SMOOVE Long Lasting Universal Bicycle Chain Lubricant for MTB, Road, CX, Etc. 125ml

Product Information

By all means, apply a wet lube for a torrential ride, but make sure you clean your chain effectively afterwards. Don't just reapply a fresh layer of lubricant on top of the grit and dirt that's on your chain. The same goes for 'dry' lube.

Wet rides can be a problem, or more specifically, the rust the lube can allow afterwards. After a wet ride I found that extra care and time were needed to fully dry the chain, as you are not reapplying anything. Argus Tuft: I'm with bikespud. Wax every time. Boeshield (T47?), White Lightning – It's just wax dissolved in solvent. It even says as much on the Boeshield bottle. Make your own and use heaps. It's almost free! Curiously, since first receiving UFO Drip, the application procedure has changed. Initially CeramicSpeed recommended one drip on each roller, left to dry for at least eight hours but ideally overnight. It was easily done, and the matt grey lube stands out so you can see what you're doing. New method The bottle Smoove lube comes in is also pretty nifty. It has a skinny tip that allows accurate application, but also prevents the watery lube from spilling out all over the floor whenever you upend it, as can happen with some other light lubes. Smoove Prep was specially formulated (aren't they all?) to clean, dissolve and neutralise the company's own Universal Chain Lube and be far more effective than other degreasers, so you need less of it. A bottle contains enough degreaser for cleaning the drivetrain 10 times. I was able to make it last longer by using it more sparingly with satisfying results.

It keeps going and going and going

Your chain must be properly cleaned before wax lube is applied, or else it won’t be able to penetrate the rollers or dry properly, leading to an inevitable build-up of dirty gunk. Colin Levitch / Immediate Media Because highly refined paraffin wax contains practically no oil, waxed chains are prone to rusting after wet rides. You’ll have to be prepared to dry, clean and re-wax the chain, or top it up with a wax-based drip lube, as soon as possible after riding. Whichever lube you prefer to use, for the best results Trimnell suggests that you leave the lube on the chain overnight before riding for maximum benefit. Some brands recommend leaving the lube in place for a specific period of time before wiping off the excess, so read the manufacturer's instructions to make sure that you're doing it right. What’s the difference between wax and oil lube? You can source the ingredients separately yourself, but ZFC says that commercial blends such as Molten Speed Wax use more highly refined paraffin wax than what is normally available to consumers, for optimum performance and cleanliness.

Recently, partly thanks to the increased availability of independent testing data, waxed-based lubricants have risen in popularity among performance-minded cyclists.

Maintain

It is the Danish company's fastest lubricant. In testing, ZF found it to be very fast with the lowest recorded drip lubricant wear rate of all. CeramicSpeed claims a proper application will be around 180 miles. So this could be a good option to use if you're racing or don't want to reapply / clean chains every week or less.

I use RnR gold, RnR red, Muc Off wet, Muc Off dry. Pretty lazy cleaning and applying but when used even the filthiest chain sets smooth out. Argus Tuft: One or two weeks between lubes is about right, maybe 300-400km.When it starts to make the whirring sound. Rinse the chain and drivetrain with sufficient clean water using a hose. Directions for manual cleaning. If you are seeing orange rusty colour seeping from within your chain after washing, it's because you did not work SMOOVE in well enough in the first instance and/or didn't allow it to set thoroughly enough.

Best chain lube for road and time-trial bikes

However, if you are in the habit of giving your chain a thorough clean and re-lube, once a week or so, then this maintenance routine is no worse and a lot less messy than a wet lube. Smoove recommends citrus degreaser for the job, but when I ran out I tried white spirit and it worked just as well, bringing the chain up sparkling. Flower power is made using the oil from sunflower seeds and has excellent green credentials. It performed excellently during Zero Friction testing and actually set a new cost to run longevity record amongst any drip lubricant. Who would have known the humble sunflower seed could contribute to such an excellent chain lubricant? John has been writing about bikes and cycling for over 30 years since discovering that people were mug enough to pay him for it rather than expecting him to do an honest day's work.

You get more lubricant per millilitre with this type of lube and the increased viscosity of the oils means this type of lubricant should last longer and is much less prone to getting washed off your chain if you encounter water. In all conditions, the SMOOVE keeps the drivetrain well… Smooth and it hasn’t washed off mid-ride whenever the conditions took a turn.And if you’re wondering why you can’t use WD40 or GT85, they’re water displacement products and should only really be used after cleaning your bike and before correct lubrication. They have some lubricating properties, and plenty of uses on bikes and round the house, but they're not up to the job of keeping a bike chain properly protected. Most of the products listed are supported by dedicated cleaners from the respective manufacturers which helps. We would recommend removing the chain from the bike for cleaning. If you haven't done it before it may mean learning a new job and investing in some chain link removal pliers, these do just look like a small pair of pliers and undo a chain's connector link. A chain can be removed in a few seconds, it's a simple job. As well as its well-known multipurpose spray, WD40 does make a specialist bicycle chain lube, which is formulated for the job. Chain lube lowdown Step 4 > Leave to dry for at least an hour. Best results are achieved if lube is applied the night before.