By Rick Schultz
Maybe I’m alone here, but I find that hot waxing yields the worst performance for chain lubes.
How can I say that? I was a product tester for Shimano and tested many things including Di2 and component cross-compatibility, wheels, along with four years of chain testing.
Shimano provided dozens of chains as well as lubes. I can’t get into the specifics, but I kept records of chain wear every 200 miles. I had a special chain-wear tool from Park Tool and three others from Shimano. The tool from Park Tool was calibrated by Shimano. There were some interesting conclusions that I fed back to Shimano that they incorporated into their modern chains to make them even better.
For this discussion and interest a summary of conclusions follows. Note, all chains were 11-speed and consisted of Dura-Ace and Ultegra. All chains were tested to 75% wear (Park Tool) and ‘go/no go’ using Shimano’s chain wear tools.
- The best upper-end liquid (wet) chain lubes yielded about 1,700 miles (2736 km)
- Squirt chain lube doubled the mileage to about 3,400 miles (5472 km)
- Smoove chain lube improved the mileage to about 6,400 miles (10,300 km)
My hot-wax position, summarized: I tested hot wax, along with three Shimano engineers, and what we found was that it worked fine when and if the chain was in a straight line, but when the chain started deflecting (example 53/26 or 39/13), the wax would be sheared off from the chain. The hot wax was gone from the chain in under 200 miles. If you look at the companies that have a test jig for testing hot wax, the chain is under constant load. But, in real world conditions, the chain is subject to continuous and various loads – high, low, high, low, etc. Squirt and Smoove are made for this type of realistic riding. Another thing we learned was that using Mobil1 30 weight synthetic motor oil performed the same as the top tier chain lubes. Adding Teflon powder did not make any difference in mileage.
Coach Rick Schultz is an avid cyclist who has trained, raced, and coached in Southern California and now resides in Bend, Oregon where he works as a bike fitter and bike fit educator. Rick is an engineer by trade and a prolific cycling product reviewer. He’s the author of Stretching & Core Strengthening for the Cyclist in the RBR eBookstore. Check his coaching site, www.bikefitnesscoaching.com. Click to read Rick’s full bio.
I tried a special hot wax mix with teflon, can’t remember the brand. I coated two brand new chains and was planning to swap them out as needed. Each chain seemed like it was “dry” in less than 150 miles. Since a single randonneuring event can exceed that distance, it wouldn’t protect my chain for the duration of my longest rides. I also wasn’t interested in doing the work of swapping out a chain every week or two. I went back to wet lube.
I’ll look into the brands you mentioned. Nice to know about Mobil 1.
Exactly what I experienced. Both our experiences go 100% against those pushing this snake oil.
Exactly my experience. A quart of mobile 1 will last your thousands and thousands of miles. Im happy to see someone else not trusting this hot-wax snake oil
I remember when I was a kid (in the 1960’s) my dad taught me to oil my bike chain periodically using a hand-held oil gun. Kinda like a grease gun but filled with some kind of motor oil, no idea what weight. Of course as I got older and lubes got better I moved on to various teflon product and currently use a drip dry-lube. Now it appears once again Dad was right all along!
Well said Gary
Provocative article, but one that contains a few key gaps.
1. Am I correct in inferring that the “best upper-end (wet) chain lubes” are all oil-based? Unless I’m mistaken, Squirt and Smoove are both wet lubes, just wax-based wet lubes.
2. What are the “best upper-end (wet) chain lubes? If the author can mention Squirt and Smoove, why not the other brands?
3. The author doesn’t explain the difference between drip wax and hot wax lubes. Many readers may know this difference, but at least some won’t.
4. Which hot waxes were tested? I think that it’s dangerous to generalize that hot waxes last about 1/9 as long as oil-based wet lubes.
You are mistaken about Squirt – it is a dry lube. https://www.squirtcyclingproducts.com/long-lasting-chain-lube/
“Squirt ® is what every cyclist wants: a long-lasting dry chain lube that does not gather dirt.”
Squirt is a dry lube. See https://www.squirtcyclingproducts.com/long-lasting-chain-lube/
Squirt ® is what every cyclist wants: a long-lasting dry chain lube that does not gather dirt.
Good info. Thanks.
You refer to 75% chain wear. I have Park Tools’ checker CC3.2. It shows 0.5 and 0.75.
Can you explain what those numbers actually represent?
Thanks again.
NOTE: Forgot to mention that we only got around 850 – 1000 miles out of a ‘hot-waxed” chain. Got with SMOOVE or SQUIRT.
I am a new convert to hot waxing. I do not yet have enough data to confirm an extended chain life, but the logic is, I am told, that wax attracts less dirt than liquid lubes do. It is this dirt that wears a chain – not just the wearing of metal on metal. And all of the guidelines I see recommend relaxing after 300km or so. Waxing, once the degreasing process is done is far easier than cleaning and lubing a chain in the traditional way.
use Squirt or Smoove
I used hot wax as a lube long ago. I still have a can from Performance that I used for many years. But like Rick, I found it didn’t last long on my bicycle tours. I have been using Squirt for some time and am very pleased with it. And it is easy to take on a multi-day tour and reapply after a rainy day. Given Rick’s comments, I am going to try Smoove. Most of us don’t race, and don’t have a pro mechanic going over the bike after every ride. My criteria for a lube is that it doesn’t attract dirt, is easy to apply, and long lasting.
FYI – GO, the other brand of SMOOVE is for sport bikes and does not cause ‘fling’, since it is even thicker. I tried that but too thick for bicycle chains. With Squirt and/or Smoove, no need to mess with the hot-wax snake oil.
It is understandable that a simple wax whether applied hot or liquefied by a solvent will not prevent chain wear. The best chain waxes contain dry film lubricants to protect the chain after the wax is shed. The wax is simply a vehicle to carry these dry film lubricants into the chain. Once applied, the dry film lube (typically hexagonal boron nitride or molybdenum disulfide) becomes burnished into the contacting metal surfaces and thus prevents metal-to-metal wear, When using this enhanced wax method, it may initially require a few applications over a shorter period of time to establish effective embedment of the the dry film particles into the metal wear surfaces. Teflon on the other hand is unsuitable for high pressure contact pressure.
You are NOT alone, Rick.
My decades of wrenching my family’s bikes generally supports your thoughts.
IMHO- hot wax has minimal (if any) real riding advantages. Agree 100% that constant load straight-line chain testing in a lab is unrealistic as changing loads and shifting clearly squeeze wax from between a chain’s rollers/pins/plates- and wax cannot ‘flow’ back in well.
I’ve also found that FRESH motor oil (home brew cut 1:2 or 3 with mineral spirits to help penetrate chain bits) works almost as well as the best wet lubes I’ve tried (although not as clean). (NEVER use ‘used’ auto motor oil on a chain as its lubricity is diminished and it contains acids from engine’s products of combustion). I get more than 2,500mi out of my 105-level chains using this home brew, and perhaps 3k with better commercial wet lubes (Midwest road riding to 75% chain ‘stretch’). Just started trying Squirt & that seems to be better still (no experience with Smoove).
Regardless of what lube you choose, tend to your chain regularly. Don’t wait for your chain to cry out in agony (squeak) before its next lube.
Thank you John, exactly my thoughts and experiences as well.
Author says, “When the chain started deflecting (example 53/26 or 39/13), the wax would be sheared off from the chain. The hot wax was gone from the chain in under 200 miles.”
Gone on the inside of the links? That’s where lubrication is important, and an advantage of hot waxing over drip or squirt lubricants, where you hope the lubricant migrates to inside the links.
I’ve just replaced the original chain on my Ultegra DI2 12 speed road bike at 10600 miles and only 0.2% elongation. Chain replaced due to a fractured inner plate.
Lube used was ‘Tru-Tension Tungsten All Weather Lube’.
It is a wax emulsion containing tungsten disulphide., like Silca Super Secret but considerably less expensive!
I’m in the UK so although this is my best ‘summer bike’, I reckon approx 20% of the mileage was in the wet.
I have a similar opinion against waxing, which somehow has instantly become the latest ‘fad’ thing to do.. I used to wax my chains (about 20 years ago) as well as those on my wife’s bike. But after leaving my Florida ‘training paradise’ for the 5 months of summer, when I returned I found the chains totally rusted stiff and nearly unusable by the humidity in the air. This told me that wax is not a real lubricant, at least not effective against moisture and resulting oxidation. The only advantage I see is that the chain is nice and shiny after the daily ride and maybe not in need of cleaning every time. But frankly, the simple drop of lube on a finger and them wiping down after the ride is all that’s needed – maybe a 30-second affair – rather than the multiple cleaning stages with solvents and then cooking the wax, wrestling with the stiff ‘icicle’ of a chain to get it back on, etc. only to find that the chain is really not protected against water or humidity.
I have always questioned whether it actually lubricates properly, no matter what ‘magic’ ingredients you put in it, to sell what is effectively paraffin but at a ridiculously high price. Otherwise why don’t we put it into our automobiles? The proponents of these products make so many ridiculous claims about how much ‘faster’ this will make you, but honestly, really? In any case, I am usually waiting around for other riders, so ‘faster’ is not an issue for me; it’s just another keyword to sell you stuff you don’t need.
p.s. as to the guy who cleans his chain with WD40 – you must know that this stuff is a dirt magnet..! At least begin with solvent cleaning of a new chain, and use some solvent-based lube for subsequent cleanings.
pp.s. As for waxing the quick link issue; a short blast of the chain and link with a heat gun or just a hair dryer makes the whole thing pliable and easy to work with. It’s no fun threading the stiff chain through the pulleys and gears, but warming it even a bit does the trick.
Florida, wow, the humidity will rust carbon – haha. For indoor training, i.e., sweating on the bike, the chain will rust quickly with chain waxing. This is where I use an inexpensive wet lube like mobil1. Saturate the chain then wipe it down before and after a ride.
Why I like waxing – simple bike cleaning – just wipe off bike with damp towel. No oils / gunk to remove from drivetrain.
– Remove chain every 300 / 500 miles depending on conditions
– Brush off cassette, pulleys, chain rings (no oils / gunk to remove)
– Install waxed chain
– Wax chains when you have a couple needing waxing
Even easier to use Squirt or Smoove. No need to remove the chain and it will last much longer than ‘waxing’
Big question is whether factory grease was removed. If the chain wasn’t stripped, can the wax be expected to stick?
I use Chesterton 601 an industrial chain lube and get great results and long wear. I don’t think any bicycle is going to be exposed to any such wear and tear as industrial chains. Difficult to obtain. See test video on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01f_cq-YfsQ
I’ve been waxing for a very long time and feel it gives a clean, fast chain that lasts and lasts. But I’m not getting 500 miles out of an application….more like 200 for the road bike and less for the mountain bike. I think your theory about cross chaining pushing the wax out makes sense. 1X drivetrains tend to do this more than 2x in my opinion and the 32X10 on the mtb probably is the worst combination of all. I like wax….but I can see how a person would like something a little less labor intensive.
Apparently Sheldon Brown is STILL correct, he was never an advocate for waxing chains.
Back about 50 years ago I hot waxed all my chains, it was a pain, and I did that for about 10 years before switching to bottle type of lubes. Every bottle type of lube I used, and I’ve used numerous brands over the years, made my chains last longer than the old hot wax method.