cosmetic rust is one thing but rust on the inside of the plates where the O ring sits is difficult to spot and can buble up under the seal, pushing it out of position. TBH during winter, I try to minimise riding on salted roads and but cannot totally avoid them and found either heavy coating of wurth (over few rides) or XCP keep rust at bay when the bike is in the garrage in between rides. I also noticed that in cold weather, wax lubes go stiff so the chain links do not line straight until warmed up. XCP avoid this and no clicking sound when wheeling the bike in cold weather
for anyone that's interested my review of several chain lubes, not BS no sponsorship https://www.1000rr.co.uk/threads/chain-lube-experiment.22257/ BTW XCP is now king!
i have bought some cleaner, and will give it a go when i can see properly to do it, thanks for the advice again boys
Haven't been on the forum for awhile, so im late to the thread. Maintaining the chain with chain lube regularly, not having rust visible is necessary to prevent wear and tear on the sprockets. When cleaning, it also gives you the opportunity to check the chain tension and any stiff links. It takes 5mins to do. I normally after a long ride, clean with WD40, and apply engine oil, with the chain still warm. Then on the paddock stand run it up to remove excess. Clean the under tray. As mentioned previously we all do things differently, and think we have the best solution LOL.
I'm still on my original chain, although I think it's going to be at it's adjustment limit soon, but that's after nearly 16k miles. I'm pretty certain it has lasted so long as 90% of my miles are commuting into central London so there's very little stress on the chain. The odd track day and spirited ride out on those rare sunny weekends (when we're also "allowed" - read into that what you like) has probably put the most strain on my chain, and I'd probably be on replacement chain 2 or 3 by now. Definitely one thing to avoid is using a wire brush to get rid of the rust, it'll also get rid of those rubber O-rings and then you're stuffed.
Here's how I've set up my Scottoiler. It was a bit of a faff, if I'm honest, but it does seem to look after the chain. I'm on 36,000 miles.
interesting set up you have there, they don't work well with the oem rear sprocket that has a groove, you run w/o the sprocket cover?
Lol, no. I didn't see much point in taking a picture of the sprocket cover. Besides which, my bell-bottoms would get caught, sans cover!
Your set up may tempt me to start using mine again, like I said, setting it up on the rear sprocket just causes a mess. At least within the cover the initial fling is all caught up and localised.
Mine was initially directed at the centre of the rear sprocket at the bottom of the chain, but it kept mullering the copper pipe. It's amazing how much vertical movement there is on the chain, even when really close to the sprocket! I set the flow by running the bike on a stand, with the cover off, until I got one drop per minute-ish. That seems to work well, but do get the occasional drip off the chain when I arrive, especially in hot weather. Beware your (or someone else's) block paving! I read somewhere that used engine oil is as good as (expensive) Scottoiler oil. A full reservoir lasts about 900 miles, but it's a pain if you let it run dry as it takes forever for the plastic pipe to fill up again & start dripping. I once did a journey with the oiler set to 'prime'. The left side of my tyre didn't suffer with rust. Or grip.
I usually blast mine first with the pressure washer to get off any easily moved stuff. Then apply liberally kerosene and allow 8t to sit for a few minutes, then use a 3 sided brush on the chain with the engine idling on a paddock stand in 1st. Got to make sure to stay well away from the sprockets unless you don't need fingers. Then once clean, and it is always spotless afterwards another blast with the pressure washer to get the kerosene off, dry with a towel, and then liberally apply with my hands engine oil to the chain, making sure not to over apply. Never had any rust on my chains, and they last a decent amount of time!
Makes me cringe at the very thought of going anywhere near a chain and sprocket whilst idling in 1st gear!! Just no
yes it does and i learnt the hard way , but i wont do it again well not with that hand anyway .dohhh , lol
Well, i actually did it today, used WD40 chain cleaner and it was surprisingly effective, and it was really caked in grease and dirt. I really did strip it back to the gold colour but the pins are still rusty. I used one of those brush whatsits, and im afraid to say i did have it in 1st gear, with a very stern looking bf watching on from a safe distance, outside the splash zone. I used WD40 chain wax, glad its run out, i dont rate it, so i also used some standard chain lube that i have always used. Time to stock up again now
I would have thought the oil should drop onto the chain on the top run. That way it passes over the sprocket first.
Nope, you want it on the inside so the centrifugal force flings it through the chain rather than merely straight off
