Celticgirl

Today I came up with an easy way to oil the chain. Previously I'd been using an oil can putting one drop per roller of Bar & Chain lube, there was plenty of waste and a mess of spatter even after wiping the chin with a rag.

I came up with the idea of using a disposable 3" paint roller, and found out it works very well to put just a film on the chain. Just like in painting the roller is absorbent and will not over oil the chain.
First I clean the chain, then I just pour a small amount of bar oil into the included tray, and roll the roller into the oil, then holding it against the chain I pedal backwards several times on the bottom and top of the chain. You don't have to wipe it off either as the roller just leaves a light film.

Crankycrank

I'd be concerned that doing it this way only leaves a light film on the outside of the chain and not where you want the lube which is inside all the moving surfaces.

noglider 

That's an innovation! I might just try it.

Maybe my method is wasteful or dirty, but I squeeze the oil bottle to make a constant stream, and I turn the cranks backward to roll the chain under the stream. Then I wipe off the excess with a rag using the same backward motion. To make this work, it's important to prop the bike up such that the pedal doesn't knock into anything.

JonathanGennick 

It is interesting, isn't it? I wonder whether a small brush or even a small paint sponge might also work.

easyupbug 

I am with Cranky, I'd probably pull the master link and see if it got lubed, if so give it a try. Also not all together sure dealing with a 3" oily roller is a major step toward less waste and mess.

epnnf

ummm, cant you just drip it on directly front the bottle?

Gresp15C

Bar and chain lube is chainsaw oil. I've used it myself in the past for winter riding, because I had it for my chainsaw and decided to try it on the bike. I doubt that it comes in a bottle with a tip, and it might be too viscous and sticky to apply in a graceful fashion. Usually, you just pour it into the reservoir in the chainsaw. So the roller might be a cleaner way of doing it.

Aside from the usual tradeoff between rust protection and picking up dust & grit, the oil worked just fine, but my chain was still rusty by spring.

Celticgirl

I was dripping oil onto the chain like you mention, and wiping the excess off. My problem was that after doing that my rim would get all spattered with oil and the rim brakes as well.

noglider 

I wonder why that doesn’t happen to me. Maybe I drip more sparingly. But I use very viscous oil.

Crankycrank

Just give the chain a good wipe with a rag after a few miles of riding after lubing. This usually gets rid of the excess lube that flings off onto your spokes.

phughes

Shhhhhhhh... don't let out the secret.

ThermionicScott 

I prefer to apply thick lubes off the bike, then wipe it down really good before re-installing the chain on the bike. That keeps it from splattering everywhere. If you want to apply it on the bike, a thinner lube is probably a better idea.

noglider 

Upon thinking further, I think using the oil bottle directly on the chain is easy enough. Jeez, maybe I should make a video. It doesn't seem that hard.

berner

I pour about a table spoon of oil in a small plastic cup and apply the oil liberally with a Q-tip and spin the pedals. I do this in the evening and let it sit overnight before wiping the crud and excess oil off the following day. Periodically, I go back and spin the pedals some more. I also use a piece of plastic of tyvek house wrap under the bike to catch drips.

loimpact

For those using bar & chain oil, what I recall people doing with that is to thin it slightly with mineral spirits. (I used this mix for a few months before going to Rock n Roll Gold & been doing that since)

And you could even use an old Rock 'n Roll bottle (or anybody with a tip that's removable so you could fill easily) or what I used to do was put some BC oil & Spirits mix in a container & siphon into a child medicine dropper (like pharmacy gives you for baby medicine...essentially an oversized eye-dropper) and use that to apply. Once container gets low, refill with more mix. (I think I did 1 part mineral spirits to 3 parts BC oil)

Lately I'm getting super tempted to try parafin wax/parafin oil setup. I'd love to have such a clean drivetrain, but the frequency of redressing may drive me batty.