questionesse

Hi guys,

I started using teflon-based spray for my chain. It is intended as a long-term lubricant for cogs etc. so I thought it might be a good idea.
Just wanted to double-check if there's long-term experience here regarding teflon spray. Any reasons for not using it?

On a side note: I noticed, it dried with leaving a white residue, which is hard to remove. Any hints on how to easily get rid of that?

Thanks!

f4rrest

Teflon is a white plastic.

The white residue is the lubricant.

I use Chain-L because it lasts so long.

rpenmanparker 

Solid lubricants have their downsides. They tend to accumulate in the rear derailleur and gunk it up. They also don't fill up the tiny spaces inside the chain as well as liquid lubricants do to keep water out.

FullGas

sprays are messy...and using a product that produces a difficult-to-remove build-up on the chain sounds like a bad idea.

I use Chain-L also.

Bike Gremlin

I use motor oil. Cheap and no measurable difference in chain life (or noise) between that and other lubricants I've tried (haven't tried Chain-L, and wouldn't because of the price).
Get spare from mechanic shops for 0$, one dl last ages.

I ride in rain, snow and roads have often dust and sand when it's dry.

seypat

Whatever chain lube the auto parts stores sell. Cheaper than the bike lubes and works as well.

franswa

Chain-L as well. Very pleased with it. My bike fell down the into a lake, completely submerged(don't ask). Chain remained lubed and smooth for another two months. Seems almost like 4oz will last a decade.

Doug5150

The white stuff is the Teflon, it's supposed to do that. And Teflon is a good lube for many things.
However...
Teflon spray is not a good choice for chains, since the main risk of chain damage is the chain rusting and Teflon doesn't really prevent that.

The chain pins are a high-carbon steel that rusts very easily; if they rust at all they can become loose in the side plates and then work out, and then the chain fails. Rust is the problem here, not friction. Teflon powder will protect somewhat against water contact, but it won't prevent rusting from high atmospheric humidity.

You want some kind of regular oil to keep the chain pins from rusting; the amount of "lubrication" doesn't even matter. Numerous tests online of different chain lubes show that there's almost no difference in friction with different lubes.

FBinNY 

That's definitely the biggest downside.

franswa

Only a downside for you

ARPRINCE

Hmmm..... Sheldon does not approve

Lubricants Not to Use!

While it's hard to say which lubricants are best for chains, some lubricants are real no-nos:

Automotive motor oil contains detergent, to wash away combustion products, and is made to be renewed constantly under pressure from the motor's oil pump. I [John Allen] rode once with someone who had used it the day before, and her chain was already squeaking.
"Household" oil, such as 3 in 1, is a vegetable oil and is acidic. It tends to gum up. (It's really bad news inside internal hub gears, too...)
WD-40 and other thin sprays are intended more as solvents than lubricants. They evaporate quickly.

FBinNY 

Bike Gremlin

Read that. From my experience (for 3 years I was doing over 20 km each day and keeping track of mileage and component changes - chains, cassettes etc). Didn't measure any difference between bike specific chain oil and motor oil.

Teflon is a great lubricant. Just expensive. In my experience, motor oil does the job just fine. 20w60 for summer, fully synth 0w30 for freezing weather. I ride all year long, including snow and rain. No squeaking.

Bike specific oils aren't any worse, but cost 10 times as much and I failed to measure any difference. Didn't try the Chain-L though.

hockey

I have been using Teflon spray on all bicycles and motorcycles for 15 years. Great stuff.

Redbullet

What product do you use?
I use teflon (PTFE) spray and it looks like a thin oil film when I apply it. Then, it remains oily during usage and one could not observe any difference compared with normal lubricant. I could never see it drying, nor leaving any white residue. It looks exactly like a normal thin lubricant.

FBinNY 

It looks oily and doesn't dry for a simple reason --- it's oil, acting as a vehicle for the PTFE. If you don't see anything whitish it's because there's more oil and less PTFE.

DrIsotope

I've tried just about every chain lube you can think of, and guess what-- they all work. The differences become apparent in how long they last between applications, and how tacky, and therefore gunky, they get over time. Of all I've tried, Muc-Off Hydrodynamic has provided the best combination of duration between applications, and not turning into a tacky, dirt-gathering mess.

Anything Teflon-bearing I've tried has failed for most of the aforementioned reasons-- it does a great job of keeping the outside of the chain clean, but does a pretty poor job of getting inside the rollers. Outside of chain clean and slick, chain squeaking because the pins have gone dry. Exact same experience with White Lightning (wax + teflon.)

kbarch

I've been using Dupont teflon spray lubricant on motorcycle and bicycle chains for almost ten years. Can't say any chain has lasted that long because I haven't had any bike that long, but any other lube I've used either got the chain grimy much faster or made a mess of the bike (more of a problem on motos). I've never had a problem with a rusty chain when using teflon spray, but I've never submerged the bike, either.

banerjek

Motor oil won't squeak, but it will gunk things up somewhat awful, particularly if you ride in slop. There are different kinds of bike oils, and they vary widely in their properties.

One reason you may have not noticed much difference is 20km/day is not much, especially if you were comparing motor oil to a heavier bike oil.

Bike Gremlin

I've had 100+ km weekend rides as well. Yearly mileage about 7000 km. Gunking up was worse with some "wet weather" bike specific oils. Worse with chainsaw oil. Motor oil and gearbox oil were similar, though motor oil seemed to keep the chain quiet for longer, the 20w60 one at least, even compared to a SAE 90 gearbox oil.

10 Wheels

Works best for me. Very High Mileage

banerjek

This is pretty much what I'd expect.

But unless you ride in a lot of slop, going with something significantly lighter will deliver a more satisfactory experience. Note that lighter oils wouldn't last as long as what you're doing. But your chain would run smoother and cleaner.

If you think about lubricants in terms of price per oz, bike oils are expensive. But in terms of your actual operating expense, they're insignificant.

10 Wheels

Very Low Mileage

Bike Gremlin

I agree. The lighter the oil, the less grit sticks to it. However, when it's dry, chain gets noiser sooner. When it rains, lighter oil seems to get washed out quicker. So with lighter oils I need to re-lube a lot more often. Like every 50 km, except every 100 to 200 km.

For motorcycle I use Scottoiler - system that drips thin oil on the chain during riding, via a small tube. It slings off the chain along with dirt. Chain is always clean and lubed and seems to last several times longer than with other oiling methods. But it's not a hassle to use - since it's automatic, you just fill the bottle beneath the saddle from time to time - less hassle than conventional oiling.

120 ml of Chain L costs about 30 euros to reach my house.
1 litre of motor oil costs about 5 euros. I get it for free usually.

One chain (i use up to 8 speeds on all my bikes) costs about 10 euros for qood quality one I don't use more than 2 per year. For Chain-L to pay off, it would need to double the life of a chain, but I really doubt it can make that much of a difference.

Edit:
I have no doubds that Chain-L does a better and longer lasting job than most other lubes - heard no complaints from any users, only praises. However, considering the cost and hassle of applying it always on a well cleaned chain - it's not perfect for everybody IMO (I know all lubes are best applied on a cleaned chain - and I almost never bother, just wipe the outside with a rag, then lube - life's too short ).

banerjek

I would expect a negligible difference in longevity and your experience bears this out.

Rather, the benefits would be more about being distributed in a way that makes application to chains a little more convenient, an improved riding/shifting experience (less of an issue on 8 speed systems), and having your chain not mark you so brightly when you accidentally touch it. None of these things are a huge deal, so the benefits might not be worth the cost for some people.