Dan Burkhart 

I use it as a rust inhibitor inside steel frames, not on my chains.

FBinNY 

FWIW - only Sram uses Gleitmo. other brands use other products sourced local to their factories.

Meanwhile, nobody uses Cosmoline any more. That was the packing "oil" of choice when chains were packed in wooden crates and shipped as loose cargo. The advent of container freight about half a century ago, eliminated the worry about rust from seawater getting all over the cargo, and therefore the need for cosmoline.

What sets modern factory lubes apart from after market products is how they're applied. Sram applies a thinned Gleitmo product to the parts at the point of assembly, and it then sets up as the solvent evaporates. Other companies run finished chains into a hot oil bath allowing excess to drip back into the bath.

RichSPK

The chain manufacturers coat the chains with stuff to keep them fresh on warehouse shelves. It may work well as a chain lube on the bike, too, but I wouldn't take that as a given.

FBinNY 

This is a 50 year old myth dating back to when rust in sea transit was the main concern. Those days are long gone, and all the major makers lubricate their chains with what they believe will perform well in use. Keep in mind that well over 90% of their production is original equipment on bikes, and their customers don't want a protective product that someone would have to remove later.

devianb

I have been using Tri-Flow for the past 10 years. There are probably better lubricants out there, but I have been so satisfied with it I didn't bother with anything else.

RichSPK

There may be such a myth, but it's got nothing to do with my skepticism. I said that based on my experience working in manufacturing, as a machinist in a tool and gage shop, a material handler and shipper in a cable manufacturing company, a documentation control specialist in a semiconductor test handler manufacturer, and a drafter/designer in fiber optic telecommunications and medical device companies.

Whatever they pack the chains in, they choose it for it's ability to get the chains to the customer in the best condition. That may mean that they expect bike shops to use a different lube when they assemble the bikes.

Maybe the stuff that comes on the chains is a great lube in operation; I'm just not willing to assume that.

RichSPK

We used a lot of Tri-Flow at the bike shop I worked at for one summer in the early 90s. I wouldn't call that an endorsement, but it did seem to be good stuff. I think we used some Pedro's lube, too, but it was mostly Tri-Flow.

FBinNY 

I don't have to assume it's intended as a lubricant. I get that straight from the horses mouth, through dialog with folks at the major chain suppliers. What comes on your boxed chain is the same lube as used on their OEM chains, and the chain makers explicitly ask that it be not be removed when the bike is put into service.

ThermionicScott 

Good for you, but how does most of your CV apply to this discussion?

If said "packing lube" weren't up to the job, and bike shops/end users were supposed to lubricate the chain before use, wouldn't that be in the instructions? I have yet to see it. Besides, since lubing every new chain in the shop would involve time and mess, I would expect some desire on the part of OEMs for chains that didn't need that step.

What actual information do you have to go on in assuming otherwise?

RichSPK

Oy. I'm so done with this subject. My CV demonstrates my experience with what manufacturers need to consider when getting their products to the customer.

bargeon

Clarinet bore oil for me. It's 100% natural.

TimothyH

Then why don't Titanium Nitride and Nickel plated chains come with anything on them? Or do they?

I recently purchased a Nickel plated track chain and it was bare. KMC can't believe that no lube at all is what will perform best.

Lack of "Lube" on Ti Ni and Nickel plated chains is what leads me to believe that the stuff is mainly to prevent rust. I think rust in sea transit is still a concern.

Not trying to challenge, just asking.


-Tim-

FBinNY 

It's a good question. It might be that without OEM business, and when marketing "bright and shiny" their priorities shift from delivering a lubed chain. Or it might be oiled, but with the outside washed or wiped dry.

As Rich pointed out earlier, chain makers are also concerned how their products are presented on the dealer's shelves, so their choice of lubricants will represent a balance of various concerns, though rust in ocean transit is far less of one than it used to be, and just about any kind of oil will more than suffice in that dept.

As an example of how marketing can trump performance, Shimano a while back changed their factory to a much lighter lube in response to a market perception that what they were using needed to be washed off. They stayed with this product for a while until their Skunk Works crew started complaining that Dura Ace chains weren't holding up as well as hey used to, then they switched back to something that looked worse and lubed better.

pdlamb

I'm not happy with what Shimano puts on their chains. I've used SRAM for years, and the lube SRAM chains come with is good enough to ride until it starts squeaking. Got a "bargain" on some Shimano chains, so I put some on last month. After a week out of town, the Shimano chain with factory lube and less than 100 miles, had started rusting and was jumping badly.

chipcom 

ProLink

TimothyH

I remain unconvinced and am considering buying a quart of Cosmoline 342 to try.

Prerequisite is that I have to care enough about the subject to spend $39 and I haven't reached that level yet. In my mind however, I know that I'm right and that's all that really matters.

milkbaby

The best chain lube is what's on the chain right now. The worst chain lube is when there's none in the chain.

Booger1

I shave all the stray cats around and boil the fur down.....What's left over after the painful 72 hour top secret process,mixed in the Booger Labs,with finely ground pygmy butt hair,is by far the best chain lube ever.



Or when I'm tired,Mobil 1 works.

FBinNY 

I'm not trying to convince you, or anybody else for that matter. I simply present what factual information I have based on personal knowledge and conversations with people in the industry.

If I were going to try to convince people of anything, I'd be clearer about pitching a specific product. My rule on stuff like this is very simple; it's your bike, and your money, so it's your choice, right wrong or otherwise.

However, as to Cosmoline, the bulk of their business and product focus is rust prevention, not lubrication. They do make lubricants, but those are different products from their most common product.

ThermionicScott 

If you're interested, I've read some archived discussions on rec.bicycles.tech about a guy who waxed his chains, but with about 5% motor oil mixed in to the parafffin. It seems that if you want to go to the trouble, it could be a good way to replicate the viscosity of factory lube, and you could experiment further with the proportions.

It's something that I filed away long ago, but haven't acted on since this Chain-L kick has been treating me well.

Milton Keynes

They're rim brakes.

Jumpski

I've been using White Lightning Clean Ride for several years now, and a happy camper.

10 Wheels

How many miles a year do you get in?

I tried it on a 4200 mile tour and found that it didn't last very long before need another application.

leob1

Wrong.

FullGas

you can use WD-40 as chain lube.

you can also use a rock as a hammer.