bike cleaning & appearance

[cb360]

Thanks guys - I figure smething is better than nothing - I will look into the corrosionx and that british stuff as well - in the meantime i don't think the wd40 is hurting anything - didn't put any on the chain.

[NCRonB]

I've read an enormous amount of information on the WD40 / chain issue. There are a number of people that use only WD40 on their O-ring chains with no problems and no abnormal wear. Then there are others that say that's a bad, bad idea. I've read that the WD40 company has "motorcycle chains" on their list of uses, though that alone is no reason to use it.

One thing that I have seen over and over is that WD40 is a good chain cleaner (spray on, brush clean, wipe off) and that a followup with something like Bel-Ray Chain Lube makes a good combination. That's what I do. I've never seen any evidence beyond the "it seems like it would based on its chemical makeup" to show it would damage an O-ring chain. (But that doesn't mean it won't.)

WD40 does have a small amount of lubricating properties, and apparently that's enough to satisfy some O-ring chain owners and their chains.

"And that's all I have to say about that." -- Forrest Gump

[flynrider]

I've read an enormous amount of information on the WD40 / chain issue. There are a number of people that use only WD40 on their O-ring chains with no problems and no abnormal wear. Then there are others that say that's a bad, bad idea. I've read that the WD40 company has "motorcycle chains" on their list of uses, though that alone is no reason to use it.

One thing that I have seen over and over is that WD40 is a good chain cleaner (spray on, brush clean, wipe off) and that a followup with something like Bel-Ray Chain Lube makes a good combination. That's what I do. I've never seen any evidence beyond the "it seems like it would based on its chemical makeup" to show it would damage an O-ring chain. (But that doesn't mean it won't.)

WD40 does have a small amount of lubricating properties, and apparently that's enough to satisfy some O-ring chain owners and their chains.

"And that's all I have to say about that." -- Forrest Gump

WD40 doesn't make for a very good chain lube. The reason is that it's primarily a solvent, not a lubricant. That's why it's great for cleaning chains. I wouldn't hesitate to use it for cleaning up a dirty chain. For non-O-ring chains, there are not enough lubricating properties to recommend it as a chain lube (unless your soaking your chain in it every 100 miles). For O-ring chains that are internally lubricated, I'd be concerned about leaving a solvent on the O-ring material all the time. There are much better lubricants for chains (both plain and O-ring/X-ring), so why bother?

On my O-ring chains I use a garden variety silicone spray lube. It keeps the rollers running smoothly over the sprockets, it's cheap, it's clean, it doesn't fly off, and best of all, since it isn't a petroluem based lubricant, it does not attract dirt.

[BuzZz]

WD-40 is about 70% kerosene, which is nothing more than slightly more refined diesel fuel(which is itself a waste product of refining gasoline, they should be giving the stuff away, not selling it, but that's another rant).... but both products are actually oil. Not great lubricating oil, but still oil. As for drying out the 'O' rings...... Bull. 'O' rings are not made of rubber, they are made of Viton, Nitron or other more exotic material, all of which are chemically impervious to most any chemical you will be able to buy, including acids.

On a streetbike, use a good chainlube. On a dirtbike, WD is great. It cleans the crud off the chain(chain-crud is the biggest killer of offroad chains), and leaves a light coating of lubrication that doesn't collect dust and dirt as much as real lube. And you should be cleaning/lubing a dirtbike chain every ride.

On a streetbike.... use a good lube.
On a dirtbike..... use anything, just use it alot.