e-Bike chain waxing?
#1
ignominious poltroon
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e-Bike chain waxing?
Is there any reason not to wax an e-bike chain (mid-drive in our cases)?
I would assume the chain/lube is agnostic with respect to the power source(s), but perhaps someone has a different take on this...
I would assume the chain/lube is agnostic with respect to the power source(s), but perhaps someone has a different take on this...
#2
Clark W. Griswold
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Should be fine!
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#3
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I started waxing chains on all my bike’s including my Pivot E Vault. I can’t say unequivocally that it’s any smoother or faster but it’s certainly much cleaner. I’ve no reason to go back to oil based lubes.
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#4
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Same conclusion here, 3 bikes (including the two mid-drive e-bikes) out of 4 that are using waxed chains.
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Does this make sense?
It depends.
1.Given the higher torque possible, if you use all that added power - lube with what pro-cyclists use, they generate big watts for extended time.
or
2. If the cyclist uses less of the power, select what is best for your roads/conditions/weather based on your normal bicycle lube preference and usage.
Regardless of the lube, expect more driveline 'stress' from mid-drive systems as power is applied at the crank and thru the rings chain cassette. Conversely, on a rear hub motor system the additional power is applied thru the hub directly to the wheel; thereby, only putting torque to the driveline that is powered from the cyclist. (my direct experience with wear would be anecdotal, 1 mid, 1 hub for comparison).
It depends.
1.Given the higher torque possible, if you use all that added power - lube with what pro-cyclists use, they generate big watts for extended time.
or
2. If the cyclist uses less of the power, select what is best for your roads/conditions/weather based on your normal bicycle lube preference and usage.
Regardless of the lube, expect more driveline 'stress' from mid-drive systems as power is applied at the crank and thru the rings chain cassette. Conversely, on a rear hub motor system the additional power is applied thru the hub directly to the wheel; thereby, only putting torque to the driveline that is powered from the cyclist. (my direct experience with wear would be anecdotal, 1 mid, 1 hub for comparison).
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Vintage, modern, e-road. It is a big cycling universe.
Vintage, modern, e-road. It is a big cycling universe.
Last edited by Wildwood; 10-03-23 at 08:05 PM.
#6
Clark W. Griswold
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However some of those lubes are great but I wouldn't change my lube routine of generally doing it monthly or weekly depending on my riding (some bikes it is just every night before I ride) and because of that I generally wouldn't change much on my lube because I would be doing it regularly though Finish Line does make a nice e-bike specific lube but in the end if I had the time and patience to wax it I would just do that and it would be fine.
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As above, I think waxing is fine, but not necessary. For socal, water based lubricants work fine, that is, they keep the chain nicely lubricated (if flexibility, noise and life are parameters) and don't attract dust.
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#8
Senior Member
Probably more advantageous even for an e-bike due to the higher forces so a lubricant that was less slippery and held more dirt would do more damage to drivetrain over time.
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#9
Newbie
I hot wax my e-bikes and then beat on them
I have a Specialized Vado 5.0 SL and Creo EVO and bike tour them 5-6 weeks a year plus hilly often wet trails and roads here in New England. I’m sold on hot paraffin waxing the chain every 800-1000 miles. Getting much longer life out of chains and cassettes and buttery shifting. I’m very sold on it. Cheap too- I paid $9 for a small crock pot, and keep using the same paraffin.
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#10
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I have a Specialized Vado 5.0 SL and Creo EVO and bike tour them 5-6 weeks a year plus hilly often wet trails and roads here in New England. I’m sold on hot paraffin waxing the chain every 800-1000 miles. Getting much longer life out of chains and cassettes and buttery shifting. I’m very sold on it. Cheap too- I paid $9 for a small crock pot, and keep using the same paraffin.
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#11
Newbie
Muc-Off is wax based. No need for anything else,
#12
Senior Member
Which Muc-off lube is wax based? I didnt see any wax based lubes when I looked at their website. I used to use them a while ago and they weren’t.
They also don’t fare very well against all the other wax based lubes. For the last several years, Silca’s hot wax and their drip wax solutions are usually at the top. Friction Facts tests them all. Friction Facts testing is pretty thorough and you can see how the wax based lubes are at the top for wear performance.
They also don’t fare very well against all the other wax based lubes. For the last several years, Silca’s hot wax and their drip wax solutions are usually at the top. Friction Facts tests them all. Friction Facts testing is pretty thorough and you can see how the wax based lubes are at the top for wear performance.
#13
Newbie
Wax based. It's there if you look,,,, us.muc-off.com/products/bio-dry-lube. Simply Mountain Biking a Youtuber tested chain lubes and Muc-Off was one of the best.
#14
Senior Member
I've been trying a wax based aerosol chain lube, Chain Saver, for about a year. I apply it with the tiny plastic straw, spraying the chain going over the front chain ring while I turn the crank. Yes I did clean the new chain first, and yes, the chain is much cleaner looking after a few rides than my SO's chain, which is lubed with Finish Line. She definitely accumulates grit on the sprocket teeth of her bike, while mine doesn't. I get a gray waxy film build up, but I wipe down and spray it every 120-150 miles, even though I could go longer. I do the same wipe and lube for her chain at about the same interval, and I don't see much difference in life of each chain. Mine is a trike; hers is a DF, and my chain is definitely cleaner than hers, which I consider more important than other factors.
#15
Senior Member
Apparently there is an issue with testing between MO and Zero Friction in that, ZF has a number of different testing blocks they put lubes through but all contain both load and no-load conditions on the chain. MO, after discussions with ZFC, only tests under no-load conditions. There is an entire series of memos on their website about the testing differences. What ZFC says seems to bear out the results I've had with both of those lubes but it would be really nice if they could resolve their testing differences and come up with repeatable results. While it's true one can obsess about this stuff, the results I've gotten have impressed me.
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You can wax the chain to prevent rust, but eBikes don't have permanently-lubricated O-ring chains like motorcycles do, so they do need the lubrication that oil provides for the pins.
When I was a motorcyclist, Chain Wax was very popular, as they needed lubrication more for rust prevention than lubrication.
When I was a motorcyclist, Chain Wax was very popular, as they needed lubrication more for rust prevention than lubrication.
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I have been using Squirt wax for a few years, never went back, you have to was the chain a bit more often than an oil-based lubricant, but the advantages in term of cleanliness are not comparable. I tried a Decathlon wax-based lubricant and it was leaving small packets of wax on the chain.