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Help end an arguement... Is WD40 a good chain luge?

9K views 69 replies 39 participants last post by  gijoecam 
#1 ·
I know this has been talked about before here, but the search tool thingy isn't very helpful, (I really tried using it).

Is WD40 okay to lube your motorcycle chain? I say yes, friend says "no way" and would NEVER use it over long periods of time.

Thoughts?
 
#2 ·
Some have used it with success. That being said, its properties are not a good match for the job requirement. It just goes to show that a poor lubricant used often can be better than a good lubricant used too little or one that attracts dirt and is not cleaned.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Depends how long you want your chain to last. The fact is it is damaging to the 'O' or 'X' ring seals. It is also designed to creep into very tight spots, and so will get past the roller seals and dilute the grease in the rollers. This eventually leads to a lack of roller lube grease as it leaches out over time, causing a very prematurely worn out chain.

Now some people will swear they have used it for years and haven't had any problems. That's either bull or they have been incredibly lucky or don't actually ride that much. There is plenty of information on the net showing disasters caused by WD40 being used as a chain cleaner and lube. In your Suzuki handbook for your bike it states to use only Kerosene to clean your chain. That's pretty good advise. That's all I use because it works and it's cheap, use a proprietory lube afterwards.:thumbup:
 
#5 ·
WD40 will not damage seals or get past the O/X rings any more than kerosene will. It just is not a good lubricant for the roller to bushing interface which does not have lubricant sealed in like the bushing to pin interface does.
 
#9 · (Edited)
WD-40 is not a good lubricant anyway... WD-40 stands for "W"ater "D"isplacement and 40 is the formula version #. It was developed as a way of driving out moisture from electronics and such. I guess it is better than using nothing on your chain, but a real chain lube has to be infinitely better.
 
#11 ·
Per Wikipedia WD-40 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mostly oily solvent (similar to kerosene) and a little bit of mineral oil. I don't think anything significant could be left off the MSDS, so that's about it.

I don't see anything bad. I would describe it as light lubricant with delivery system.
 
#12 ·
This is as old as the internet.

Here are two incontrovertible truths:

1. The histrionics that WD-40 will dissolve o-rings, cause male-pattern-baldness, and kill babies in Uganda will persist and these threads will continue to appear.

2. The continued use of WD-40 to clean or lube chains will also continue, and in spite of no science or real empirical evidence that it harms chains or o-rings, and in spite of the thousands who use it with success and long chain life, the histrionics will continue.
 
#15 ·
WD-40 will work but go to Lowes and get yourself some of the Duport Teflon lube. Its cheap, its clean and it seems to work well. I have over 45,000 kilometres (28,000 miles) on my current chain. Its developing a few kinks and needs its second adjustment since being installed. I've ordered a replacement but I'm in no hurry to change it out yet.

LOWE'S OF BOARDMAN, OH

  • Store Number: 0188
  • 1100 DORAL DRIVE
  • YOUNGSTOWN, OH 44514
  • (330) 965-4500
  • Fax: (330) 965-4519
  • Hours: M-SA 6 am - 10 pm, SU 8 am - 8 pm
 
#19 ·
Just some more info from the webternet http://www.members.cox.net/watt-man/WD40experiment.pdf

I personally know the author of this study from my KLR650 days. He is pretty top notch engineer type guy, as well as being the inventor of the "Thermo-Bob" coolant bypass farkle for the KLR that works exactly as it is described.

That being said A little WD on a rag, a quick wipe, and then some dupont teflon goes on my chain every 350 miles or earlier if I'm just tinkering in the mancave.

Riding season STARTS in AZ next month!!!!!!:thumbup:

The Grinch
 
#20 ·
Over the last 3 months, I've actually made a complete switch from specific chain lube products to just WD-40.

WD is far from perfect, but it has a lot of good points. Not too pricey, very readily available, doesn't sling off the chain and leave a mess, does NOT harm the o-rings or any rubber product, good for cleaning and light lubrication.

Plenty of reports out there suggest that it works at least fairly decently for lubrication on modern o-ring chains. Some of the other chain lubes that i used created more mess than I liked. And I didn't care for the chain waxes at all.

Vic
 
#22 ·
not good

You guys are 100% correct!
It was meant to be used as a lube. W-ater D-isplacement = formula #40 = When I was racing boats, we carried a case around with us. Really dries up water. It has fish oil in it, spray it on your fishing lure, the fish love it = It's also great for cleaning off decal goop, dead bugs, old black grease. It's good for lots of things but not as a lube.
DeOldfart
 
G
#25 ·
I used WD40 as a chain lube exclusively when I had my KLR. I never had any issues and (at the time) remember reading about the KLR guy who had crazy high mileage using nothing but WD.

If memory serves (and since it hasn't been mentioned), the rationale:
You chain is already lubed... for life... that's why it has O or X rings - to contain the lube.
Wait, so your chain is NOT lubed for life, it's lubed for the life of the O or X rings which retain the lube.
So, the enemy of chain life is O or X ring damage or degradation, NOT failure to slather a bunch of slippery stuff on the outside of the chain. Dirt, grit, grime, sand, etc. abrade the seals, so anything that cleans the dirt away without chemically degrading the seals will extend chain life.

Inasmuch as a frequent dousing with WD to remove dirt and grit from the O ring seals accomplishes this, I'm a believer. That is, I think (as someone may have already said) you're better of using nothing but WD40 to CLEAN your chain FREQUENTLY, than you are using a high-end lube and never cleaning your chain.

My (likely flawed) understanding of the mechanics at the roller/ sprocket tooth junction: the rollers engage the sprocket, staying put, and the pins ROLL inside the lubed roller. There is no relative motion between the rollers and the sprocket (once engaged). The pins being sealed in a bath of lube by the O or X rings is because this is where ALL relative motion DOES (or is supposed to, at least) take place. The inner and outer plates aren't in physical contact (they're separated by the rings), so lubing the outside of the chain serves no purpose, other than retaining grit close to the O rings (bad), and possibly inducing a relative motion between the outside surface of the roller and the sprocket valleys (also bad). Huh, I think I talked myself into it.

DISCLAIMER: don't know WTF I'm talking about - just thinkin' out loud.
 
#26 ·
Here is what you missed. The pin is surrounded by a bushing and the bushing is surrounded by a roller. The sealed in lube is between the pin and bushing. The roller to bushing interface needs to be lubed.

 
G
#31 ·
Here is what you missed. The pin is surrounded by a bushing and the bushing is surrounded by a roller. The sealed in lube is between the pin and bushing. The roller to bushing interface needs to be lubed.
Thanks, GW - that makes sense.

So, anyone reading my prior post, substitute the word "bushing" for the word "pin." ;-)

What of the logic, tho?: that as the chain bends around the sprocket, the rotational motion (is supposed to) occur INSIDE the chain where the lube is sealed in, as opposed to the outside surface of the roller grinding around in the sprocket tooth valleys. There's no other metal-to-metal contact in the system. If that works perfectly, no lube would be "needed" on the outside of the chain at all.

So, failure = the seals fail> the internal lube is compromised and grit enters> the bushings seize > relative motion between the chain and sprocket now involves the rollers grinding around in the tooth valleys> sprocket wear > chain wear > death ?
 
#27 ·
So...........

Guess you CAN use WD-40 if you want, that is, if I'm reading all this correctly from others who have used it, exclusively, with good success. Seems to me the question has been answered...

Moral of the story - "Use whatever you want to lube your chain, it IS your chain after all. Just don't jerk mine!!":biggrinjester:
 
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