I was putting new shoes on the SuperHawk tonight and decided to do some extra cleaning while the wheel was on the balance stand after mounting the new tire.

I noticed how well the chain and sprocket are doing.

29,000 miles, original chain and sprocket and they look as good as new.

I don't care what the chain lube companys say and all the hype about auto chain oiler is total BS.

All you need to do is protect the chain from rust and noise with a litte WD-40 every 500 hundred miles or so or after a wash.

 

I use the stuff to clean my chain before I lube it. The stuff rocks in that case.....

 

Oh **** dont start this argument again LOL. I guess you really can't argue with your results.

 

No argument intended, facts are facts.....I am sure the chain and sprocket will wear out one day, but for now still got some miles to see...

Thats all we use on our dirt bike chains as well, of course they are O-Ring style chains

 

WD-40 Well, Who Knew...?

I had a neighbor who had bought a new pickup. I got up very early one
Sunday morning and saw that someone had spray painted red all around
the sides of this beige truck (for some unknown reason). I went over,
woke him up, and told him the bad news. He was very upset and was
trying to figure out what to do probably nothing until Monday morning,
since nothing was open. Another neighbor came out and told him to get
his WD-40 and clean it off. It removed the unwanted paint beautifully
and did not harm his paint job that was on the truck. I'm impressed!
WD-40 who knew?

Water Displacement #40.
The product began from a search for a rust preventative solvent and
degreaser to protect missile parts. WD-40 was created in 1953 by three
technicians at the San Diego Rocket Chemical Company. Its name comes
from the project that was to find a "water displacement" compound.
They were successful with the fortieth formulation, thus WD-40. The
Corvair Company bought it in bulk to protect their atlas missile parts.
Ken East (one of the original founders) says there is nothing in WD-40
that would hurt you.

When you read the "shower door" part, try it. It's the first thing that has
ever cleaned that spotty shower door. If yours is plastic, it works just as
well as glass. It's a miracle! Then try it on your stovetop... Voila! It's now
shinier than it's ever been. You'll be amazed.

Here are some of the uses:

1) Protects silver from tarnishing.

2) Removes road tar and grime from cars.

3) Cleans and lubricates guitar strings.

4) Gives floors that 'just-waxed' sheen without making it slippery.

5) Keeps flies off cows.

6) Restores and cleans chalkboards.

7) Removes lipstick stains.

8) Loosens stubborn zippers.

9) Untangles jewelry chains.

10) Removes stains from stainless steel sinks.

11) Removes dirt and grime from the barbecue grill.

12) Keeps ceramic/terra cotta garden pots from oxidizing.

13) Removes tomato stains from clothing.

14) Keeps glass shower doors free of water spots.

15) Camouflages scratches in ceramic and marble floors.

16) Keeps scissors working smoothly.

17) Lubricates noisy door hinges on vehicles and doors in homes.

18) It removes black scuff marks from the kitchen floor! Use WD-40 for
those nasty tar and scuff marks on flooring. It doesn't seem to harm
the finish and you won't have to scrub nearly as hard to get them off.
Just remember to open some windows if you have a lot of marks.

19) Bug guts will eat away the finish on your car if not removed quickly!
Use WD-40!

20) Gives a children's play gym slide a shine for a super fast slide.

21) Lubricates gear shift and mower deck lever for ease of handling on
riding mowers.

22) Rids kids rocking chairs and swings of squeaky noises.

23) Lubricates tracks in sticking home windows and makes them easier
to open.

24) Spraying an umbrella stem makes it easier to open and close.

25) Restores and cleans padded leather dashboards in vehicles, as well
as vinyl bumpers.

26) Restores and cleans roof racks on vehicles.

27) Lubricates and stops squeaks in electric fans.

28) Lubricates wheel sprockets on tricycles, wagons, and bicycles for easy
handling.

29) Lubricates fan belts on washers and dryers and keeps them running
smoothly.

30) Keeps rust from forming on saws and saw blades, and other tools.

31) Removes splattered grease on stove.

32) Keeps bathroom mirror from fogging.

33) Lubricates prosthetic limbs.

34) Keeps pigeons off the balcony (they hate the smell).

35) Removes all traces of duct tape.

36) Folks even spray it on their arms, hands, and knees to relieve arthritis
pain.

37) Florida's favorite use is: "cleans and removes love bugs from grills and
bumpers."

38) The favorite use in the state of New York WD-40 protects the Statue
of Liberty from the elements.

39) WD-40 attracts fish. Spray a LITTLE on live bait or lures and you will
be catching the big one in no time. Also, it's a lot cheaper than the
chemical attractants that are made for just that purpose. Keep in
mind though,using some chemical laced baits or lures for fishing are
not allowed in some states.

40) Use it for fire ant bites. It takes the sting away immediately and
stops the itch.

41) WD-40 is great for removing crayon from walls. Spray on the mark
and wipe with a clean rag.

42) Also, if you've discovered that your teenage daughter has washed and
dried a tube of lipstick with a load of laundry, saturate the lipstick
spots with WD-40 and re-wash. Presto! Lipstick is gone!

43) If you sprayed WD-40 on the distributor cap, it would displace the
moisture and allow the car to start.

 

and gets behind the seals in the chain & breaks down the grease. no thanks, i'll stick to kerosene.

tim

 

i don't know about wd-40 as a chain lube. i do know that stuff works great on almost everything. i think i will give it a try. how often should a chain be lubed?

 

HAHA let the argument start! Like I said you can't argue with your results. I think ALOT of products out there are a scam... When I said don't start that argument I meant it as a joke because I once saw this exact topic argued fiercely somewhere before. I know wd40 is a solvent and I figured it would dry the chain out, but if you get such good results who can argue with that?

 

I do think the biggest contributors to a good life are keeping it clean/rust free and properly adjusted, in addition to some form of regular lubrication.

 

the o-ring/x-ring/sealed chains cant be 'lubed'. the best you can do is keep them clean and rust free. wd40 seems to do that pretty well. I recall reading at least 1 chain company saying they recommend it.

 

I switched over a few thousand miles ago to WD-40 on the chain... aside from the benefits of a nice clean chain that hasn't shown any noticable wear or "sticking" links, I don't have 1/10th the gunk I used to have all over rear of the bike do to the flying lube!!! Only negative I've noticed is that I delt with 4 weeks of gunk sliding off my kickstand as the WD-40 was causing the years of built up crap in the sprocket cover to come loose.

J.

 

I use it too, though I'm not consistent on cleaning the chain, and that may be more important than what you use to clean it.

 

And what do you think WD-40 mostly is????





It's kero...probably about 60% by the smell of it.

 

it's the penetrant properties of wd-40. i imagine kero would disolve the sealed grease if it got by the seals but it is a thicker product.

tim

btw: it really may be a mute point, the bearing & race assembly everybody talks about was ( sealed ) was two years old ( i think ).
but i think it's worth mentioning.

 

It's almost as good as Astro-Glide.

 

Exactly why WD-40 is all you need. It doesn't break down the o-ring or x-ring seals.


Same goes for dirt bikes we have. The main culprit for wear is dirt and rust. WD prevent the rust after a wash and the pressure washer blast the dirt away.

 

The rollers are prelubed/sealed. Still a good idea to lube the side plates though. That's why Honda calls for gear oil on the chain every 500 miles.

Will it last a long time with WD-40 only? Probably, but I have a jug of gear oil in the garage and it only takes a minute to brush some on after I clean the chain.

 

I'm not sure why, or how, but I have about 5 cans of WD-40 sittiing around waiting for the valve to open.

I gonna start using it for everything!!

Maybe I can have it all gone someday.