For those of you that ride in the dirt: how often you you clean and lube your chain?

[XXtwindad]

Lots of dusty hard pack where I ride. Gets caked on pretty good. Any suggestions for a cleaning routine? Is there a “gravel specific” lube? Thanks.

[Spdntrxi]

every ride if I picture what you are describing ...

I use squirt lube on my chain.

[mtechnica]

Hose it with rock n roll or whatever then wipe it off.

[NHAero]

Exactly the same here. I wipe the chain down on the bike and re-lube with Squirt.

Originally Posted by Spdntrxi

every ride if I picture what you are describing ...

I use squirt lube on my chain.

[joosttx]

Once every two weeks or so. But I use Molten speed wax. It’s so much better

[Hilltopperny]

I use both regular lube and a wax based lube every week or two depending on the frequency of use.


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[fa63]

I use Bike Hardcore Whip-Wipe pretty much after every ride for a quick rinse. I also wipe my chain down after every ride, but I don't re-lube that frequently (another waxer here).

[XXtwindad]

Originally Posted by joosttx

Once every two weeks or so. But I use Molten speed wax. It’s so much better

I’ll have to look into that. My chain skips a lot, presumably because I’m not giving it proper maintenance.

[prototoast]

Originally Posted by XXtwindad

I’ll have to look into that. My chain skips a lot, presumably because I’m not giving it proper maintenance.

You might have bigger problems than just dirt in the chain. Dirt will make things noisy and wear faster, but to get things to start skipping, you either have to be crazy dirty so that I'm not sure how you could even overlook that, or your drivetrain needs to be tuned, or you've worn down your chain and/or cogs so much.

[peanutgallery]

When the cassette spacers grind into dust

3/4 real mineral spirits and 1/4 straight 20 Wt Mobil1. Apply when it starts to dry, wipe off before you ride. Gets a little gooey on the pulleys but wipes right off. Gets the chain really clean and I made my concoction back when GWB was still president. Works great and it's really quiet. Totally sold on synthetic oil

[John H.]

Every ride- I also wax my chain.
I find that everything gets too grindy and brakes tend to squeal on dirty bikes.

[joosttx]

Originally Posted by prototoast

You might have bigger problems than just dirt in the chain. Dirt will make things noisy and wear faster, but to get things to start skipping, you either have to be crazy dirty so that I'm not sure how you could even overlook that, or your drivetrain needs to be tuned, or you've worn down your chain and/or cogs so much.

Agreed. He definitely has bigger problems than a dirty chain.

[XXtwindad]

Originally Posted by joosttx

Agreed. He definitely has bigger problems than a dirty chain.

Well, if the bike spontaneously combusts, I think it’s covered by the warranty 😉

[fa63]

Skipping is usually the first sign of a worn chain. The problem is that if it has gotten worn enough, throwing on a new chain is unlikely to fix the problem; you will probably need to change the cassette and possibly the chainring as well.

Originally Posted by XXtwindad

I’ll have to look into that. My chain skips a lot, presumably because I’m not giving it proper maintenance.

[XXtwindad]

Originally Posted by fa63

Skipping is usually the first sign of a worn chain. The problem is that if it has gotten worn enough, throwing on a new chain is unlikely to fix the problem; you will probably need to change the cassette and possibly the chainring as well.

Thx for the tip. The cassette is fairly new, so hopefully that’s not an issue. I definitely have to have a more consistent maintenance regimen, though.