I am considering using paraffin wax as my chain lube this season. I am wondering if anyone that does this can walk me through their process, the tools and materials they use, and some best practices.
I think I would pick up a second chain and do two at a time, then put a freshly waxed chain on every week or so. I really do not know much about working with chains, I have never taken one off a road/tri bike, but I have used a chain breaker a lot in my BMX days.
My specific questions are:
What do you use to clean your chain? Solvent, ultrasonic cleaner, etc. and what is your process for cleaning it?What tools do you use? crockpot, etc.
Do you add anything to the paraffin wax? teflon, etc.
Are there reusable quick links that can buy to make switching chains weekly easier? I currently run a 10 speed Shimano chain
Do you have a step by step process that you can outline for me to do this correctly?
I have been doing some research online, but thought I would request some slowtwitch advice as well… If you have any good online resources for this I would love to check them out.
Best reusable quick link Wipperman Connex 10/11s. A bit more expensive but reusable and you can remove and reinstall without any tools, it’s stupid simple to use.
11sp Connex link is very expensive compared to a pack of 6 single use quick links but if you go with a Wipperman 11sx chain it comes with a Connex link. There is also the added bonus of Wipperman chain plate surfaces being significantly smoother than other brands = lower friction.
Best reusable quick link Wipperman Connex 10/11s. A bit more expensive but reusable and you can remove and reinstall without any tools, it’s stupid simple to use.
Most 9-10 sp master links state they are reusable. Most 11 sp ones say they are single use.
I’ve broken a chain twice. Once in the middle of the span and once at the quick connect. This was on a 9 speed bike. Impossible to know for sure, but I can’t help but to suspect that the 9 sp SRAM quick disconnect didn’t like being opened up every month for thorough cleaning.
Honestly, just use Squirt!! It is so close to as good as wax in the FF tests that you might as well leave the chain on and do something else with your time!
Most 9-10 sp master links state they are reusable. Most 11 sp ones say they are single use.
Indeed. I was reading a thread over at the Time Trialling Forum that mentioned this and it was news to me.
To quote myself:
This is an interesting read.
I’ve reused KMC 10-speed missing links over-and-over, regularly taking the chain off to clean it properly. After checking the website it seem that they do apparently make two versions of the 10-speed link, the CL559 (non-reusable) and the CL559R (reusable). I don’t know which ones come with the chains, but I’ve found they loosen up after a couple of openings, but still never had issues by reusing them.
Sadly for 11-speed the only one listed is the non-reusable CL555, so maybe it’s better to be safe than sorry with these ones…
The Wipperman Connex sounds like a good alternative though; are they definitely reusable and definitely compatible with other chains (e.g. is the pin size the same as KMC chains).
Wow, you need to play the lottery.
How long have you been waiting for the right opportunity to slide in the reference to that video?
That was pretty awesome.
I bought a 6 pack of KMC 11sp missing links for $16. KMC says they are single use. I didn’t really see why they couldn’t be reused but I looked ar one after removing and there was definitely some deformation to the lip inside the slot that I guess could be a point of failure. I’m sure YMMV but for less than $3 I decided to just use a new one. Now I have a Wipperman 11sx with Conner link for training and Premier race chain, which is the same Wipperman 11sx.
Single use quicklinks, who makes those?
Been using Sram and KMC a long time, I think they last as long as the chain. ~30 reconnects with no issues.
Yup. Best move I made. In fact I bought two. One is my dry (wax) chain, the other sees only wet lube. I prefer dry, but wanted the option of swapping for a (previously cleaned and at the ready) wet chain for when wet weather arrives (like Mont Tremblant this year). The way easy removal means you’re more likely to remove it to (a) clean the bike more thoroughly and easily, and (b) clean the chain the easy way: vibrasonically.
Best reusable quick link Wipperman Connex 10/11s. A bit more expensive but reusable and you can remove and reinstall without any tools, it’s stupid simple to use.
Went through the Molten Speed Wax steps for cleaning and waxing this past weekend. I started the first mineral spirit baths on Friday evening and noted exactly what MSW said. The first bath with two new KMC chains removed some of the manufacturer applied grease and I saw some metal shavings. The second bath was a little cleaner and a slight amount of shavings. The third bath was overnight and later on Saturday. Then into a two baths of denatured alcohol.
I used Molten Speed Wax in a small slow cooker and created a hanger/swisher tool to lace the chain on. In this process I did each chain individually. The swisher tool really helped in dipping and moving around in the wax. Each chain went through a 65 minute period in the wax and then were hung on a finishing nail to cool.
I used a ultrasonic tub to clean one of the cassettes and that took 3 attempts to get it cleaned with a strong industrial degreaser. Then placed the cogs into a bath of denatured alcohol and then dipped each into the hot wax. I also cleaned the rear pulley wheels the best I could without disassembly.
With a little wax build up on the gears and the chain links it took a little working to get the cassette back on and get the quick links to fit all the way through. But not too much effort.
During my Saturday morning ride with the old oily chain was thrown off to the inside. By the time I got it back on my fingers were black and the only place to wipe them was a best effort on the roadside grass, which was not very good. A long ride back with oily hands and thinking how much I hope that having a waxed chain will be less messy.
I think (since I am a newbie to this process) taking the time to go through all those steps will pay off and the wax seems to be adhered pretty good to the metal. One of the treated chains went on a dedicated indoor trainer bike with a Wahoo Kickr. I noticed it was slightly quieter and ran smoothly during a session yesterday afternoon.
The third chain I purchased is a waxed 11 speed Connex from Premier Tactical Bike that will be used on a etap build for my primary road bike. I have the chain and I am just waiting for another part to complete the build.
