Maelochs

If only I could be like some of the posters here ... possessing all knowledge ... and yet, still needing to ask questions ....

smd4

Yeah, I'm going to have to play the BS card here, too.

tomato coupe

It's not going to take hours for oil to penetrate the small gaps in a chain -- it's going to happen in seconds, or not at all.

elcruxio

Well I mean I suppose it's subjective how one considers how long a lubricant application lasts.

If a single application of hot melt wax lasts for almost 900 miles*, to me personally that feels like a long time. But perhaps you relube at much larger intervals?

*Rex** Black Diamond hot wax in dry conditions.
**Rex is a Finnish company btw. They make ski wax too.

msu2001la

Cool. I agree on the wait time for drip wax. Seems like you'd have to get in the habit of doing this as soon as you come home from a ride.

Hot waxing isn't nearly as complicated as you want to make it seem. The process has been discussed in this thread several times already.
You do need to buy a crock pot (I got mine for $15), but you just turn it on and stick the chain in it on the hard block of wax. Come back in 45 minutes or so and the wax will be melted, swish the chain around for a minute or two in the liquid and then pull it out.

I've never used a stove, pot, pan or double broiler for any of this. I'm not even sure what a double broiler is, TBH.

msu2001la

Further - wouldn't wet lube just continue to penetrate further into the small gaps as you ride? It doesn't "dry" like wax and moving the parts around seems like it would help this process, not hurt it.

smd4

Me neither. But I do know what a double boiler is, which is the correct spelling, and how wolfchild spelled it.

bbbean 

You apply it hours (preferably overnight) before you ride. Unless your house/garage/workshop is open to a windy sand pit, there shouldn't be any exposure to dust or grime until its dry. Oil, on the other hand is best applied shortly before a ride, so it is still wet to the touch while your are riding.

It's dry to the touch within 30-45 minutes, so you could use it sooner, but a few hours allows the wax that got up into the crevices dry and cure.

The recommended usage is that when you bring your bike in for a ride, you wipe down the chain and apply then and there, so that the next morning, its ready to go.

bbbean 

In a pinch, 30-45 minutes. Best results 8-12 hours.

smd4

I’m looking forward to trying this.

bbbean 

Noting for the record that I use both - I hot wax my chains every 500-1500 miles (depending on conditions), and drip wax as needed to top off (every 100-200 miles) - the appeal of using drip wax is that you won't need to remove the chain and don't need to use the crock pot.

bbbean 

For a guy who says he's never even tried waxing, you sure are opinionated about it, and even have opinions on the various methods of application.

FWIW, I don't like lima beans. Can't stand them. I get a little nauseous just thinking about them. But it never occurs to me to go to lima bean forums to critique the various methods of cooking them or tell other people how foolish they are for liking lima beans...

bbbean 

Google "bicycle chain lube wait"

HTupolev

A sloppier outer surface just means the chain will pick up contamination faster. The oil itself lubricates fine whether it's just been applied or has sat around for a couple days.

wolfchild

I'll go with my own experience over what Google says, thank you.

base2 

...& the million plus years and tens of thousands of tonnes of pressure it takes to make the oil. Don't even get wolfchild started on the refining process & the thousands of hours of human effort that takes! So much easier than wax Sheesh! No thanks, brother! I'll stick to the dip in a hot crock-pot & a few minutes to let it cool everytime.

base2 

Anecdotally speaking: Since I've made the move to wax, first with Squirt, then to Molten Speed Wax via crock-pot method I have yet to wear out a single chain. Sure, I've changed out a few because I switched out derailleurs or gears or something and the new one was the wrong length for the new configuration ...But to actually wear out a chain to 0.5? Nope. Not a single one.

PeteHski

It takes less than a minute to apply drip wax to each roller. It definitely takes longer to remove the chain, dunk it in hot wax and refit.

No doubt hot wax is the gold standard, but drip wax is quicker. That’s why I use it.

PeteHski

It’s not a big deal. There is no reason why you need to wax a chain right before you go for a ride. I just lube it (if it needs lubing) when I clean my bike, which I never do right before a ride anyway.

bbbean 

Of course you would. Wouldn't want anyone else's experience, manufacturer recommendations, testing, or published data to cloud your omniscience.

tomato coupe

Seems like the best of both worlds ...

smd4

I’ve got enough bicycle repair books in my library, not to mention 10 years wrenching in shops, that Googling isn’t necessary on that topic.

smd4

Giant dealer doesn’t stock the Silca. Just placed an online order.

Maelochs

Apparently the suggested wait time is about an hour, no more, some folks say less. Thank you for suggesting the research. (And for those keeping score, about the same wait for drip wax.)

Maelochs

This is so quintessentially American ... not saying @wolfchild is American, but the attitude .... "What do those 'experts' know? They think they are so smart just because they spent years studying and more years experimenting?"

I have a friend who is a respiratory care worker in an Emergency Room ... people who claimed wearing a mask for an hour would kill you would come in with Covid, forcing him to wear a mask 18 hours day seven days a week for many months ...

Not every "expert" is a genius, and no one is always right ... but the whole "I have always done it this way so it must be the best way" trope would be really funny if it were not so common. Nothing is so American as Willful ignorance, and at a time when we have more information more readily available to us than any person ever in the history of humanity. In the past scholars would travel for months to meet other scholars to learn a twentieth of a percent of what anyone with a phone can learn in half an hour.

All I cna say is that hot wax with a drip wax touch up is good enough for me ... I may be stupid but I am riding.