Guitar Ted Lube-off: Update.

I have gotten a few rides in on the bikes equipped with the three different lubes I am testing, so it's time for an update. If you missed the introduction post, check that out first.

The conditions ridden in were mainly snow, ice, and run off from both with alot of road grit, and de-icer thanks to the local street departments and state D.O.T. Here's a brief run down of the results so far.

The Dumonde Tech is running real well. It has shown good tenacity in hanging on the chain. The chain looks moderately clean yet. It hasn't rusted or turned any funky colors. It is just a bit darker from residue than it was previously. To the touch, the chain leaves a slightly dry, wax-like feel with barely any residue. No real sand/ dirt build up to speak of. The jockey wheels have a slight build up of gritty, sand like particles, but no "spooge" or sludge. Dumonde recommends running the lube until the chain becomes noisy, which it hasn't yet.

Up next, we have the Pedros Chanj lube on the Haro Mary. It has been running real well, it is the most "wet" of any of the three lubes so far and doesn't seem to wash off even after a couple of good snowy rides. The chain looks like it did when I applied the lube. To the touch, the chain feels wet/oily and leaves a slight black residue on my finger. It doesn't show any dirt build up so far. The jockey wheels have a slight dark residue on them, not a build up. No sludge or goo here.

Finally, the Pro Link lube that is on the Dos Niner is doing well too. Not as wet as the Pedros, but it's not nearly as dry feeling as the Dumonde Tech either. The chain looks good, just as it did when I applied the lube. This lube didn't require a clean chain to start out with, as it said it would self clean the old lube out. It appears to be doing just that as this chain was the dirtiest to the touch of the three. The label says to reapply a few times to thoroughly clean out the old lube, so I will be re-applying this lube to the Dos Niner's chain soon.

All three lubes are doing quite well in wet, snowy conditions. Shifting on all three bikes is graet. The drivetrains all seem to be working quietly, for the most part. No gritchy grinding sounds, although if I have to give an edge, the Chainj lube seems to be on the quietest drivetrain of all.

More real dirt testing will be done soon. Look for another update to come soon!