NICA MTB season here in the SF Bay Area is winter/spring. Last season, my chains were a muddy, oily mess and a pain to maintain. I don’t seem to read much about chain waxing for MTB.
question: is waxing applicable for muddy/winter MTB? If so, are there challenges or changes in approach that I should be aware of?
On my MTB, I hot wax the new chain (with silca strip chips), then use squirt. It’s ok, bit sometimes begins to sound rough on longer wet muddy rides (3.5 hours plus I guess). I hose down after a ride, dry and re-apply.
Something’s I’d like some input on:
Are there drip waxes better than squirt for wet, muddy MTB?
I sometimes reapply squirt on a long wet ride. It definitely makes it sound better, but is this a waste of time since it can’t set?
What are your winter temps? Winter here in the UK is generally above 0 deg C (at least where I am in the Midlands during the middle of the day when I actually get the bike out), so waxing works fine for me over winter. I believe its much less effective in freezing temps but I don’t have any experience of that.
Here’s the thing - a wet lube is likely going to last longer on the chain through winter weather. However my priority isn’t to reduce maintenance but to avoid that oily, greasy mess that any kind of chain oil will result in.
So wax through winter, despite knowing I will have to re-wax more frequently. Thats a choice i’m happy with.
A couple of things I find helpful (1) the SIlca endurance chip - makes the wax last longer and more resistant to premature losses of effectiveness after a wet ride, and (2) topping up with drip wax (I use Silca but others are avilable) after a wet ride.
Incorporating the 2 things above, I do not actually find I am re-waxing in winter much sooner than I am in summer.
I ride mud, single track, gravel and bad country lanes year round.
Anybody tried the Rex wax/oil winter mix? New Shop | Shop Quality Waxes Today — Rex Wax - USA
Intrigued by it but haven’t gotten any in yet.
no, it doesn’t freeze in San Francisco, and I wouldn’t survive if it did!
Thanks for the replies, I’ll give it a go!
I have been using Silca hot melt with some Synergetic mixed in for full on winter, but that doesn’t sound like what you are after.
In the wet and mud, I use straight up hot melt wax, occasionally topping up with Silca or Ceramic Speed drip wax. I usually use 2 chains per bike so I can just swap out a chain for a fresh waxed one, and then I have a day or two to re-wax the one off the bike
I don’t MTB but I do ride a gravel bike through all conditions, including stream crossings on rough dirt roads, in Beechworth where it regularly gets below oC in winter. I have not noticed any problems with my chain wax in these conditions. It’s now almost summer and I haven’t re-waxed since the end of vintage in late autumn.
Then again when it’s that cold and wet I’m probably up at Falls on skinny skis, possibly on Rex wax (though I use more Swix than Rex).
Is that a DIY combination of oil in your wax pot (I think I heard Josh P. from Silca talking about something similar), or do Rex sell a pre-packaged blend? I can’t see a wax/oil blend on their website.
I used MSW hot wax for about 6 years of ‘cross racing in MN. Conditions ranged from hot and dry to six inches of fresh snow with PB mud underneath. The wax always lasted, but I never raced more than 75 minutes, so probably not as long as a MTB race.
I knew I would need to plan for the extra clean-up and re-waxing the chain each time. It was well worth it, especially for races with sand pits.
Currently ride two to three hours in rainy conditions during winter in PDX and the wax holds up to that while riding. Needs some drip wax once it dries, though
It’s here: Arctic-Chain Lube - Rex
Arctic is more like “wax in your oil pot”kind of lubricant vs. a “oil in your wax pot” type.
It provides better rust protection than wax, but stays cleaner than traditional wet lubes.
Hey Doug
At what point are you adding Synergetic to the process?
Pretty much when things get consistently below freezing on my typical rides. Down to about -5ºC (40ºF) regular wax works fine, but it starts to get flakey below that. The coldest I have ridden with the Synergetic in my wax is -25ºC (-10ºF)) and it was fine. In consistent snow and cold, there is no dirt to get on the chain, so straight up synergetic is just fine, but the wax is way better when there’s a warm enough day to make some mud
Got it,
I’ve been waxing for a few years including commuting (mostly year round) in Chicago and all that tracks. I guess I was wondering if you simply mixed the Synergetic into the wax pot or are you waxing a synergetic lubed chain?
I put about a quarter bottle into a half bag of wax, as suggested by Josh Portner on one of the podcasts. I used it on my chains until things thawed out in late march and then I switched to summer wax. I saved the winter (it just becomes softer wax, no liquid) wax to switch back in December
Tried some on my commuter last winter and after a few applications decided to hell with it and reverted to wet lube. Even if the ‘wet lube is just hiding the chain wear’ it was just too much of a pain in the butt to keep applying given my lack of a warm shop.