Why I stopped using WD-40 on bike chains 6 months ago

I used to spray WD-40 on every chain that came through my garage in Denver. Thought it was cleaning and lubing at the same time. Then a regular customer showed me his chain was stretched past 0.75 after only 800 miles because the WD-40 was actually breaking down the grease inside the rollers. Switched to a dedicated dry lube for summer riding and now I check chains at 500 mile intervals. Has anyone else noticed faster chain wear from using the wrong lubricant?

2 comments

2 Comments

angelaellis1mo ago

Did you switch to dry lube only for summer or do you run a wet lube in the spring when Denver gets those random wet snows?

walker.rowan1mo ago

Took me a while to figure out the same thing with my own bike actually. Started paying attention to how I was lubing my chain and realized I was basically stripping all the good stuff out every time I sprayed that can on there. It's like how people use dish soap on their car paint because it's cheap and cleans well but doesn't realize it's stripping the wax off too. We just grab whatever's in the garage and hope it works for everything. For wet conditions I just use a heavier oil based lube now and wipe off the excess, keeps the chain alive way longer.