masi61

Thanks for your response. The system is a 3 x 9 road system. My 2 chains currently in use are a SRAM PC-1090 (I believe), and I will have to check the other chain's specific name - it is a KMC 9 speed chain (it had an "X" in the name - it also had red paint or powder coating on the inner links, this wore off quickly in use but some of it remains). The KMC seems to be the quieter off the 2 chains, it is also showing the wear being greater than 1% - but this is on the Park Tools chain checker which I have heard is unreliable. I will get the model number of the KMC chain and post it when I get home (I'm at work now). I'm actually quite optimistic about chain waxing and plan to continue using it for the 2019 season.

That's interesting that you are putting mineral spirits and denatured alcohol into the ultrasonic tank. Do you put these liquids into a secondary container?

wingless

There are three jars that I use when cleaning chains, that are each dunked into the clean hot water ultrasonic bath, one w/ fresh soapy water, one jar w/ mineral spirits and one w/ denatured alcohol.

A PC-1090 chain is rated at 10-speeds. It may have better long-term service to instead use a 9-speed chain.

wingless

The Park Tool CC-2 Chain Checker has been working well for me. The measurements provided by the tool correlate well to manual measurements made w/ a long steel rule.

masi61

masi61

masi61

wingless

Yes, this is a common way to use an ultrasonic cleaner w/ chemicals other than water.

Hoopdriver

I doubt that wax reduces friction below that of a liquid lube. Subjectively you can observe this by running your finger across a waxed surface and then across an oiled surface. More finger pressure accentuates this effect. Bicycle chains, however, are not subjected to high pressures and temperatures so most lubricants work well despite having higher coefficients of friction, up to their limits. I said before that I liked using wax, but the hassle of relubing every 2 weeks in wet, winter weather got to be a bit too much. If all I did is ride in warm, dry weather, I would use nothing but wax.Glad you have found what works for you. I was not one who said your idea sucked, but my opinion is still that manufacturers are not inclined to undertake a development project when there is so little to gain. Solid lubricants have been around a long time but they have limited uses.

Still, I would like to see some objective research specifically related to bike chains. Surely some ME Masters candidate is looking for a thesis topic.

Kimmo 

Having a place in the chain to hang on to a chunk of lube won't help in the slightest, because the whole deal with a dry lube is that it doesn't wet. In other words, it won't get from where it is to where you want it by itself. It actually seems like a great place for the chain to collect debris, to my mind.

Except if you're on ten speed, where you'll want an eleven speed chain, in fact... At least as far as Shimano is concerned, not sure about the other brands.

The internal width is the same, but because it's slimmer overall, that meant the normal stamped bushes in the inner plates weren't going to cut it. So Shimano went back to a proper separate bushing like earlier chains, except split in half like the stamped bushings. Anyway, because part of the width isn't lost to the radius inherent in a stamping, there's more bearing surface in the 11s chains than the 10s ones.

AnkleWork

No doubt, that's never been done -- especially by people who actually design and produce drive chain.

Ironfish653

fietsbob

Rohloff's Lubramatic device, was putting a little oil on your chain with a small tank and a plunger slowly dripping a little on the chain

Ogsarg

I'm fine with using oil on chains but if I was going to use plastic on wear surfaces it would be UHMWPE (ultra high molecular weight polyethylene). It has a very slick surface like teflon but orders of magnitude more durable for wear applications than PTFE or any other teflon. If you look at canning machinery or pretty much any automated machinery where items are being moved, the material they use for the guides is UHMWPE. Not sure how this would hold up in comparison to steel but I'm sure it would last a lot longer than PTFE.

Of course there is also the issue of making the parts for your chain. PTFE, UHMW, and most other high wear plastics can't be molded to precise dimensions meaning you would need to machine the bits, which would likely end up making your chain too expensive to sell.

lubloi

Motorcycles use chains that are mostly self-lubing. They have o-rings between the inner and outer plates to keep the grease in - a google picture search will show how this works. These chains are typically good for 10-20 K miles. The only lubing these chains require is on the outside of the rollers, to slow down the wear occurring at the interface between the chain's rollers and the teeth on the cogs.
However, these chains don't bend sideways, so they would only work on single speed bikes, not on derailer bikes. Also, the o-rings introduce friction, not a big deal on motorcycles but probably not a good idea in the bicycle world where people pay a lot of money to have ceramic bearings and larger jockey wheels, in the hope of reducing friction.
The idea of using plastic bushings is probably not realistic, given the forces involved. When the chain is running at an angle (so most of the time on derailer bikes) only one side of the chain is transmitting power. The force where the pin meets the side plate is going to be very considerable, especially with the very narrow chains used with 10-12 speed cassettes.

masi61

masi61

Trevtassie

Instead of using paraffin wax, which is pretty well worthless as a long term lubricant as it has no thixotropic properties., why not use a wax that is designed for chains, like the Putoline one. It has enough lanolin and Molybdenum disulphide to provide a couple thousand km of trouble free use, because it'll flow under pressure. Yes it's dark because of the moly, but if you want long chain life with low maintenance then you'll need to compromise.
O-ring chains would suck on a bike, most lower powered road motorbikes don't have them because they suck too much power. The side plates are pressed enough to compress the O-rings and this creates a heap of friction. If maintenance was that bigger issue shaft drive would be more popular.

masi61

AnkleWork

Read carefully; the chain still needs to be lubed just as bike chains are now. There's just no way around it. Without external chain lube, sprockets wear faster off-setting any possible "gain."

Riding a bike means regularly lubing the chain, pumping air into the tires and fixing flats.

rydabent

Again wax is NOT a lubricant. All you get is a chain that is clean to the touch, and wears out quickly. Using Mobil 1 oil, my park chain wear tool says I should now change the chain on my trike. It has over 8000 miles on it.

Hoopdriver

Recumbents normally get higher mileage from a chain because there are 2 to 3 times more links in it. Each link runs across a sprocket/chainring far less than on an upright bike. I,too, find chain wear on my trike to be slight. I get about 3,000 miles per chain on my upright bikes so your 8,000 makes sense.

wingless

That doesn't comport w/ the Molton Speed Wax FAQ

My chains have been lubricated with that wax and they are clean and quiet. If there was insufficient lubrication, then audible noise would exist, it doesn't.

masi61

Trevtassie

If I had to re wax my chains every 300-400 miles I'd changing lubes... Generally on tour with the Putoline it'll go to around 1000km before the chain starts making a noise on the sprockets, at which point I'll put a little bit of whatever chain lube I can get locally.If it's wet it might need some lube before that. But it's literally only putting a thin film on to stop friction between the rollers and sprockets. The links are still visibly full of lube. I'll service the chain when I get home, longest interval so far is 2700km.
I use an electric frying pan I got from a thrift store, it's much quicker to heat than a crock pot and easier to manipulate the chain in as it's wider. Temperature control is better too. They usually come with a lid, so it gets stored on the shelf ready to go. I thread a piece of old gear cable through the end of the chain and the quick links. Down here in Antarctica I need to heat the chains with a heat gun to help the excess drain though, the workshop is unheated so the chains cools down real quick...

wingless

The Molton Wax web site shows this information on YBN Ni-PTFE low-friction chain coatings that may be of-interest to the OP.