Make Your Own Cable and Chain Lube
One of my buddies who is a Mercedes Benz mechanic told me that Automatic Transmission Fluid is used by MBZ dealerships as linkage lube and for cable lube.
So I decided to give it a try. I went down to the local Wally World and picked up a quart of ATF for about $1.72. Then I got out one of my old contact lens solution bottles and headed out to the garage.
Popped off the top of the bottles and started pouring.
I then tested it on some brake cables…
And on the chain…
This actually worked pretty well and its alot cheaper than spending up to $10 for lube. Heck, a whole quart will last me for years!
Surely if there is no picture of a pushbike on the bottle and no ridiculous price, that wouldn’t work?
Just kidding.
I make my oil even lighter with some kerosine for the drive chain.
I use olive oil… sometimes sunflower… depending on what I’ve got laying around the garage.
Rick’s Road Rider recipe
You already have the ingredients in your garage. Most bicycle oil is too runny ie mineral oil baised or to “grey greasy. Too much grease.
I formulated the happy medium. May I suggest
1/2 cup ATF
1/4 cup Synthetic 30 weight motor oil (suspender)
3/4 cup STP
Mix ingreadients in an empty shampoo or hair care products bottle. They are usually made out of HDPE 2 plastic, and are unaffected by oil. If you have split ends confuse the bottles.
Oil liberally the chain and sprocket. Wipe off as much dried grease as you can. (Before you apply.) Turn you bicycle upside down and crank it with the chain going through a rag with the Mixture on it. It will really clean up the chain and lube the itty bitty places. Take a q-tip and apply to the sprocket and shifter.
you want the chain “wet” . Flip the bicycle over and let it sit for 30 minutes over newspaper.
You should be good for a couple of months if you are a street rider. If you Mountain biker give this a go every other trip.
share this with your fiends. They will think you are generous because they have no idea how little you spent.
I’ve become overweight and my chains are wearing out too fast. I know how bus gearboxes can last up to 10 years, but you would be surprised how small the actual gear teeth are, and anyway, it’s the clutches that wear out, not the gears. Gearbox oil copes with Extreme Pressure (EP), so might be better for me. I think I will need to soak the chain overnight in it.