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Chain maintenence while travelling

6K views 42 replies 37 participants last post by  smudgepot 
#1 ·
Hey there all you world travellers,
How do your take care of your chain while on the road?? I will put in a 9,000 K trip this summer. Carry just lube?? Lube and cleaner?? Stop at a shop along the way?? Look at it and convince yourself it is not dirty?? Blow it off all together??

thanks for the input
 
#39 ·
Same here.

I carry a small (4oz or 6oz??) plastic squeeze bottle of chain lube, not an aerosol can. I guess with a 9,000k trip, the bottle would need to be larger.
I'll have to look for that, sounds like it will pack better. Who sells them?

End of day while the chain is good and hot. Put on stand, run the bike in 1st, and spray away. Done.
Be very very careful. Good way to lose a finger or more.
 
#3 ·
As has been mentioned in the previous email: cleaning the chain is a waste of time. Lube with every tank of gas and every ride in the rain.

..Tom
 
#4 ·
Carry WD 40 and a good Teflon chain lube. If the chain appears reasonably clean lube it with the chain lube, when the chain is warm, every 600 miles or so. If it appears dirty spray it good with WD 40 and after a hundred miles or so use the chain lube. When spraying the WD 40 be sure to protect the rear brake pads, rotor and tires (yes it can drift over there).
 
#5 ·
My tool tube inboard of the left side case is full of vinyl gloves, rags and chain lube. The lube is at the cover end and behind it are stacked glove, glove, rag, glove, glove, rag, etc.. Chain is cared for as Tom just mentioned.

 
#7 ·
i typically lube up at the end of the day when im out riding long trips. set it on the center stand, turn wheel by hand and oil the chain. let it sit overnight.

I clean my chain once a year or so. Got 40 000km on the original. must be doing something right
 
#15 ·
...
I clean my chain once a year or so. Got 40 000km on the original. must be doing something right
You may or may not be doing something right, but you aren't doing anything wrong. 40,000 km (25,000 miles) is in the range of what people get if they did nothing at all.

..Tom
 
#9 ·
Since I really dislike lubing chains, I made an electronic chain oiler to take care of the task for me.

It uses 85W-90 gear oil and dispenses varying amounts of oil based on ambient temperature and speed. The oil reservoir is about 24" of 1/2" clear hose. Oil consumption is about 4" of oil in the tube per 5,000 miles. That gives me about a 30,000 mile range. :yikes:

Ron :mrgreen:
 
#11 ·
phish, what is your regular chain routine? Would you consider a different lube that is less goopy?
 
#13 ·
Like Greywolf, I carry my lube,gloves and rags in the tool tube. At the last gas stop of the day I pull off to the side somewhere and lube then.
 
#17 ·
Not sure what all the effects are from cleaning and/or lubing the chain, but I have noticed 1 thing. After cleaning or lubing, the rear wheel rotates much easier by hand and spins longer (moreso with just cleaning - eg: WD40). Not sure how long this lasts, but it seems to be a positive thing?, even if short lived.

I can see the benefit of a continuos chain oiler.
 
#18 ·
Continuous oiler



I work for a rapid transit district

our escalators use continuous oilers on the chains that carry the treads up and down the unit, - but our chain is not of the o-ring type
 
#21 ·
Every so often (3rd or 4th lubing), I wipe my chains down with PB Blaster. Safe for o-rings , and cleans all of the crude off chains that build up from lubing them. Might not do a thing for the life of the chain , but it looks better , which in some small way makes me feel better.
 
#22 ·
Thanks for the collective input. I guess I am too pre occupied with cleaning the chain. I do it every 600 to 800 miles. I have been getting 25 to 30 out of my chain sprocket sets. So I will head your advice and just lube away at every couple hundred miles or so.

Scottoiler huh?? Worth the money??
 
#23 ·
Anyone use "chain wax?" Opinions?
 
#26 · (Edited)
This is like tire choice and oil type. Everybody will have an opinion. Here's mine; clean only after substantial dirt riding. I do not bother cleaning any other time, it won't hurt to clean it, it just does not accomplish anything. Oil every 600 miles and track this with odometer. If the chain gets wet, reoil no matter what the mileage.

I use either a wax or Bel Ray Super Clean.

IMHO, a lot of you are over oiling. When the chain flings it off it collects under the counter sprocket covers. My chains are replaced at 20,000 to 25,000 miles (done 3 so far), and each time the sprocket cover wasn't very nasty. No sprocket cover cleaning performed between chain replacements.

I just carry lube. No gloves or towels needed unless you hose down the wheels or something. I never bother to lube my wheels though.
 
#31 ·
I clean mine every time it needs lubed (when I'm not on a road trip). I also use chain wax. When on the road, when I stop at the camp site/motel for the night... Just put it on the center stand and give it a shot.. Takes two minutes and you good to go the next morning..

Smitty
 
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