Guitar Ted Lube-Off Round Two: Update 2

DuMonde Tech after approximately 60 miles

Checking in with a couple of the contenders here in the "Guitar Ted Lube-Off Round Two". Today we are going to see how the DuMonde Tech and Boeshield T-9 are holding up.

DuMonde Tech: After approximately 60 miles the DuMonde Tech has seen dusty roads and a wet, muddy commute where I ran through several water puddles and some gooey mud. The results are what I expected since the same thing was witnessed at the Dirty Kanza 200. This lube seems to shed the dust fairly well, and although you get a little dirty residue when you draw your fingers across the rollers, it is not totally dry, and the chain is silent yet. The cassette is fairly clean and free from gunk so far. The jockey wheels on the rear derailleur are still looking fair.

DuMonde Tech doesn't recommend reapplication until the chain gets noisy, so we will see how long it takes to get to that point. I have been pleased so far with the use of this lube and as I have said at the outset, this was the benchmark lube against which the others chosen have been pitted against.

After approximately 100 miles, the T-9 is looking pretty dusty.

Boeshield T-9: While I haven't been on any wet rides with the T-9, I have racked up a good 100 miles of dry, dusty Iowa gravel and some commutes to work on the lube. The results are not as good as the DuMonde Tech. This lube seems to collect dust, although I have to say that the rollers of the chain look fine. Still, when I rub my fingers over the rollers, I get copious amounts of dry gravel dust to fall out. The chain, surprisingly, is quiet though. The cassette has a fine coating of the gravel dust on it, and the rear derailleur jockey wheels are collecting gunk now.

While it isn't clear on Boeshield's T-9 page when one should re-apply the lube, it does say the following: "T-9 dries to a clean, continuous wax film that performs better than Teflon and lasts up to 200 miles without picking up dust, dirt or mud,"

It is abundantly clear that the lube has picked up copious amounts of dust at half that claimed distance, so T-9 becomes our first contender to be knocked out of this competition. The lube has allowed such an amount of dirt to accumulate on this chain that at this juncture I feel it would be prudent to clean the drive train completely to arrest further wear from the dirt/gravel dust that is stuck to the drive train now. You can actually see where the side plates of the chain have been abraided by the dust, and when I saw the amount of dust I got on my fingers when I rolled the rollers , I found it quite surprising.

To be fair, the Boesheild site seems to indicate to my way of understanding that it works better in wetter conditions, but I can say without reservation that it simply doesn't work very well for gravel road riding.

Next: The T-9 will get replaced by ProLink and the Rock & Roll lubed Black Mountain Cycles rig will get back into the mix.