How often do you oil your chain?

Yeah the carwash is good for cleaning a chain long as you lube it after. i do that now and then:P

Look at the rollers. If they are dry and shiney It's time to lube. Mileage to get to this point varies greatly. If it's clear blue skys 200-300 miles is practical. You'll notice if you ride through any rain or dirt roads the chain will be already in need of lube. I've lubed mine as often as 20 miles under these conditions. I get 60,000 miles out of a chain.

every tank of gas(about 120 miles for me) i lube it, and evry other i hose it down w/ wd40 and oil it.

I do it often enough that I have a very oily rear rim. 150-250 miles, or every week or two, or every other tank of gas, take your pick.

When it looks dry. I clean it with wd40 about every 4th oil. I change my oil and filters first about end of March, first of July and then about mid September regardless of mileage. Very little riding between Nov and March. Seafoam every other tank of gas. They all sip on a battery tender when not in use.
Top off the Blinkers once a week and rotate the air in my tires every 5 miles. Sometimes I don't even ride my bike...we just cuddle. :blink:

You might want to check the chain slack & do an adjustment if necessary. To measure I use a wooden folding carpenters ruler taped to a block of wood. Just place the gizmo on the floor w the ruler next to the chain & check as per the manul.

Liquid Wrench Cycle Chain lube seems to be a good lubricant - plus it's cheap & readily available. It goes on wet but kinda dries to a nice film. For cleaning the chain, I saturate it w the same stuff until dripping wet, then wipe it off w a clean cloth. Sometimes I use a cloth dampened w mineral spirits.

Jeez sorry Im new to bikes... I change my oil every 3k miles...

It's all good dude, people here were just surprised at how long you went. As from above, lube your chain with a good quality chain lube about every 300 miles. As far as oil goes, I change my oil about every 1000 mi and change oil filter every other change.

most summers if i changed the oil every 1000 miles i'd doing it after weekend with oil i usally drop it after 3000 miles and do the filter every second time myself sometimes i'll even wait for the third change before i replace filters

OKC_Kent wrote:

I do it often enough that I have a very oily rear rim.

I cured that problem by switching to the Dupont Teflon Multi-Use spray lube in the blue can ($5 at Lowes). It goes on wet but the carrier evaporates and leaves a waxy coating. Way better than the old slimy stuff.

you better be sorry son, now get in your room till dinner and afterwards no t.v and straight to bed mister!!!!!


anyway like he said do it all the time...get where you have the chain adjusted to have about 3/4 to an inch of play on the chain from it's resting spot (while sitting off the stand wheigthed/resting on its wheels)3/4 an inch up and down from it's rested position is enough imo......get that act down then lube and check every other ride till you get a feel for it...the rollers that hit the teeth should always be lubed/greasy and not shiny...better a dirty rim at first than a shitty driveline imo...also some folks adjust em a tad looser...peacelikes2gofast2009 wrote:

650ed wrote:

Are you serious??? Take a look at the Kawasaki manual. It recommends lubing the chain every 300 km (that's about 186 miles). I do mine about every 300 miles and the original chain lasted 36,000 miles and would have gone further but I don't like running parts until they die. I'm on my second chain with about 49,000 miles and my adjuster is only at the 1st mark. I use "Chain Wax." Just curious, how often do you change your oil? Ed

Jeez sorry Im new to bikes... I change my oil every 3k miles...

I lube my o-ring chain with WD-40 once or twice a summer. That's all it needs and I have in excess of 10,000km on the chain and sprockets. Good quality o-ring chains don't need internal lubrication as they have it built in from the manufacture. They merely need to be cleaned and lightly lubed (to keep from rusting) once in a while.

how does the metal roller get lubed where it contacts the sprocket teeth...just madfe me think the way you stated the recomendation for an o-ring.....non o-ring here for now till the next one.....TerryK wrote:

I lube my o-ring chain with WD-40 once or twice a summer. That's all it needs and I have in excess of 10,000km on the chain and sprockets. Good quality o-ring chains don't need internal lubrication as they have it built in from the manufacture. They merely need to be cleaned and lightly lubed (to keep from rusting) once in a while.