snake oil

souter

Dropped into a Reputable Bike shop to get a few bits and pieces such as degreaser and asked about chain lube. I was presented 3-in-1 oil which obviously wasn't good enough so I hummed and hawed and as the guy grudingly showed the more specialist option he asked me what sort of lube I was after.
My chance finally to show my colours as a serious cyclist so I replied I needed high performance lube to last several hours in poor conditions.
"Well 3-in-1 is your only man for that, it's what we always use".

Now I'm somewhat nonplussed, fair play to your man for presumably forgoing the extra margins of the higher end lubes, but it did get me thinking - have I become the stereotypical marketing led consumer chump in falling for the special powers of Sexy Super Lube et al.
After all, provide it's the appropriate fraction and adequately filtered, oil is oil just as soap powder is soap powder?

07Lapierre

YES!...3 in 1 is fine. I use it all the time.

I find most of the light "high tech" lubes are very good in summer, but IMO, in winter, 3 in 1 does the job much better. Yes it does attact more dirt as its a "wet" lube, but if you wipe away the excess (and don't use too much in the first place) its fine.

RobFowl

Lads please.....

Use 3 in 1 all you want but FFS keep quiet about it.

If RAAM see's this thread he'll probably have a fit......

07Lapierre

RobFowl wrote: »

Lads please.....

Use 3 in 1 all you want but FFS keep quiet about it.

If RAAM see's this thread he'll probably have a fit......

U use it too Rob..right ??;)

RobFowl

07Lapierre wrote: »

U use it too Rob..right ??;)

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]I didn't do it, nobody saw me do it, there's no way you can prove anything!









(Yes )
[/FONT]

C3PO

Tell me it isn't so .....! You mean the Wet Lube, Dry Lube, All Conditions Lube and Wax Lube on my shelf aren't necessary? I'm devastated!

07Lapierre

What do you think "3 in 1" means?
Answer: "Wet, Dry and Wax in 1"

souter

Given the enlightening replies it is only fair that I remove the veil of anonymity and give a thumbs up to Humphreys of Finglas, Dublin 11, for sound advice.

kona

3 in 1 is very thin IMO, the best lubes are ones with PTFE, this has one of the lowest Co-eff of friction known.

No doubt 3 in 1 would work, but I certainly wouldnt use it. I wonder if anybody has the means to measurably test the performance of each lube?

SurferDude41

I use finishline cross country lube mostly:D
White lightening dry lube on my speedplay cleats.
And if the weather conditions are really bad, the very best oil is Wilderness trail bikes WTB midnight oil....:)

tomasrojo

3-in-1 works fine, used it for years. But as Kona said, it's very thin. So it's great for lubing the interiors of old-style freewheels and the like, but one downpour will wash most of it out of the chain.

I use White Lightning Wet Ride now, which needs far less re-application, though you still need to clean it off about once a fortnight, even without rain, since it turns so black (and I have mudflaps).

deandean

I have used 3-in-1 for about two years now OP having received similar advice from another convert.

Are you on a road bike or MTB? I use the latter and it is important to keep the chain clean. I remove the chain every month or two, degrease it thoroughly, blow it clean with an air hose, and re-lube with 3-in-1. I notice how the transmission is silent with such a clean chain.

I have used the expensuve stuff too and I found no advantage for the large cost premium.

FergusF

For many years I used motor oil on my chains, 10W30 I think it was, works out even cheaper than 3 in 1, and being thicker it doesn't get washed out as easily.

To apply it I used one of those old style oil cans with a thumb-operated pump and flexible hose, available from most hardware shops. Holds about 1/4 litre and lasts for ages.

Lately I've tried a couple of the 'snake-oils' like Finish Line dry lube, for me the main advantage is they attract less dirt, I don't think if this justifies their high price however. When I run out I'll probable go back to the oil can

As other posters have mentioned, the most important aspect of chain maintenance is keeping it clean. I don't worry too much about complete degreasing, just lube and wipe off the excess.

souter

deandean wrote: »

I have used 3-in-1 for about two years now OP having received similar advice from another convert.

Are you on a road bike or MTB? I use the latter and it is important to keep the chain clean. I remove the chain every month or two, degrease it thoroughly, blow it clean with an air hose, and re-lube with 3-in-1. I notice how the transmission is silent with such a clean chain.

I have used the expensuve stuff too and I found no advantage for the large cost premium.

It's for my road bike. Sad thing is I practise lubricant apartheid with my commuter getting 3-1 while the road bike get's the fancy oil. No more! All chains shall receive equality of lubrication.

gman2k

I use a 'home brew' white spirits mixed with fully synthetic motor engine oil.
Chain is first scrubbed on the bike with a Park tools chain scrubber and degreaser.
Then dipped in solvent solution overnight and left to drip dry, then dipped again in the home brew and left to drip dry.
Clean as a whistle and like new after every muddy spin!

torturedsoul

Ok I apologise for the stupid question in advance, but, how do you degrease your chain and cassette?

Do you scrub it with a tooth brush and soapy water or do you need to use something else to get all the grime and gunk off it?

dazed+confused

You can buy a spray on chain degreaser, but white spirits applied with a 2inch paintbrush works perfectly well and is in keeping with the theme of this thread.

gman2k

torturedsoul wrote: »

Ok I apologise for the stupid question in advance, but, how do you degrease your chain and cassette?

Do you scrub it with a tooth brush and soapy water or do you need to use something else to get all the grime and gunk off it?

This is what you need to clean a chain.

This is how you clean a bike.

dazed+confused

Can anyone say overkill....

gman2k

dazed+confused wrote: »

Can anyone say overkill....

You're not getting your bike dirty enough

dazed+confused

gman2k wrote: »

You're not getting your bike dirty enough

Its a road bike..... Although the roads are in bits at the minute, I had to powerhose it after a race the other day.

gman2k

Never power hose a bicycle!!!!!
Water can get forced into bearings very easily with the force of a power hose.

dazed+confused

gman2k wrote: »

Never power hose a bicycle!!!!!
Water can get forced into bearings very easily with the force of a power hose.

I was waiting fo someone to say that....

Ah yeah I know that from washing my motorbike and and motocrosser. Its okay if you're careful where you blast it, and don't use a big diesel powered industrial powerhose.

At the end of the day bearings only cost a few quid anyway.

Lumen

dazed+confused wrote: »

At the end of the day bearings only cost a few quid anyway.

http://www.competitivecyclist.com/product-components/2011-campagnolo-cult-ceramic-hub-bearings-set-of-4-1965.30.1.html

dazed+confused

http://www.farfetch.com/shopping/men/gucci/cat-jeans/item10074240.aspx

And here's a pair of jeans for €454, but neither of us will be buying those jeans or those bearings!

murph226

I wouldn't recommend using washing up liquid for cleaning bikes, most of it contains salt!

gman2k

murph226 wrote: »

I wouldn't recommend using washing up liquid for cleaning bikes, most of it contains salt!

I've said it before, buy the cheapest car wash detergent (power wash deterg in 5l bottles in Tesco for example.)
It's the exact same as the well known bike brand pink cleaners, minus the pink dye.

tomasrojo

murph226 wrote: »

I wouldn't recommend using washing up liquid for cleaning bikes, most of it contains salt!

It was discussed here a while ago, but I think the conclusion was that if you rinsed off the washing-up liquid promptly it would do no harm.

I've been using washing-up liquid for many years and my chains last ok.

murph226

your chain gets oiled, the rest of your bike does not!

Hermy

murph226 wrote: »

I wouldn't recommend using washing up liquid for cleaning bikes, most of it contains salt!

+1

Hail 2 Da Thief

The combination of a slight hangover & a squeaky deraileur pulley made me a little, well, irritable during my cycle home from Waterford city to KK city yesterday.

Spent today lubing the pulley with light oil but to no avail. Couldn't get rid of the noise.
I was about to pull the deraileur apart when I randomly came upon a can of 3 in 1 oil. Gave it a good squirt & bingo, problem solved. 3 in 1 baby :cool:

tomasrojo

murph226 wrote: »

your chain gets oiled, the rest of your bike does not!

I'm a bit slow on the uptake. I only just realised what you meant.

I haven't seen any damage to the finish of the bike either.

What damage would you expect from using washing-up liquid? Just curious. Maybe I'm missing something.

Hermy

I think the implication is that the salts in washing-up liquid are not ideal for paint and other surfaces. Maybe the harm is minimal but I would have thought that Park Tool would recommend a more suitable detergent as best practice.

07Lapierre

tomasrojo wrote: »

I'm a bit slow on the uptake. I only just realised what you meant.

I haven't seen any damage to the finish of the bike either.

What damage would you expect from using washing-up liquid? Just curious. Maybe I'm missing something.

None. I only use the best detergent for cleaning both my bikes....FAIRY Liquid! ( Mild on your hands too!)