by John Cane

Created on: March 02, 2010

Most people who own a bike have a sort of vague idea that they should probably lubricate their bike from time to time, but beyond that the bottle of Tri-flow that their local bike shop sold them is a mystery.  While the actual process of lubricating a bicycle is very simple there are some do's and don'ts that are actually very important.  If you care about all the do's and don'ts, read this whole thing.  If you just want to know what to do and don't care about the details, skip to the last paragraph and follow the simple directions.

First let's start by clarifying our terminology.  The word "lubricate" generally refers to the use of an oil or "chain lube".  Typically grease is treated separately, but it is important to know what you will be lubricating and what you will be greasing.  As a general rule, anything with a bearing will be greased NOT lubricated.  Moving parts that do not use a bearing will typically be oiled.  Below I will give an exhaustive list of parts that should or should not be lubed, but before we get there we need to look at what type of lubricants we are using.

 What do I use to lubricate my bike?

There is a huge variety of products designed for use on bikes,  but in general they fall into three categories: Teflon Based oils, Wax based lubricants, and crazy specialty stuff.

 Teflon based oils like Tri-flow and FinishLine are the go to product for shops and many racers.  They are relatively easy to use and are available in a number of preparations depending on your use.  Thicker oils are typically referred to at "wet". Wet lubes tend to last a little longer especially in mud, but because of viscosity they do tend to collect a little more dirt and grit on your chain.  Thinner "dry" oils give your chain and parts a cleaner look, but don't last as long and are better for dry and clean conditions.

 Wax based lubricants like White Lightning and T9 are used a lot, weekend warriors and home mechanics.  When used properly these work well, but because most people don't use them properly you see a lot of really disgusting black oily chains from people who use wax based lubricants.  If you decide to use a wax based lubricant (which I don't recommend by the way) make sure that you wipe off the excess after each application to avoid wax buildup. 

 Specialty oils-  There are some other styles out there.  Most notable DumondTech which is not even an

• 1
• 2
• 3
• Next Page >>