Motor Oil As Chain Lube: Any Tricks?

After seeing the price of my favored bike-specific chain lube
recently rise to $8.00 for four ounces, I'm thinking of going
back to plain old motor oil - the kind that I can get by
inverting the empties after changing the oil in my car.

But the bike-specific stuff *is* nice: penetrates, doesn't seem
to attract as much dirt.

Are there any workarounds with regular motor oil?

First thing that comes to mind is thinning it with something
that's not too nasty.
--
PeteCresswell

On 3/27/2011 11:24 AM, (PeteCresswell) wrote:
After seeing the price of my favored bike-specific chain lube
recently rise to $8.00 for four ounces, I'm thinking of going
back to plain old motor oil - the kind that I can get by
inverting the empties after changing the oil in my car.

But the bike-specific stuff *is* nice: penetrates, doesn't seem
to attract as much dirt.

Are there any workarounds with regular motor oil?

First thing that comes to mind is thinning it with something
that's not too nasty.

$4/quart for chainsaw oil:
http://www.google.com/search?q=chainsaw+oil&hl=en&tbs=shop%3A1&aq=9s&oq= chain+s.

“ever get suspicious about chain saw oil attracting wood dust?
generally mucking up after two cuts? try dumping hot oil into
a container just right sized for inserting the running blade on
the job. rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr..... plus 750 rpm!"
- Gene Daniels

--
Tºm Shermªn - 42.435731,-83.985007
I am a vehicular cyclist.

gnaw. 21 C motor oil is made slippery but without grip so the pistons
go up and down without hassle.
big deal at NASCAR where water viscosities are tops
so if motor oil is used it'll fly off the chain. onto rug and snealers

what your looking for is Valvoline Synthetic Transmission Oil at NAPA.
This lube has no fly off additives-so as the lube doesn't fly off
gears.

a heated, interior churn design has commercial apps.

On Mar 27, 11:24*am, "(PeteCresswell)" wrote:
After seeing the price of my favored bike-specific chain lube
recently rise to $8.00 for four ounces, I'm thinking of going
back to plain old motor oil - the kind that I can get by
inverting the empties after changing the oil in my car.

But the bike-specific stuff *is* nice: penetrates, doesn't seem
to attract as much dirt.

Are there any workarounds with regular motor oil?

First thing that comes to mind is thinning it with something
that's not too nasty.
--
The problem is the detergent, IMHO. Use cheap single viscosity oil.
Transmission fluid is good as well.

That said, I've become enamored with WL "Wet Ride" lube. Rode it all
winter, never cleaned anything. Dead silent, and an application lasts
me over a month. That's with every day commuting. It's like an amalgam
of Mobil One and grape jelly.

On Mar 27, 10:07*am, landotter wrote:
On Mar 27, 11:24*am, "(PeteCresswell)" wrote: After seeing the price of my favored bike-specific chain lube
recently rise to $8.00 for four ounces, I'm thinking of going
back to plain old motor oil - the kind that I can get by
inverting the empties after changing the oil in my car.

But the bike-specific stuff *is* nice: penetrates, doesn't seem
to attract as much dirt.

Are there any workarounds with regular motor oil?

First thing that comes to mind is thinning it with something
that's not too nasty.
--

The problem is the detergent, IMHO. Use cheap single viscosity oil.
Transmission fluid is good as well.

That said, I've become enamored with WL "Wet Ride" lube. Rode it all
winter, never cleaned anything. Dead silent, and an application lasts
me over a month. That's with every day commuting. It's like an amalgam
of Mobil One and grape jelly.

This winter, I have used that cheap DuPont wax-based teflon spray
lube, a can of Liquid Wrench brand spray lube off the sale table at an
ACE store, 10W30, WD40 (a can was sitting near the garage door). I
have a big thing of chain saw bar oil, but I haven't used that . . .
yet.

Getting fussy about lubricants around here is a waste of time since
everything gets washed off in two rides. On some days, I'm going
through puddles that are practically up to my BB. But . . . with that
said . . . if I were a rich person, that Wet Ride is very nice. So is
Boeshield and even the ProLink, which is lighter and works well.
That's a nice summer oil.

And to answer the question, downside of 10W30 is that it is gunky; it
attracts dirt and will fly off your chain. Wipe well after
application. -- Jay Beattie.

On Mar 27, 1:34*pm, Jay Beattie wrote:
On Mar 27, 10:07*am, landotter wrote:









On Mar 27, 11:24*am, "(PeteCresswell)" wrote: After seeing the price of my favored bike-specific chain lube
recently rise to $8.00 for four ounces, I'm thinking of going
back to plain old motor oil - the kind that I can get by
inverting the empties after changing the oil in my car.

But the bike-specific stuff *is* nice: penetrates, doesn't seem
to attract as much dirt.

Are there any workarounds with regular motor oil?

First thing that comes to mind is thinning it with something
that's not too nasty.
--

The problem is the detergent, IMHO. Use cheap single viscosity oil.
Transmission fluid is good as well.

That said, I've become enamored with WL "Wet Ride" lube. Rode it all
winter, never cleaned anything. Dead silent, and an application lasts
me over a month. That's with every day commuting. It's like an amalgam
of Mobil One and grape jelly.

This winter, I have used that cheap DuPont wax-based teflon spray
lube, a can of Liquid Wrench brand spray lube off the sale table at an
ACE store, 10W30, WD40 (a can was sitting near the garage door). *I
have a big thing of chain saw bar oil, but I haven't used that . . .
yet.

Getting fussy about lubricants around here is a waste of time since
everything gets washed off in two rides. *On some days, I'm going
through puddles that are practically up to my BB. *But . . . with that
said . . . if I were a rich person, that Wet Ride is very nice. *So is
Boeshield and even the ProLink, which is lighter and works well.
That's a nice summer oil.

And to answer the question, downside of 10W30 is that it is gunky; it
attracts dirt and will fly off your chain. *Wipe well after
application. -- Jay Beattie.

I've gone six months on one ounce of Wet Ride. I like the spray wax as
well, but it lasts one ride in the winter. The WR, compared to regular
oil, does have an evaporative base, and seems to get a peak dirty at
about a week, compared to motor oil which gets infinitely gloppy.

But I'll use whatever is on the shelf. The only lube I actively
dislike is ProLink, it's too light for my tastes, you can really hear
the chain when you use that stuff.

On Sun, 27 Mar 2011 12:24:41 -0400, "(PeteCresswell)"
wrote:

After seeing the price of my favored bike-specific chain lube
recently rise to $8.00 for four ounces, I'm thinking of going
back to plain old motor oil - the kind that I can get by
inverting the empties after changing the oil in my car.

But the bike-specific stuff *is* nice: penetrates, doesn't seem
to attract as much dirt.

Are there any workarounds with regular motor oil?

First thing that comes to mind is thinning it with something
that's not too nasty.

According to Bicycling magazine, motor oil will wreck your chain.
http://www.ehow.com/list_6327555_lubricants-bicycle-gears-_amp_-chains.html
"Bicycling Magazine" says to never use motor oil because "it
contains acids and particles of metal that can compromise a
chain's strength and cause it to wear more quickly."
So it is written, so it must be.
As usual, there's no consensus.
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/365708-Motor-oil-is-hazardous-to-your-chain!

Lubricants Used for Bicycle Gears & Chains | eHow.com
http://www.ehow.com/list_6327555_lubricants-bicycle-gears-_amp_-chains.html#ixzz1HpJopUMa

I like the idea of using olive oil. It's fairly sticky, smells good,
ecologically correct, and has other uses if it doesn't work on the
bicycle chain (I prefer extra virgin). Penetration may be a problem
if the chain is tight or uncooperative:
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Is_olive_oil_a_good_lubricant_for_intercourse
Unfortunately, virgin olive oil is rather expensive. As a substitute,
I suggest one of various vegetable oils:
http://www.envirowiki.info/Vegetable_oil_for_bicycles
Castor oil seems to be the winner, because it won't attack rubber
parts and should work if you can stand the stench.

Mo
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/chains.html


--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

On Mar 27, 11:41 am, landotter wrote:
On Mar 27, 1:34 pm, Jay Beattie wrote:



On Mar 27, 10:07 am, landotter wrote:

On Mar 27, 11:24 am, "(PeteCresswell)" wrote: After seeing the price of my favored bike-specific chain lube
recently rise to $8.00 for four ounces, I'm thinking of going
back to plain old motor oil - the kind that I can get by
inverting the empties after changing the oil in my car.

But the bike-specific stuff *is* nice: penetrates, doesn't seem
to attract as much dirt.

Are there any workarounds with regular motor oil?

First thing that comes to mind is thinning it with something
that's not too nasty.
--

The problem is the detergent, IMHO. Use cheap single viscosity oil.
Transmission fluid is good as well.

That said, I've become enamored with WL "Wet Ride" lube. Rode it all
winter, never cleaned anything. Dead silent, and an application lasts
me over a month. That's with every day commuting. It's like an amalgam
of Mobil One and grape jelly.

This winter, I have used that cheap DuPont wax-based teflon spray
lube, a can of Liquid Wrench brand spray lube off the sale table at an
ACE store, 10W30, WD40 (a can was sitting near the garage door). I
have a big thing of chain saw bar oil, but I haven't used that . . .
yet.

Getting fussy about lubricants around here is a waste of time since
everything gets washed off in two rides. On some days, I'm going
through puddles that are practically up to my BB. But . . . with that
said . . . if I were a rich person, that Wet Ride is very nice. So is
Boeshield and even the ProLink, which is lighter and works well.
That's a nice summer oil.

And to answer the question, downside of 10W30 is that it is gunky; it
attracts dirt and will fly off your chain. Wipe well after
application. -- Jay Beattie.

I've gone six months on one ounce of Wet Ride. I like the spray wax as
well, but it lasts one ride in the winter. The WR, compared to regular
oil, does have an evaporative base, and seems to get a peak dirty at
about a week, compared to motor oil which gets infinitely gloppy.

But I'll use whatever is on the shelf. The only lube I actively
dislike is ProLink, it's too light for my tastes, you can really hear
the chain when you use that stuff.

I bought a 4 oz bottle of Dumonde Tech - back when I started riding
year round in rainy Oregon. The 4 oz bottle is almost (not quite)
gone now, but I've also used a little of the 2 oz bottle that I bought
to carry in my tool bag (otherwise, when the rain comes heavily, it
can wash out the chain and make for a long, squeaky ride home).

The Dumonde Tech is expensive, makes a gunky mess, sticnks to high
heaven, is tedious to apply, but does work very well.

On Mar 27, 11:43 am, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
On Sun, 27 Mar 2011 12:24:41 -0400, "(PeteCresswell)"
wrote:

After seeing the price of my favored bike-specific chain lube
recently rise to $8.00 for four ounces, I'm thinking of going
back to plain old motor oil - the kind that I can get by
inverting the empties after changing the oil in my car.

But the bike-specific stuff *is* nice: penetrates, doesn't seem
to attract as much dirt.

Are there any workarounds with regular motor oil?

First thing that comes to mind is thinning it with something
that's not too nasty.

According to Bicycling magazine, motor oil will wreck your chain.
http://www.ehow.com/list_6327555_lubricants-bicycle-gears-_amp_-chain...
"Bicycling Magazine" says to never use motor oil because "it
contains acids and particles of metal that can compromise a
chain's strength and cause it to wear more quickly."
So it is written, so it must be.
As usual, there's no consensus.
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/365708-Motor-oil-is-hazardou...

Lubricants Used for Bicycle Gears & Chains | eHow.com
http://www.ehow.com/list_6327555_lubricants-bicycle-gears-_amp_-chain...

I like the idea of using olive oil. It's fairly sticky, smells good,
ecologically correct, and has other uses if it doesn't work on the
bicycle chain (I prefer extra virgin).

I like this idea! Gonna give it a try. Thanks!


Penetration may be a problem
if the chain is tight or uncooperative:
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Is_olive_oil_a_good_lubricant_for_intercourse
Unfortunately, virgin olive oil is rather expensive. As a substitute,
I suggest one of various vegetable oils:
http://www.envirowiki.info/Vegetable_oil_for_bicycles
Castor oil seems to be the winner, because it won't attack rubber
parts and should work if you can stand the stench.

Mo
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/chains.html