Maintenance Reminder + Poll: Chain Lubrication

[annguyen1981]

OK, it's not OMW who only uses WD-40.

Maybe Kerry?  I can't remember know, and I'm too lazy to search

[annguyen1981]

Maybe I'm not as lazy as I thought...

It was Ed_in_AZ who turned me into a WD40 only guy.

http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=27190.0

Here's the conversation for those who are lazy to click the clicky:

The point of O-ring chains is the sealing properties, yet so many people are concerned with spraying gooey crud on their chains. Is that crap actually expected to pass by the O-rings? It makes much better fling material to cover the back end of bikes.

Not only is WD40 excellent for cleaning, but when I broke free from spraying goo on chains, I used WD40 for 7 years on a Husky 390 dirt bike and had to replace the chain once. I used it for 9 years on a quad and both the chain and sprockets were fine when I sold it. Lastly I used it on my GS500 and again never had a problem. Plus, the machines stay much cleaner.

O-ring chains need to be kept clean and the light oiling of WD40 also keeps them rust free, flexible, and WILL PENETRATE to expel any water.

So Ed...  You're not lubing your chains anymore???  Based on your experience here, I will go the same route...  I'm sick of seeing the chain covered in goo cause the lube attracts and holds all the dirt and sand.

Do you still spray your chain with WD-40 every 600 miles like recommended?

Yep, all that dirt the goo attracts CANNOT be good for a chain.

I only lubed my bikes with O-Ring chains after a ride in the rain or a washing.

I'm now riding the dreaded Harley which uses a belt for the final drive. So unless I someday aquire an SV650(which I really like ) chains are no longer an issue (except for the HD primary chain which is internal in oil, with an external locknut adjuster).

[Unnamed]

I thought that petroleum products were like outlawed for O ring chains. The Clymer I've got says that using petroleum products on it will cause the o rings to harden and make the chain useless. Is it lying to me?

[scratch]

Vaseline would be O.K.   

[scratch]

It's picture time!

Measuring chain slack

Starring: scratch's hand


Measuring my thumb

Starting reference point: I line up the words on each spoke with the top of the chainguard, that way I have three evenly spaced points to measure (sometimes six).

Reference point: measure chain just above the foot of the centerstand, otherwise use the edge of the tire for reference.

Since the crease on the knuckle of my thumb is relatively straight, I simply line it up with the centers of the two adjacent pins to the link that I am measuring.  I then look at a reference spot on the tire at the top of my thumb; in this case the bottom of the sipe that you can barely see (sorry).

Pushing up (I shoulda brought the camera up, centered on the pin, that way it wouldn't look like the chain is too loose).  Does it look like I'm straining?

[TheFleshRocket]

On my Gixxer which has two trip odometers, one is reset every time I fill the tank and the other is every time I lube the chain.

On the bikes that don't have two trip odos, I try to lube the chain every 500 miles--500, 1000, 1500, etc.  That way if I look down and see that the bike has 8475 miles on it, I know I need to lube the chain soon.

[TheFleshRocket]

its ok to clean it with wd-40, but dotn use it as the lube.
i use brake parts cleaner or carb cleaner and a steel brush to clean mine looks new all the time, and has 15,000miles on it now, still pleanty of ajustment for it.

The thing you need to be careful with when using the steel brush is to not damage the o-rings on the inside of the chain.  Use the brush all you want on the outside of the links (the side you can see when standing next to the bike) but not on the top or bottom.

Obviously if you have 15K miles on your bike, you haven't damaged any o-rings, but a newbie might see your post and just go to town on their chain, damaging it. 

[thirdman]

I have only one thing to say:

Loobman