Well, that experiment ended faster than I thought
I’d been using chain-L to lubricate the chains on both of my bicycles for about a year, and despite it working nicely on 8-speed chains I never really got a reasonable lifespan out of it on 9-speed chains (it claimed 1000 miles of coverage, I was getting less than 500, and this despite doing things like immersing the chains in a pool of chain-L for a week to get the air out and the chain-L in.) So I needed to find a different solution.
One solution that people use is hot wax (dunk the chain into a pool of molten wax and leave it there long enough for the bubbles to work out) which claims the advantage of no liquid oil on the chain == much less crap sticking to the chain and abrading it, the chainrings, and the cassette into oblivion. So, since wax is laughably cheap, I decided to try it; I took the chain off the mlcm, cleaned it, then dunked it into the wax for a while. And then I took it out and rode it for about 300 very quiet miles, and then a dozen miles where the chain was quietly muttering to itself.
So I cleaned it and rewaxed it, then rode it for about 70 miles, then took it out today for another loop of the Hills to the Yeah! permanent. But it drizzled while I was up on the ridge above Sandy, and by the time the rain stopped it had apparently washed most of the wax out of the chain. I discovered this on Bull Run Road when the chain started quietly muttering again, and reinforced this discovery after pulling away from the control at Troutdale to the chorus of 96 enraged little mousies who had decided to ride along with me.
*sigh*
So if I get wax wet, it runs away? Oh, this is a useful attribute for a lubricant in Oregon.
Guess I’ll hunt for something different again.
Comments
Well, the problem with the stainless steel & nickel-plated chains are that they appear to be quite expensive, and I don’t know if I’ll get 3× the wear when I spend 3× as much money to buy them. And it’s not as if squeaking is a bad thing, either – it’s a nice early warning system that tells me that the stupid lubricant has worn/washed out again.
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I’m going to suppose that you’ve got much more knowledge of all the possible lubricants' local reputations and suitability than I do, so I’m going to suggest considering a stainless steel or nickle-plated chain. Still needs oiling, but much much less ability to rust and go rapidly squeaky on you. Also, probably a bit more durable.