Ditched the chain lube for wax and my drivetrain is finally quiet

I spent 2 years using wet lube because I ride in Portland rain a lot (you know, constant drizzle). But I got tired of cleaning black gunk off everything every month, so I switched to a crock pot wax method last spring. $12 for a bag of wax powder and my chain is silent and stays clean for like 400 miles. Has anyone else made the switch and regretted it when it gets really muddy?

2 comments

2 Comments

river_jones17d ago

That wax booger thing is real lol. I left my bike in the car on a hot day and came back to little white drips all down my chainstay. Took forever to scrape off. The cold start squeak is annoying too but it goes away after like 30 seconds of pedaling. Muddy rides are no joke though, I tried one and just hosed the whole drivetrain and re waxed. Way less messy than dealing with wet lube turning into grinding paste though.

tyler_hernandez17d ago

400 miles on one waxing is pretty good, I can barely get 200 before my chain starts getting that dry squeak again. I switched to wax too, but then I took my bike out after a week of Portland mist and the chain sounded like a bag of rusty nails for the first mile until the wax warmed up. Muddy rides are a different story though, I just hose it off and re wax the next day and it's fine. Honestly the worst part is when you forget to let the wax drip off enough and you end up with little wax boogers all over your cassette.