Cleaned and oiled the chain

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"Well I can tell you oiling the chain made a big difference and the oil film remains on the chain."

Would you care to elaborate on your test method and means for measurement?

I.e., what is the thickness of the layer of lubrication immediately after application and how thick is the layer after X amount of miles of riding?

How long does the lubricant remain effective and how do you measure it?

What, if any, are the observable benefits from using chain specific lubricants?

Have you actually run one bike with a chain specific lubricant and another without for an extended period of time to see which chain wears out first?

I ran my KLR650 for the first 10K using a variety of chain lubes. The last 10K, nothing but cleaning with WD-40. Chain looks like it's good for another 20K.

My vintage Yamaha RDs get the same. WD-40 cleaning only. Excellent results there also.

If an individual has qualms concerning the health of the chain and applying chain specific lubricant calms his fears, that's one thing. On the other hand, I personally see no mechanical benefit from doing so.
 
I could ask you the same questions about WD-40 which may or may not affect the o-rings and might clean and keep moisture off the chain but is not even a lubricant. But the majority of your questions are answered in any service book's service interval for oiling the chain. I don't really understand what the issue is with anyone using oil or a product like Dupont. It's not like they are that much more expensive maybe even less than WD-40 and in the case of the Dupont lubricant any more difficult to use
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I didn't make the following statement:

"Well I can tell you oiling the chain made a big difference and the oil film remains on the chain."

I did not make the above claims about WD-40.

What I'm saying is that chain specific oil/wax/grease concoctions are no better than using WD-40 from my experience.

And, yes I did a long term comparison between the snake/chain oils and WD-40 and saw no conclusive evidence that the concoctions were any better than WD-40, which by the way is not very expensive at all.
 
So what if I did say that? You've said that WD-40 works as good or better than everything else which is a big statement to make. It's not too hard to tell a difference in the drive friction from riding it. The chain is still visibly oily and oily to the touch after a couple hunderd miles.

Probably some chain lube products aren't any better or as good as WD-40 or heavy oil. I never promoted any chain lube products, only said I used oil like the manufacturers recommend and that I would probably try Dupont's product because it appears to be a good lube and I trust Dupont. You can use WD-40 but I'm not going to. I don't know why that should be such a big issue
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Chain lube keeps the O-rings from drying out, and also cushions the rollers in the valleys of the sprockets. WD/40 is a Water Displacer, not a lubricant. It also gets past the o or x rings and washes the grease away. It is not recommended as a chain lube. Boraticus, you would argue that the world is flat, if someone told you it was round. It's amazing how one person can annoy so many...
 
My point is that chain CLEANING with WD-40 is what it's about. Not chain lubrication. The grease packed within the O-rings take care of that job. Any residual film left on the exterior of the chain is of little or no consequence unless, you enjoy getting your fingers greasy by touching it.

Next time you're inspecting your chain, take a Q-tip and see how much lube you pick up off of one of the rollers after a day of riding.
 
I tend to agree with you about the need for an actual lubricant even on o-ring chains. The manufacturers aren't calling for heavy oil or a chain lubricant for nothing. If all that was really needed was an an o-ring safe cleaner then why would they recommend oiling/lubing too.
 
Originally Posted By: mechanicx
I tend to agree with you about the need for an actual lubricant even on o-ring chains. The manufacturers aren't calling for heavy oil or a chain lubricant for nothing. If all that was really needed was an an o-ring safe cleaner then why would they recommend oiling/lubing too.


Yup, put your bike on the center stand and spin the rear wheel. Spray some good chain lube in the chain and notice how much easier and quieter it spins.

An optimum chain solution is a Scottoiler. Set up right they drip 1 drop per minute of something like chain bar lube on the inside of the chain when the engine is running. At 1 drop per minute you will spend less time cleaning your rear wheel than you would lubing or WD40ing your chain without one. And you never have to clean your chain. When I was enthusiastically riding my 1200cc 4 cyl, I didn't have to adjust my chain between 3k mile tire changes.
 
Thanks for the tip about the Scottoiler. I heard about them but it's always good to get a recommendation. That is a good point, just oiling the chain has a cleaning effect itself on top of a lubricating effect.
 
"Yup, put your bike on the center stand and spin the rear wheel. Spray some good chain lube in the chain and notice how much easier and quieter it spins."

The preponderance of resistance will be at the O/X rings likely caused by grit and from the effects of rubber under pressure on steel. I clean the chain with WD-40, don't use any chain lube and get the same results. Easy, effective, clean and inexpensive.

I've got 20k on my KLR650 chain and the adjusters are very close to where they were when the bike was new. Proper chain adjustment is also very critical. A slightly looser chain will last much longer than a tight chain. Especially on a bike with lots of wheel travel.
 
I'd rather place my faith in the vast majority of chain-drive motorcycle riders, all of the motorcycle manufacturers, and most of the motorcycle chain manufacturers and continue to properly clean and LUBRICATE my chains. It's not really that hard to grasp the concept that metal-on-metal contact will benefit from proper lubrication.
 
Originally Posted By: SWSportsman
I'd rather place my faith in the vast majority of chain-drive motorcycle riders, all of the motorcycle manufacturers, and most of the motorcycle chain manufacturers and continue to properly clean and LUBRICATE my chains. It's not really that hard to grasp the concept that metal-on-metal contact will benefit from proper lubrication.


"metal-on-metal contact will benefit from proper lubrication."

Agreed. However, as with chainsaw chains and bars, there's a constant supply of oil. Why is that? In addition, why is there such a thing as the Scott chain oiler?

I've been through numerous heavy industry mills that use exposed chains in outside applications. They have drip/dip systems in place to keep a constant supply of lubricant on the chains. There must be a reason for that?

Any lubricant applied to metal components of an exposed chain will have a very short period of effectiveness. Likely measured in minutes. So, why bother with expensive chain lubes just to have it flung, worn or washed off minutes after application?

My experience is that regular cleaning with something like WD-40 that carries a light lubricant to condition the O/X rings and proper adjustment of the chain will contribute to chain life more than lubricant concoctions, particularly if they're applied to a poorly adjusted chain.

I've learned that I'm better off spending less time and effort experimenting with chain lubes and putting more time into simply cleaning with WD-40 or similar light oil and adjusting the chain.

Being a KLR owner yourself, I'd venture to say that you've spent some time on the KLR forums. Many of the well respected seasoned KLR riders do exactly what I'm doing and are getting excellent chain life.
 
rings.jpg


This pic from EK Chain shows the three layers of the rollers---pin, bushing, and roller. The o-ring or x-ring seals lube between the pin and bushing, but not the roller. Added lubrication adds life to the chain and sprockets in this area.

EK recommends PJ1 blue label chain lube. As said above, WD-40 is a poor lubricant. If it works for some, fine, their money and their choice. I'll use Schaeffer #227 roller chain lube or DuPont Teflon Multi-Use Lubricant ($5 at Lowes) or PJ1.
 
Originally Posted By: Ken2
...Added lubrication adds life to the chain and sprockets in this area...DuPont Teflon Multi-Use Lubricant...


Bingo! Give the man a prize.

The original chain on my KLR 650, lubricated regularly with the DuPont product, is now at 31,587 miles and I fully expect it to last the life of the bike (or my life...whichever ends first).
 
That's quite a few miles on the KLR. What year is it and did you buy it new?

Bought mine new in '06 and have put 20K on it. It's also got the original chain and it's looking like it will easily double that. I ride a lot of gravel roads as well as paved. If I'm riding lots of gravel, I'll give the chain a blast of WD-40 every 300 miles or so. If mostly pavement, I'll go 500 miles.

Claiming that WD-40 is a poor lubricant might be a bit misleading. I use it primarily as a chain cleaner and O/X ring conditioner. I've been using it exclusively now for four years and have found no difference from the designated chain lubes I tried. Therefore, from my experience, it must be working as well as the chain specific lubes.

Being the simpleton that SWS claims I am, I like to keep things simple. I carry a can of WD-40 with me at all times. It's a wonder fluid in a can and has many more uses than just chain cleaner/lubricant.
 
Mine is an '06 also (the fast RED one!), purchased new. Mileage is a little high because of a 13,000 mile trip from North Carolina to Prudhoe Bay, AK with a big detour along Old Route 66 and the Pacific Coast Highway. Thank God for the Corbin Flat Seat and an Alaska Butt Pad!

BTW, I don't think you are a simpleton...just misinformed and unable or unwilling to seperate biased opinion from fact. I'm convinced you can be a valuable contributor if you clean up your act a little.
 
"BTW, I don't think you are a simpleton...just misinformed and unable or unwilling to seperate biased opinion from fact. I'm convinced you can be a valuable contributor if you clean up your act a little."

Misinformed? Not. Biased? Not. I tell it like it is. Some people have a problem with that. Unfortunately, you happen to be one of them.

Clean up my act? That's rich coming from you. I'm pretty sure you've done more time than me. I bet we've probably shared a cell on the odd occasion, if you follow my drift......
 
I did the WD-40 chain maintenance this morning on the KLR650 and went for a nice ride out in the sticks.

Did the same yesterday on my '74 RD350. All is well but didn't ride in the sticks. I just poked around some paved back roads.
 
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