I got a cheap stainless steel dog food bowl to use for dunking chains in boiling water. It is a completely therapeutic experience! Nothing better than pulling a brilliantly shining chain out of the drink and ready for a new wax application. The entire Silca waxing set up is insanely awesome. The Strip Chips are a total game changer. They make a very easy project completely mindless.
The rewaxing process involves unlink/relink of the quick links and I'm not sure if I have to swap a new link every few weeks between the rewaxing. I'm about to have my first rewaxing session and just realized that the investment into quicklinks would be stupid high . How would you do this? THX
@@黄瓜-d6hsome quick links are reuseable. Also, you shouldn't need to rewax a lot as long as the chains do not get wet. If it gets wet during your ride. Make sure to dry the chain with a cloth as soon as you get home to prevent rusting and if available put a little drip wax.
Thanks Josh! I don’t really get the instruction where you state: set it to 125 and then watch the display until it hits 75. My experience is that the pot will hit 75 pretty quick after setting it to 125, the wax will definitely not be melted at that point.
@@derfx89 Sortof - all the various equations are for K. In particular to cycling, the ideal gas law. PV=NRT. If you used C, that would imply a negative pressure in your tires and time you head out below freezing.
I just used the Silca chain waxing unit for the first time. Wow, really easy. One thing I am very impressed with is how uniformly waxed the chain is without big clumps of wax clinging to the chain, which I see with the stovetop method or with the drip wax. This chain is very smoothly waxed all over. Looks professional!
Question about a rust: If I ride in the rain and the wax comes off ... and I don't get a chance to deal with the chain right away, I get some brown rust spots on the chain. How should I clean the chain to get it ready for the next waxing?
A tip is that after you have ridden you should wipe it with a microfiber towel to get it dry. It’s fine that the chain gets wet but it’s when you let it sit and dry without protection that it starts to rust (I think).
Wax isn’t water soluble. The only reason wet riding could remove wax is excessive dirt and sand sticking to the wet chain. My chain always comes out with a thin layer of wax all over, and I’ve not seen any rust formation at all despite living in a fairly wet climate. Are you leaving the chain in the wax long enough for temperature to equalize?
When this happened to me, I went with a boiling water bath, cleaned each link individually with a spare toothbrush, dried, dipped in wax at 75 for 30 seconds, let it cool, put it back on the bike, then vowed to always wipe the chain immediately after a wet ride going forward. So far so good!
Thanks useful advice. Had noticed my wax has recently started bonding better and wearing (shifting) for a lot longer. This appears to be when I started adding a few mls of chain stripper to each boiling water cleaning. I've also increased the wax melt temperature to 120C. Nb I ride in dusty gravel conditions, already done more than 4000km on each of the current sram chains that were carefully cleaned to remove factory grease.
@@jaredmickel5636 So I'm thinking about getting into immersive waxing after using drip wax. I'm thinking about getting another chain to run the two chain method. Would you guys recommend using chain stripper to be able to clean my current chain and a new chain to dip it into the wax without strip chip or use strip chip and just use boiling water to reset my first chain and just immersive wax both chains? Thanks guys
I’ve been hot waxing for 3 years now. I use molten speed wax. Use an antenna magnet when the wax is hot. You’d be amazed how much metal sticks to the magnet over time. I carry this process out periodically. It works !!
Being new to your wax system and wax chain in general, how can you tell it's time to re wax? Im going by audible cues, but it's still hard to tell. I rode for about 100 miles on the road, over a few days , it sounded like it was getting louder, so I wanted to try the super secret drip mid life application, I did that properly, rode 20 miles and its right back to sounding like it needs to be re waxed. It's just hard to tell. I wonder if there is a weight component weigh a newly waxed chain after 20 miles , then weigh at 100 or 120 miles ? it would obviously only be a few grams if any. Im very familiar to my old lube and how it gets when its time, but the wax is hard to tell.
Cues are purely audible.. it will start to get a bit louder like 'tick-tick' and will then get a bit louder. For most road riding this is 250-300km for hot melt. At that point you can re-hot wax or add SuperSecret Drip, remember that SS Drip needs 8-12 hours to fully cure, so we recommend just adding it after you ride so it's ready for the next day. Both waxes experience a phenomenon known as Layering Up which is that it takes 2-3 initial applications and riding cycles for the WS2 additives to fully embed in the metal of the chain which is where the big benefits really come. You can read about layering up here: ua-cam.com/video/LBcowq02pXw/v-deo.htmlsi=T12Lw2lZalpiNu-S Also, was doesn't hide noise like other lubes, so it can be working quite well but sounding worse than a wet lube as the wet lube will hide breakdown much, much better. The ZFC data tell us a lot about this and you can see that data here: ua-cam.com/video/Xu_Q0cqoKeY/v-deo.htmlsi=f-iSejaR7LHCDf06
The black DLC coating from KMC is problematic for wax and results in very short lifespan of the wax (and other lubricants as well). The chrome and TiN (gold) coatings from them seem to do fine with wax, though you are likely to find better results with a DuraAce 11 or 12 speed chain in terms of both friction and wax longevity per application.
Josh, I used Chain Stripper on two new chains, amazing! 🙏Thanks for the suggestion to recycle used liquid. Was able to recycle although my coffee filters were a pain. What brand of coffee filter do you use?
If you could choose between waxing a new chain with either a stripchip or with the chain stripper, what would you do? I have both and don't know which method to use. (Or maybe both in some partial form is even better?)
what about carrying/preparing a spare pre-waxed chain to replace in middle of race or event? that’s what i did on my bike packing trip, in which i topped up with drip wax and cleaned with boiling water and at mid-point i replaced the chain with a freshly hot melt waxed chain. i’m not sure if that is within the race regulation but if it is, for a flat race as unbound, carrying extra 200 grams for a perfect chain throughout? maybe a trade off worth considering.
Your timing is awesome...my buddies and I were just coming up with a list of questions and I think you answered most of them...Thanks Josh! One thing I did in aiding the rewarming of a wax puck in the wax hot tub was to cover it with a micro fiber cloth while I prepare the rest of the drive train. My garage was at 7C yesterday being in the Seattle region.
I appreciate the content and product. I am primarily a mountain bike xco racer and use this all the time. However, I live in Colorado where it can be extremely dusty. So much so that the drive train can start to be so loud that it is nearly unbearable. I understand the idea that it is still better protected but I have three questions: 1) when done with my ride, is it ok to just wipe it off, then apply Super Secret? Right now I am doing this after almost every ride. 2) when should i clean with billing water and rewax in this situation? 3) would it be a better idea to just use Synergetic or Synerg-E when training then switch to a waxed chain for race time?
I just re-waxed my chain over the weekend. Used chain stripper to clean it, and immersed it in denatured alcohol to force out the water. Heated up my Silca wax application pot to 75C and followed the instructions to re-wax (10 minutes at 75C) - then pulled and used the killer hanger to dry/drip. One thing I noticed is the chain had a LOT less residual wax than the first time I waxed it (in a crock pot) - but that’s also partly because the video you posted about that method was to turn the pot off and allow the wax surface to begin to form a skin before you pull the chain. When you pull the chain at 75C, the wax is still molten. All this to say, I’ve now gone about 150K on the newly waxed chain and it’s still pretty noisy. What did I do wrong?
I switched to your wax a few thousand miles ago and absolutely love it. I used to use a crappy crock pot, but just got your beautiful wax pot. My question is if I should, after boiling my chain to clean it (Several times to get all the old wax out) bring the wax above 100 so that any water trapped in the innards of the chain boil off? (Then reducing back to 75) Also, I start with the fresh hot wax dip, and then, every 150 miles +-, use a microfiber cloth to wipe off dirt from the chain before applying your drip wax. I clean and reapply hot wax every 1000 miles. Is this too long an interval or does this seem reasonable (I avoid riding in the rain). Thank you for all you guys do.
You can absolutely boil the water out by bringing the temp over 100, just be sure to put the chain in first and then raise the temp. If you put the wet chain into very hot wax you will get some splatter and flash boiling which could be dangerous. Your 1000 mile hot wax with 150mile drip wax top off is a great strategy!
I've got a question. How long can or should I use a waxed chain indoors? Usually it's something like 300km outdoors, give or take, but how long can one go indoors?
For me, I've been going 200mi and then applying SS Drip Lube on a dedicated indoor trainer bike. After 3-4 reapplications I hotwax again. Now that I have the new Silca waxpot I'll likely just hotwax more frequently instead of SS Drip Lube given it's convenience factor. I picked the maintenance intervals as it was easier to track when looking at Strava mileage. I'm using two chains and swap them every 1000mi to stretch out the hotwax interval further and even out the component wear (I wait until both chains are ready for hotwax). I have over 9500mi+ combined on the two chains and am not even close to wearing them out. I'm currently measuring 0.15 to 0.20mm of chain stretch and the cassette and chainrings remain pristine. Note that wax on the exterior of the chain flakes off onto the floor below the trainer bike and would make a mess on a carpet. My indoor setup is on concrete in the garage so not a problem.
I've seen a lot of people do a denatured alcohol dip after the water rinse to drive out as much moisture as possible. Is there any reason not to do this?
I use a quality automotive citrus degreaser as I professionally detail vehicles on stripping my chains of any contaminants and then rinse in water. If you do this to a used chain and dry the chain, then simply use the Silca wax! If a new chain, you can do the same or use the Silca wafer for cleaning off the factory lube of a new chain.
Question: What is the best method to keep the chain waxed over the period of 1 week of touring with around 1000km? Using only your Super Secret Chain Coating or changing the chain half way with the use of Super Secret Chain Coating?
I would start with a hot waxed chain and then wipe it down each night with microfiber and apply a little SuperSecret to it. This will keep it 'topped off' for the whole distance, and applying after your ride will give it time to cure overnight. Multiple chains is also an option, but definitely takes up space and adds weight and you'll still want to carry some SuperSecret.
Question: how much should I clean my cassette & chainring before adding a waxed chain?? Just made the Slica wax switch & started out on my gravel bike w/ about 125 miles on drivetrain (chain/cassette/chainring w/ dry lube). Cleaned chain w/ stripper 2x, but noticed after about 50-60 miles (and 3 SS drip post ride applications) that chain & chaining still kind of dirty when I wipe w/ microfiber cloth. Did I not clean enough or should I pull chain & try to degrease cassette & chainring more?? Thanks! Love your stuff & miss living in Indy!
Hi, i was wondering if you could give information about how long a waxed chain should be able to last between waxing when used solely for indoor riding? Secondly, if I only use the drip on wax - 2 applications before using the chain, when I need to re-wax, what cleaning process should I use? Thanks!
Hi Josh, I'm glad that you favour the Celsius/Centigrade scale. I have asked this before, and I would like to ask again. For those of us who live in other parts of the world, where the AC voltage from the wall is 230Vac, will there be an iteration of the heating vessel in the Chain Waxing System that will be able to cope with the different AC voltage? I would rather not have to go through the palaver of a separate step-up transformer as it can introduce its own challenges. Thank you. Sek Chuan from Singapore.
Thanks Sek Chuan! Yes, we currently have UK plug variants in the UK and are working on getting some to our Asian distributors as you use the same plug and AC voltage. This will take another month or so, but we hope to have all of Asia taken care of very soon! Thanks for your patience!
Hello Josh, thank you for the informative content and it's fantastic to see some real science applied to the religion that is chain lube. I realize you've covered all the topics in depth in other videos, but I'd love to see a single video (or document) that describes the entire life cycle of the chain waxing process starting from factory fresh, re-layering, mild clean, hot water clean, chain stripping, reset and then starting all over. My apologies if you already released such a video.
Hi Josh! I wanted to start out by thanking you so much for your super helpful videos on chain care and related products. As someone who is just starting out with cycling, your videos have been invaluable in teaching me the most important things to know. I did find some advice on the internet warning against using boiling water to strip wax lube, and I was curious to know your thoughts about it. Specifically, "While the chain itself is metal, excessive heat can damage heat-treated surfaces or coatings applied to some modern bike chains for better wear resistance and corrosion protection. Boiling water can potentially reach temperatures high enough to compromise these treatments. Additionally, your chain contains sealed parts with grease or oil for lubrication. Boiling water could potentially melt these lubricants, reducing their effectiveness and increasing wear within the chain rollers and pins. Finally, extreme heat can cause slight warping of the chain links, especially over time with repeated exposure. This warping could lead to improper chain engagement with the cassette and chainrings, affecting shifting performance and potentially causing premature wear." You seem to be a guy who really knows his stuff when it comes to chain care, so I'd be very interested in knowing what you think of this advice. Thank you!
Oh wow.. not sure where all of that info comes from, but it's way off! Boiling water can only ever reach 100C (plus or minus a few depending on altitude) which isn't hot enough to damage any steel or surface coating used on steel alloys used in bicycle chains. Most of the metal coatings have application temperatures in the 300-500C range, and the base metal itself has melting point of 1300C+. It certainly will soften grease or oil inside the chain but that's what you want, as the idea is to flush everything inside the chain out so that you can replace it with the wax. The only risk to the boiling water technique is that you need to shake as much water out of the chain as possible before putting it in the wax, and you want to put it in wax at less than 100C so you don't cause it to flash boil which can splatter wax all over the place.
@@SILCAVelo Awesome. I thought it sounded like baloney but didn't have the knowledge to back up my suspicion. I figured you would, and I was right. Thank you so much for the quick and informative response!
How often should I re wax after cycling in rainy days? I commute in London around 8 miles every day regardless the weather. You probably know how the weather in the UK is! Lol I applied the Silca hot wax (which I found it really good) to a new chain and I've maintained it with Silca wax lube after wet days. But I'm not always able to do that. After 450 miles the chain worn-out to about 60%. This came into a concern since I've regularly maintained the chain clean and applied Silca wax lube. Now I'm unsure if by just keeping the Silca wax lube it's enough or should I have to apply hot wax more often. However I'm not always available to re wax in good time. I aporeciate your advice. Thanks. Fabi
First of all thanks for the great content and the awesome advice you give on your channel. Your videos have helped me a lot!! I started waxing my chains half a year ago and I'm amazed by the cleanliness of my drivetraing and I hope that it wears down slower. However due to the frequent rides in heavy rain, snow and mud this year it is pretty difficult to dry it after every ride. I commute to work so the rides are short but very frequent (~10km one way). That means having to dry it two times per day to avoid rust. Despite carrying a cloth with the bike all the time it's still difficult to keep it rust free. As I plan to do a long tour through Patagonia by the end of the year I have some questions on how to improve servicing my bike while being outdoors for weeks on end. I ride an old but trusty 3X9 Shimano. - I found the Connex 9SX chain. Is this a good choice? Are there any other suggestions for similar corrosion resistant cassette/drivetrain parts? - Any ideas on how to improve maintenance on the go when there are no facilities? (I plan on carrying a toothbrush, cloth, drip wax) The carretera austral is said to have heavy rain for long periods of time... - I used your technique from the other video for the application of the drip wax (applying near the cassette, using the "pumpin effect"). Still, after 10km the chain produces very noticable sound, but it is very very different depending on the gear I am in. Any recommendations? I think I'm maybe doing something wrong.... (new drivetrain, just 1000km on it, completely degreased in ultrasound bath with initial hot wax application, frequent drip way application, min. 10h drying time) Thanks again for your videos and keep up the great work!! 👍
Just taking an opportunity to add my 2c on quick links. I have found that not hot waxing works best…but, I will clean the link and liberally apply drip wax to make the install easier and fill any voids when the wax is push out of the joining links. Thoughts?
Agree, our recommendation is to clean the quick link but not wax, it makes reassembly much easier and there is no degradation in performance as all metal/metal interfaces end up coated in wax.
I waxed my super cleaned chain using the Secret Chain Blend and after the wax dried and cooled down, after thirty minutes on my trainer the chain is still far too stiff to even consider using it. I have been waxing my chain for several years and have never encountered such a poor outcome.
Would love if you sell a nice kit to clean chains, one that does not require owning a dedicated area in a garage (some don’t have that in a dense urban area).
I have the same question. What are the indicators, appart from sound and feel. I’ve done 200km on my 1st Hot Wax on my super clean Campy Ekar chain. This was mostly road, dusty post winter conditions. Feels like I could get an other 100km but not much more. Please advise 🙏🏻?
Most likely yes.. if you melt it and let it sit for a few minutes without stirring and then allow it to harden the color will tell you how damaged it is. If it has any yellow to brown tint to it, it's done. If it's white to light grey, you are fine.
I just got the system and waxed my first chain, it was great. But now I have no idea if I should be poking the wax out of the inside of the holes that are drilled into the pins in the rollers or if I should leave it all in there.
Thanks for the info! I'm a fan of the honesty and transparency in your videos. Quick question. If I accidentally used a strip chip on a completely clean chain free of any oils/lubes and heated the wax to 125C, is that melted strip chip now degraded or will that melted strip chip still be good to use with a new chain containing factory lube? Thanks!
If you're doing a new chain relatively soon, you are probably fine, but if you have numerous re-waxings in between you might need more, as the mass of ingredients in the StripChip is calibrated to one factory greased chain, so if you do say 10 rewaxings, the mass of strip chip will diminish as some is being removed from the pot with each waxing (I hope I've made that make sense!!)
So just had my Silca stuff arrive Chain wax, strip chip and chain waxer and after some cleaning of my chain I have put it in the cooker for 10 mins at 125c after hanging the chain up it has gone hard, sooo should I be fitting the chain as soon as I can after waxing or just break every link after it has cooled
Great stuff, actually switching from my instapot and candy thermometer to one of these for ease of use, turn it on and set it for 75 and walk away…my instapot is pretty much super hot or over hot or too cool.
Sorry if this was mentioned somewhere - how long do I leave the chain in the wax when re-waxing? 10min or 20min (as was the total time with the strip chip) but with just 75° the whole time? Thanks - awesome stuff, awesome videos!!
Thanks for the video! If the used waxed chain has seen since rain or had road debris, would the Silca Gear Wipes clean it enough to be cleaned and ready for rewaxing? Thanks!
Can i strip chip 5 chains in one day? I have 2 chains for gravel, 2 chains for road and one chain for indoor bike Or it will be to much for hot melt wax ?
I've been using a neodymium magnet to get the faris particles out of the hot wax after I wax my chains. Is doing this ok or could it be removing some the tungsten disulfide from the wax?
Thanks for your videos! They are simply great 👍🏼 I have a question about how much wax need to be filled in the heater and do I only need to fill up with some wax granulat from time to time or need the used wax be completely changed for new wax after xx chains waxed? Thanks for your response and best regards from Germany ✌🏼
You will want a minimum of 300gm of wax to start and then can just keep adding new wax once the level gets low enough that it doesn't fully cover the chain. No need to ever change out or replace the wax in the pot unless it somehow gets contaminated or there is some other issue. In general you should get ~50 waxings from one 500gm bag of wax.
Hi Josh - if you are using a speed chip or two speed chips, should you also be adding partial pieces of a speed chip as you refill? I have to check the original ratio to do the math so can probably figure it out close enough but curious how you would answer the whole refill question when speed chips are also in your pot. Thanks much!
Excellent video as usual. Just one query - I have been melting my wax to 92°C based on advice from previous videos (not yours of course). It sounds as if that is damaging to the wax and I should be going only up to 75°. Is that correct?
Some wax brands are only able to handle up to 95C and can break down above that, I believe MoltenSpeed has this limitation, and others might as well. SILCA waxes are safe up to 130C, so the optimal temp to pull the chain is 75C, but the waxing process can be done hotter, including use of the StripChip.
Too much faff for me so thanks for creating synergetic! And on unbound, would it not be better to use synergetic or synerg-e from the start and not worry about a mid ride top up after the wax gets too friction-y, as it’s bound to do taking in to account the course conditions?
Even in wet conditions you still get the first couple of hundred km a clean well working chain. It's only when the wax is gone you need to relube and drip wax will not work. With the remaining wax on the outside of the chain the oil based lube will not stick as well and your chain stays cleaner as if you start oiled from the beginning. This is at least my experience in road conditions.
That works well, acetone works, compressed air, hairdryer, swinging your arm in a circle.. anything to drive out the bulk of the water before putting it in the wax, also be sure to only put a damp chain into wax at 75 and then turn the temperature up.. putting it in 100C or hotter wax can cause a flash boil which will splatter wax everywhere and could be dangerous.
I have the Wax system and I used the strip chip in my wax for the 1st time. Do I have to always take the temp up to 125 for the rest of this batch of wax? Or is 75 okay on subsequent waxes? Thanks.
75 will be perfect for future waxings.. the 125 is just to get the chemical reaction to occur to convert the grease. Though you might want to start the machine at 100 or so for future waxings as it will warm up faster, then put the chain in, turn it down to 75, and pull a few minutes later when the temp reaches 75.
I'm a little confused. If existing chains have been degreased using Silca Chain Stripper and then always waxed using a Crock-Pot + Silca Secret Chain Blend Wax method, do we need to add StripChip if we replace the Crock Pot with the new Silca Wax Pot or can we just add the Silca Secret Chain Blend to the new Silca Wax pot and run a standard wax bath at 75c without a StripChip ?
I use the Silca bio degreaser on a Silca microfiber towel to wipe down the chain after an off-road ride and then use Silca super secret drip wax as needed. I assume the Silca degreaser doesn't remove the wax?
Correct, our products are all formulated to work together, and your bio degreaser will do a great job of removing dirt and oil without harming the wax!
Thanks. I also dont use any hot waxes. I also prefer - bio degreaser , wipe the dirt , apply drip wax again and 24h for hardening. Will my chain survive in that often maintenance same amount of kilometres as hot waxing method? I will be adding lube every 150km ,dry or little rainy weather. Thanks buddy!!!
This advice is helpful but overly complex. For example, on point (1), you can literally just put the chain on your normal hanger (for subsequent submersion in wax) and pour a few rounds of boiling water over top of it (from kettle spout) from top to bottom as it hangs from your hand over the sink. The dirty wax and grit will wash right off / out. Don't need other containers or other expensive solvents. Even after a really dirty ride. Don't over complicate it.
Hi, if I've a waxed chain that I need top off with Synergetic at a long event can you continue with Synergetic for subsequent lubes? What I mean is is clean and use Synergetic for the next expected wet ride. Will the residual wax affect the Synergetic?
Synergetic will act like a solvent on the wax causing it to soften and release from the metal of the chain, but the performance will not be diminished. If you put Synergetic over wax and then want to keep using Synergetic, you can clean the chain with SILCA brake and drivetrain cleaner, rinse with water, and then reapply Synergetic.
It can damage if heated above 140C. If overheated it will take on a brown/yellow color when it cools. If you IntantPot has a sous vide function, that uses the same PID logic as the SILCA wax melter and is very accurate, if not, then either use the SlowCook Low setting, or if using StripChip you can use slowcook High, but use a candy thermometer or similar to monitor the wax temperature to ensure it stays between 120C and 125C the whole time.
I've had some waxed chains get rusty after some bikepacking near the coast and in the winter salt. I've then boiling-water shaken it, but residual rust is still on. Can I rewax this? As I don't want to go near degreaser to remove the existing rust as I assume that'll ruin future rewaxing
I’m no expert, but I would think you could bathe your chain in EvapoRust (available on line or in most hardware stores) overnight, and then rinse in water. That should get rid of any rust.
hello, great video. just a few quick questions: I've been using your hot wax for several months now, I'm happy with it but I find the chain quite noisy. I use wax on my road bike in dry weather, and I rewax (hot wax) the chain every 300/350km. Moreover, after several kilometers, I found that there was a lot of oilskin residue on the cassette sprockets, black lovers, is it really necessary to clean them? Furthermore, I also find the transmission "less fluid" than with Classic lubricant as some of my friends use, even though your wax is supposed to have less rolling resistance, any explanations? last question, I use a crockpot without a thermostat, so do you advise me to wait for the wax to cool a little (until a mini skin appears on top) before removing the chain? Thank you in advance for your answer! Have a good day Ferd
A waxed chain will always be louder. If you want a quiet drivetrain you need to use oil. The noise comes from the friction/contact between the chain and the cassette and sprocket. Since wax is only helping on the inside your chain runs "dry" on all those components. Oil covers everything so it dampens the noise, but it becomes a big mess after a while and dirt sticks to it.
Hi. Is rewaxing with drip wax on the bike after a wet / muddy ride enough for corrosion protection? Of course after a good cleaning. I'm interested in waxing but I don't want to take my chain of and I ride my MTB frequently in wet and muddy conditions. Thanks in advance
taking chain of is really easy after the first two times of getting used to. Yes corrosion protection will stay for a while, however some chains catch rust quite fast, 105 and kmc chains for example.
If you have an aid station where you can leave stuff, bring an extra waxed chain or two and swap as necessary. Swapping a chain can actually be quicker than re-lubing. Or just do what Josh recommends and apply a wet lube on top of the waxed chain--but be prepared to clean the drivetrain at the end, including fully re-prepping the chain for fresh hot wax. If it's going to be a really wet race, then just using a wet lube from the beginning might be the best bet.
Yes, if swapping chains is an option, that's the best option! We have quite a few people doing transcontinental and long FKT type things who just swap chains.
I purchased a new Ultegra chain a couple of weeks ago, fully degreased and immersed in Silca secret wax. After the first 50 mile ride, the chain links are still relatively stiff compared to a drip wax. I broke the chain in as much as I could prior to fitting and l thought after 50 miles it would be fully flexible but it's not. Is this normal?
New 12 speed Shimano chains will take a bit longer to break in than others, but should be good after 50 miles? Maybe try waxing a little hotter and pulling the chain at the higher temp, this will leave it a bit more flexible after waxing. After 3-4 waxing/riding cycles, the metal will be fully embedded with WS2 and things will loosen up.
On a used Campy Ekar chain, approx 1000km. I cleaned-striped it and treated it with Hot wax. I found that after 100km I felt it was nice and supple as per Petrol based wet lube. Be advised that the Campy Ekar new can feel very stiff, especially on the extreme big cog for a good 500km.
5-10 minutes. If you pull it too soon, the chain will be thickly coated in wax.. if you pull it and the wax coating is thin and translucent, then it has been in long enough.
5-10 minutes.. if you pull it too early it will be massively caked in wax on the outside (like you've made a candle!) and there is no 'too long' to leave it in.
I got a cheap stainless steel dog food bowl to use for dunking chains in boiling water. It is a completely therapeutic experience! Nothing better than pulling a brilliantly shining chain out of the drink and ready for a new wax application. The entire Silca waxing set up is insanely awesome. The Strip Chips are a total game changer. They make a very easy project completely mindless.
Unless you have Shimano 105 12 speed chains. They seem to eat dirt on the plates and never let it go again. Zero issues here with SRAM XX1 chains.
My tip; put a small magnet on top of the Chain Wax System, it hold quick links in a handy place.
The rewaxing process involves unlink/relink of the quick links and I'm not sure if I have to swap a new link every few weeks between the rewaxing. I'm about to have my first rewaxing session and just realized that the investment into quicklinks would be stupid high . How would you do this? THX
@@黄瓜-d6h I use my quick link 3-4 times before replacing. It is officially a single-use item, however. Could use the drip wax instead
@@黄瓜-d6hsome quick links are reuseable. Also, you shouldn't need to rewax a lot as long as the chains do not get wet. If it gets wet during your ride. Make sure to dry the chain with a cloth as soon as you get home to prevent rusting and if available put a little drip wax.
Buy a Connex link. No tool needed to use. Last the life of the chain. Buy an extra one and carry with you in tool kit for roadside repairs.
@user-jj4sj9rf7x Technically most quick links are 1 use only but in reality they can be used multiple times, just keep an eye on how Loose they get 👍
I love how you are embracing the metric system 🙌
Thanks Josh! I don’t really get the instruction where you state: set it to 125 and then watch the display until it hits 75. My experience is that the pot will hit 75 pretty quick after setting it to 125, the wax will definitely not be melted at that point.
Yes to metric system and celsius!
C isn't metric! Kelvin is the metric unit for temp.
@@ephboulder there's no "metric" unit for temperature, but it's one of the base SI units.
@@derfx89 Sortof - all the various equations are for K. In particular to cycling, the ideal gas law. PV=NRT. If you used C, that would imply a negative pressure in your tires and time you head out below freezing.
@@ephbouldersorry, I realized my comment was ambiguous. Of course I meant K is one of the base units, not C.
@@ephboulder Good to know, but I didn't say so either 😉
I just used the Silca chain waxing unit for the first time. Wow, really easy. One thing I am very impressed with is how uniformly waxed the chain is without big clumps of wax clinging to the chain, which I see with the stovetop method or with the drip wax. This chain is very smoothly waxed all over. Looks professional!
Love the content. What are some signs that the wax is wearing out while riding? Anything other than chain noise increases?
Question about a rust: If I ride in the rain and the wax comes off ... and I don't get a chance to deal with the chain right away, I get some brown rust spots on the chain. How should I clean the chain to get it ready for the next waxing?
A tip is that after you have ridden you should wipe it with a microfiber towel to get it dry. It’s fine that the chain gets wet but it’s when you let it sit and dry without protection that it starts to rust (I think).
Wax isn’t water soluble. The only reason wet riding could remove wax is excessive dirt and sand sticking to the wet chain. My chain always comes out with a thin layer of wax all over, and I’ve not seen any rust formation at all despite living in a fairly wet climate. Are you leaving the chain in the wax long enough for temperature to equalize?
When this happened to me, I went with a boiling water bath, cleaned each link individually with a spare toothbrush, dried, dipped in wax at 75 for 30 seconds, let it cool, put it back on the bike, then vowed to always wipe the chain immediately after a wet ride going forward. So far so good!
Thanks useful advice. Had noticed my wax has recently started bonding better and wearing (shifting) for a lot longer. This appears to be when I started adding a few mls of chain stripper to each boiling water cleaning. I've also increased the wax melt temperature to 120C. Nb I ride in dusty gravel conditions, already done more than 4000km on each of the current sram chains that were carefully cleaned to remove factory grease.
Thanks for the info on melt time. Think my wax took 1 hour on 75 to melt fully.
Thank you for using the metric system!
Swap back & forth between two chains (both started new at the same time). Makes it easy to maintain the one off the bike at your convenience.
I’m running a 3 chain rotation. It’s not much harder to clean and was several chains than just one and the rotation should slow drivetrain wear.
@@jaredmickel5636 So I'm thinking about getting into immersive waxing after using drip wax. I'm thinking about getting another chain to run the two chain method. Would you guys recommend using chain stripper to be able to clean my current chain and a new chain to dip it into the wax without strip chip or use strip chip and just use boiling water to reset my first chain and just immersive wax both chains? Thanks guys
I’ve been hot waxing for 3 years now. I use molten speed wax. Use an antenna magnet when the wax is hot. You’d be amazed how much metal sticks to the magnet over time. I carry this process out periodically. It works !!
gonna try this, as i think my wax is quite contaminated after a year of use!
How exactly do you use the magnet? Do you drag it through the hot wax and "go fishing" for metal shavings?
@@Mububban23 yes you’re correct, drag the magnet through the liquid wax.
You’re a chain wax guru! Thank you for all you do to help all of us!!
Being new to your wax system and wax chain in general, how can you tell it's time to re wax? Im going by audible cues, but it's still hard to tell. I rode for about 100 miles on the road, over a few days , it sounded like it was getting louder, so I wanted to try the super secret drip mid life application, I did that properly, rode 20 miles and its right back to sounding like it needs to be re waxed. It's just hard to tell. I wonder if there is a weight component weigh a newly waxed chain after 20 miles , then weigh at 100 or 120 miles ? it would obviously only be a few grams if any. Im very familiar to my old lube and how it gets when its time, but the wax is hard to tell.
Same question here!
Cues are purely audible.. it will start to get a bit louder like 'tick-tick' and will then get a bit louder. For most road riding this is 250-300km for hot melt. At that point you can re-hot wax or add SuperSecret Drip, remember that SS Drip needs 8-12 hours to fully cure, so we recommend just adding it after you ride so it's ready for the next day. Both waxes experience a phenomenon known as Layering Up which is that it takes 2-3 initial applications and riding cycles for the WS2 additives to fully embed in the metal of the chain which is where the big benefits really come. You can read about layering up here: ua-cam.com/video/LBcowq02pXw/v-deo.htmlsi=T12Lw2lZalpiNu-S
Also, was doesn't hide noise like other lubes, so it can be working quite well but sounding worse than a wet lube as the wet lube will hide breakdown much, much better. The ZFC data tell us a lot about this and you can see that data here: ua-cam.com/video/Xu_Q0cqoKeY/v-deo.htmlsi=f-iSejaR7LHCDf06
Zfc does not recommend KMC chains for immersive waxing. What is Silca's stand on this?
The black DLC coating from KMC is problematic for wax and results in very short lifespan of the wax (and other lubricants as well). The chrome and TiN (gold) coatings from them seem to do fine with wax, though you are likely to find better results with a DuraAce 11 or 12 speed chain in terms of both friction and wax longevity per application.
Love using the ultra sonic cleaner for cleaning chains.
Josh, I used Chain Stripper on two new chains, amazing! 🙏Thanks for the suggestion to recycle used liquid. Was able to recycle although my coffee filters were a pain. What brand of coffee filter do you use?
I saw a video that recommended a strainer for use with hot water - works great IMO. Goodwill has them cheap
how many times do you use the "one-time" chainlinks before swaping to new one?
Indefinitely. Never had one fail yet in nearly two decades of riding. I do check for looseness/play in the link
If you could choose between waxing a new chain with either a stripchip or with the chain stripper, what would you do? I have both and don't know which method to use. (Or maybe both in some partial form is even better?)
what about carrying/preparing a spare pre-waxed chain to replace in middle of race or event? that’s what i did on my bike packing trip, in which i topped up with drip wax and cleaned with boiling water and at mid-point i replaced the chain with a freshly hot melt waxed chain. i’m not sure if that is within the race regulation but if it is, for a flat race as unbound, carrying extra 200 grams for a perfect chain throughout? maybe a trade off worth considering.
I'm a believer. My chain is always clean. It's much faster. It takes way less time than constantly cleaning and lubing
Question.
Do we need to rewatch more often when cycling indoor since I don’t coast and pedal the entire session?
Believing in metric system - you are my man.
Love your videos!
All the very best for you from Germany ;)
Josh, when dewaxing a dirty chain with boiling water, would you use some kind of soap to capture the dirt "better"?
No, the wax will float to the top and bring the dirt with it, and you can then just pour it out.. not need for any soap or anything like that!
Your timing is awesome...my buddies and I were just coming up with a list of questions and I think you answered most of them...Thanks Josh! One thing I did in aiding the rewarming of a wax puck in the wax hot tub was to cover it with a micro fiber cloth while I prepare the rest of the drive train. My garage was at 7C yesterday being in the Seattle region.
I appreciate the content and product. I am primarily a mountain bike xco racer and use this all the time. However, I live in Colorado where it can be extremely dusty. So much so that the drive train can start to be so loud that it is nearly unbearable. I understand the idea that it is still better protected but I have three questions: 1) when done with my ride, is it ok to just wipe it off, then apply Super Secret? Right now I am doing this after almost every ride. 2) when should i clean with billing water and rewax in this situation? 3) would it be a better idea to just use Synergetic or Synerg-E when training then switch to a waxed chain for race time?
I just re-waxed my chain over the weekend. Used chain stripper to clean it, and immersed it in denatured alcohol to force out the water. Heated up my Silca wax application pot to 75C and followed the instructions to re-wax (10 minutes at 75C) - then pulled and used the killer hanger to dry/drip. One thing I noticed is the chain had a LOT less residual wax than the first time I waxed it (in a crock pot) - but that’s also partly because the video you posted about that method was to turn the pot off and allow the wax surface to begin to form a skin before you pull the chain. When you pull the chain at 75C, the wax is still molten. All this to say, I’ve now gone about 150K on the newly waxed chain and it’s still pretty noisy. What did I do wrong?
I switched to your wax a few thousand miles ago and absolutely love it. I used to use a crappy crock pot, but just got your beautiful wax pot. My question is if I should, after boiling my chain to clean it (Several times to get all the old wax out) bring the wax above 100 so that any water trapped in the innards of the chain boil off? (Then reducing back to 75) Also, I start with the fresh hot wax dip, and then, every 150 miles +-, use a microfiber cloth to wipe off dirt from the chain before applying your drip wax. I clean and reapply hot wax every 1000 miles. Is this too long an interval or does this seem reasonable (I avoid riding in the rain). Thank you for all you guys do.
You can absolutely boil the water out by bringing the temp over 100, just be sure to put the chain in first and then raise the temp. If you put the wet chain into very hot wax you will get some splatter and flash boiling which could be dangerous. Your 1000 mile hot wax with 150mile drip wax top off is a great strategy!
I've been using this method, I just set the temp to 105c, let the water boil off, set to 75c and pull once it reached that temp.
Very helpful insights 👍🏻, how fantastic is Celcius anyway 😂😂
I've got a question. How long can or should I use a waxed chain indoors? Usually it's something like 300km outdoors, give or take, but how long can one go indoors?
For me, I've been going 200mi and then applying SS Drip Lube on a dedicated indoor trainer bike. After 3-4 reapplications I hotwax again. Now that I have the new Silca waxpot I'll likely just hotwax more frequently instead of SS Drip Lube given it's convenience factor. I picked the maintenance intervals as it was easier to track when looking at Strava mileage. I'm using two chains and swap them every 1000mi to stretch out the hotwax interval further and even out the component wear (I wait until both chains are ready for hotwax). I have over 9500mi+ combined on the two chains and am not even close to wearing them out. I'm currently measuring 0.15 to 0.20mm of chain stretch and the cassette and chainrings remain pristine. Note that wax on the exterior of the chain flakes off onto the floor below the trainer bike and would make a mess on a carpet. My indoor setup is on concrete in the garage so not a problem.
What's the best method to remove excess wax from chainrings and rear mech? I've used drip wax and over applied it and have quite a thick build up
How offer should you rewax the chain ?
I've seen a lot of people do a denatured alcohol dip after the water rinse to drive out as much moisture as possible. Is there any reason not to do this?
Good question, I use the hairdryer to pretty much fully dry, being careful as it gets hot!
I use a quality automotive citrus degreaser as I professionally detail vehicles on stripping my chains of any contaminants and then rinse in water. If you do this to a used chain and dry the chain, then simply use the Silca wax! If a new chain, you can do the same or use the Silca wafer for cleaning off the factory lube of a new chain.
Can you use degreaser to clean the chain?
Any advice for Campagnolo Record hollow pin chains (11sp) which tend to get their hollow pins jammed full of wax? (and please don't say use Shimano )
Question: What is the best method to keep the chain waxed over the period of 1 week of touring with around 1000km? Using only your Super Secret Chain Coating or changing the chain half way with the use of Super Secret Chain Coating?
I would start with a hot waxed chain and then wipe it down each night with microfiber and apply a little SuperSecret to it. This will keep it 'topped off' for the whole distance, and applying after your ride will give it time to cure overnight. Multiple chains is also an option, but definitely takes up space and adds weight and you'll still want to carry some SuperSecret.
@@SILCAVelo Thanks for that quick answer!
I will start with fresh hot waxed chain and apply super secret every evening.
Question: how much should I clean my cassette & chainring before adding a waxed chain??
Just made the Slica wax switch & started out on my gravel bike w/ about 125 miles on drivetrain (chain/cassette/chainring w/ dry lube). Cleaned chain w/ stripper 2x, but noticed after about 50-60 miles (and 3 SS drip post ride applications) that chain & chaining still kind of dirty when I wipe w/ microfiber cloth.
Did I not clean enough or should I pull chain & try to degrease cassette & chainring more??
Thanks! Love your stuff & miss living in Indy!
Hi, i was wondering if you could give information about how long a waxed chain should be able to last between waxing when used solely for indoor riding?
Secondly, if I only use the drip on wax - 2 applications before using the chain, when I need to re-wax, what cleaning process should I use? Thanks!
I really love your Tshirts!!! Were can I buy them? Not all models available in your website 😢
Hi Josh, I'm glad that you favour the Celsius/Centigrade scale. I have asked this before, and I would like to ask again. For those of us who live in other parts of the world, where the AC voltage from the wall is 230Vac, will there be an iteration of the heating vessel in the Chain Waxing System that will be able to cope with the different AC voltage? I would rather not have to go through the palaver of a separate step-up transformer as it can introduce its own challenges. Thank you. Sek Chuan from Singapore.
Thanks Sek Chuan! Yes, we currently have UK plug variants in the UK and are working on getting some to our Asian distributors as you use the same plug and AC voltage. This will take another month or so, but we hope to have all of Asia taken care of very soon! Thanks for your patience!
Hello Josh, thank you for the informative content and it's fantastic to see some real science applied to the religion that is chain lube. I realize you've covered all the topics in depth in other videos, but I'd love to see a single video (or document) that describes the entire life cycle of the chain waxing process starting from factory fresh, re-layering, mild clean, hot water clean, chain stripping, reset and then starting all over. My apologies if you already released such a video.
Hi Josh! I wanted to start out by thanking you so much for your super helpful videos on chain care and related products. As someone who is just starting out with cycling, your videos have been invaluable in teaching me the most important things to know.
I did find some advice on the internet warning against using boiling water to strip wax lube, and I was curious to know your thoughts about it. Specifically, "While the chain itself is metal, excessive heat can damage heat-treated surfaces or coatings applied to some modern bike chains for better wear resistance and corrosion protection. Boiling water can potentially reach temperatures high enough to compromise these treatments. Additionally, your chain contains sealed parts with grease or oil for lubrication. Boiling water could potentially melt these lubricants, reducing their effectiveness and increasing wear within the chain rollers and pins. Finally, extreme heat can cause slight warping of the chain links, especially over time with repeated exposure. This warping could lead to improper chain engagement with the cassette and chainrings, affecting shifting performance and potentially causing premature wear."
You seem to be a guy who really knows his stuff when it comes to chain care, so I'd be very interested in knowing what you think of this advice. Thank you!
Oh wow.. not sure where all of that info comes from, but it's way off! Boiling water can only ever reach 100C (plus or minus a few depending on altitude) which isn't hot enough to damage any steel or surface coating used on steel alloys used in bicycle chains. Most of the metal coatings have application temperatures in the 300-500C range, and the base metal itself has melting point of 1300C+. It certainly will soften grease or oil inside the chain but that's what you want, as the idea is to flush everything inside the chain out so that you can replace it with the wax. The only risk to the boiling water technique is that you need to shake as much water out of the chain as possible before putting it in the wax, and you want to put it in wax at less than 100C so you don't cause it to flash boil which can splatter wax all over the place.
@@SILCAVelo Awesome. I thought it sounded like baloney but didn't have the knowledge to back up my suspicion. I figured you would, and I was right. Thank you so much for the quick and informative response!
How often should I re wax after cycling in rainy days?
I commute in London around 8 miles every day regardless the weather. You probably know how the weather in the UK is! Lol
I applied the Silca hot wax (which I found it really good) to a new chain and I've maintained it with Silca wax lube after wet days. But I'm not always able to do that. After 450 miles the chain worn-out to about 60%. This came into a concern since I've regularly maintained the chain clean and applied Silca wax lube. Now I'm unsure if by just keeping the Silca wax lube it's enough or should I have to apply hot wax more often. However I'm not always available to re wax in good time.
I aporeciate your advice. Thanks. Fabi
First of all thanks for the great content and the awesome advice you give on your channel. Your videos have helped me a lot!!
I started waxing my chains half a year ago and I'm amazed by the cleanliness of my drivetraing and I hope that it wears down slower. However due to the frequent rides in heavy rain, snow and mud this year it is pretty difficult to dry it after every ride. I commute to work so the rides are short but very frequent (~10km one way). That means having to dry it two times per day to avoid rust. Despite carrying a cloth with the bike all the time it's still difficult to keep it rust free. As I plan to do a long tour through Patagonia by the end of the year I have some questions on how to improve servicing my bike while being outdoors for weeks on end.
I ride an old but trusty 3X9 Shimano.
- I found the Connex 9SX chain. Is this a good choice? Are there any other suggestions for similar corrosion resistant cassette/drivetrain parts?
- Any ideas on how to improve maintenance on the go when there are no facilities? (I plan on carrying a toothbrush, cloth, drip wax) The carretera austral is said to have heavy rain for long periods of time...
- I used your technique from the other video for the application of the drip wax (applying near the cassette, using the "pumpin effect"). Still, after 10km the chain produces very noticable sound, but it is very very different depending on the gear I am in. Any recommendations? I think I'm maybe doing something wrong.... (new drivetrain, just 1000km on it, completely degreased in ultrasound bath with initial hot wax application, frequent drip way application, min. 10h drying time)
Thanks again for your videos and keep up the great work!! 👍
Just taking an opportunity to add my 2c on quick links. I have found that not hot waxing works best…but, I will clean the link and liberally apply drip wax to make the install easier and fill any voids when the wax is push out of the joining links. Thoughts?
Agree, our recommendation is to clean the quick link but not wax, it makes reassembly much easier and there is no degradation in performance as all metal/metal interfaces end up coated in wax.
How about using alcohol or acetone after the boiling water to displace the residual water in the chain and allow faster drying prior to rewaxing?
I waxed my super cleaned chain using the Secret Chain Blend and after the wax dried and cooled down, after thirty minutes on my trainer the chain is still far too stiff to even consider using it. I have been waxing my chain for several years and have never encountered such a poor outcome.
If I ask nicely could I get a unit set to use degrees Rankine?
woosh ... tell them it's related to Fahrenheit and you might get more support (in the US anyway) ...
Hello! At what temperature should the already cleaned chain be welded? 120C and then reduced to 75C or immediately lowered at 75C and removed at 75C?
Let it soak at 125C for 10 minutes, then turn the temp down to 75C. When the temperature gets to 75C then you can pull the chain.
There's no removable pot insert. How would you change old wax?
Great video! What are your thoughts about using wax for winter fat biking?
Not sure if the wax has directions for this, but what do you do with the wax once its melted in the pot and you are done waxing your chain?
Just let it cool until you need to wax your chain again. You should get ~40 waxings per bag of wax.
Would love if you sell a nice kit to clean chains, one that does not require owning a dedicated area in a garage (some don’t have that in a dense urban area).
Great video! What is the recommended mileage for re-waxing the chain? (Hot and/or drip) Let's assume it was used on an XC MTB in only dry conditions.
I have the same question. What are the indicators, appart from sound and feel. I’ve done 200km on my 1st Hot Wax on my super clean Campy Ekar chain. This was mostly road, dusty post winter conditions. Feels like I could get an other 100km but not much more.
Please advise 🙏🏻?
You mention that its possible to overheat the wax. Above 140°. If the wax is heated past this point, is it permanently damaged?
Most likely yes.. if you melt it and let it sit for a few minutes without stirring and then allow it to harden the color will tell you how damaged it is. If it has any yellow to brown tint to it, it's done. If it's white to light grey, you are fine.
I just got the system and waxed my first chain, it was great. But now I have no idea if I should be poking the wax out of the inside of the holes that are drilled into the pins in the rollers or if I should leave it all in there.
Thanks for the info! I'm a fan of the honesty and transparency in your videos. Quick question. If I accidentally used a strip chip on a completely clean chain free of any oils/lubes and heated the wax to 125C, is that melted strip chip now degraded or will that melted strip chip still be good to use with a new chain containing factory lube? Thanks!
If you're doing a new chain relatively soon, you are probably fine, but if you have numerous re-waxings in between you might need more, as the mass of ingredients in the StripChip is calibrated to one factory greased chain, so if you do say 10 rewaxings, the mass of strip chip will diminish as some is being removed from the pot with each waxing (I hope I've made that make sense!!)
Yes that makes sense. Thanks for the reply!@@SILCAVelo
So just had my Silca stuff arrive Chain wax, strip chip and chain waxer and after some cleaning of my chain I have put it in the cooker for 10 mins at 125c after hanging the chain up it has gone hard, sooo should I be fitting the chain as soon as I can after waxing or just break every link after it has cooled
Great stuff, actually switching from my instapot and candy thermometer to one of these for ease of use, turn it on and set it for 75 and walk away…my instapot is pretty much super hot or over hot or too cool.
How do i clean my bike with a waxed chain? Leave the chain on or take it off? And rewax everytime my bike get rinsed with water?
Hello. I was wondering can you put 2 new chains and 2 strip chips in one go to wax and clean both chains? Or I should do it one by one? Thanks
Sorry if this was mentioned somewhere - how long do I leave the chain in the wax when re-waxing? 10min or 20min (as was the total time with the strip chip) but with just 75° the whole time? Thanks - awesome stuff, awesome videos!!
I have success with just 5 mins max but agitate a little at each end of this to try and get the wax to permeate as deeply as possible.
@@stephencharles6932 great, thanks!
Thanks for the video! If the used waxed chain has seen since rain or had road debris, would the Silca Gear Wipes clean it enough to be cleaned and ready for rewaxing? Thanks!
Can i strip chip 5 chains in one day? I have 2 chains for gravel, 2 chains for road and one chain for indoor bike
Or it will be to much for hot melt wax ?
I've been using a neodymium magnet to get the faris particles out of the hot wax after I wax my chains. Is doing this ok or could it be removing some the tungsten disulfide from the wax?
Thanks for your videos! They are simply great 👍🏼
I have a question about how much wax need to be filled in the heater and do I only need to fill up with some wax granulat from time to time or need the used wax be completely changed for new wax after xx chains waxed?
Thanks for your response and best regards from Germany ✌🏼
You will want a minimum of 300gm of wax to start and then can just keep adding new wax once the level gets low enough that it doesn't fully cover the chain. No need to ever change out or replace the wax in the pot unless it somehow gets contaminated or there is some other issue. In general you should get ~50 waxings from one 500gm bag of wax.
@@SILCAVelo Thanks 🙏🏼
Hi Josh - if you are using a speed chip or two speed chips, should you also be adding partial pieces of a speed chip as you refill? I have to check the original ratio to do the math so can probably figure it out close enough but curious how you would answer the whole refill question when speed chips are also in your pot. Thanks much!
Excellent video as usual. Just one query - I have been melting my wax to 92°C based on advice from previous videos (not yours of course). It sounds as if that is damaging to the wax and I should be going only up to 75°. Is that correct?
Some wax brands are only able to handle up to 95C and can break down above that, I believe MoltenSpeed has this limitation, and others might as well. SILCA waxes are safe up to 130C, so the optimal temp to pull the chain is 75C, but the waxing process can be done hotter, including use of the StripChip.
Too much faff for me so thanks for creating synergetic! And on unbound, would it not be better to use synergetic or synerg-e from the start and not worry about a mid ride top up after the wax gets too friction-y, as it’s bound to do taking in to account the course conditions?
Even in wet conditions you still get the first couple of hundred km a clean well working chain. It's only when the wax is gone you need to relube and drip wax will not work. With the remaining wax on the outside of the chain the oil based lube will not stick as well and your chain stays cleaner as if you start oiled from the beginning. This is at least my experience in road conditions.
What's the problem with just washing the chain with some liquid detergent and then re-wax?
what do you think about rinsing the chain in isopropyl alcohol after boiling it to help with the water removal
That works well, acetone works, compressed air, hairdryer, swinging your arm in a circle.. anything to drive out the bulk of the water before putting it in the wax, also be sure to only put a damp chain into wax at 75 and then turn the temperature up.. putting it in 100C or hotter wax can cause a flash boil which will splatter wax everywhere and could be dangerous.
I have the Wax system and I used the strip chip in my wax for the 1st time. Do I have to always take the temp up to 125 for the rest of this batch of wax? Or is 75 okay on subsequent waxes? Thanks.
75 will be perfect for future waxings.. the 125 is just to get the chemical reaction to occur to convert the grease. Though you might want to start the machine at 100 or so for future waxings as it will warm up faster, then put the chain in, turn it down to 75, and pull a few minutes later when the temp reaches 75.
@@SILCAVelo awesome Thank You..
I'm a little confused. If existing chains have been degreased using Silca Chain Stripper and then always waxed using a Crock-Pot + Silca Secret Chain Blend Wax method, do we need to add StripChip if we replace the Crock Pot with the new Silca Wax Pot or can we just add the Silca Secret Chain Blend to the new Silca Wax pot and run a standard wax bath at 75c without a StripChip ?
Why would you strip grease that isn't there?
What about fully cleaning the cassette? After several applications of super secret drip wax the cassette has wax build up…
Can you recommend a pot that will fit a recumbent chain (typically 2.5 chains long)? As it doesn't look like this pot is big enough.
You will need an InstantPot or CrockPot of at least 3Qt/2.75L to hold that much chain and wax.
I use the Silca bio degreaser on a Silca microfiber towel to wipe down the chain after an off-road ride and then use Silca super secret drip wax as needed. I assume the Silca degreaser doesn't remove the wax?
Correct, our products are all formulated to work together, and your bio degreaser will do a great job of removing dirt and oil without harming the wax!
Thanks. I also dont use any hot waxes. I also prefer - bio degreaser , wipe the dirt , apply drip wax again and 24h for hardening. Will my chain survive in that often maintenance same amount of kilometres as hot waxing method? I will be adding lube every 150km ,dry or little rainy weather. Thanks buddy!!!
Hello, i don't have a microfiber towel but i have your gear wipes, is it similar? Thanks!
Those will work as well, maybe better, we just want to make sure that we're giving people options that aren't all SILCA products!!
Thoughts on pouring boiling water into an old stainless vacuum insulated water bottle, then shaking in there?
That will work great!
After how many waxings should the tax be replaced or can it continue to be topped up?
As long as you're not putting dirty chains in it, you can just keep reusing and topping it off.
After you use the wax and a chip strip, how many times can you use the wax again? Do i need a chip strip each time? Just got a unit.
You only need StripChip with factory new chains.. after that you can just keep re-dipping in the same wax.
This advice is helpful but overly complex. For example, on point (1), you can literally just put the chain on your normal hanger (for subsequent submersion in wax) and pour a few rounds of boiling water over top of it (from kettle spout) from top to bottom as it hangs from your hand over the sink. The dirty wax and grit will wash right off / out. Don't need other containers or other expensive solvents. Even after a really dirty ride. Don't over complicate it.
Can you use the wax that has a stripchip melted in?
Yes, you just keep using the wax after using the StripChip.. the StripChip converts the chain grease into wax, so you can just keep waxing as normal.
Do you know why my wax is still solid in the middle when I did 125 then 75 please? (and wait 10 min at 75)
Hi, if I've a waxed chain that I need top off with Synergetic at a long event can you continue with Synergetic for subsequent lubes? What I mean is is clean and use Synergetic for the next expected wet ride. Will the residual wax affect the Synergetic?
Synergetic will act like a solvent on the wax causing it to soften and release from the metal of the chain, but the performance will not be diminished. If you put Synergetic over wax and then want to keep using Synergetic, you can clean the chain with SILCA brake and drivetrain cleaner, rinse with water, and then reapply Synergetic.
Will Silca’s wax get damaged if you overheat it? (I am using an instapot doesn’t show temperature afaik)
It can damage if heated above 140C. If overheated it will take on a brown/yellow color when it cools. If you IntantPot has a sous vide function, that uses the same PID logic as the SILCA wax melter and is very accurate, if not, then either use the SlowCook Low setting, or if using StripChip you can use slowcook High, but use a candy thermometer or similar to monitor the wax temperature to ensure it stays between 120C and 125C the whole time.
Does the strip chip have a shelf life?
Nope, lasts forever, or until the zombie apocalypse ;-)
@@SILCAVelo Even then.... it should outlast us all! 😅🧟
I've had some waxed chains get rusty after some bikepacking near the coast and in the winter salt.
I've then boiling-water shaken it, but residual rust is still on. Can I rewax this? As I don't want to go near degreaser to remove the existing rust as I assume that'll ruin future rewaxing
I’m no expert, but I would think you could bathe your chain in EvapoRust (available on line or in most hardware stores) overnight, and then rinse in water. That should get rid of any rust.
hello, great video. just a few quick questions: I've been using your hot wax for several months now, I'm happy with it but I find the chain quite noisy. I use wax on my road bike in dry weather, and I rewax (hot wax) the chain every 300/350km. Moreover, after several kilometers, I found that there was a lot of oilskin residue on the cassette sprockets, black lovers, is it really necessary to clean them? Furthermore, I also find the transmission "less fluid" than with Classic lubricant as some of my friends use, even though your wax is supposed to have less rolling resistance, any explanations? last question, I use a crockpot without a thermostat, so do you advise me to wait for the wax to cool a little (until a mini skin appears on top) before removing the chain?
Thank you in advance for your answer! Have a good day
Ferd
A waxed chain will always be louder. If you want a quiet drivetrain you need to use oil. The noise comes from the friction/contact between the chain and the cassette and sprocket. Since wax is only helping on the inside your chain runs "dry" on all those components. Oil covers everything so it dampens the noise, but it becomes a big mess after a while and dirt sticks to it.
I use boiling water and we have a lot of lime scale in our water do you think it will cause wear?
I would definitely used filtered or the like if that's the case where you live.
Hi. Is rewaxing with drip wax on the bike after a wet / muddy ride enough for corrosion protection? Of course after a good cleaning. I'm interested in waxing but I don't want to take my chain of and I ride my MTB frequently in wet and muddy conditions. Thanks in advance
taking chain of is really easy after the first two times of getting used to. Yes corrosion protection will stay for a while, however some chains catch rust quite fast, 105 and kmc chains for example.
Real question we have is why it's not called a crocpotinator 4000.
and can we do Nachos and Queso in it?
If I’m doing a few events similar to unbound, would it be better to just have a second chain dedicated to those events and use wet lube?
If you have an aid station where you can leave stuff, bring an extra waxed chain or two and swap as necessary. Swapping a chain can actually be quicker than re-lubing. Or just do what Josh recommends and apply a wet lube on top of the waxed chain--but be prepared to clean the drivetrain at the end, including fully re-prepping the chain for fresh hot wax. If it's going to be a really wet race, then just using a wet lube from the beginning might be the best bet.
Yes, if swapping chains is an option, that's the best option! We have quite a few people doing transcontinental and long FKT type things who just swap chains.
Silca is suck a wholesome bunch. ❤
This might be the first time I’ve heard Smegma referenced in a technical production.
What an excellent video……
I purchased a new Ultegra chain a couple of weeks ago, fully degreased and immersed in Silca secret wax.
After the first 50 mile ride, the chain links are still relatively stiff compared to a drip wax. I broke the chain in as much as I could prior to fitting and l thought after 50 miles it would be fully flexible but it's not. Is this normal?
New 12 speed Shimano chains will take a bit longer to break in than others, but should be good after 50 miles? Maybe try waxing a little hotter and pulling the chain at the higher temp, this will leave it a bit more flexible after waxing. After 3-4 waxing/riding cycles, the metal will be fully embedded with WS2 and things will loosen up.
Thanks for the response. It is an 11 speed chain, I'll have another go at more elevated temperature and remove earlier as advised.
On a used Campy Ekar chain, approx 1000km. I cleaned-striped it and treated it with Hot wax. I found that after 100km I felt it was nice and supple as per Petrol based wet lube.
Be advised that the Campy Ekar new can feel very stiff, especially on the extreme big cog for a good 500km.
how long do I keep the chain in the waxer at 75deg?
5-10 minutes. If you pull it too soon, the chain will be thickly coated in wax.. if you pull it and the wax coating is thin and translucent, then it has been in long enough.
Important correction: 100º F was actually supposed to be the body temperature of a COW, not a human….otherwise, great video, Josh! :)
On rewax at 75 degrees how long to you let it sit?
In the 75 degree wax to be specific.
5-10 minutes.. if you pull it too early it will be massively caked in wax on the outside (like you've made a candle!) and there is no 'too long' to leave it in.