Which immersive wax are you using?

Started by jonathanf2, February 12, 2025, 02:08:01 PM

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Da11as

Quote from: carbonazza on August 13, 2025, 06:23:30 AM
Related... I'm now using this melter, which I find much better than the rice cooker I tried before
It's a little more expensive
A bigger capacity
It has a stable temperature(two preset 65ºC or 75ºC), and never gets too hot
It takes a little more time to melt fully

https://aliexpress.com/item/1005007724099998.html
3L... you probably have a lot of wax and a lot of chains. Or very hairy.

jonathanf2

I've started adding graphite into my paraffin wax mix. I don't feel the need to mess with PTFE. It's just easier to swap chains and re-wax. I have a slow cooker dedicated for the process, so it's become streamlined for me. Also KMC wax-ready chains make it even easier. Just size-to-length, wax and it's ready.

Also from all the snapped chains I've seen while on the road, it's always with bikes using regular grease. My gravel bikes tend to get waxed a bit more often since they usually get hosed down, my road bikes don't need waxing as often since they tend to stay dry.

cramy

I have a remaining batch of candle waxcomposed of 80% paraffin wax + 20% stearin, oil content max 0,5%, do you think I could use this for the chain waxing?

cccccccccccccccx

I'm a sucker, so I just bought Silca everything. Stripper, wax, dripon, heating pot. It has worked brilliantly.

carbonazza

Quote from: Da11as on August 15, 2025, 06:21:20 AM
3L... you probably have a lot of wax and a lot of chains. Or very hairy.

6 bikes at home (not all mine!), with 3 chains each, doing them in batches 8)


amacal1

Quote from: carbonazza on August 28, 2025, 06:58:11 AM
6 bikes at home (not all mine!), with 3 chains each, doing them in batches 8)

At that point, just keep them sealed in a big cooled wax pot. When it's time to swap, warm up the pot to extract a new chain and deposit an old one.

ZacItaly15

Yesterday I clean my waxed chain with
-100degree water bath to remove the initial wax
-dishwasher liquid soap (if it works on greasy pan...) and it worked perfectly
-final degrease with alcaline solution (chromed wheels cleaner)

Chain was new in 2minutes...

carbonazza

Quote from: amacal1 on August 28, 2025, 09:49:38 AM
At that point, just keep them sealed in a big cooled wax pot. When it's time to swap, warm up the pot to extract a new chain and deposit an old one.

I see :D ... but that won't work...
I usually remember about 5 minutes before a ride I need to replace my chain.
And I use an old rice cooker with boiling water to clean my chains before waxing them

Tijoe

I have a container that is filled with all my used solvents.  (Mineral spirits, Acetone, Iso-P Alcohol, perhaps some white/Naptha gas, Gasoline, and lacquer thinner. Quite the blend of stinky stuff.  (On occasion when all the heavy crap in the blend settles, I will pour the used solvent through an old microfiber cloth to keep it somewhat filtered)
I pour some of this saved solvent crap into a SST bowl, add the chain, sluice it around a few times, and then let the chain soak for a while.   Then I remove the chain, and link and take it to a sink where I spray it with a higher percentage mix of "Awsome" cleaner, then put it in almost boiling water.  After the chain is clean, I blow it off with compressed air.  Then it is dipped in my pan filled with my melted 'Baby Bell" wax.     

Tijoe

Writing about wax.   I know that you "roady clean freak" riders with have a fit, but I am attaching a couple of chain-porn-pics showing my gravel bike chain before adding liquified wax diluted with Coleman fuel.    I am amazed how quickly my off-road bike chains pick up dirt/dust and grit.  I plan on cleaning the bike after tomorrows longer ride.  This time of year, the gravel roads I ride are very dusty and dry, and have been beating the heck out of me and the bikes.



crazyravr

Quote from: jonathanf2 on August 15, 2025, 10:38:31 AM
I've started adding graphite into my paraffin wax mix. I don't feel the need to mess with PTFE. It's just easier to swap chains and re-wax. I have a slow cooker dedicated for the process, so it's become streamlined for me. Also KMC wax-ready chains make it even easier. Just size-to-length, wax and it's ready.

Also from all the snapped chains I've seen while on the road, it's always with bikes using regular grease. My gravel bikes tend to get waxed a bit more often since they usually get hosed down, my road bikes don't need waxing as often since they tend to stay dry.

Share a link to those chains? I have never seen "wax ready" chains. Pre-waxed yes but not stripped of all grease etc.

jonathanf2

Quote from: crazyravr on September 05, 2025, 08:28:27 AM
Share a link to those chains? I have never seen "wax ready" chains. Pre-waxed yes but not stripped of all grease etc.

Just do a search for KMC wax chains. They're ready out-the-box for the immersive wax process. No need to do a degrease step on the chain.

Though I find the KMC chains much easier to degrease. SRAM seems to gunk their chains in a sticky grease residue. I had to do several ultrasonic passes to clean an Eagle 12 speed chain.

crazyravr

Quote from: jonathanf2 on September 07, 2025, 10:22:07 AM
Just do a search for KMC wax chains. They're ready out-the-box for the immersive wax process. No need to do a degrease step on the chain.

Though I find the KMC chains much easier to degrease. SRAM seems to gunk their chains in a sticky grease residue. I had to do several ultrasonic passes to clean an Eagle 12 speed chain.

Tried. I got nothing on Ali.


crazyravr