what lube does everybody use? ducati handbook says thick engine oil. but i have a can of chain lube from work thats dryish, will that be ok? its like the stuff they use on motocross bikes i think. grant
a lot of people rate Wurth, ive never used it...ive currently got the last dregs out of can of Motul racing something or other..i use whatever there is and which is least likely to fling off everywhere.
Wurth seems to attract dust and grime like bees to honey.best is a lube like castrol racing lube and a good clean of the chain with paraffin once in a while,my current chain and sprockets on 23,500 miles with a fair amount left using said method,oh and I ride in all weathers like I just stole my bike.
ideally i would use wurth dry / Motul or KalGard.... in reality i use whatever is on special offer at the time i need some more.
Of all the chain lubes I've used over the years, through grotty winter use, the best I've found is Castrol Racing chain lube. It's all I've bought for the last couple of years. It stays on really welll and does its job, rather than ending up all over the wheel. I used to use Scottoil from a refil bottle, but it does end up on the wheel a fair bit. I tried Wurth chain wax and thought it was shite! Odd as Wurth stuff is normally really good.
I use Wurth dry lube and it is easily the best I have used on any bike in 30 years. Loads better than the waxes and heavy grease ones. Unlike Wurth wax (as Michel has indicated) it does not fling off, cover the back of the bike or attract muck as it is literally dry - a ptfe compound which acts like graphite on the chain/sprockets. Afam alloy rear sprockets last longer/better/further than I was getting from steel OEM ones using wax and conventional lubes. The lubricant carrier solvent is really good for cleaning the chain whilst you lube it and when it is done it is dry. I only use wax before parking it up for the winter as a water repellant.
+1 absolutely brilliant stuff, spray the lube onto a hot chain and u can always get the wax to go on after.
can you remove the excess wurth stuff off Denzil?? i hate having chain lube everywhere and my usual MO is out the lube on (i apply from the lower inside of the chain so that centrifugal force pushes into the rings rather than out onto the wheel)..after ive gone around the entire chain, i remove almost all of it again, mainly from the side plates and so on. The chain looks very clean, but the lube is where it is needed, in the rollers and bearings... Can Wurth be used like this?
I use any old shit, it's only stopping the chain from rusting. The O-rings are keeping the proper lube where it needs to be.
Funky, with the dry stuff it uses a solvent that evaporates in about 5 minutes leaving a very fine (almost invisible film), the solvent carries the dry lube into the rollers but is also very effective for cleaning the chain. I put the bike on the paddock stand and startfrom the the rivet link spraying over the top run of the sprocket three to four links at a time (you don't need very much). Once the whole chain is done, I then spray some onto a rag and wipe off the old and excess lubricant material from the rollers, the insides of the chain plates and down the sides of the sprocket teeth. I then clean the outsides of both sides of the chain plates with a little more sprayed on to the rag. When its done the chain and sprocket looks new but the whole process takes half as long as a wax, so the process is the same as yours but probably much cleaner and quicker. There is no fling whatsoever and I lube it probably every 400 miles or so. In terms of wear my AFAM quick release hard alloy sprockets have no hooking at 12k miles with only the shoulders of the teeth showing any signs of polishing wear. I don't think I will ever use the normal lubes again as the dry stuff is so much cleaner and more to the point it does not attract dust and muck which is the real killer for the sprockets. If you've not used any before get some off ebay and try a can.
Used engine oil (specifically Morris ringfree 20/50). Feed from a tom sauce bottle and use a 1/2 inch brush to work in if needed.
Castrol chain wax has always worked well for me, especially in lousy conditions, as it doesn't attract dirt like other lubes. Spray on, leave to set/dry and forget about it. I've never had much fling from it if applied properly.
