Hello there ! Few month ago I change my chain lubrification for this emulsion which I like a lot, less dirty and really good when I put a new transmission (on a 90s road bike/commuter, riding everyday). But I was in a city and my bike sleep inside.
Since a month, I m in a trip with a camper van near seaside, and the bike sleep on the see side… and the chain is already really rusty, even with frequent cleaning and lubrification (still with squirt).
What can I do? I kinda don’t want to go back to old fashion grease… maybe solid wax? Something else ? Also what’s the best way to clean that rust on the chain which was not new but still really good (I’m on the road, don’t tell me ultrasounds 🙃) ?
Thanks !
by MakeItDrool
10 Comments
Squirt is just wax in a water carrier. I’ve found it’s nice when it’s dry, but if it’s going to be wet/salty you’d best use something else.
The salty air can play havoc with metal bike parts, and squirt is a good lubricant on the moving parts, but in my experience is terrible at protecting the chain from the elements. If it were my chain I’d clean it with a stiff brush and hot soapy water, then temporarily lube it with regular chain oil until it can sleep more soundly.
Wax doesn’t do well in cold/wet – i’ve used CleanRide (similar to squit) in past years winters and it sucked. I tried Molten Speed Wax this year and it’s been great in hot dry conditions. It absolutely sucks in winter.
If you’re keeping your bike outside and exposed to the elements then a wet lube may be better suited. I’m using WD-40 Wet Lube on my winter drivetrain and it’s performing much better.
here’s what my drivetrain looked like after one ride in wet snow in the city with MSW:
https://preview.redd.it/m1vy926w3fee1.jpeg?width=4080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3d9c007c839ecac6ec5b68c8963792820c913416
I think the option, sadly, is wet lube. Squirt does nothing against rust
Never let it out in rain then leave it without lubing. Wax doesn’t have good rust resistance in wet situations. Treat it with evaporust and relube again imo.
Rusty chain and squirt
That was the name of my Sonny and Cher cover act in college.
I have used Squirt for years, after previously hot waxing chains. I like it just fine. As others have said, it doesn’t do well in the rain/wet. I also have found that lower tier (cheaper) chains rust far easier than upper tier chains. For instance, my wife’s bike has Shimano 105 and the chains rust far easier than my Ultegra chains. So maybe invest in a higher tier chain? Also, if you are riding on the beach, in salt water, all bets are off. Anything and everything will rust. And quickly.
Once I removed some layer rust from my chain by leaving it in a bottle of vinegar overnight and than cleaning it with a toothbrush. After 2-3 repetitions the chain became completely clean of rust and it. That chain is still works well.
However there is a not very big limit of how many rust you can remove from a chain until it become unusable.
I ran squirt on the sea side for about 5 years. It’s a pain, but the easiest thing is to wash the bike every ride, dry off the chain and reapply the squirt. Salt air is super annoying. If you can manage to keep your bike indoors again, it makes a big difference. Also make sure to oil or grease all the screws and bolts on your bike, because they *will* rust over time. I moved about 20 km away from the sea side and I can’t believe the difference. So much less work.
I moved to immersion wax this year and it is definitely better than squirt, but you still have the issue with rust. If you want to try it, then every ride hose down your chain and dry it with a cloth or hair drier on cool air (don’t use hot air as you can damage various things on the bike). As long as you aren’t power washing it, the wax should be fine. You might have to re-wax a bit more often. Not 100% sure about this as I don’t have to wash my bike so much any more, but I feel fairly confident it will work. On the other hand, it may be that Squirt is going to end up being less work in the end. Hard to say.
I would stop cleaning it and let it develop a good layer of the wax. I never clean mine off and also use squirt and see no downsides.