Silkolene chain lubricant .... hmmmmm

[Mike5100 2,061]

Been using this for a while and have been quite pleased with it.  I spoke to the manufacturer's tech department and they said it works by having the oil carried in a volatile solvent which gets it into every nook and cranny.  when that evaprates off, it leaves a film of non-fling oil.

 

So when my powered hedge trimmer's blades looked a bit rusty, I thought the silkolene chain oil should be just the thing.  But when I came to use it today the hedge trimmer wouldn't run at full speed despite a fully charged Li-ion battery.  When I felt the blades they were of course sticky with the non-fling oil.  Sprayed wd40 on to dissolve the oil and the trimmer ran normally.

My point is how much extra friction is this oil introducing to my bike chain in normal running?

Mike

 

 

[outrunner 4,457]

The main purpose of chain lube is to lubricate the rollers as they pass over the sprocket teeth, and to prevent the side plates wearing the O rings which seal in the grease in the chain rollers. The extra friction you are asking about will be negligible at worst, and probably non existent. Your hedge trimmer, on the other hand, has blades that slide over each other so the sticky stuff will make them err, sticky, so something like 3 in one oil would be a better bet IMHO.

 

 

Andy.

[dave 972]

My central heating boilers flue fan that sits in a hot place above the boiler is kept quiet by one spray of silkolene chain oil every two years, nothing works so well.

[MikeBike 5,007]

I would say if it's sticky it would be adding friction whether it's between blades of a trimmer or between parts of  achain.

But what about testing it?

Suggestion:

Put the bike on the centre stand and put a post it note somewhere on the wheel as a marker. Give the rear wheel a good spin with the hand a few times trying to be consistent and note how much it revolves.

Give a good spray of WD40 all over, work in a while and repeat test a few times and see if it's similar.

 

Not very scientific but if it's significant you might notice the difference.

 

What do you think? Valid test/worth testing?

[Mike5100 2,061]

Yes that would be an interesting test to do if I do decide to remove the silkolene. At first i thought Andy had a good point but if you add up all the surface areas of where one link plate rotates against the next it must be substantial. But on the other hand the stickyness between the links probably breaks down quite quickly whereas the non fling that isnt rubbed off on the side plates will afford decent protection against unsightly rust

Mike

[CFB 4,602]

Don't forget the heat factor.

The viscosity of oil is higher when cold.

That's why its always better to lube the chain after a ride, so the lube can get into where it's needed more easily.