly covered in crap I put it in a shallow pan of water with a non-foaming degreaser, rinse it and blow it dry.  But 9 times out of ten I just throw it back in the slow cooker.

*obviously liberally soaking it in wet lube is the least faff, lasts a long while or can be re-applied at the side of the road/trial, but wears the drivetrain.  And cleaning, drying and lubing with squirt (or other dry wax) is the most faff and shortest lasting but is nice and clean at least.

I was trying to find a solution where, in less than 3 days I don’t end up with a slightly ganky chain which often ends up leaving marks on bibs, tousers, etc and might just need a little less maintenance.

I'm finding pretty positive results with Silca Synergetic, runs very clean for a wet lube. I haven't yet figured out the durability yet though, my weekend rides can be several hours in the wet and mud so I always apply beforehand, just to be safe. Last week was only 3 hours so I'm not going to reapply for this weekend, see what sort of distance I get.

I'm still running chain through an oily rag after a ride though, has become a habit and seems to protect from virtually any rust spots.

I find waxing far less faff than wet lubes; cleaning is just a quick rinse with a kettle of water then chuck it in the pot while I get showered and have something to eat.

Put it back on afterwards and good to go, no degreasers, solvents or oily hands, rags etc.

It only becomes a faff if you're doing it far more often due to running it through shitty conditions? So if I'm finding it needs doing every 3 days due to the nature of my commute, then I'd probably switch back to a wet lube and clean less often since my commuter wouldn't be my nice bike/drivetrain anyway.

It only becomes a faff if you’re doing it far more often due to running it through shitty conditions?

It became a liability for me as I couldn't trust it to last a single ride in shitty conditions, probably caused more premature wear to the chain limping home dry and squealing (the chain that is 😆 ) than I saved by waxing. Agreed probably not an issue for multiple commutes etc

But none of that is particularly practical for a bike that gets used 4 days a week in all weathers at all times of the year.

Look, do you want to be a chain waxer or not?

You have to spend almost as much time doing it as you spend telling people about it on the internet.

😉

Look, do you want to be a chain waxer or not?

You have to spend almost as much time doing it as you spend telling people about it on the internet.

🙂

My commute is not a typical commute, it's 30-40km in each direction, 3- 4 days a week, so can easily hit 300km. It means the bike can be sat, all day in a damp shelter before doing it again.  So far (now 240km) the chain wax is lasting okay.  the chain doesn't feel as waxy to the touch as it did when it was new out the pot, but it's not at all noisy.

I personally wouldn’t bother on a commuter bike

Commuter bike is where I would bother the most.  They have to be the most durable and least maintenance and wax, when done properly, is that.

You have to spend almost as much time doing it as you spend telling people about it on the internet.

I can't even remember when I waxed mine last. Spring, probably.

My commute is not a typical commute, it’s 30-40km in each direction, 3- 4 days a week, so can easily hit 300km.

You should be telling us how to lube our chains then mate 😀

@molgrips - so no rust on your drivetrain after 6+ months? What wax are you using? That’s Putoline levels of minimal faff.  Or, I suppose, how many miles since then is a better question?

Silicone spray on the cassette, post ride, would be my rust reduction method.

Don't point it towards the disc (or try to shield it from stray spray) and don't worry if a bit gets on the chain or frame, in theory it just helps grime fall off*

*In theory...

Well, at 275km this week, it’s done.  It needs a rewax. I’ve done nothing to top up the wax (as I don’t yet have anything) but the chain is now starting to show a couple of rust spots.  Whilst it wasn’t wet yesterday, it was massively humid and misty, so a lot of moisture.  I rinsed and dried the bike last night and it’s sat inside next to the radiator, but this morning, yeah, it needs done again.  I’ll keep persevering and especially once the drip wax arrives in a week, but so far it’s been more than a little underwhelming.

 I’ve just melted a bag of Silca with an Endurance chip to try and help with rust on my MoltenSpeedWax drivetrain. It wasn’t as bad as that though and I had high hopes for the Silca

Be interesting to hear how you get on with that. Silca seems to be doing some interesting stuff with modular additive things and if it works as they say, it could be really good. Do you have to heat it to 125˚ C initially to incorporate the chip into the mix or does it work at normal waxing temps?

To summarise.

To extend the life of your waxed drivetrain and stop the drivetrain rusting, apply oil to your drivetrain. 🙂

I don't wax, but i'm pretty sure as someone else has pointed out that its just cosmetic isn't it?

Just leave it and ignore it, the chain rollers are still lubricated and you aren't going to rust through the chain or cassette unless you commute through the north sea.

Do you have to heat it to 125˚ C initially to incorporate the chip into the mix or does it work at normal waxing temps?

The Silca pot only heats to just above the melting point of the wax, so they recommended starting with a higher temp to melt the wax anyway.  (especially as I've found putting a cold chain into the wax at 75 lowered the temp.   125 is well below a temp that will degrade the wax (and their pot is PID controlled so it's not overheating the wax to get it up to temp.  your pot solution may be different

You only need to heat the Silca stuff to 125deg when using the strip chip, the endurance chip activates at 95 so you heat the pot to the temperature used to activate the additive of choice and perform the action required, then drop the temperature to 75deg get the wax to do its job.

Like Daffy says, for the Strip Chip it’s 125 but to incorporate the Endurance chip it’s 95 then drop to 75. It took a good 45 mins to melt it all initially, I’m hoping now that it’s one solid lump it will heat up quicker. I’ve got a chain ready to go on so just waiting for the other chain to need doing and then I’ll swap over and find out if it’s any good….?

Re the rust on the casette I tend to give the chain and cassette a quick spray of GT86 after riding (better than WD40 for this) just to keep cosmetic rust at bay. Without it then yes, cosmetic rust would appear. Only a very light spritz mind..

Re the discussion of different waxes, my previous supply of MoltenSpeedWax needs replacing following a house move (the slow cooker which contained it got broken but the wax was overdue for renewing anyway and if I had a spare packet somewhere I certainly can't find it).

What's the current go-to? MSW worked well for me but was quite expensive. Is there anything as good that is cheaper? I don't mind getting another lot of it as whilst expensive is lasts for a very long time so on a cost-per-ride basis is very cheap.

Anyone using the endurance chip?

Mine had the Endurance Chip in it... :-/

Hmm, jury's out then!

When I asked Silca about the endurance chip in wet muddy conditions, they said it might only make 5% difference. Given the chip Vs wax price, it didn't seem worth it.

Looking at ZFC, Silca got melt does seem to be the best in their extreme conditions block 6 test.

Yeah - mine is the hot melt, the strip chip and the endurance chip.  Still marginal so far.

I’ve put 1 Endurance Chip in my pot.

Thing I noticed about the endurance chip is that Silca talk about one or two chips in 250ml of wax. I've already put the full 500ml in my pot. I don't fancy adding 4 endurance chips at £25-30 each. Cheaper to just wax more often.

Silca recently suggested sticking some of their Synergetic lube in the hot melt wax to make it more water resistant/reduce rusty chains.  I have no idea how well it works

I'm curious what's in those chips.

And what the trade off is.  I'm guessing there's no such thing as a free (or £25!) lunch otherwise why not just make them part of the base wax?

I think the speed chip and the endurance chip are what in the wax normally, you're just altering the proportions of each.

I know Adam at ZFC was sceptical about adding Silca oil to Silca wax. It's not reversible either so you end up with a specific winter pot of wax.

It’s not reversible either so you end up with a specific winter pot of wax.

In the video they say adding a strip chip reverses the effect but again I don't know how effective it actually is

Like Daffy says, for the Strip Chip it’s 125 but to incorporate the Endurance chip it’s 95 then drop to 75. It took a good 45 mins to melt it all initially, I’m hoping now that it’s one solid lump it will heat up quicker. I’ve got a chain ready to go on so just waiting for the other chain to need doing and then I’ll swap over and find out if it’s any good….?

No, in my case after a few strip chips, it seemed to get even longer.  I mailed slica and it was they who said 'turn it up to melt it and put the chain in, it won't do any harm to the wax' but then drop it to 75 before you remove it (presumably gets the right amount of wax on the chain - if it's to hot will run off/out when you take the chain out of the wax)

That’s what I’ve done today too.