What about chain lube?

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Motorcycle Consumer Magazine (accpet no advertising, rather the Consumer Reports for Motorcycles) did a very complete study on chain lubes a while back; complete as in over 75 chain oils! Several that stood out were Castrol, Honda, and one other. I will see if I can find the article in my files and post.
And again, to re-affirm Never, ever use WD-40 for anything except starting one's lawnmower after it has sat the winter.
Another readily available *super* cleaning agent is ether. Good old engine starting fluid (without the oil additive).. Sparkling, clean, clean, clean; just get ready to re-lubricate immediately as it will need oiled again, right now..
George Morrison
 
I strongly disagree with the posters who say not to use WD-40 on an O-ring chain. I wrote the RK chain company and asked them what to use on their o-ring chains and they specifically recommended WD-40 and recommended it over the commercial motorcycle-specific chain lubes, and they gave me a very thorough explanation why. WD-40 is a great o-ring conditioner and that's all you need to do with an o-ring chain is condition the o-rings. It also drives moisture out of a wet chain and prevents rust.

I've used WD-40 exclusively on my o-ring chains for many years and regularly get 30,000 miles out of a chain.
 
What is wrong with using a good industrial non-drip oil in an ISO 220 with a 3% tackifer additive? The above in an ISO 100 or 150 makes a good foam air filter oil too at $1.50 per litre.
 
WD-40 is definately not recommended for use as a motorcycle chain lubricant. WD-40 is kerosene; the WD-40 patent is not for the lulbricant but for the perfume used to conceal the kerosene smell! WD-40 is highly surface reactive and will actually draw dust and dirt to the chain; just the thing we do NOT want for our chain!
Motorcycle Consumer News (accepts no advertising and is thus very straightforward) did a major chain lube study a while back and found several products to be excellent; several were from Honda and Castrol; both ols and waxes were found to work well.
George
 
Wd40 is a fine cleaner but as a lube it sucks. Many think orings don't need lube. Only for sand dessert riding is this true, cause chain and sprockets are going to wear anyway, lube will just help the task quicker. But with out lube on the street the countershaft sprocket a rear will have accelerated wear, the rolling sprocket teeth cylinders of the chain are not sealed and will wear , as the chain heats and gets hot if the orings have no lube they will fatique.

My offroad experience, all chain lubes no matter whether wax or other attract too much dirt. For about 15 years I ran a synthetic Synco product called super lube, not only did it clean like wd it left a seeable grease coating worked great. On the street It didn't fair as well, lube job was necessary every 100 miles, and while rear sprocket was doing well , counter shaft was not.

Since that time I've been running Moterex chain lube green can. It holds up for a full 500 miles easily and countershafts have much less wear.

I have 8,000 miles on present chain, and everything looks good.

This bike has been through 3 cs sprockets , 2 rear sprockets and 4 chains. The present set up is the best in developement I've seen as far as wear. 33,000 miles Hooligan style

But point is (No Lube), expect less life on the street.

[ July 10, 2005, 06:01 PM: Message edited by: Mackelroy ]
 
quote:
Originally posted by JonS:
What is the best lube for the chain on my Honda? i have read that WD-40 is fine, when others say that they only use some wax from the dealer. I would perfer to use WD-40 and do it often, if it is ok. Is WD-40 messier? How often should i do this?
Click to expand...
Best Lube? Stick with a lube specifically made for drive chains and you can't go wrong.

Make sure to clean the dirt and grunge off the chain before lubing it. Kerosene or WD-40 will work for this. Spray it on and wipe it off...repeat as necessary. If you have an o-ring chain, you don't want to be working the cleaner pass the o-rings.

I would stay away from wax-type chain lubes (I've never used them). Last month's Motorcyclist magazine had an article on chain lubes. The owner of PJ lubes (IIRC) was asked about chain waxes. He said that wax doesn't have "memory", meaning that once it's displaced, it won't work its way back. I think the point is it's too viscous.

With an o-ring chain, the idea is to have lube between the rollers, plates and sprockets. You don't need to lube inside the rollers; it's lubed at the factory and the o-ring seals in the lube.

With a conventional chain, you need lube not only between the rolers and the sprockets, but also inside the rollers.

Next time you're at the Honda dealership, ask one of the service guys what they would recommend for your particular chain type.
 
Wd-40 does not contain kerosene. It will not hurt orings. It will not get past orings and degrade the grease.

Pressure washers and degreasers will raise havoc with a chain.

I clean my chains with wd-40. I like PJ1 and RK oring lube.

Silicone spray is also said to make an excellent chain lube /protectant if applied often. Silicone will displace water and dirt, effectively sealing the chain. Dirt bikers use it alot.

Chain wax and gear oil flings too much.
 
There was another thread on this awhile back. Oring chains still kink if you don't lube them, and running them dry will chew up sprockets as the rollers on the chain and the sprockets need to be lubed. Maybe chains are different these days and don't need to be lubed, but I was putting 25k miles a year on bikes, an OEM chain would sometimes last 20k, but even the best replacements only seemed to last 15k. Chains need to be in decent shape when hitting at least 120 mph a couple of times a week. I would spray mine down every time I filled up, typically with PJ ? chain lube (awhile back), and clean up the mess as needed. Gear oil worked very well for lubing but it also made a mess. If time was available I'd loosen the rear adjuster to let the chain have a lot of slack, lube and work each link so that it's free moving, lube and work each roller, and then readjust the chain.
 
Wow, i started this thread in '03. Since then, i have bought a new bike ('02 Honda 750) with an o-ring chain and have used WD-40 and a little gear oil. I usually just use WD-40 and wipe it off. It has no greasy, oily, direty look to it. The most important thing is to keep dirt out of the o-rings. I have 10k miles on this chain with no wear to the chain or sprokets what so ever. Also, it is better not to have the chain too tight.
 
The catch 22 is lubes or wax that are sticky and won't fling off also hold more grit and make it harder to keep the chain clean.

With bike on a stand or centertstand let the wheel turn in 1st gear idleing, now pull the clutch in. I have observed that the wheel will noticably "coast" extra revolutions with a cleaned and lubed with a light oil (atf).

Not saying lighter is better, but the stickyness of most the "no fling" products also seems to make the orings drag on the plates.

When I travel I carry a toothbrush and a tiny tube of white grease or petroleom jelly. Not because it's best, but it's easy to stow and does a decent job. I sparingly lube the inner run and let it migrate around on its own, very little fling. What does fling of wipes up ez unlike the sticky stuff.
 
quote:
Originally posted by rokky:
Chain wax and gear oil flings too much.
Click to expand...
I use Maxima's Chain Wax... it never flings if you let it set after you spray it.
 
"I use Maxima's Chain Wax... it never flings if you let it set after you spray it."

Many people like Maxima. I have tried it and did not like it. It was no good in wet weather - rusty chain. I had a lot of fling perhaps from applying too much. I normally lube my chains at the end of the day and let them sit overnite. I still have a can of Maxima I refuse to use.

I have to say, after the wet weather we've been having, PJ1 is doing very well with no rust on my chain. I have to ride in the rain as I use my bike for commuting.
 
quote:
Originally posted by tweeker43:
scottoiler automatic chain oilers

just something to look at, especially for the dirt riders and long distance guys.
Click to expand...
I had one on my 1200cc Suzuki Bandit. They are the greatest thing since sliced bread.

I had about 12,000 miles on a chain using the Oiler. Normally the chain didn't require adjustment between rear tire replacements at 5k to 6k mile intervals. The chain looked and felt like a new on at 12,000 miles.

I took a 2,000 mile trip and the only chain maint on the entire trip was to fill the resevoir once.
 
The solvent in WD-40 can cause some swelling of certain o-rings in ring chains. But, most of the top shelf moto-specific ring chains today have Nitrile or Viton rings and can withstand most light solvents.

I hate to differ, but I would have to hear it for myself if RK recommended WD-40 as a chain lube. They may actually recommend it over most conventional chain lubes...because most all of them stink.

Which brings me to this....chain lube mfg's have missed the boat on providing the proper chain lubes. Especially for dirt applications.

Motor oil is way too thin on it's own to provide a continued film.
Wax is nothing more than a dirt magnet and will help to kill your equipment.
Other petro and paraffin lubes with loads of tackifier in them are on the same level with chain waxes. Most will set up before they even reach the friction points of the chain.

Dry-film is the only way to go for chain lubricants. There are very few of them on the market that are suffcient, especially for dirt use, but there are some out there.

Moly and chemo-absorbed adds in a light solvent base will go on easiest, dry so it isnt a dirt attractor, clean up easy, and will out perform any other fluid film lubes.

Many folks get lax on caring for ring chains. They seem to feel that they are maint, free. However, they require even more care than a standard roller chain. You must inspect the rings on a regular basis for tears and damage. One bad reel or section of reels will eat sprockets fast.
They also need lubricant at the roller/bushing area, which is not protected by sealing rings.
So yes, you must lube them.

I'm curious...when a person says that their chain lube seems to lube well, what in the world could they mean, and what are they basing this on?

[ July 13, 2005, 02:15 AM: Message edited by: Jaybird ]
 
quote:
Just a quick point. I always spray the inside of my chain and not the outside.
Click to expand...
You bring up a good point about where to lube a chain.

Chains were for a long time constructed with formed bushings. In other words, the bushings were made froma flat peiece of metal formed into a bushing. This leaves a split between the two halves of the bushing.
If your chain has formed bushings, you can lubricate it from any point and the lube will find a home. ie...on top of the rollers only, or between the plates.

BUT...many of todays moto-specific chains have solid bushings. With a solid bushing chain, you must apply lubricant between the inner and outer sideplates for the lube to find an avenue to the pin/bushing area. Lubing the roller only (or the "inside") of a solid bushing chain will starve your chain for lube, and wear will take place.
 
"I'm curious...when a person says that their chain lube seems to lube well, what in the world could they mean, and what are they basing this on?"

As mentioned above, monitor chain and sprocket wear, check how the roller roll, and loosen the chain adjusters when oiling to get slack so that you can check for kinking. A wearing chain needs to be adjusted more often, the sprocket teeth start getting thin and then undercut, and the rear tire doesn't roll as easily when up on the center stand as the chain is kinking.
 
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