I hate this topic because everyone has their own ideas and opinions and some very bad advice gets tossed around. Here are my opinions:

1. New chains don't need lube for the first few hundred miles. The factory lube is inside the rollers. Just wipe off the excess after installation.

2. Don't use WD-40. It was designed as a water dispersant and penetrant. It is not a good bike lubricant because it attracts grit, gums up, dissolves lube/grease, and can ruin rubber seals. I may use it to remove grease smudges on my chain stay, but I don't use it on any moving parts.

3. Don't rejoin chains the old way by reusing the link pin. All narrow 9 and 10 speed chains use now different systems. Reusing a link pin will weaken that link severely.

4. Consider a non-Shimano chain. If you do use a Shimano chain, please wear safety glasses when installing the special replacement pins. When snapping one of these off, it flew back and left a dent in my eyeglass lens. It would have blinded me in one eye had I not been wearing glasses. SRAM chains use a speed specific "power link" that does not require tools (to install), is strong and safe, but should not be reused. A bike shop owner was adamant that only one should ever be used on a chain at one time. I am not sure of the reason, as the "power link" is probably stronger than a normal link. A "power link" and chain tool could keep you from being stranded some day.

5. Chain length. I like the Shimano method: Big chain ring, smallest cog, RD pulleys should be vertical.

6. After riding in the rain, road grit will be all over your frame and drive train, which can wear your chain. Do not use solvents to clean your chain, as this will wash away the inner factory lube. Instead, perform a low pressure hose down, avoiding direct water spray on the cable housing ends, the bottom bracket, and the hub bearings. Towel off excess water and air dry outside, or inside with a fan. Do not lube until the next day as you don't want to trap water in the chain.

7. The best chain lube I have used is Maxima Chain Wax, designed for motorcycle chains. It sprays on wet with good penetration, then sets to form a thin waxy film that protects, seals, and lubricates the chain. It makes the drive train ultra quiet, and it sheds water and grit.

8. To apply Chain Wax, use a Spin Doctor Quickstand to lift the rear wheel off the ground. Note the end of the chain if there is a "missing link". Use a paper towel to protect the rear rim from over spray. Spray on the bottom run of the chain. Wipe off excess with the same paper towel. Total time: 1 minute. Reapply once a month or when drive chain starts to become noisy.

9. The only time you need to cut a chain is when removing or shortening a chain. Removing a chain to clean it is a bad idea. Every time you cut a chain, you can weaken it. If you are replacing a derailleur, it is best to remove the RD pulleys or open the FD cage, rather than cut the chain.

10. The chain should be low maintenance. I only wax my chain once per month. Once it becomes high maintenance, replace it.

4. Consider a non-Shimano chain. If you do use a Shimano chain, please wear safety glasses when installing the special replacement pins. When snapping one of these off, it flew back and left a dent in my eyeglass lens. It would have blinded me in one eye had I not been wearing glasses.

I hate to say it, but that's freaking hilarious. I ride Shimano chains on my Campy bike, I like them that much. At my shop, I install at least one or two a day, sometimes four or five, all of them OEM packed. I have never had any reason to fear link-projectiles, and I think a poorly maintained chain tool (eg, one that has play in the pin-setter, or one with a bent pin-setter) and/or poor mechanic skills are insufficient reasons to advise others not to use a given chain.

5. Chain length. I like the Shimano method: Big chain ring, smallest cog, RD pulleys should be vertical.

Err..."should be horizontal." But that presumes your chainwrap doesn't exceed capacity, which can happen on some mountain bikes even when everything is correctly sized. On road bikes, even with triples and medium cages, this method pretty much always works.

But to be precise, the Shimano method involves wrapping big ring and big cog independent of the derailleur and adding one link (inch).

7. The best chain lube I have used is Maxima Chain Wax, designed for motorcycle chains. It sprays on wet with good penetration, then sets to form a thin waxy film that protects, seals, and lubricates the chain. It makes the drive train ultra quiet, and it sheds water and grit.

8. To apply Chain Wax, use a Spin Doctor Quickstand to lift the rear wheel off the ground. Note the end of the chain if there is a "missing link". Use a paper towel to protect the rear rim from over spray. Spray on the bottom run of the chain. Wipe off excess with the same paper towel. Total time: 1 minute. Reapply once a month or when drive chain starts to become noisy.

10. The chain should be low maintenance. I only wax my chain once per month. Once it becomes high maintenance, replace it.

I ride anywhere between 1k and 2.5k miles in a month. For the former, I can go two months without replacing a chain, depending on how much dirt road and/or wet time I put in. For the latter, I can't always make a whole month without replacing a chain, again depending on conditions and regularity of cleaning (which for me is pretty irregular) and application of lube. While your choice of lube isn't necessarily a bad one, I wouldn't advise some of the 1-2s I know to lube their chain only once a month - when in reality they ought to replace them every two or three weeks - nor would I suggest this to some of the club-ride guys who log 3k miles a year - because they can usually go a year without replacing their chain, sometimes even without lubing it.

Err..."should be horizontal.


Actually the OP is correct on this one, big ring small cog, vertical axis through derailleur pulleys. Although there are other good ways to size a chain.

Golly, I guess I'm doing it all wrong, then, when I just put the ol' Pro-Link on each week. I don't think chain care gets any easier than what I do.

That cosmoline-esque crap on the outside of new chains is anything but energy friendly. It's a metal protectant, not a lube.

And just how long do you believe this "factory lube" stays "inside" the chain, eh? Bike chains ain't o-ring sealed motorcycle chains. They're simply bushings, plates, and pins. I wonder where it is that they store that factory lube inside dem chains, eh?

Don't you just love this topic? It's like bringing up motor oil at an automobile forum. You will never reach a consensus. I ride alot of miles too, divided amongst 6 bikes. It turns out that I apply Chain Wax about once per month on the most used bikes or when ever I detect any drive train noise (normally dead quiet with Chain Wax).

The incident with the Shimano link pin was a freakish accident. The chances of it flying right towards my eyeball were a million to one. But the fact is, I was using the proper chain tool in good working order and following the Shimano instructions to the letter. It was the last step where you "brake (sic) off the excess part" with pliers, when this excess part came flying out and could have punctured my eyeball, had I not been wearing eyeglasses. I still have the eyeglass lens with the dent in it. It probably would not photograph well. I implore you to wear eye protection during this step. Shimano has no warning or mention of this risk. See the image from the Shimano manual.

I was installing this new Shimano chain because the original (very low mileage) Shimano chain failed on me 10 miles from home. My experience with other Shimano chains was poor durability and (as with some of you) frequent replacement.

After these problems with Shimano chains, I am now using SRAM chains and so far they shift better, are more durable, are more reliable, and have a better rejoining system....in my opinion.

1. The original crap on a chain is for rust protection. It's not much of lube. I apply homebrew (4/1 mineral spirits to synthetic motor oil) to a brand new chain and wipe thoroughly to get that crap dust magnet crap off.

2. WD-40 won't hurt anything on a bike, including seals and even makes a fine chain lube, good for an easy 100 miles or more. It contains about 20% oil. Read the MSDS sometime.

3. You finally got one partially correct. Only old style protuding pin 7-8-9 speed chain can be rejoined with the same pin. There are several very good connector links which will work well with 10 speed chains and they are reuseable. Then you can remove the chain for a through cleaning. Use a Wipperman Campy 10 model for a shimano 10 chain or the Wipperman Shimano 10 model for a Campy UN chain. You should not use a link that does not properly match the width across the inner plates. You'll get too much or too little side clearance.

4. Nothing wrong with trying another brand of chain, but skip wipperman. A shimano chain works pretty decent, even on a Campy 10 bike. I still prefer the Campy UN chain.

5. Wrong again. The proper way to adjust chain length is in the little ring and smallest cog. Set the length to the longest that avoids the chain rubbing on itself or the upper pulley chain guide tab and you'll get the maximum capacity from your RD.

6. Wrong again. That "factory lube" is not a lube and no measures should be used to preserve it. If the chain is full of grit from riding in the rain, you can't preserve the lube but remove the grit. The two are thoroughly mixed together! Using the removeable link, take the chain off and clean it right. If you're in a real hurry, use a heavy blast of WD-40 on the lower section of chain, holding the nozzle close to the chain with an 8-layer thick folded paper shop towel held immediately below it to catch runoff. Five sections and you're done.

7. I've never tried a motorcycle chain lube, but I do have some, so maybe I'll try it and post a comment. Unfortunately, you don't know how good a job a lube is doing until you've got about 2500-3000 miles on the chain. If it's half worn, then it's a good lube.

8. Wrong again. If you wait for a month to relube a chain or until it gets noisy, the chain needed relubing far earlier. Nothing like riding the last half of a 50 miler with the chain squeaking.

10. Worthless information. A month means nothing. Some people ride 200 miles a month and others ride 800 or more. A chain's maintenance requirement does not change as it ages. There is specific criteria for determining when a chain is worn. My chains succumb to excessive roller wear, with the distance between the rollers increasing to .235-.240 after 5-6,000 miles. Another common criteria for excessive wear is elongation, which should not exceed 1/16" per foot, as measured with a precision scale, not a Park chain checker. My chains typically have 1/4 of this elongation when the rollers are shot. If you're getting a lot of elongation, then your lube is not reaching or staying on the pins.

There are other chain management techniques to maximize cog life. Rotate 2-3 chains, allowing no chain to exceed it's half-life before chaning to one of the other new ones and you'll avoid chain skip for 15,000 miles on one cassette.

Actually the OP is correct on this one, big ring small cog, vertical axis through derailleur pulleys. Although there are other good ways to size a chain.

Yeah, that occurred to me later. I interpreted his method as a mis-worded little ring/little cog combination, which in my opinion is (usually - some mountain bikes being the exception) the only way to go. And with that method, you're aiming for something like horizontal.

5. Wrong again. The proper way to adjust chain length is in the little ring and smallest cog. Set the length to the longest that avoids the chain rubbing on itself or the upper pulley chain guide tab and you'll get the maximum capacity from your RD.
not wrong, just different. Shimano, Sram, and Campy have different "methods" and all work, whether it's big big + 2, big little vertical, or little little no rub.

my two newbie cents...the campy chains have a preservative that might be great for preventing corrosion, but the links are stiff, and in my opinion not well lubricated. I used a professional parts cleaner and lubed with triflow, the result was a supple quiet chain, much better than factory lube!

1. The original crap on a chain is for rust protection. It's not much of lube. I apply homebrew (4/1 mineral spirits to synthetic motor oil) to a brand new chain and wipe thoroughly to get that crap dust magnet crap off.

Depends on the brand. Manual to some chains (wipperman?) directly instructs "do not remove original grease, it is not only rust protection but as well good lubricant".


3. You finally got one partially correct. Only old style protuding pin 7-8-9 speed chain can be rejoined with the same pin. There are several very good connector links which will work well 10 speed chain and they are reuseable. Use a Wipperman Campy 10 model for a shimano 10 chain or the Wipperman Shimano 10 model for a Campy UN chain. Then you can remove the chain for a through cleaning.

I you seriously recommend to use Campy-specific model for Shimano and Shimano-specific for Campy? I may understand second recommendadion but not first.


5. Wrong again. The proper way to adjust chain length is in the little ring and smallest cog. Set the length to the longest that avoids the chain rubbing on itself or the upper pulley chain guide tab and you'll get the maximum capacity from your RD.

There are many ways and Shimano-recommended works very well, as far as I'm concerned.

not wrong, just different. Shimano, Sram, and Campy have different "methods" and all work, whether it's big big + 2, big little vertical, or little little no rub.

The brand of chain or drivetrain has nothing to do with proper function. Most of the other methods are either inaccurate, requiring the mechanic to eyeball the angle of the cage, or estimate maximum extension of the RD cage. The big/big method is only valid with the cassette installed when the chain length is set. Switch from a 23T largest cog to a 27 and the chain will be too short. The little/little method is foolproof. Although it's not litkely to change the length, you can also use the little ring and second cog, or just the 12T cog, since most cassettes start with an 11,12 or 13.

Depends on the brand. Manual to some chains (wipperman?) directly instructs "do not remove original grease, it is not only rust protection but as well good lubricant".


I you seriously recommend to use Campy-specific model for Shimano and Shimano-specific for Campy? I may understand second recommendadion but not first.


There are many ways and Shimano-recommended works very well, as far as I'm concerned.

The reason to use the connex links as I've recommended is to provide the proper side clearance between the inner and outer plates. These links are made to fit wipperman chain, not other brands. Careful measuring will reveal that a shimano 10 chain is only about .001 inch narrower across the inner plates than a wipperman Campy 10 chain. The shimano 10 version of the link is too narrow for a Shimano chain. It will close around the chain, but provides virtually no side clearance. Some users have popped the head off the pins in a cross chain situation. The shimano 10 version of the link just happens to be the right width to fit the Campy UN chain.

As for setting the chain length, any big/big method is only valid for the cassette used when the length is set. If you set the length with a 21 or 23 largest cog and later switch to a 25 or 27, then the chain will be 1 inch too short. My method will provide a length that work with any cassette from an 11-21 to a 12-27.

As for that factory "lube", it's a huge dirt magnet. I'd at least wipe the outside with mineral spirits.

this thread is why i have always taken mine to the shop. conflicting advice and even if it did not conflict, i have NO idea how to even start to do half of the stuff mentioned.

yes i have maintenance books. yes i am a sorry bike mechanic.

I hate this topic [snip]

Really?

I've always cut my SRAM chains on the big chainring, big cog, pull derailler horizontal, back off one link.

Problems doing it this way? 53/39, 12/27.

I've always cut my SRAM chains on the big chainring, big cog, pull derailler horizontal, back off one link.

Problems doing it this way? 53/39, 12/27.

This is not a problem, but only because you're using the largest road cog sold by shimano. Use that method with a 12-23 and later switch to a 12-27 and the chain would be one inch too short. The little/little method should produce the same chain length and it doesn't matter what cassette you're using, since you automatically get the longest chain length.

As for that factory "lube", it's a huge dirt magnet. I'd at least wipe the outside with mineral spirits.

I agree with this comment but not the one that states that the factory coating is a poor lubricant. It's not cosmoline and it lubricates nicely as evidence by the quite running as installed.

Regarding WD-40, it makes a very poor chain lube since the oil is way too low a viscosity for chain usage. Makes a great cleaner though.

There are various different ways to measure chain length. The OP's reference to - Large Front, Small Rear, jockey pullys vertical is completely reasonable (Shimano installation state as much). Of course there are other methods like Large-Large and pull tight, but this does not make the other methods wrong.

I hate this topic because everyone has their own ideas and opinions and some very bad advice gets tossed around. Here are my opinions:
You were just trolling for fight's weren't ya? Well I'm not going to bite.