Wax vs Oil: Which is the BETTER Chain Lube?

Wax vs Oil: Which is the BETTER chain lube?

Josh is here to answer one of the more asked questions about SILCA recently. If hot melt chain waxing is the way of the future for drivetrain lubrication then why does SILCA make Synergetic and Synerg-E oil based lubricants?

▬▬▬▬ Video Overview ▬▬▬▬
Josh covers why wax is the future but how oil fits in the picture of performance. Regular tip to needle tip bottle cap for synergetic and how that impacted ZFC testing. World Tour Team Visma-Lease a Bike formulas are revealed and what is the lube for OSDW. Luke Hall, SILCA athlete and winner of the Long Journey (330 miles) at the recent Gravel Worlds in Nebraska, USA, is a waxer but played the smart option. Zero Friction Cycling insights are giving for a number of the charts. And how Synergetic helped the development of SpeedChip.

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▬▬▬▬ ABOUT SILCA ▬▬▬▬
Founded in Milan in 1917 and now based in Indianapolis, SILCA is renowned for its passion for cycling. Led by cycling industry leader, Josh Poertner, the brand has expanded from the iconic SuperPista pump to a full range of high-end cycling tools and gear, collaborating with UCI World Tour teams to enhance cycling performance. SILCA combines tradition with innovation, inspiring cyclists to enjoy both riding and maintenance.

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Created by SILCA
© SILCA

#SILCA #cycling #marginalgains #synergetic #synerg-E #SecretChainBlendHot Wax #UltimateChainWaxingSystem #roadbike #gravelbike #mtnbike #crossbike

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Do you have any questions, tips, or ideas about chain/drivetrain lubrication? Let us know in the comments section below!

[MrGoodaches]

Wife and I rode Canada to Mexico on GDMBR in 2018. We had immersion waxed chains, I didn’t do any adds, rinsed water a few times, put on new immersion waxed chains in CO. I’ve noticed my wax jobs/ chains lasting longer in recent years because I’ve gotten more thorough at cleaning factory petroleum goo before immersion waxing.
I really struggle to understand how anyone still argues that waxing is too time consuming. Whatever extra time I spend up front getting chain prepped and immersed I get back many times over in fast, simple cleaning of bike. I do not own a cassette brush - I never have any crud on my drivetrain that doesn’t blow off with a common garden hose.

[zerofrictioncycling]

Hey josh great vid - just quick clarifications for all regarding the Single Application Longevity testing and data as that data table is a bit finnicky re understanding.

First know that in the dry road test - without any contamination addition to accelerate wear / simulate other conditions - kms on a machine are not like kms pedaled. Machine kms are very smooth unlike the very large peak power phases of pedaling, and so km's attained on machine are much higher than would be expected in real world cycling.

So the first column is the raw data of how many kms to the test allowance which for S.A.L is 20% of a chains wear allowance mark of 0.5% (so 0.1% elongation wear).

This figure is then divided by 3 in an attempt to relate the kms to something remotely realistic / possible in real world riding.

However - note that in general you do not want to ride a lubrication application to the point where by the time you re lube, you have used 20% of your chains wear allowance. Ideally you want to re lube at a point where your chain wear for that application is as close to 0% wear as possible.

Hence in general the key figure / column to use is the adjusted kms to "jump point". The jump point is where we see there is a clear jump in the wear measure on the wear check intervals, as this is really what denotes the lubricant treatment as being effectively done.

Ie - a wear check might show 1% wear of the 20% wear allowance. next check another 1%. Next check another 1%, and this continues for awhile, but then on a check measure we see say 6%. And the next check is also 6%. So the point at which the wear measures went from 1% to 6% would denote when the lubricant treatment started to give out - and that is the most accurate point to call the treatment longevity - The jump point. And again to relate to something real world - ish - the jump point km's divided by 3 - so the most far right column - that is the column to use, not the far left column which is the raw kms to the 0.1% chain elongation wear allowance.

**Wear per interval and jump point - this behavior can vary a bit by lubricant type.

Stereotypically with many wax lubricants and immersive waxes - there is a very clear jump point. There will typically be zero or close to zero wear per interval check, until suddenly when the wax layer is effectively done - a large jump in a check wear measure, and then it is not long until test wear allowance reached.

However for some of the top wet lubricants - they may not display a jump point until reach wear allowance - just continue to show very small amount of wear per interval until the wear allowance is reached.

So in the latter there will be no difference between total and related km figures vs jump point figures. Whereas for many waxes there is a clear difference between jump point figures (which is the true mark of when the treatment gave out) vs total km's to wear mark.

Further detail explaining the S.A.L testing is on the top of the spreadsheet for the S.A.L test data.

Thanks!

[stevengibbs]

I went from Candada to Florida on a bicycle on a waxed chain, through numerous thunderstorms that lasted 8 hours+ of cycling in squalls of water. It was about 1500 miles. Every night I just dried it and applied the drip wax ( i did a melt before i left). Despite literal days of riding in the rain and off road dirt and gunk, my chain didn't even wear to the first wear indicator on the chain checker.

[cxbkpmf]

Love Josh's videos and also his appearances on other channels. Always information rich. Always very educational. I'm a big Silca fan and use several products. Also have their Matone seat bag and Gravelero tire pump. Very happy with all of it.

[akcap]

Just quick FYI: at 4:58, you have the wrong screengrab of the Zero Friction data.

Love your products!

[awhite]

Started using synergetic on my steel road bike, which panniers and mudguards, which I commute to work in on daily in London. I ride all weathers, don’t care about fractional watt savings I’d get from waxing and want to quickly clean and apply the lube. synergetic has proved to be an excellent lube, and isn’t washed off when I’m caught in downpours. It lasts so long.

[larryt.atcycleitalia]

"Adam's talked quite extensively" might be the understatement of the year!
Thanks for this, it's refreshing NOT to see another "Waxing is best! If you're not waxing, you're a fool" type diatribe. It's clear all these products are trade-offs of one sort or another and what works great for one might be so great for another.

[gavinequinn]

I started waxing the "summer" bike a while ago and love it, however was hesitant to wax the winter / bikepacking bike. Went with the Synergetic for the winter bike, only been on a couple of rides so far but happy out so far.

[rayFrio]

In the last 40 yrs of riding (now 64) I've found the single biggest contributor to chain longevity has been my massive reduction in max power output. From over 1800w/3 secs to about 800.😁

[JDAvant]

Great video once again. Josh, after using Synergetic on a waxed chain, what is the cleaning process required for that chain to go back to immersion wax?

[jesseschenendorf]

If you add one of your wet lubes on top of a waxed chain how do you prepare it to back to wax alone?

[Rampampulin]

One question: I do a lot of bikepacking (1000 km+) where I initially do wax my chain but end up having to reinstall a second chain or go to oil because bad weather killed wax early. I dont have the time or the possibility to apply drip wax in wet conditions because it takes too long to dry out. I guess you could add Silca wet lube in this kind of scenario. But do I need to completly degrease drivetrain and chain after the trip in order to reapply a waxed chain? Or is it possible to clean the chain and just use a strip chip instead? In another video you said, that Silca wet lube has a different type of Oil than traditional factory installed oil and a strip chip could work with it.

[donschloth]

Josh, I’ve started waxing with your products. I added the endurance chip to my first melting. My question is, if I wanted to strip a chain do I add the strip chip to the current wax/endurance chip mixture? Or do I need to clean the heat cup of all the current wax mix and start new with strip chip? This question also goes for adding the speed chip, what is the protocol for mixing, matching wax, chips, strip chip? Thanks,
Don

[hudsonlucier]

Hi Josh. I am wondering what the suggestions would be for a shorter race off road so a XCO or cross race in varied conditions.

[karmenwoelber]

Very helpful video to help me understand- thanks!

[pgreenx]

I use Synergetic because I ride long distance bike tours and wax is a pain and doesn't work in the rain. I love synergetic. On the GDMBR last yr I only lubed my chain once a week (every 300 miles) and I rode in dirty/dusty terrain for two months.

[darojos]

I use liquid wax when it's going to be dry but go to Synergee for 9 months of the year. Riding in Washington state, I end up hosing off my bike after 70% of my rides. The the oil/anti corrosion is super important. Even on a SRAM XO drivetrain, I get surface rust if I use any sort of wax based lube. The I use synergee specifically for corrosion resistance.

[jansucha]

Two quick questions:
1) Best chain product for Leadville, assuming single application?
2) Best chain product dry dusty San Diego MTB to reduce maintenance effort
I use Secret chain wax with endurance chip for road

[j.b.]

I bought a bag of the Silca Secret Chain wax and the Absolute Black 2.0 Graphene wax. I tried two of Muc-Offs ceramic dry lubes and couldn't believe how crap they were. Total dirt/sand magnets and waste of money.

So far I've only used the AB Graphene wax and will NOT be switching back to any wet lube any time soon.

Interesting notes on the Silca Secret to the AB Graphene. I'm going to dip my other chain in the Silca and try them back to back after fully degreasing.

[jasonbarksdale]

Been using drip wax for bit and very impressed. Wrench for 30 years now I have tried many chain wear gauges. What is your go to?