Testing Chain Wax for 1-YEAR and this happened..
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- čas přidán 14. 05. 2024
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This is my full review after using the Optimize chain wax for the last year! I'm sharing quite a bit of tips and tricks about the de-greasing process and overall use of chainwax. The first time it may be a bit of a hassle but it turns out to be very easy, and less work than any other chain lube I've used in the past.
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0:00 Intro
1:54 STEP 1 - De-greasing
6:02 The BEST/EASY way to degrease
7:04 What is WAX and how does it work?
9:22 STEP 2a - Drip-Waxing
10:16 STEP 2b - HOT-Waxing
12:01 DYI HACK for hotwax!
12:35 HOTWAX result
13:15 STEP 3a - Re-Wax (dripwax)
15:23 ESSENTIAL TIPS!
17:04 STEP 3b Re-Wax (HOTwax)
17:52 How Long Does It Last?
20:07 When do I re-apply? (My experience/results)
21:46 Indoor trainer and WAX?
22:40 Conclusion
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Little tip for applying the drip wax: Shift to the big ring and the biggest sprocket (like you would never do riding) and apply on top of the cassette. The cross-chaining opens up the gaps in the chain and makes the lube sink in much easier.
That's a new one, great tip!
Small ring, small ring is even better as chain is more slack so gaps are even larger for wax to get in.
one run on big - big and one run one small small… win win
Amazing tip! Makes complete sense!
another tip to help it penetrate is to warm up your chain first. I only mess with this the first time with a clean chain.
White spirit and mineral spirits from any DIY store. Use a funnel and paper filters to re-use solvent. Cheap slow cooker for wax. Foil to catch drips when transferring to a hanging location. Wrap around plastic pipe to break up wax. Rotate/wax multiple chains to minimise down time.
Nitro will be much more effective imo
Yeah, no need to re-invent the wheel from scratch! Just do it like everyone has been doing it for years...
Yea could just follow the process e.g. from Zero Friction Cycling or for the simplest (and most expensive) use the Silca chain stripper which was literally developed for this use case.
At 45€/500ml I think it’s crazy expensive, 10x of nitro thinner that will do a 💯 perfect job
@@jasperverkuijl is the nitro thinner the reducer (thinner) used for nitro cellulose paints?
great stuff, great explaining. i start waxing/preparing chains these month and i heard some helpful hints in your vid. Thanks for this !
BEST WAY TO HEAT WAX is with a slow cooker (crock pot). I use the very small Crock Pot (TM) Little Dipper. A rice cooker is OK, but a little hotter than optimal. Heating wax on your stove is, as Jasper says, a mess. It is also a potential safety and health hazard. Moreover, no cook wants bicycle chain wax heated in their kitchen. AS TO REMOVING OIL from new and used chains, my preferred technique is very fast and very inexpensive. Use disposable blue nitrile gloves, and conduct the process outside, to minimize skin contact with solvents and to avoid inhaling solvent vapors. I use multiple chain immersions in fresh gasoline, followed by gasoline removal using aqueous degreaser. I obtain the metallic sound Jasper describes. I also recycle the gasoline. The entire degreasing process requires about 30 min to one hour. Use four glass jars with screw on tops: three 1-quart jars (or larger), one pint-sized jar (or larger). FIRST, fill one large jar with fresh gasoline. SECOND, take a rag and use it to physically remove all the oil/grease you can easily wipe off the chain (this reduces the amount of oil you have to remove with the gasoline). You can enhance the physical removal process with brushes to get inside the links, with further rag wiping. THIRD, put the wiped chain into the small jar and cover with enough fresh gasoline to fully immerse the chain. Put the top on the small jar and shake it. Note that the gasoline instantly turns jet black when cleaning a used chain. Proceed to intermittently shake the jar over a 5 minute period, and then remove the top and pour the dirty gasoline into the empty second jar. FOURTH, repeat this process in the small jar. It may require 5-10 cycles until the gasoline barely gets dirty. Once you get to the point that the gasoline barely gets dirty after 5 minutes of chain immersion with internittent shaking, you are done with the gasoline. Allow the dirty gasoline in the second large jar to sit undisturbed for a week or so, and a dark layer of solids will reside on the bottom of the second jar, but the gasoline above will be clear again! Carefully decant the supernate, i.e., pour the clear gasoline (I am a chemist) into the empty first jar for reuse. After decanting the supernate from the second jar, discard the dirty gas on the bottom (in chemical jargon, the "infra-natant") as waste. Use a funnel, carefully pouring the supernate into the empty first jar, pouring through at least two layers of paper towel placed inside the funnel, to capture any unwanted solids in the when decanting. Waste not, want not. FIFTH, place the gasoline-covered chain outside and the gasoline will evaporate in 5 minutes or so, particularly if it is sunny out. SIXTH: After the gasoline evaporates, immerse the cleaned chain in a fourth jar containing an aqueous degreaser (I use Harbor Freight concentrated degreaser mixed about 1:5 with water). This degreaser readily removes the trace amount of the oily component remaining from the gasoline (gasoline is a mixture with mostly small molecule hyrdrocarbons, but also contains a very small amount of high molecular weight hydrocarbons). SEVENTH: Dry the chain with a clean rag. The chain is now ready for immersion into the molten wax in the crock pot. Actually the molten wax in my Little Dipper also contains at least 2 or 3 heaping teaspoons of 1.6 micron PTFE powder, which I purchase on Ebay. Stir the chain immersed in the molten wax+PTFE, making sure to stir enough to "stir up" the PTFE particles so that they are distributed throughout the molten wax, as they tend to settle to the bottom between uses. EIGHT, remove the chain and hang to dry just as in Jasper's video. Then install on bike. [PS#1: If you use molten wax without any PTFE or other friction additive such as graphene, or if you do not properly remove the oil or grease from your chain, you will only get 30 miles or so on tarmac before chain noise begins. With PTFE powder, I get probably 200-300 miles on tarmac before chain noise starts. PS#2: If you wonder whether you got absolutely all the oil off the chain (because the last immersion in gasoline produced gasoline very slightly dirty looking), then consider the following. Materials dissolve in materials of similar polarity. Oil and grease are hydrocarbons, as is gasoline. Hydrocarbon molecules are non-polar. On the other hand, water molecules are polar. That is why oil and water don't mix. Wax is a hydrocarbon, so it too is non-polar. Therefore wax is soluble in gasoline, i.e., dissolves at least to some extent in gasoline. So if you had a trace of gasoline on your chain when you immersed it in the molten wax containing PTFE powder, that trace of oil or gas just dissolves uniformly into the wax, and in my experience does not affect the performance of the wax-coated chain to any measurable degree. This is the same reason that the recycling of the gasoline supernate has no significant negative impact on future use for chain cleaning, even though it inherently contains additional oil from previous chain cleanings. PS#3: I have been using this process for several years, and have helped other cyclists convert from oil to wax, with good results, including the fringe benefits of: (a) freedom to put your bike in your car without worrying about getting grease on the upholstery, and (b) no more "chain tattoos" on your legs while on a ride, and (c) no more greasy fingers from re-installing a dropped chain while on a ride.]
Long read but good stuf!😜😜🙌🏻🙌🏻
Good lord.......
Guess you never head about hydrogen embrittlement from soaking metals in gasoline? Don't worry, not everyone has.
I don’t use any degreaser at all what i do is deluge the chain in the cheapest cooking oil without removing it from bike,spin the chain a bit then wipe the oil off and repeat, once the oil is not showing dirt i wipe off the excess and ride. I also use 7 speed chains that cost about £5 or less, never get a noisy or rusty chain
Wao,. Thanks for this reply. This will help.
what a fab vid! As someone who loves the tech and has heard loads about waxed chains via GCN but never taken the plunge, this is amazing info. Thanks Jasper!
Thats great! Let’s do it mate. Just make sure you follow my advice and not some of GCN as they often mis out stuff. Many people are still using acetone because of GCN recommendation and it won’t work.
Check out the Australian guy on CZcams, he's made ten tutorials on chain waxing, it's really not rocket science. Oz cycle I think it's called.
By the way: zerofrictioncycling is the goat when it comes to waxing chains and scientific research!
no, they live in stone age, specially guy that talks about nothing 15-25 minutes
Always stocked for your vids man
Thanks for this 1 year review. I purchased the lube wax from optimize when you first mentioned it in one of your videos. It was my first attempt at using wax. Very happy with it. Main reason for wanting to switch was for the cleanliness. Just got tired if getting the dirty lube my hands, and the never fails chain tattoo on legs and clothes.
me too, in last 6 years i never cleaned bike, i just hot rewax chain on bike every 100km or less and it lasts over 6 times in compare to oil
Do you know how long it took for you to get the wax? I ordered two weeks ago, and I havent even gotten the shipping confirmation yet. Emailed them, but no answer yet.
@@Doggepp make your own from candle
@@Doggepp It took Almost a month. I'm in the states and I believe it comes from Germany. It was 15 days from the date I ordered to when it was shipped out and then had to wait for it to arrive. They did update me with emails saying they were running behind in fulfilling orders and got email once it shipped out. I did expect it to take some time coming from overseas.
@@gja2000 Ah, im in Sweden so usually when I order stuff from Germany it takes 3-4 days only. But yeah, especially with this video, they might get a lot of orders. Hopefully it arrives soon
Really helpfull. Thank you so much for this
detailed Video. All the best.
I have been doing this for about a decade now. I normally do a couple of chains and rotate them weekly.
To clean in between waxes I put the chains into an old pot and pour a kettle of hot water on the them and agitate them for a few minutes.
I am currently using a mix of PTFE and Graphite it is great.
Degreasing and waxing is definitely a learning process. Its not as easy as just dripping some oil on a chain, but definitely worth the initial effort.
I was converted about 10 years ago. It is such a convenience
Once you get a system going it is very rewarding. Not having an oily chain is amazing.
Jasper, place the glass jar containing the solvent and the chain into your ultrasonic cleaner. Fill the ultrasonic cleaner to approximately half its capacity. Allow it to undergo the cleaning process for approximately 20 minutes at a temperature of 40°C. This will result in a clean chain, and you'll notice that your ultrasonic cleaner itself will also be much cleaner, reducing the need for additional cleaning.🙂
Ha, nice tip.
So ultrasonic cleaner with water, put the jar with the chain and thinner inside, into the ultrasonic bath, than turn it on, correct?
Like au-bain-Marie with the ultrasonic 😄
The sonic goes through the jar and helps clean the chain
Fire hazard
@@ThisTimeTheWorld, no, its safe. I used this method with acetone throughout a 40yr career.
Ontvetten met benzine. Dat werkt geweldig!
By far the best explanation/instructions out there👌
🙏🏻
Perfect explanation. Bookmarked this. I'm doing this already, but I can always learn from others.
Glad it was helpful! Cheers for the reply 👍🏻
Fantastic review, really helpful.
Happy New Year ! I look forward to more of your awesome videos in 2024 !
Happy new year!
Thanks mate! Got many 2023 race stuff still coming 🙌🏻
Thank you for this comprehensive and thorough review, I'm one step closer to switching to wax 🙂
Hahaha still not convinced huh??? 😂😂😂
I like the review. Very innovative
Nice to see you invested in some mechanics and the appropriate safety wear.
stripping a new chain can also be done with: step 1 gasoline (diesel benzine in Dutch), step 2 isopropyl alcohol, and final step 3 water.
I use white spirit (stoddard solvent) to clean/degrease the chain. 3 separate 'baths' with the first bath doing the majority of the work. It's a little like cleaning an oil varnish brush after use. You can store the solvent for the next chain (or chains) that you want to clean. Eventually bath No. 1 is going to be too dirty to use in which case you will need to replace the solvent, this then becomes bath No.3 and the other two move up a place.
Good production line 👌🏻
I dived recently into this and indeed, it’s thinner (paintbrush cleaner)-> degreaser -> acetone (must be last) -> wax procedure. Found it on gcn and at ZFC channel. Have al the stuff ready but haven’t tried it yet (this week). Your video just made the order of cleaning chain more valid and the ‘right’ one. There’s a lot of people out there trying this.
I am btw not doing this for gaining a few watts (at my age..).. but to have a clean chain , no more chain tattoo’s !
Thx jasper.
Mate, take my word, FORGET acetone! GCN is wrong and they didn’t properly test or investigate this.
I discussed this with optimize and they say the same thing, it doesn’t work.
Even GCN did a video for Optimize (in German GCN channel) and they were using acetone… Optimize wasn’t happy with this mis-information and asked me to make that part clear.
Good luck!🍀
@@jasperverkuijl hey jasper, wat ik begreep (maar misschien niet goed) is dat de acetone ‘vervliegt’ , dus meteen verdwijnt. Door die als laatste te gebruiken (evt afspoelen met water) meteen te waxen (water verdwijnt in wax) zou de ketting erg schoon moeten zijn. Ik ga toch eerst testen met een wat oudere ketting, zal in elk geval wat je zegt meenemen. Omdat gcn gesponsord wordt door silca (wat ik ga gebuiken) en zij hun suggestie overnamen, ging ik er van uit als nono dat acetone de beste laatste stap zou zijn.
Fijn dat je nog even reageerde!
Greets.
(Ps: wat me te binnenschiet: er is wel een groot verschil tussen schoonmaken / wax-klaar maken nieuwe ketting en een gebruikte ketting; mogelijk zit daar de verwarring)
@@cyclingjackGCN was ook gesponsord door Optimize en zeggen in die video ook dat Aceton werkt terwijl Optimize (Felix) specifiek afraad om dit te gebruiken. Ze doen gewoon geen goede research voor de iets plaatsen imo.
Thinner, brake cleaner en terpentine zijn allen vluchtig,
Nitro zeker veel vluchtiger dan aceton dus dat verdampt allemaal. Even afspoelen met water werkt zeker maar daarna wel goed de ketting drogen
Very informative thank you!
Very welcome!
Fully agree. It is less work and easier, with no aggressive solvents* so my kids can do their own bikes quite easily.
*expect for initial prep. But since the chain will last so much longer, you don’t have to do it often. You can also buy pre waxed chains form many companies.
Your little mechanic is awesome 👍
🤣🤣🤙🏻🤙🏻
I've been experimenting for a while. A good tip would be to leave the chain in the hot wax while it cools down a bit and you see top is getting a bit of a wax layer, then when you take out chain quickly put it in a bucket of very cold water, you can use ice as well. The whole idea behind this is not to let the wax drip out whilst liquid from inside the chain link, yes you will have lots of residue but before fitting it back on the bike you need to get rid of the excess wax, easy way is just drag the chain by grabbing both sides on a wooden brush handle just like you would use a hand saw to cut it. Cheers. Happy experimenting.
🤜🏻🤛🏻
Great video with real life practical tips, like bringing your bike into the house for easier application (even the timing: when lady of the house isn't there. Ha!) and using a cheaper wax after the rain. I had been wondering if it'd be worth using wax. Your real life application for one year is so helpful.
Thanks
Thanks for a great video. Now I might even try this (at least the drop wax as a start) that I always thought was a hassle. A little bit worried about the degreasing though 😉
dont worry, just use my tips and you dont have to figure out all this stuff by yourself. shake the chain in a jar with nitro thinner, 3x fresh liquid and its clean. (from the comments here you can also use petrol, white spirits or alcohol but I havent tried those)
Pro tip: heat you chain with a hair dryer before lubing the chain. The wax penetrate better between the links.
ha, ha, a hair dryer pro tip?, do you wanna tip from far future how to heat up chain anywhere anytime, use 12v inductive heater to heat up chain and you could melt solid wax on bike instead you bring remote kitchen with you
I guess I’m bit of a rebel when it comes to chain care with wax ,i use a heat gun, a hair dryer on steroids to melt the shipping film on a new chain In combination with wiping and brake cleaner and presto its done when its time to wax i then install the chain on the bike sans the wheel and use a pulley on axle then start a the quick link heat 10 links or so at a time and drip wax on each link,the heat pulls the wax in and around the pins like sweating a pipe joint when finished I release the tension reheat low temp to make sure its coating the power side of the pins.ezy pzy
No need the slow cooker heat will do that.
I do a three stage process for chain grease removal. I place the chain inside a jar with Muc-Off Drivetrain Degreaser and shake it around a little bit, doesn't take much time. Transfer it another jar with bike wash or some mild soap like Dawn and water, give it another little shake. Transfer it to the third jar in 90% isopropyl alcohol, last little shake. Give it a good wipe down with a microfiber cloth. If you have an air compressor that will help with the drying process. Results should be a bone dry chain.
One additional tip/note is that if your smallest cog is less less than 12t (in my experience) you will want to, occasionally, clean the gap between the two smallest cogs. My road bike has a 12t smallest cog and I have never had any issues , but the 11 on my gravel bike will start skipping due to the wax build up between the 11 and (?)13. A simple scraping between the cogs solves the issue, but it caught me off-guard the first time it happened. Also, I would go by hours rather than miles as Jasper will cover many more miles than I would for any given time. I use about 9 hours ride time between reapplications (hot melt), which is a little conservative, but it's so easy to wipe the chain down with a rag and then place it in the slow cooker that has about 250g of wax which I replace every year.
I haven’t had that issue. But did find the cassette would get a little wax on it over time. I thought the wax would be soft enough to be pushed away by the chain on that small cog.
You will get a contaminated wax bath if you do it this way. Maybe boil the chain down a few times between new wax.
@@jasperverkuijlPlease see zero friction cycling for additional infiormation. Boiling water over chains is, well, contraindicated.
Leave the chain on the bike.
Wipe it down.
Drip on additional wax.
Use a hair dryer to melt and drive the wax into the links takes about 5 extra minutes and a bit less hassle than a hot pot method.
.
@@kevinlewis390really? I started waxing and cleaning by pouring water over a chain hanging on a wire because of Zero Friction. I need to tune back in for new info??
For low cost high efficiency hot waxing get a cheap, round plastic food storage container like tupperware. Melt the wax in that by floating it in a little hot water inside a bigger saucepan. The bigger pot means it heats quicker as it's less deep, bigger pot means easier to lay the chain in. Also, you can lift the wax container out of the pan and under the hanging chain to cooldown, less mess. Also, when you manipulate the cold chain over the container to lose the hard, excess wax it goes back into the wax container and less is wasted.
People need to read this. I do it, but in a stainless steel pot in a larger pan of water. The heat is transferred more quickly, if everything is metal .
Slow cookers are just too slow.
That's a really great tip - thanks!
@@peterwillson1355why does it matter if it’s slow? Put it in, go do something else. Put in in the moring, go to work, come home and pull it out.
Id also rather have the wax in my garage than my kitchen.
@tjb8841 if you overheat the wax, it damages it. You can't overheat it if you heat it in boiling water....I don't mind wax in my kitchen . It's FOOD GRADE WAX. You can also use it for sealing jars of jam. If you pay 50 to 100 £ for a kilo of " special" wax, that's your problem. And I wax at least 4 chains at a time. They won't all fit I a slow cooker at the same time. Yes, it DOES matter if a slow cooker is slow .
Homemade paraffin wax mixed with shellite is now my favourite chain lubricant, after trying it when watched an Aussie cyclist CZcams who tested various waxing methods . No more dirty chsins, ot work pants when i ride to work. To clean the chain now, i squirt the mixture on thr chain and run the chain through the cloth or paper towel . The chain is the smoothest and quietest i have ever run. I don't add graphitr or any other additives.
me too but if you use pure wax with no teflon or molibden... or tungsten... you have to rewax every 100km-i tested it and that are numbers
@@makantahi3731 thanks for sharing the 100km limitation without teflon. I will need to add some to the mix.
I've been pretty happy using a 3L InstantPot. I put the chain on a spare spoke bent into a fish hook shape and set it on top of the wax. 30 minutes on the slow cooker setting melts the wax gently and a little swishing around at that point gets everything mixed up well. I usually wash the bike and/or get a shower in the meantime. After letting the excess drop off I just lay it on a piece of parchment paper to cool till the evening, or next ride.
I also keep a clean microfiber cloth in the garage specifically to dry the chain after any wet rides, and to clean off any dust/dirt before rewaxing. I've never bothered boiling the chain, and have only worried about washing the chain after muddy gravel rides. Is my wax getting slightly contaminated? Maybe. Don't care.
You can use cheap rice cookers for heating the wax, then just leave the wax in them and put the lid on to store it in the garage. No cleaning up the pot afterwards, and you can do everything outside. You can also put a metal mesh in the bottom of the pot to hold the chain away from any sediment. As you mentioned, you can also have a dirty and a clean rice cooker/wax pot. Here in Australia you can buy rice cookers for about $15.
Also put the chain in a jar or zip lock bag containing your solvent, then put the entire container/bag in the ultrasonic cleaner full of water. That way you only need a small amount of solvent. If you use a zip lock bag, support the opening above the water line.
Good idea of the bag in ultrasonic cleaner 👍🏻👍🏻
I find that wax makes bike maintenance a lot easier. I used to thoroughly clean my bike when my chain got dirty. But now I tend to just put the chain back in the pot when it needs it. When I have to clean the bike completely, which is less often because the drivetrain is much cleaner, I take the chain off for a trip back to the pot. The jockey wheels, cassette, and chainrings are much easier to clean with the chain off, and they haven’t attracted nearly as much dirt and grime.
I do need to try a drip wax to use after wet rides. Sometimes I end up re-waxing very frequently when it’s wet out.
To make the hot waxing a bit easier i actually use a slow cooker, set to LOW setting. It works just great! Also i think that you might have even missed out one of the greatest benefits of waxing - besides having a clean chain! To me a very great benefit is, that since the chain is not dirty, you barely experience any wear on the chain and cassette! I have a chain and cassette with 5k kms on them, still meassuring the same as a completely new chain! I use homemade wax with teflon tho... 🙂
Yeah that’s a great benefit 👍🏻
I use a slow cooker as well. On 10 speed chain I get about 6000Km, so I wax 3 times a year, chains last about 3 years. With Oil I needed to replace the chain every year. On my 12 speed chain I only get about 2000Km before I need to rewax, get about 2 years on a chain.
I also use homemade wax with PTFE 1 micron, and Molybdenum disulfide 1 micron. $20 gets me a lifetime of lubricant, rather than $100 per year.
slow cooker is the way to go!
Avoid teflon as it's a forever chemical.
Omg...🙄🤦♂️
What worked really well for me to clean a new chain was leaving it in the degreaser product (muc-off, bio) for some hours and periodically shaking it and then just rinse with hot water.
JASPER - WHAT GLASSES ARE YOU WEARING? I love your thorough test/analysis of the chain wax! Thx
Siroko. Not sure which you are referring to but I have a link in bio and top comment. Currently Black Friday sale🤙🏻
Best in my experience for decreasing is white spirit or Nitroverdünnung in German. Takes off the factory grease fairly well
Mineral spirits>degreaser>denatured alcohol>hot wax>wax should cool before removing to allow wax to cake on forming stalactites.
I just started waxing and from a cleaning perspective, it's great!
Awesome
I have found when it is too cool you lose a lot of wax and it is more messy. I take mine out while it is still liquid and hang it over the pot to drain the excess off.
@@paulb9769 I expect it to be messy for the first couple of rides.
@@jonathanwise47 I have tried varying temps to remove it but I have found it works best for me when removed still relatively hot.
Imho kitchen soap like dreft is excellent, perhaps the best new/old chain de-greaser. Great video:D
dreft? never ever will get a new shimano chain clean.
yeah, I was confused at this video. Dawn dish soap and hot water will degrease the chain so well that it will start to rust right after you dry it off.
lol You're wrong, Not as smart as you seem. @@jasperverkuijl
First step to find the correct degreasing process is to knowing which type of grease has brand new chains. I think are petroleum based ones, so with a litre of gasoline grease dissapears in few minutes. After using water solved wax, only found a dirty chain. The best lube for me is a teflon based lubricant called GT85. Applying it each 3-4 ridings the day before, and well drying the chain is the best way for me....
Great video! One disagreement I have regarding the indoor trainer + wax, however, is that wax is indeed a HUGE benefit over dry/wet drip lube! I found that dry/wet drip lube would collect so much grime from my pain cave (dust and airborne particles are a thing in some spaces- look it up and you'll see that other have this experience with dry/wet drip as well); wax completely prevents issues with this and allows the chain to stay relatively clean, outside or inside- wax for the win! 😉
Good point 🤙🏻
Agreed. Definitely wax indoors. It lasts foreverrrrrrr and you definitely don't want black chain grease inside. Just put down a training/yoga mat under your drivetrain and you're fine.
Love my diy wax in Colorado. No complaints. Everything else is grinding paste.
Great video and information. Thanks for answering all the questions I had. Im in a wet humid muddy environment. It looks like this will be the way to go.
The wax is in Germany. Oh well I can't order it. Any recommended alternatives available in USA?
Give it a try 🙌🏻
Don't know if this trick is already out there, but I made a pan to heat the wax to soak the chain in, that fits inside the tub of the ultrasonic. I heat up the wax/chain to melting then transfer that vessel into the ultrasonic and turn it on for a few minutes, then reheat and repeat 2 times. Wax gets in everywhere. Chain is fully waxed. Then pull it out a drip dry as usual.
Run to the 2nd hand store and get a used crock pot; makes the hot wax process easier to do in a garage or other place where a bit of drip/splash doesn't get you into trouble with housemates. Do look for one with a "warm" setting; I found that the "low" on the one I bought is still a little too warm and I need to turn it off & let it start to cool before doing my dips.
To strip the chain I use a bit of wax and grease remover first then wash with a bit of water then you can use Mineral turpentine and finally some mentholated spirits to leave the chain perfect. These are cheap and easy. Another option is just use some diesel or petrol and then mentholated spirits. I also use a slow cooker. Cheap and easy to keep it all contained
In the Netherlands the thinner has changed to environmentally friendly thinner about 20 years ago and as a result of that the thinner does not work so well as before. However in other parts of the world the good old thinner is still available. That is why you needed the nitro thinner. Be carefull with it while using because it ends up through your skin into your bloodstream.
petrol is still the same and it works perfectly
Hi, great, useful and informative video. Little by little i start thinking seriously about a oil to wax conversion…btw…any chance to get this awesome blue Cycling fanatics Tshirt somewhere? 😉
Link to the Tshirt in in the description 🙌🏻 (website of the vandal)
Great video! Thanks to you I just realized why my waxed chain still got dirty after my rides…
Time to buy some nitro verdunner.
note: this video says that wax prevents the chain from getting dirty this is incorrect. all the wax does is prevent dirt from getting into the rollers. As the wax wears out, or has water introduced, dirt will ingress into the rollers. this is why it's important to clean the dirt off of the outside of the chain after every ride, and to reset the wax occasionally. it is these steps that help you get the most distance from your chain.
to save having to do a full reset as often, you can touch it up with a compatible drip wax. but this won't remove any dirt that's gotten into the rollers already only the full immersion reset will do that.
Nice. Quite a contrast riding in snow and sleet one day and then on the Dubai Cycle track through the desert the next day.
That happened literally within 1 week of time!!! Quite crazy indeed
For tips about degreasing a new chain, refer to Zero Friction Cycling. They have an excellent and easy to follow guide on degreasing. Also a good video on how to properly use an ultrasonic cleaner (not al ultrasonics are created equal and you need to de-gas the cleaning solution before putting in the chain). Terpentine as a first step and acetone or alcohol as a second step works just fine. Silca Chain stripper is also said to be very effective, haven't been able to try it myself.
silca chain stripper may work great ( i havent used it) but its very expensive. 10x as expensive as nitro thinner.
acetone does not work (as I tested and showed in this vide). And therpentine is less strong than Nitro Thinner.
so, I'm staying with Nitro.
Better go zero friction cycling channel or website and get some information from him. He's very experienced and he would have spared you a lot of experimentation.
Acetone is used as a rinse after the degreaser. It helps remove any degreaser from your chain.
It also evaporates quickly unlike water, so the chain doesn't rust.
Using acetone strictly as a degreaser doesn't work.
@@cicw22that’s why I use thinner. It works as degreaser and will evaporate so no need for acetone
Duidelijk filmpje Jasper, probeer eens een nieuwe ketting in een een zak te doen en doe daar dasty bij in ( dicht zippen), dan in de ultrasoon en hij komt er vetvrij uit :-)
Ff in de schoonmaak kast kijken 👀
Hi Jasper! To remove grease and oil carbonator cleaner is really good.
I think waxing your indoor bike chain is definitely a must.
What is carbonator?
@@jasperverkuijl I think he means carburetor cleaner , similar to the brake cleaner you used.
Oops 😬Carburetor 😆 🤌 But I don't expect you to know what that is I don't think your generation grew up with it.
@@SuperDodoe your first order got it right!! 😆👍
@@HarryTzianakisTheGodOfSpeedmy scooter had a carburator, I know what it is😜. It’s like brake cleaner I think
I use a product called Varsol(oil paint thinner) to degrease the new chain, It takes about 5 minutes, then i rinse with friction alcool, so my chain never touches water.
Once dry i apply my wax with an already mixed product. Once i run my bikes with the wax, i only do a complete chain cleaning every spring.
Once in a while i will do a dry brush cleaning, to clean the sides of the chain of the excess wax, so it looks better and shinny, loll
Amazing how silent it can become and how clean it keeps the transmission, never going back to oil again, even in the winter.
Thanks for the video. It's really great (I'll be using the cardboard box hanger). You mention that if you come back from a wet ride and don't dry the chain you get some rusting. Is this just with the wet wax or does it also apply to the hot wax? If also with the hot wax, then how do you resolve this as presumably you wouldn't apply wet wax or oil onto the waxed chain?
The rust is similar with the drip wax and hotwax.
You can mix the hotwax and drip wax products so after the ride you just dry the chain (with a towel) and apply some drip wax to it.
Never use oil on a waxed chain.
Haven't finished watching the intro yet, but personally I found that waxing is less effort overall vs dealing with an oiled chain if you're smart with a setup. Slow cookers are definitely the way to go for melting the wax.
Notes throughout the video;
For removal of factory grease, isopropyl alcohol is the way to go in my opinion, preferably as close to 100% as possible. Its cheap and easy to get a hold of and effective.
Studies show that hot waxing is the way to go, with drip wax to top up mid race or at a push. It penetrates much better and more reliably.
As you suggested I find for a whole rewaxing then a boiling dip is good prep for the chain, then placing it back in the waxing pot.
Great tips and very thorough! Here’s what I do. For new chain, Dip in petrol 24 hours to strip, dip in degreaser for a few hours, scrub, Dip in 99% isopropyl alcohol, scrub, spray with alcohol, air dry, then hot wax. Sounds like a lot but it’s not, and it totally works.
Yeah lot of people mention patrol. I’ll try it.
Takes a long time though.
It can be a 10 minute job with nitro
Did you even try Dawn dish soap?
the easiest way to do chain waxing is to have at least two waxed chains, one on the bike and one ready to go on the bike. it's far less daunting to re-wax when you can do it at your leisure although that leisure has a clock ticking against it! topping up with the silca based drip wax or similar is a decent stopgap.
Sounds good. I recently waxed 4 chains in one go. (All different bikes). Super efficient
I buy three chains. It doesn't take 3x as long to prep and wax sets of chains. When I need a waxed chain I have a spare or two. When all three are worn out, I replace them and the sprocket.
agree with everythign you've said here, but surprised you haven't mentioned increasing the life of the chain...mine are barely getting worn or stretching after 10,000km...
Yeah you are right! i kind of forgot to clearly mention anything about that. I haven’t traced or noted my wear.
I have multiple bikes so makes it harder to keep track I think
To maintain the wax temperature below 100 deg Centigrade, I put the wax container in another vessel containing water at the bottom, and then heat this over a regular stove. The water boils at 100 deg, so the wax never gets heated beyond that point.
I just use a low setting on my stove which will also not let it become too hot. 👍🏻
100C is actually way to hot so a low setting on yhe stove will work better
In the US you could buy a gallon can of car parts cleaner that even has a hopper in it to keep your chain in if it can take varnish off of a used car part it can clear Shimano‘s grease off a chain and it did I’ve used wax chains for a lot a lot of miles
A gallon would last a life time 😂😂👌🏻
i used to do this with regular candle wax. I used gasoline as degreaser. I had to use 2 containers... 1 was for all the dirty work.. that wasnt chnged offten... and then i used second container with fresher gasoline. Chain was cleaned 100 percent.
I also use Gasoline which after much experimentation works the best. However there is a little bit of lubricant in standard Gas so after using gasoline you should then use a degreaser. So Gas, then Degreaser, then Isopropyl alcohol or acetone. It may seem like a lot but you only have to do this once per chain and only takes about 20 minutes after you get everything set up.
I use Varsol to clean chain, 2 separate baths overnight, then bath in methyl hydrate to remove the varsol. Very economical, if maybe takes a little longer.
I completely agree with you, Felix's product is great and the plus points are overwhelming. I don't see any reason to go back to an oil-based lubricant.
🙌🏻awesome!
how about riding in the rain? I found using drip wax it washed away during a really wet gravel ride. Would like to use a waxed chain on my commuter bike.
@@Koen030NLcommuter bike depends… do have a chain guard?
It will stay ok during a Wet ride but you need to re-apply after the ride. I have footage of wet rides in this video so check that
I use mineral spirits (terpetine) to get rid of most of the factory lubricants. Then I use acetone to clean it once more. Works perfect
Another tip is to use a new/old spoke to get the chain in/out of the hot wax ;)
What I learned from doing the hot wax is that you don't want to remove the chain from the pot while the wax is fully liquid as this way most of the wax inside the links will drain out. Wait until the wax is becoming more milky/snotty and you will get the best longevity as the wax will remain in the links therefore taking longer to wear out. I can get about 600 to 800 kms out of one wax, and about 8000+ km on one chain. Great video!
I use putoline (motocross wax).. after dipping I lay the chain flat on a towel.. everything stays where it should.. after 10e in I hang it to harden…
Simmer it in some Simple Green two times. Simmer in some clean water.
Soak in a jar with brakr cleaner. Works a treat.
Hi, Jasper! Big fan here.
How come you didn't make a haute route series this year?
All the love from Brazil
I’m working on it. Will come online eventually
Degreesing new chain, this works for me, in this order shaking for 5 mins vigorously in jar at each stage: Petrol (Gasoline) > Degreaser > White Sprit (paint brush cleaner) > Isopropanol. Will never go back to wet lube.
Good stuff. Tried the optimize yet?
Do you re-use the quick links from Shimano 12spd (are there any re-usable ones) or do you have to shell out 2-5€ every time you want to hot wax the chain again? Or, 1. hot wax, then only use drip wax?
Thank you for the very informative video!
I just re-use them. Never had issues. Not official advice 🤪😜
As long as they properly “click” into place, I think you’re ok
You can also use a Connexx chain. They’re easy to take off and put back on without any tools
I ordered the wax and I am looking forward to the adventure 😅
@@elchram🎉🎉
Super tip @6:24 a degreaser that really works! So many times with new chains I've gone the road of 2x treatment with (different) degreasers, then some 99% denaturalised alcohol and the chain is still a bit sticky.... Pfff
Yeah mate this one is super strong 👌🏻
Thanks Jasper heaps of info what works really well to clean new chain is funniley enough jett fuel ie jet a1 aviation kerosene .
🤓 where would you buy that? Haha
@@jasperverkuijl just fiil your thermos on your tea break ha ha .
Hi, I live in Denmark, lots of rain here;-), I did not try the hot wax yet but I have tried lubewax from Smoove and Squirt, and gone away from that when I found that after riding in the rain, maybe for 1-2 hours the dripwax was gone and the chain was "naked", as you already mensioned the Optimize wax is also soluble in water! put it on your finger and a drop of water also and it is washing away, meaning I am riding in the rain with a chain that is completely unlubed after a short while! the good thing is though that it is easy to clean the chain after the ride with a waterhose but if it worn prematurely then I am not so sure. I wash the chain and lube it with a good oilbased product. I am riding MTB and Racer/Gravel.
The hotwax doesn’t have the emulsifier so might work little better in wet conditions
After one year (15000km) of experiencing chain waxing, i can defenitively approve this stuff.
The first approach was the drip Dynamic Speed Potion. Very good but a bit sticky.
After that the hot wax with Silca Secret. I don't want to remove always the chain, so after the first application, I use also the Silca Super Secret Drip, a apply every 400 km or after every rain ride. To wash the chain in dry condition I use a micro fiber cloth, great work. On the gravel bike I use secret hot wax the first time and now Dynamic Speed Potion drip, good results. With the dynamic Speed Potion I noticed that a repository of gray matter sticks on sprockets and chainrings and protect them from wear.
Big question : Sram and Shimano are saying that the chain connector is single use, however I have used 2 or 3 time without issue, any advise on it?
I just re use them as long as they properly snap tight I think it’s ok. But no official advice 🤓😉
Not sure if others have said it, but mineral turpintine in a jar. Shake for a couple seconds/minutes and repeat if needed. Then in a jar with ethanol or equivalent to strip the turps off, plus its super volatile so it dries out super quick 😎😎 Takes me max 5 mins to strip a new chain
Sounds just like the Nitro thinner I use!🙌🏻🙌🏻
Hey Jasper, thank you for a very informative vlog. 2 questions:
1. Any idea if we can purchase a grease free chain? I.e. no grease applied to the chain out of box.
2. Any manufacturers selling already waxed chain that can be purchased out of box?
I assume shimano or sram will provide this as it becomes more popular? Something to inquire about, perhaps 🤔
@@s.jatighetchi9021
1. I think they all have some grease but Shimano is the worst. I’ve seen some comments about brands with less grease but,
2. Since recent, Optimize actually sells pre-waxed chains! (After I finished this review) So that would be the perfect option for you. Check out the website
Thank you@@jasperverkuijl will check out Optimize for sure 👍
The fastest way to degrease a new chain is to immerse it in hot degreaser and keeping it hot. The heat really makes a difference, cuts through the factory grease so quick. Takes me less than 1 hour to strip the wax this way.
Love my waxed chains, main tangible difference is how silent and smooth it runs to me.
Ill try the heat 🙌🏻
With the nitro thinner it was only about 10 minutes so would be quite good I guess
my candle wax lasted for like 200 for shure... but it was wery clear to hear when chain needed more wax
I always had problems correctly translating the names of degreasing-products and wondered what to use. Nitro-Verdünner i know (living in Germany). Will try soon.
Got it from the guy of optimize who is also German.
Optimize how has their own products though
Need to use white spirits to remove the factory grease. Works perfectly
Best thing to use as a degreaser is extraction naphtha. Two/three shakes in a jar and the chain is perfectly clean :)
Never heard of it. Sounds like it’s effective like nitro thinner I used 👌🏻
I didn't read through all the comments but as a "waxer" I use a cheap small "crock pot" to cook my chain with the wax. Keeps you out of the kitchen and the wife happy! Just make sure the chain is clean and you can re-use the wax forever.
Buy 4 chains, wax them all, (i have 2 bikes, road and gravel) ride the chains, top up with Squirt lube and ride them for about 1000km each, then swap to the new chains, repeat process, when 4 chains are worn, rewax them all and there you go... do around 10-12,000km per year and have to do this about 3x a year. clean chain no issues and not really seeing much wear on the chains or drivetrain and you can touch it... does run smoother and quieter, gravel bike and muddyness you have to apply more squirt than on road. have to recommend it. Never will i go back to lube. If you dont want the faff.. buy new chain, strip factory grease and then just use Squirt.. basically 90% of the way there.. overall this is the future.
Yep, very easy way.
Important thing is to be sure the drip lube is compatible with the hot wax. (Not all are)
The drip wax of Optimize will work the same as you are using the squirt.
I've been using Squirt, you're saying I shouldn't bother with the wax? Or still worth it?
@@Avioto I saw once a video testing differnet waxes and squirt was one of the worst in their test... not sure if this is still the case
@@Sandman_TV honestly.. Worst in what way? It's a great top up after the initial waxing has worn down. No issues.
@@Avioto clean the chain properly with a solution and then use squirt, I would even warm it up in hot water and then apply to clean chain, this is nearly 90% of the way to a full dipped wax. I fully wax but have a friend that does it the other way and results are similar, he goes through more squirt than I do though.
Maintaining the waxed chain.
Leave it on the bike.
Wipe it down.
Drip on additional wax.
Use a hair dryer to melt and drive wax into the links effectively. Takes approximately 5 minutes with a hair dryer and less hassle than the hot pot method.
Don’t think that works with dripwax as it’s a water emulsion. They are liquid because of the presents of water that will evaporate. No need to heat the chain after applying the wax.
The wax in the emulsion will quickly coat and stay externally on the links due to ambient temperature of the chain regardless of the base. A hair dryer will “drive” the wax deaper into the link pins & pivots. A 5 minute process to insure better penetration.
Ik gebruik ST Marc verfreiniger, heel goedkoop en werkt altijd. Puur voor de eerste keer op een nieuwe ketting en dan 1 op 1 verdunning om de ketting een nachtje te laten staan. Super schrale ketting !
Ik ken het, heb m’n hele huis ermee schoongemaakt voordat ik ging schilderen. Maar ik zal het eens proberen op een ketting👍🏻
I envy you that say about "cheap" slow cookers to melt the wax. In Brazil slow cookers are so rare to find and they are really expensive. Our solution is either a pan we call "thermowax" (used to melt hair removal wax) or the hot water bath method to prevent wax overheat.
Just use a low setting of the stove and it won’t overheat
I feel lube is a very personal thing as everyone has different bikes, riding styles, and diligence to the process of whatever it is.
I'm using UFO drip wax. I don't want extra faff of pots. I'm sure they do better. I just lube it more often and hot water flush time to time.
I still think that a petrol and wax based lube was the best performing that I had but I don't miss the smell or the chain tattoo. Even to be honest that one which I am referring to is rock n roll red is low maintenance in the effect that the lube flushes the gunk out then you let it dry.
The process of flushes a petrol based with cleaner or flushing with hot water is all the same amount of work so I didn't see any benefit in the process.
I suppose to be very environmentally friendly its better to DIY and use food grade wax and no additives
pros- no chain tattoo con= wax is dirty still it flakes off a bunch of wax, just a different kind of dirty.
con doesn't last in wet. protects less.
I don't use wax on my rain bike
I know this is an competitor to your sponsor, but have you seen Silca's new development? They have made an additive to the wax that changes the factory grease on the chain into a synthetic wax. So, you don't have to degrease your chain before your first wax. You put it in the wax and heat to a certain temperature, then the grease gets converted into wax while your doing your wax.
😵💫😵💫🤓 Whaaat?
Thanks for reminding me why i use chain oil.
😂😂😂 to get all the downsides of it?🤷🏼♂️🤷🏼♂️
@@jasperverkuijl because it works, and I don't have to do wierd rituals to use it
I'm using a mix of dish soap washer and lemon as degreaser.
Zag net je video over het verschil tussen tijdritfiets en wegfiets. Heb zelf ook een canyon aeroad, maar welke aero bars heb je erop gezet? Kan je stuur echt breken door de bars?
Clip on bars voor een normaal stuur. Daarvan breekt je stuur niet. Misschien ben je in de war met een een carbon stuur, dan is het verhaal anders
I think that what you were using that actually worked, is what we call Mineral Spirits here in the U.S. I use that, and then clean the chain with a rag, then I soak it in Denatured Alcohol. Completely clean and degreased with this method.
Also, I've found that taking the chain off, and running boiling water over it to clean it, is a super fast way to get it "bare" to put back into hot wax.
Mineral spirits is “spiritus” in Dutch. So it’s not the same. Nitro thinner is like paint thinner but without a the additives. It’s super strong.
Anyway, many comments that spirits work well so will try it.
Indeed yhe boiling water works in between hot waxing 👍🏻👍🏻
I have used Finnish Rex-chain wax and have pretty much the same observations as you have with the other product.
Petrol works VERY well removing grease. Don't need a lot but at least 3 soaks in 3 different 150ml bottles.
After a few chains, dispose the 1st petrol bottle and the 2nd becomes the 1st and so on...
Final cleaning with degreaser.
Good line up 👌🏻
Guess you never head about hydrogen embrittlement from soaking metals in gasoline? Don't worry, not everyone has.
…how do you safely dispose of petrol?
(ps I use it)
@@markthomasson5077 we have a central collection point for stuff like that (also batteries etc) so I just leave it in a big jar and then drop it off once in a while
Degreasing is easy. It takes several days but each step takes about two minutes of work.. You need some jars. A proper degreaser. I use mineral spirits (in the US). Pobably same stuff as yiur nitro thinner. I soak it overnight. Replace the solvent. Another overnight. Next isopropyl alcohol. A couple of rinses is enough, a few minutes each.. So you are a couple of days into the process. Then it's clean enough for wax to stick. I use immersion waxing. If the chain is stiff once it cools down, you did it right. My waxed chains seem to never wear out. I used to make my own wax but now i recommend the Silca stuff. Its great. I think it lasts about 300 km but maybe longer. Anyway, about then, I just immerse again. I really don't think you need to clean the chain before rewaxing. Don't use hot wax in your kitchen. Too messy. A $35 rice cooker will do the job. The drip wax is kind of a pain to use in my experience. You should let it dry overnight. You are right about drying your chain if it gets wet. By the way, I have a Yoeleo bike too. So far, it's great.
In short, I agree with pretty much everything you say.
Awesome! You got it dialed
Jasper, come to Burma. You will love riding here. Seriously.
Where?