A few months waxing chain

On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 7:26:52 PM UTC-8, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 5:37:55 PM UTC-5, wrote:
I've plainly said in several places that the chain stays very clean but the wax/hevy black residue gets all over the chain rings and cogs. Anyone I know that has ever used wax has had exactly the same problem.

Not me.

After a while, a tiny amount appears on the chainrings. It wipes off
easily, if it gets to bother me. And it bothers me only very rarely.


Frank - how often do you clean your chain and re-wax? How much off-road riding do you do?

I think I re-wax maybe every 500 miles or so. With my method, there
is no separate "clean your chain" step. I just add wax/oil mix
using a propane torch while the chain is on the bike. The only
cleaning is backpedaling the chain through paper towels once the
entire chain has gotten it's fresh wax.

These days I do only a little off-road riding. Until recently I was
on the board of trustees of our local forest preserve. I would ride
through the trails once in a while to see if there were problems,
and I would cut through on my way to certain destinations. There
are a few other gravel roads I would use on occasion, but most of
my riding is paved.

BTW, I had two hospital stays this year, and associated recovery.
It's been a terrible year for cycling. I don't think I've done the
chains since February.

- Frank Krygowski

Well, from my experience I cannot understand how you don't get wax build-up on the cogs and rings. This isn't some build-up, inside of 500 miles I have to take the cassette and rings off because you cannot clean them without scraping and then a final wash with acetone. I don't buy acetone to keep something highly volatile around the house but because it's necessary.

For several weeks I have been completely unable to ride because of bronchitis. This is the worst I've ever had with coughing all night. My brother was having congestive heart failure the other night and I took him to the ER. The ER was filled with people like me. They keep putting off surgery with him because without any exercise he could not recuperate from a by-pass. So now they're going to put stents into all three heart arteries. Think I'd rather get run over by a car than do through that. I'll keep riding.

On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 7:42:20 PM UTC-8, John B. slocomb wrote:
On Tue, 4 Dec 2018 14:48:25 -0800 (PST), wrote:

On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 3:33:15 AM UTC-8, Sir Ridesalot wrote:

fantasy ~ noun ~ Imagination unrestricted by reality.

cheers,

John B.

Or perhaps he's either simply trolling or arguing for the sake of arguing?

Cheers

Over the years I have spent many hours cleaning that wax residue off cogs and rings. I have disassembled and scrapped and finally used acetone to clean off the remainder until changing to Rock and Roll. Now no residue. But apparently you sat here with me and showed me that there was no such thing.

Tom, I have to believe that you either don't know what you are talking
about or simply a liar.

cheers,

John B.

And after your other comments I have to think that you're a blithering idiot.

On 12/5/2018 10:35 AM, AMuzi wrote:
On 12/4/2018 9:42 PM, John B. slocomb wrote:
On Tue, 4 Dec 2018 14:48:25 -0800 (PST), wrote:

On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 3:33:15 AM UTC-8, Sir Ridesalot wrote:

fantasy ~ nounÂ* ~ Imagination unrestricted by reality.

cheers,

John B.

Or perhaps he's either simply trolling or arguing for the sake of
arguing?

Cheers

Over the years I have spent many hours cleaning that wax residue off
cogs and rings. I have disassembled and scrapped and finally used
acetone to clean off the remainder until changing to Rock and Roll.
Now no residue. But apparently you sat here with me and showed me
that there was no such thing.

Tom, I have to believe that you either don't know what you are talking
about or simply a liar.

I believe Tom. No reason to doubt his description.

I've seen waxed chain systems as Frank describes, shiny and neat but
I've also seen gear trains more encrusted with wax than the floor under
The Virgin Mary's niche.

And as I said in a slightly different context:

My method is unusual. I don't remove the chain and soak it in a hot pot
of molten wax. Instead, while my chain is still on my bike, I use a
low-flame propane torch to warm the chain about 15 links at a time,
apply the wax/oil cake like using a crayon, then reheat those links
until I see the wax flow into the chain bits. I then backpedal and repeat.

Here's the pertinent part: When the entire chain's done but still warm,
I backpedal the chain while gripping it with a handful of paper towels.
I think that gets a lot of excess external wax off the chain. Maybe
othes who do the hot wax soak have too much wax caked on their chain? I
don't know.

(BTW, this on-the-bike method was my own brainstorm. But years later, I
learned that another local guy had come up with the same trick. He was
the owner of a respected LBS and a super-competent rider.)


Riders use more or less or much more of various waxy things. 'Wax' is
not a standard thing at all.

True. And it's a wonder that the tiny congregation of chain waxers is
not (yet?) suffering the same religious splintering as the liquid
lubrication church.

("You use motor oil? YOU HEATHEN YOU!!!")


--
- Frank Krygowski

On 12/5/2018 12:16 PM, wrote:
On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 7:26:52 PM UTC-8, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 5:37:55 PM UTC-5, wrote:

Frank - how often do you clean your chain and re-wax? How much off-road riding do you do?

I think I re-wax maybe every 500 miles or so. With my method, there
is no separate "clean your chain" step. I just add wax/oil mix
using a propane torch while the chain is on the bike. The only
cleaning is backpedaling the chain through paper towels once the
entire chain has gotten it's fresh wax.

These days I do only a little off-road riding. Until recently I was
on the board of trustees of our local forest preserve. I would ride
through the trails once in a while to see if there were problems,
and I would cut through on my way to certain destinations. There
are a few other gravel roads I would use on occasion, but most of
my riding is paved.

BTW, I had two hospital stays this year, and associated recovery.
It's been a terrible year for cycling. I don't think I've done the
chains since February.

- Frank Krygowski

Well, from my experience I cannot understand how you don't get wax build-up on the cogs and rings. This isn't some build-up, inside of 500 miles I have to take the cassette and rings off because you cannot clean them without scraping and then a final wash with acetone. I don't buy acetone to keep something highly volatile around the house but because it's necessary.

It may be that final step, backpedaling the chain through a handful of
paper towels to polish off the excess. But even the little bit that
eventually appears on the chainrings is easy for me to wipe off. Maybe
it's softer because of the small amount of oil I've mixed into the wax.


For several weeks I have been completely unable to ride because of bronchitis. This is the worst I've ever had with coughing all night.

sigh I've been fighting that for several years, and dreading winter
because of it. Fortunately, it skipped me last winter. My fingers are
crossed this year.

But I think it triggered other problems - that is, antibiotics affecting
my gut microbiome. C. Diff is no fun. Email if you want details.

--
- Frank Krygowski

On 12/5/2018 11:49 AM, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On 12/5/2018 12:16 PM, wrote:
On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 7:26:52 PM UTC-8, Frank
Krygowski wrote:
On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 5:37:55 PM UTC-5,
wrote:

Frank - how often do you clean your chain and re-wax?
How much off-road riding do you do?

I think I re-wax maybe every 500 miles or so. With my
method, there
is no separate "clean your chain" step. I just add
wax/oil mix
using a propane torch while the chain is on the bike. The
only
cleaning is backpedaling the chain through paper towels
once the
entire chain has gotten it's fresh wax.

These days I do only a little off-road riding. Until
recently I was
on the board of trustees of our local forest preserve. I
would ride
through the trails once in a while to see if there were
problems,
and I would cut through on my way to certain
destinations. There
are a few other gravel roads I would use on occasion, but
most of
my riding is paved.

BTW, I had two hospital stays this year, and associated
recovery.
It's been a terrible year for cycling. I don't think I've
done the
chains since February.

- Frank Krygowski

Well, from my experience I cannot understand how you don't
get wax build-up on the cogs and rings. This isn't some
build-up, inside of 500 miles I have to take the cassette
and rings off because you cannot clean them without
scraping and then a final wash with acetone. I don't buy
acetone to keep something highly volatile around the house
but because it's necessary.

It may be that final step, backpedaling the chain through a
handful of paper towels to polish off the excess. But even
the little bit that eventually appears on the chainrings is
easy for me to wipe off. Maybe it's softer because of the
small amount of oil I've mixed into the wax.


For several weeks I have been completely unable to ride
because of bronchitis. This is the worst I've ever had
with coughing all night.

sigh I've been fighting that for several years, and
dreading winter because of it. Fortunately, it skipped me
last winter. My fingers are crossed this year.

But I think it triggered other problems - that is,
antibiotics affecting my gut microbiome. C. Diff is no fun.
Email if you want details.


Sounds awful but at least you lived. Best wishes on a speedy
recovery.

The Great American Inscrutable Billing Machine ( a.k.a.
'health care') kills about 35,000* people every year with
hospital-acquired infection. Not infection, mind you, but
rather specifically hospital-acquired infection. Visit at
your peril; financial, biological, existential.

*I've seen estimates double that and higher but 35K is
commonly cited.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

On Wed, 05 Dec 2018 09:35:46 -0600, AMuzi wrote:

On 12/4/2018 9:42 PM, John B. slocomb wrote:
On Tue, 4 Dec 2018 14:48:25 -0800 (PST), wrote:

On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 3:33:15 AM UTC-8, Sir Ridesalot wrote:

fantasy ~ noun ~ Imagination unrestricted by reality.

cheers,

John B.

Or perhaps he's either simply trolling or arguing for the sake of arguing?

Cheers

Over the years I have spent many hours cleaning that wax residue off cogs and rings. I have disassembled and scrapped and finally used acetone to clean off the remainder until changing to Rock and Roll. Now no residue. But apparently you sat here with me and showed me that there was no such thing.

Tom, I have to believe that you either don't know what you are talking
about or simply a liar.

I believe Tom. No reason to doubt his description.

I've seen waxed chain systems as Frank describes, shiny and
neat but I've also seen gear trains more encrusted with wax
than the floor under The Virgin Mary's niche.

Riders use more or less or much more of various waxy things.
'Wax' is not a standard thing at all.

You are correct, the word "wax" is a generic term that describes a
myriad of substances. Which, I guess, is why we have used the term
"paraffin" :-)


cheers,

John B.

On Wednesday, December 5, 2018 at 9:42:30 AM UTC-8, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On 12/5/2018 10:35 AM, AMuzi wrote:
On 12/4/2018 9:42 PM, John B. slocomb wrote:
On Tue, 4 Dec 2018 14:48:25 -0800 (PST), wrote:

On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 3:33:15 AM UTC-8, Sir Ridesalot wrote:

fantasy ~ nounÂ* ~ Imagination unrestricted by reality.

cheers,

John B.

Or perhaps he's either simply trolling or arguing for the sake of
arguing?

Cheers

Over the years I have spent many hours cleaning that wax residue off
cogs and rings. I have disassembled and scrapped and finally used
acetone to clean off the remainder until changing to Rock and Roll.
Now no residue. But apparently you sat here with me and showed me
that there was no such thing.

Tom, I have to believe that you either don't know what you are talking
about or simply a liar.

I believe Tom. No reason to doubt his description.

I've seen waxed chain systems as Frank describes, shiny and neat but
I've also seen gear trains more encrusted with wax than the floor under
The Virgin Mary's niche.

And as I said in a slightly different context:

My method is unusual. I don't remove the chain and soak it in a hot pot
of molten wax. Instead, while my chain is still on my bike, I use a
low-flame propane torch to warm the chain about 15 links at a time,
apply the wax/oil cake like using a crayon, then reheat those links
until I see the wax flow into the chain bits. I then backpedal and repeat..

Here's the pertinent part: When the entire chain's done but still warm,
I backpedal the chain while gripping it with a handful of paper towels.
I think that gets a lot of excess external wax off the chain. Maybe
othes who do the hot wax soak have too much wax caked on their chain? I
don't know.

(BTW, this on-the-bike method was my own brainstorm. But years later, I
learned that another local guy had come up with the same trick. He was
the owner of a respected LBS and a super-competent rider.)


Riders use more or less or much more of various waxy things. 'Wax' is
not a standard thing at all.

True. And it's a wonder that the tiny congregation of chain waxers is
not (yet?) suffering the same religious splintering as the liquid
lubrication church.

("You use motor oil? YOU HEATHEN YOU!!!")


--
- Frank Krygowski

Well, I remove the chain and making sure it's clean I put it in the oven to preheat it. In the meantime I have my can of chainwax in a double boiler melting. When the chain is warm enough that you need oven mitts to hold it, I loop it through the melted wax. But there is a whole lot of excess wax on the chain that is pushed off after reattaching it to the bike and when you backpedal it, it leaves a pile of wax under the rings and cogs. This can was supplied by Park Tool and the directions with it.

How do you get wax with any volume of lubricant in It to form anything resembling a hard wax crayon?

On Wednesday, December 5, 2018 at 11:55:48 AM UTC-8, AMuzi wrote:
On 12/5/2018 11:49 AM, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On 12/5/2018 12:16 PM, wrote:
On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 7:26:52 PM UTC-8, Frank
Krygowski wrote:
On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 5:37:55 PM UTC-5,
wrote:

Frank - how often do you clean your chain and re-wax?
How much off-road riding do you do?

I think I re-wax maybe every 500 miles or so. With my
method, there
is no separate "clean your chain" step. I just add
wax/oil mix
using a propane torch while the chain is on the bike. The
only
cleaning is backpedaling the chain through paper towels
once the
entire chain has gotten it's fresh wax.

These days I do only a little off-road riding. Until
recently I was
on the board of trustees of our local forest preserve. I
would ride
through the trails once in a while to see if there were
problems,
and I would cut through on my way to certain
destinations. There
are a few other gravel roads I would use on occasion, but
most of
my riding is paved.

BTW, I had two hospital stays this year, and associated
recovery.
It's been a terrible year for cycling. I don't think I've
done the
chains since February.

- Frank Krygowski

Well, from my experience I cannot understand how you don't
get wax build-up on the cogs and rings. This isn't some
build-up, inside of 500 miles I have to take the cassette
and rings off because you cannot clean them without
scraping and then a final wash with acetone. I don't buy
acetone to keep something highly volatile around the house
but because it's necessary.

It may be that final step, backpedaling the chain through a
handful of paper towels to polish off the excess. But even
the little bit that eventually appears on the chainrings is
easy for me to wipe off. Maybe it's softer because of the
small amount of oil I've mixed into the wax.


For several weeks I have been completely unable to ride
because of bronchitis. This is the worst I've ever had
with coughing all night.

sigh I've been fighting that for several years, and
dreading winter because of it. Fortunately, it skipped me
last winter. My fingers are crossed this year.

But I think it triggered other problems - that is,
antibiotics affecting my gut microbiome. C. Diff is no fun.
Email if you want details.


Sounds awful but at least you lived. Best wishes on a speedy
recovery.

The Great American Inscrutable Billing Machine ( a.k.a.
'health care') kills about 35,000* people every year with
hospital-acquired infection. Not infection, mind you, but
rather specifically hospital-acquired infection. Visit at
your peril; financial, biological, existential.

*I've seen estimates double that and higher but 35K is
commonly cited.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

My wife babysits the grandkids and stuff that bounces off of them in school hits us. Normally if I* can ride sufficiently to stay in shape I don't catch anything but this has been a really odd year with only 8 months total of riding.

On Wed, 05 Dec 2018 13:55:44 -0600, AMuzi wrote:

On 12/5/2018 11:49 AM, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On 12/5/2018 12:16 PM, wrote:
On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 7:26:52 PM UTC-8, Frank
Krygowski wrote:
On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 5:37:55 PM UTC-5,
wrote:

Frank - how often do you clean your chain and re-wax?
How much off-road riding do you do?

I think I re-wax maybe every 500 miles or so. With my
method, there
is no separate "clean your chain" step. I just add
wax/oil mix
using a propane torch while the chain is on the bike. The
only
cleaning is backpedaling the chain through paper towels
once the
entire chain has gotten it's fresh wax.

These days I do only a little off-road riding. Until
recently I was
on the board of trustees of our local forest preserve. I
would ride
through the trails once in a while to see if there were
problems,
and I would cut through on my way to certain
destinations. There
are a few other gravel roads I would use on occasion, but
most of
my riding is paved.

BTW, I had two hospital stays this year, and associated
recovery.
It's been a terrible year for cycling. I don't think I've
done the
chains since February.

- Frank Krygowski

Well, from my experience I cannot understand how you don't
get wax build-up on the cogs and rings. This isn't some
build-up, inside of 500 miles I have to take the cassette
and rings off because you cannot clean them without
scraping and then a final wash with acetone. I don't buy
acetone to keep something highly volatile around the house
but because it's necessary.

It may be that final step, backpedaling the chain through a
handful of paper towels to polish off the excess. But even
the little bit that eventually appears on the chainrings is
easy for me to wipe off. Maybe it's softer because of the
small amount of oil I've mixed into the wax.


For several weeks I have been completely unable to ride
because of bronchitis. This is the worst I've ever had
with coughing all night.

sigh I've been fighting that for several years, and
dreading winter because of it. Fortunately, it skipped me
last winter. My fingers are crossed this year.

But I think it triggered other problems - that is,
antibiotics affecting my gut microbiome. C. Diff is no fun.
Email if you want details.


Sounds awful but at least you lived. Best wishes on a speedy
recovery.

The Great American Inscrutable Billing Machine ( a.k.a.
'health care') kills about 35,000* people every year with
hospital-acquired infection. Not infection, mind you, but
rather specifically hospital-acquired infection. Visit at
your peril; financial, biological, existential.

*I've seen estimates double that and higher but 35K is
commonly cited.

Simply quoting a number doesn't give an accurate view of the problem,
however, in terms of deaths due to health care per 100,000 of
population the U.S. leads the pack with 826/100,000 in 2013 while in
comparison Japan had 598/100,000. See https://tinyurl.com/ybaq8vx5

From the same site the number of USians who have "have experienced
medical, medication, or lab errors or delays in past two years" is 22%
while an average of comparative countries is 16% with the U.K. having
only 8%.

In addition total health expenditures per capita, U.S. dollars, PPP
adjusted, 2016, is the highest in the world. An average of comparable
countries is approximately half of what costs are in the U.S. See:
https://tinyurl.com/yaavfq6p

cheers,

John B.

On Wed, 5 Dec 2018 09:17:24 -0800 (PST), wrote:

On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 7:42:20 PM UTC-8, John B. slocomb wrote:
On Tue, 4 Dec 2018 14:48:25 -0800 (PST), wrote:

On Tuesday, December 4, 2018 at 3:33:15 AM UTC-8, Sir Ridesalot wrote:

fantasy ~ noun ~ Imagination unrestricted by reality.

cheers,

John B.

Or perhaps he's either simply trolling or arguing for the sake of arguing?

Cheers

Over the years I have spent many hours cleaning that wax residue off cogs and rings. I have disassembled and scrapped and finally used acetone to clean off the remainder until changing to Rock and Roll. Now no residue. But apparently you sat here with me and showed me that there was no such thing.

Tom, I have to believe that you either don't know what you are talking
about or simply a liar.

cheers,

John B.

And after your other comments I have to think that you're a blithering idiot.

So after changing the subject every time that anyone challenges you,
you ale now reduced to insults to prove your point.

cheers,

John B.