For years I used a mixture of motor oil and mineral spirits. My rationale was that thinning the fluid would help it get into the cracks and displace whatever muck was in there, plus make it easier to wipe back off. For my winter bike, I added some chain saw oil, just to make it sticky. I was never particular about the type of motor oil, and I'd rather not buy a bunch of stuff and store it forever. So I use the same oil that I buy for my lawnmower and roto-tiller, and the chainsaw oil is left over from having to disassemble a tree that fell over in my backyard.
Today I'm using "White Lightning" per the recommendation of @
cyccommute because his explanation made sense and I felt that giving it a good try was the only way to see for myself.
I don't believe in any of the woo surrounding chain lubrication. But in all due honesty I own so many bikes, that none of them will get enough miles to really test the efficacy of my chain lube. The main thing I'm interested in is what I can use for winter commuting, so my bike doesn't turn into a ball o' rust.
My old brown bike has an automatic chain lubrication system called a Sturmey Archer AW.
