Home made hot and wet waxing with common paraffin wax with 10\1 ratio 1.6 micron (minimum) PTFE powder additive. Heaps cheaper than severely marked-up offerings by any manufacturer, and far more effective and efficient. Next to zero accumilation of dirt, longer lasting chains and cogs, smoother changing.
The superB TB-3323 Trident 2 in 1 master link pliers are in my opinion the best on the market, faster and easier to use than Park's or KMC. Got mine from Amazon. I hot wax my chains often so they were worth getting.
@@vitalbikechains Just seen Shimano TL-CN10 QUICK-LINK tool WP-Y13022000 is a similar design but with a wire latch to hold handles together when not in use.
My pliers are the Birzman BM15-ST-LR01-K pliers. They are similar to the ones at 2:02 but have smooth but grippy handles and are 6.5 inches long. Stubborn links can be closed by placing them in the top chain span and pushing on the pedals whilst holding the front brake. It sometimes helps to squeeze the link side plates together between your fingers whilst doing this, but you may pinch your skin as the pins slide in the slots ! Use of the wipperman connex or sram powerlinks make chain pliers obsolete, but you can pay a high cash price for the convenience. I use master link pliers with new chains that come with standard quick links , at least until they become too loose and wear out.
I often wonder if the Shimano SIL-TEC treatment adds any value if chain waxing ? The Dura-ace chains are supposed to be fast , so maybe ? In terms of longevity , the chromizing treatment ( surface hardening ) , especially on the rollers and pins is likely more important. I like the ' Silca Waxed ' stickers at 5:05 🙂
I agree with questioning the benefits on some treatments when it comes to waxed chains. KMC and SRAM brands included. Stickers, that was version 1.1 and the improved 2.0 sticker now comes on the chains.
An interesting experiment would be to ride all 3 chain freshly waxed chains for say 5 miles each under power, then take them apart and compare ! On the inside they should all look similar. Personally I've immersive waxed chains at about 60°C for a couple of years then for a couple more years at around 90°C and can't tell the difference after the initial break in period ( when the wax is being squeezed out of the chain internals ). I don't know who started the chain in cold water trend but it was a classic Ozcycle technique. I departed from his wisdom years ago after I realised the inconsistency of his advice. Some of his drip lubes with a gel like quality would have definite penetration issues ( struggle to get inside the chain to the pins where it matters ).
I’m right with you on this. I’ve tested out some of Oz’s ideas, and they don’t always pan out for me. I am designing a second chain machine that will run chains with a slight load, then I could have something with more control than my riding.
What's the mass of wax in the pot and the power in watts heating the wax, or is it a model that puts variable power in via a PID controller ? Ideally you would put the chain on top of the solid wax and turn on the pot so the chain heats up with the wax. Stirring the wax will also speed up heating the chain and it evens out any friction modifiers as they start to sink to the bottom of the pot after a few minutes ( depends what they are ). Will that pot go up to the 125°C ( 257°F ) needed for StripChip ? I came to your channel via your ZFC comment on chain checkers !
Thanks for visiting my channel! Regarding the pot questions, the amount of wax varies due to each chain pulling out 8-10 grams of wax. So the day might start at 300 grams, then end up being 250 grams at the end of the day. I've never weighed it, but I think these numbers are in the ball park. I do not know how the power is controlled in this unit. As for starting up the pot with the chain on top, this would work for the first chain of the day, but not really practical for each chain waxed in a day. I would actually like a stir pot / wax pot combo but I think I'd have to make that. Possibly a hot plate/stir plate exist, but I just swish a few times. The pot says it goes to 257F, but I haven't tried that much heat. Keep in mind, adding a chip and then a chain will temporarily drop that temp. If you're thinking about getting this pot, let me know and I'll try it out to see if the actual wax gets that hot. I think this pot was $35 US.
@@vitalbikechains I think your pot model is FHC-E2052 which is rated at 100w , 500ml capacity , 30-125℃, but that pot seems to have variable power usage so it's difficult to compare your wax warm up times to any other pot. A 15 minute temperature recovery time is probably reasonable for most people because they will likely have a bigger pot ? ( will shorten the time from a larger hot bowl mass ) . 8-10g of wax per chain seems a lot. I would expect about half of that , unless your chains have hollow pins and you are pulling them out of the wax at almost the skinning over temperature ? . I tried to send you a ZFC link but youtube is deleting comments with links from me today ( a massive issue you may be aware of ? ). I was just curious from a versatility perspective if your pot would get to the stripchip temperature. I am thinking of going to the 2 pot system so I might consider one for that. Thanks for offering 🙂 Hot plates with stirrers tend to be expensive compared to small slow cookers ( not Silca's ! ) . Any temperature sensors in the pot would likely read more realistic values, depending on where they actually are.
@@vitalbikechains Regarding your 8-10g wax per chain and temperature please see ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ZEfi2HOfqpM.html . I questioned Silca's advice as it creates a barrier for people and is unnecessary .
The 8-10 grams is not what actually gets on the chain. It’s probably half that. If I do a 138 link chain, it will pull 10 grams but a lot of that is waste due to a clip that holds a master link or ID tag as well as some drips that don’t make it back into the pot. Then after shedding you knock off a whole bunch more. I do have a video planned for actual wax weight on a chain.
Adam does a great job getting to the point on the temp thing. From my perspective, I have to do everything I can to have at least as good a product as ZFC and Silca. Maybe I waste some virgin wax in the process, and it does take longer to get the wax to my optimal temp, but it’s worth it to me. And I also use the shed wax for pot#1 on re-service chains, so it’s not really wasted.
Absolutely. I looked at doing a DYI wax years ago, but after you buy all the stuff, it made sense to leave the wax blending to experts like Silca, molten etc. Cost per chain with a bag of Silca is like 40 to 90 cents, depending on a lot of factors.
What about degreasing and final cleaning with isopropyl alcohol ? Adam Kerin from Zero Friction Cycling has mentioned this when the chain is very dirty .
I have seen people have luck with boiling hot water rinses. I feel like I’m just driving grit from the outside to the inside of the chain when I’ve tried this. Maybe I just need a different technique. I do an alcohol cleaning as regular maintenance with the chain on the bike. But not a bath. If I’m cleaning it that much, it’s just going be a full strip down. Remember, pot 1 is sacrificial wax.
@@vitalbikechains You rinse the chain in degreaser two or three times initially until the degreaser is clear first . The isopropyl is the final rinse .
Correct. But that’s for new chains. And sram chains can be more like 4 degreasing baths. If you only do a few chains a year, the stripper products by Silca and CeramicSpeed make that one step. If you do hundreds of chains a year, those strippers don’t make financial sense.
@draugmithrin Might be an idea for you to put a comment on Bills video ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-0oVsgPf_cvM.html about your superB TB-3323 Trident 2 in 1 chain link pliers ? I had a look at them and they don't look expensive.
Great question. For a degreaser I use Mineral Spirits. 3 baths, first in just a jar, then two cycles in ultrasonic. I prep a lot of chains, so this makes sense for me. And I can recycle the mineral spirits. But you can buy specific degreasers from Silca or Ceramic speed.
@@pauly51 It's not recommended. I think it actually says that on the back of the bottle. But, if you do add on top of the grease, just wipe off as much as the excess lube as possible. And let it dry overnight if possible. After you ride, wipe the chain off real good. I image you'll have a mucoff/grease mixture. keep me posted.
not EVERYBODY knows what PVD means, some of us hoped places like this would help explain, since this is a video "explaining" the Sram 12 speed options...
I was joking around, I didn’t know what it was. So I googled it- it’s Physical Vapor Deposition. Which really doesn’t mean anything to me, but apparently it’s some type of coating for metal surfaces to add a layer of protection.
😂😂😂😂 You’re not the guy 😂😂😂😂😂😂 He’s not the guy 😂😂😂😂😂😂 Who knows?! 😂😂😂😂😂😂 Nobody knows 😂😂😂😂😂😂 They know 😂😂😂😂😂😂 What’s his real bikes 🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉 What are you really thinking?! ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤ Kick stand?! 🎉🎉🎉🎉 …you will die 😂😂😂😂😂🙈🙈🙈🙈 Wearing another man’s bra 🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉🍉
I absolutely love it! I'm going to share it everywhere. Laugh loudly, laugh often, and most importantly, laugh at yourself! Bonus points for the Cutters shirt. I have that as a cycling jersey kit. (which I have outgrew)
I would say Yes. Shimano, SRAM, KMC and others make a different master link for the different speed chains. SRAM even has two different master links for 12 speed depending if you have an eagle or flattop.
I think that’s a valid point. Pretty sure this was a S-works Diverge STR which does have some suspension in the headset. I saw him even wreck once…I was sure he would have folded a wheel or something. But nope, the bike was fine.
i'd be worried about derailleur getting mangled or the brake lever snapping. some of those shifter levers cost more than a used dirt jump bike. you need a "tossable" bike for this
Halflinks stretch crazy fast - removed 4 half links within 3 months - thats 2" of stretch!!! Totally wrecked my cogs and chainrings - tried a few brands - ALL did the same.
@@unkepthurdle3233 Or literally inserting the weak link... ;-P I get the reason - but not going down that rabbit hole again. I've used esp. reg KMC Z chains and yet to notice any stretch. I'd rather fiddle with cog teeth for chain length than use a HL chain.
Your crazy for hitting this on a 20"! My buddy and I were just talking about we've only met 1 person on a single speed off Gwazi, He was cleaning all the features on moonscape (putting us to shame), but on a hardtail 29".
never rode bmx. just got a fixer fat bike. i run a bullit cargo bike now so my dog axel is always with me. gonna put a sidecar on the fatbike.@@vitalbikechains
After surfing around for reviews I'm finding a lot of high end testing saying Muc off is some of the worst lube around and to stay far away from it. I've been using the MucOff dry lube for a couple months and it seems to attract a lot of dark grime. I guess Muc Off offers big margins to LBS shops to sell their products so that's why we see it around so much.
Think it was previously dunked in hot melt. Using both is a good option. Not sure how clean the chain was initially though based on the chainring close up near the end
