A customer's comment about my chain lube made me rethink my whole routine

I was lubing a guy's bike in Portland last week and he asked why I use so much wet lube. He said he had been running his chain dry and wiping it every 50 miles, and his drivetrain lasted twice as long. At first I thought he was nuts, but I tried his method on my own commuter for a few weeks, and sure enough, less gunk build-up and the shifting feels crisper. Has anyone else switched to a minimal lube approach, or am I just overthinking this? My shop's been pushing the heavy stuff for years, but I'm starting to question it.

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1 Comment

wendy_bell831mo ago

Isn't this just trading one routine for another, though? I mean, wiping every 50 miles sounds like a lot of effort if you're doing it for years. Maybe it's just me, but I'd rather slap on some wet lube and not think about it until something actually sounds dry or gritty.