Chain Waxing Tutorial

Thats what I thought… :exploding_head:

When the chain is freshly waxed it is rather stiff and the shifting might be noisier or it might occasionally miss-shift. That should pass pretty quickly when some excess wax drops off, say a couple of minutes. Then it will be silent as mentioned above. That smooth pedalling with a freshly waxed chain is something I look forward to.

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This is what I was expecting, the chain is running quite loud even after 10 mins or so of turning the pedals with bike on a stand and cleaning the excess wax away.

I have not ridden the bike yet so I may just remove the chain and re wax, this time I will leave the chain in the hot wax a lot longer. I am thinking maybe that is the issue.

If you can, add a thermometer in the bath so you know the chain itself has reached a sufficient temperature (93* C). I like the MSW method of dropping the chain onto the cold block of wax then turning the pot on. This should help make sure that the chain temp = bath temp.

Does anybody use a thin grate at the bottom of the crock pot to keep the chain out of the black stuff that accumulates at the bottom of the wax?

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Spinning the chain on a stand is no substitute for putting some actual power through the drive-train. A couple rotations is all, then take it out. Any roughness should even out in a few hundred feet of travel.

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This - I see the same thing. Clunky on stand, and beautiful by the time I get down my 1/4 mile driveway with a couple 5-10 foot hills that put some light load on it to fully break it in.

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What temp does the wax need to be?

I go with high on my crockpot

I heard 140 from silica
If im applying at say 180 is the higher temp allowing me to get enough on?

I have to rewax after 70miles and a few puddles on a ride kinda sucks

FWIW the Zen Master’s guide to chain waxing from zero friction cycling says - in bold - to use the low setting on the crock pot… but MSW’s instructions specifically say “high”. So… yeah. :laughing:

But MSW says 200F for temp.

I use a slow cooker on low. If you’re finding that you have to rewax so often it’s likely that your chain still contains grease/oil in and on it.

I am on 596km (370 miles) on my chain right now. It doesn’t need to be re-waxed yet but I will re-wax it anyway. This is a combination of indoor riding and outdoor riding in humid conditions.

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My chain goes into a professional ultra sonic machine and no lube used in 18months. All chain related items are also brushed clean. Same chains have been cleaned 7 times a piece, I’m onto 2nd set of quick links. On average I get 120-150 miles per chain. Just let set of waxing seems to be short lived making me think my wax temp is too high.

Mine does that also after a wet ride. I did two rides in the rain last week and both bikes got new chains

Interesting. What are chemicals or cleaning agents were you using in the ultra sonic cleaner?

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I’ll have to ask the shop, its a http://www.renegadepartswashers.com/

I don’t think wax will prevent rust. My experience with wet cx is I always have to take the chain off when I get home, wipe it dry with a papertowel, and rest it somewhere warmish to dry. I’ve had chains rust a bit if I don’t. In the summer, I don’t tend to have rust issues – I think because I don’t generally ride in crappy weather, but in the off chance I get rained on anyway it dries while I’m riding on it (assuming the rain stopped). Popping the chain off is a cinch with the connex link.

I’ve pulled mine and dropped it in a jar of mineral spirits for the drive home from the occasional wet TT…that seemed to work though not exactly the most convenient thing in the world.

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Also in the UK If it happens to rain while I am out I will sparingly spray the chain over with a water dispersing spray and wipe the chain over with a cloth to remove the excess.