More chain lube follies

 Chain, chain, chain....

Apologies to Aretha Franklin, but some people are foolish. Recently Zio Lorenzo was taken-to-task by (he assumes) a member of the chain-wax cult when he claimed a chain on his own bicycle showed zero measurable wear after 4000 miles of use, without ever being waxed. Simply oiled now and then.

He doesn't really hate these people but DOES hate the fact they act like anyone not in their cult is somehow a moron..or flat-earther as a certain Australian ex-cop likes to say.

Zio's used Mobil 1 as chain lube for decades with excellent results, but never paid much attention to actual data on wear...until the wax-culters started making some wild claims along with inferences that non wax-culters must be idiots. 

Now he has some.

Odometer reading from the bicycle. MAHLE e-bikes have (like your car) an odometer in them. There's no way that Zio knows of to tamper with them. 3991 kms with maybe 10% of that on dusty trails and the rest on paved roads. Certainly NOT the grueling test protocol "Mr. Friction Fiction" claims to put chains through, but in Zio's opinion probably more representative of normal use without any bias that might make wax seem superior to oil or vice-versa.

This chain was lubed with Mobil 1 SHC 75/90 and nothing else, maybe the first time Zio's actually done so. Usually he'd just grab a lube applicator and drip some oil of one brand or another on (after wiping the chain with a rag) then spin the cranks backwards a few times, wipe off excess and that was that.

Chain was cleaned a few times as part of a bike wash, using a teaspoon or two of simple diesel fuel brushed on the chain and the rest of the drivetrain components, then washed off with simple dish soap. A wipe with a dry rag completed the service. More lube was usually needed after a few hundred kilometers - dripped-on, wiped off.

Above is a new Campagnolo EKAR 13-speed chain, showing (surprise!) zero wear measured by a KMC digital chain checker.

Above is the chain that came on the bike after almost 4000 kilometers.

At least one person implied that something shady was being done with the digital chain checker to cheat on the results. Zio hopes the above shot of a non-digital checker's reading might get them to take off the tinfoil hat!

Bottom line? Use whatever you want on your chain (or mustache, bikini line, etc.) as it's your money and your time. But PLEASE stop trying to make it seem anyone not doing it your way is a Luddite, moron, flat-earther, etc. And pay close attention to what the marketers of these waxing products claim, they have a pretty big financial interest in your purchase of $50 bags o'wax pellets, gizmos to melt the wax in, etc. etc. vs a liter of gear oil for $15.

Updates: Various other bikes in our fleet - Bianchi E-Impulso Allroad used 90% of the time on dusty trails and maintained as above (chain lubed with any lube handy, most of the time Finish Line Green) 11-speed Shimano chain - 5450 km/.19 measured chain wear. 

Bianchi E-Aria 11-speed Shimano chain - 4654 km/.25 (bike bought used and lubed similarly to the first bike) 

Bianchi E-Impulso Allroad 11-speed Shimano (lubed exclusively with cheap, non-synthetic 90 w Repsol gear oil) 

999 km/.18 wear.

Seems like cheap Repsol gear oil is not so good? Worst result by far!

Wax on...wax off.

 Wax on...wax off.

Paraffin wax is obtained from petroleum by dewaxing light lubricating oil stocks. It is used in candles, wax paper, polishes, cosmetics, and electrical insulators.

Zio thought this was interesting. Regular blog readers have read his questions about the wax-cult and their claims about insane longevity of chains when wax is used instead of oil. Now a major chain maker is selling 'em pre-waxed and claims all ya gotta do is use the drip lube they sell. Just wipe the chain with a clean cloth they say and you're good to go. More details here.

Zio asked the "L. Ron Hubbard" of the wax-cult for his thoughts. I guess it should have been no surprise that "Friction Fiction" went off on a rant about how removing/degreasing/boiling your chain in wax is the greatest thing ever and anyone who questions this is a moron, or in his words - a "flat earther". We'll note here that NO chain or component maker that Zio knows of recommends removing your chain for cleaning, let alone taking all the original lubricant off and boiling it in wax. Most seem to warn against removing the chain except to replace it with a new one.

And let's not forget a chain (like a tire or brake pad) is a "service-item" that has a lifespan and should be replaced when it gets to its service-limit. Chain makers give a elongation measurement for replacement, saying if you exceed it you risk damaging other drivetrain components.

Zio's guess is if one could buy a pre-waxed chain and maintain it simply by wiping and dripping on some of the same wax, "Friction"s sales of bags o'wax pellets, etc. would probably tank, right?

But it got Zio to thinking about this more, ending up here for some comparisons taken from "Friction"s own website.

Zio notes the top performing drip lube in the "cost per run" charts is a product* that sells for $7.50 an ounce! Yep, ONE ounce! While the "cost per run" may not be as good as the immersive waxing scheme, Zio's not gonna bother doing that so he didn't bother with the chart showing those results.

But it makes him wonder how a drip lube that costs 68 cents an ounce and so far (3000+ kms) has netted 0 wear on a new 13 speed chain would rate? 

But Zio's guess is "Friction" will NEVER test MOBIL 1 SHC 75/90 because it's not marketed as a chain lube and would quite likely put a big dent in his entire wax-cult program. And as noted above, don't forget WAX comes from petroleum so the cultists who insist it's all so environmentally-friendly vs a few drops of oil on your chain are pulling-your-leg.

Finally, there's the issue of WHAT is the economy here? A new 12 speed chain sells for around $50** online. So if you double the life of yours you're saving $50, right? Triple the life and you save $100. But if you have to spend $50 on a bag o' wax + $100 on a "system" to boil your chain in wax + solvent and maybe ultrasonic cleaning equipment to take the grease off before you can do the waxing, not to mention the time involved with it all - WHERE is the savings vs just dripping some oil on now and then and cleaning the drivetrain when you wash the bike?

It's hard for ol' Zio not to see this as one of those "Save $ by buying my expensive stuff" schemes even if the claims of chain longevity are 100% true and accurate, but as they say "your results may vary".

* To be fair, this product's maker claims it contains no petroleum products, the "wax" is made from plant materials.

**Friction claims "We have cassettes at 700+ (my t-type xxsl is $1100 aud), chains are now up to 260 aud ($150+) for a t-type xxsl. Chain rings like sram red with integrated power meter can be 1500 to $2000aud+" which may well be true, but it kind of illustrates the stupidity of "saving money by using my expensive products" and makes Zio wonder what these people are doing that justifies this kind of expense? He remembers back-in-the-day special aluminum freewheels and titanium chains, but those were "world record attempt" limited-use things. Friction certainly knows his customers better than Zio and maybe they're happy spending this kind of dough and his immersive waxing regimen seems cheap in comparison?

A proper handlebar at last!

 Arrivederci FSA!

A proper handlebar at last! Zio Lorenzo tried to like the OEM spec'd FSA K-WING carbon handlebar, he really did! Especially when he thought about the PITA involved in changing it.

But after a couple of months and more than 1000 kms of trying he caved-in and ordered a more normal-shaped aluminum road bend handlebar by Ritchey. Heather likes their 31 mm bars OK as they have a reasonable shape and bend while Zio ordered the same FSA model stem but 10 cm vs the shorty OEM 7 cm. The hoses/cables/wires are no longer inside the stem (or bar), instead under a plastic cover that fits under the stem and under the bar tape. Does it really look all that untidy? Not to Zio!

The bike looks a lot more "normal" now, but the real benefit is the change in position. The distance from the tip of the saddle to the center of the handlebar is now Zio's normal spec while when he's down on the drops the front hub is hidden from view, just as they used to tell us was proper back-in-the-day.

Not too ugly, eh? Zio decided not to cut the steerer tube when he removed the 2 cm of spacers underneath, at least for now. But he's really liking the lowered bars despite them still being higher than normal due to modern frame design with higher headtubes and sloping top tubes.

An old-time round style top-cap and spacers ABOVE the stem don't look too bad, do they?

This was Zio's first project like this. He dreaded pulling hoses/cables/wires out of the insides of a bar and stem. It threatened to be a lot of work...and it was! The e-shifter wires had to be unplugged (once the plugs were finally found, deep inside the frame'a toptube!) and then snaked back through headtube and frame to be reconnected. 

The brake hoses have banjo-type fittings at the brake lever and Zio feared they wouldn't fit through the holes in the bar, but fortunately he was wrong, but they still had to be disconnected, which meant a time-consuming brake-bleeding session was required to finish-up. 

Meanwhile, the shift cable inner wire had to come out of it's housing so it too could be yanked out of the bar, then replaced, the entire time with Zio sort-of holding his breath as he pushed the inner cable back through all that housing - through the entire frame, hoping it would pop out rather than get stuck and frayed, requiring replacement with a new one. 

Super-duper, extra-slick cables are needed (Campagnolo call's 'em "Maximum Smoothness" which sounds like a men's shaving product) to deal with all the twists, turns and bends required for internal routing and the replacement cable/housing for this bike costs $100!

Zio breathed a sigh of relief when the cable popped out in good shape, especially as the super-slick aftermarket replacement (he forgot to order with stem/bar) wasn't going to arrive for a few days. From that point it was just running everything along the handlebar, then under the stem (where the extra wiring that didn't like being stuffed back into the headtube was coiled-up) where it's all hidden by a plastic cover. 

Zio had saved the original bar tape when he switched to the red cork (which didn't come off in one piece) to match the red SMP Glider saddle he tried before going back to the white Plus, so it went back on, easily covering the simple round bar vs the extra surface of the multi-shaped FSA thing.

The bike now fits properly. Zio likes the less flexy feeling with hands down in the drops along with the general shape and feel he's familiar with. The levers are no longer slanted/tilted/skewed, though it's unfashionable for sure. 

This damn near all-day project certainly would go more quickly next time, but even then it would likely still be a half-day project. But now with everything under the bar tape or under the stem cover, unless something goes wrong inside the headtube, any repairs or parts changes should be quick and easy in comparison!!

Best of all, when he hops on this bike it feels pretty much like his other bikes...finally!!!

 

 

FSA Carbon Handlebar

 What were they thinking?

With this handlebar? This thing was spec'd on Zio's new e-gravel bike.

This and the stem are the only things he really dislikes. He understands that "gravel" means ya gotta have a flared handlebar, but this thing? Really?

If you look at the linked page, you can scroll around the image and see all the "features" of this carbon-fiber masterpiece. From the odd hexagon shape on the drops, the strange depressions where top turns into drop, the 5 mm of rise (so you can leave a 5 mm spacer off under your stem?) the forward sweep of the top, plus the "wing" shape that gives the bar its name.

For Zio Lorenzo, every one of these "features" is really a "bug". He'd much, much rather have a simple round (aluminum) drop bar in a reasonable width rather than this crazy thing with an MSRP of over $300! 

The wing shape might look good and make one think it's maybe more "aero" than a round tube, but what about a place to put your hands? It's a HANDLEbar after all! The pros don't even bother taping this part so I guess they never hold-on there, especially without gloves? Even taped, the flat part close to the forward curve feels OK when your palms are flat on it but when you cup 'em a bit the edge of the "wing" made Zio think about sticking some foam padding around it as he did to fill up that odd depression near this area.

What good is the forward sweep? Zio sees no + here, in fact it feels kind-of odd after decades of a straight section on the bar top. Holding-on there skews your elbows out or forces an odd twist in your wrist. Same with the tiny 5 mm of rise...the point is? More "shaping" = more "value"?

Worse, the bike's product manager spec'd it with a stem of just 8 cm! This makes the steering more sensitive than Zio likes, though the odd-shaped bar does put his hands where he wants 'em on the brake hoods and kinda/sorta on the tops (despite the silly forward sweep) though that same shorty stem means hands down on drops is too short...and too wide thanks to the flare. 

These drop are not just flared-out side-to-side but also oddly twisted so they again push your elbows out. Why? The old "hands on drops, front hub invisible" rule still applies for him but the reach to the drops is too short for that.

You might say "You're a mechanic, just swap 'em out!" and with our Bianchi e-bikes it was easy as the hoses/cables exit the frame and then run under the stem and handlebar tape. 

But MV (again in the fashion of the day, just like the too wide and flared-out bar) put all the brake hoses and cables inside both stem and bar, not just inside the frame. Grrrr! This means opening up perfectly functioning front/rear hydraulic brake systems to get the hoses out along with the single shift cable and the wiring for the remote e-shifters!!! 

This means bleeding both front and rear brakes once the hoses are re-routed and Ergopower units installed on a new handlebar, re-inserting a shift cable that one hopes isn't too frayed to go back in and then reconnecting the e-shift button wires.

A longer replacement stem of the same brand/type would allow the hoses, etc. to be run up to and under the stem (through a removable cover) where they can then be run along the outside of the bar/under the tape like back-in-the-day, but what a PITA, not to mention the little bits (called olives) that seal the brake hoses probably will need to be replaced in the process. 

Zio gets tired just typing this! He really didn't want to tear this bike all apart before he'd even ridden it, though if he was able to see (and measure) a size S and M in-person he would have chosen S instead of M and asked the selling dealer to swap the bar/stem. But "that ship's sailed" as they say so for now "it is what it is" (as they also say) but he's almost hoping for another excuse to take the brake systems apart so he can swap the bar/stem in the process!

One other gripe - the 40 mm "aero" wheels. Combined with a 38 mm slick tire, Zio thinks they present too much area for swirling winds to blow against, making fast descending a bit sketchy so far. Maybe that longer stem will help? Perhaps the weight distribution with bars too high and reach too short causes this? Swapping wheels with a motor built into the rear wheel's not gonna happen...but if none of the other changes help, perhaps a lower profile front wheel would help?

Otherwise he's liking the bike - the fat tires make it so he doesn't have to ride the cracked roads of Sicily with one eye always looking down instead of where he's going, the Campagnolo EKAR groupset works well with adequate gearing (some say the 40 tooth chainring's too small but 40 X 9's tall enough as a top gear for Zio) and the rest of the bike seems just fine. 

The electric "granny gear" is nice too, he's decided to bump assist from 0 to 1 any time he's in a really low gear and would have been using the small 30 tooth front chainring on his "acoustic" (as they call 'em now) bikes. He's still hauling the battery and motor around even when not using 'em and they weigh a good deal more than an inner triple chainring and the bits that go with that - so WTF not?

 Handling both on and off pavement is good, but should be even better with a slightly longer stem...maybe 10 cm? Combined with a normal bar (no sweep, flare, rise) he'd probably be exactly where he wants to be position-wise.

So be careful with sizing! Seems like a lot of bikes are spec'd like this nowadays. Both the selling dealer and MV were consulted and supplied with Zio's exact measurements. He asked about XS vs S but both insisted M was the correct size. MV's geometry chart didn't much help so against his better judgement (which might have worked out for the best as the S size would have been worse with it's shorter top tube and shorty stem) he took their advice and went with M. That's one of the risks of online vs in-person purchasing (there was no dealer in the island of Sicily that had these in-stock..as it turns out neither did the dealer in Rome Zio bought this one from!) but he'd have for sure had to endure the PITA swap of bar/stem on the S so maybe he's better off than he knows?

Fixed!

 -MV-AGUSTA E-Gravel Bike

Fixed! Cancer-stick related logo covered!

You almost can't tell with the white background strip

Now the bike looks like it should, right? In a perfect world a -MV-Agusta would be red/silver like the ones Giacomo Agostini raced on, but Zio's not gonna take this thing apart and send it out for a repaint! Maybe a red SMP Glider saddle with red bar tape to match will liven things up? Check back, tape's on-the-way and saddle already here - see below.

The proper colors for MV, forget that cancer-stick livery!

The last MV Agusta Zio rode.

He's getting used-to the flared and aero-shaped carbon handlebar along with the more upright position on this bike. Getting close to real geezer-hood he's probably doing his back some good with less bending over so much? And disconnecting, rerouting and bleeding hydro brakes along with fishing a shift cable out to change handlebars isn't getting any more attractive vs living-with the current bar/stem. 

Almost 500 kilometers on it now, including a steep climb and twisty descent - gearing is adequate and assist level 1 seems to compensate for the extra weight of the bike when things get steep. Going down, response is good, no "desert-sled" sluggishness but the fat slicks and disc brakes will take some getting used-to. 

There's still more than 40% of the original battery charge remaining, so the "range-anxiety" expressed by many who obsess over 250 Wh vs 350 battery in the downtube or extra batteries mounted in the 2nd bottle cage makes Zio scratch his head. What kind of rides are these folks thinking about? Is it the old idea where the guy must have a Ford F150 pickup truck for the 2 times each year he has to haul 4 X 8 sheets of plywood vs the 363 other days of the year when it's just him and his lunchbox?

Overall, since the e-gravel-bike offerings with both MAHLE X20 and Campagnolo EKAR were so slim the MV has worked out to be a good choice for this old man. Don't think of an e-bike as "cheating" but rather something to let you tackle rides you might no longer feel up for. If you don't use any (or much) of the e-assist, more power to you! But you know it's there just-in-case, so you can set out worry-free!

Better? Needs some darker red bar tape Zio thinks, but a big improvement overall.

And now it has a proper headtube decal. A more simple black version might have looked better but Zio's always been enamored with the original, full-color version. Back in the day his friend's moto's stickers were peeling off - Zio found a great auto detail guy who copied them - painting 'em directly onto the moto! Back then who knew how to get stickers from Italy without going their yourself or knowing someone there?

Note: The seatpost collar/clamp broke the other day despite being torqued only with a calibrated 5 NM hex key. Instead of a $300+ carbon handlebar might they have included a decent clamp to hold the seatpost in place?

Slippery Subject Part 3

 More slippin' and slidin'

Read Part 2 HERE. Recently a sort of war has broken out on that infamous video channel between the "Friction Fiction" fellow (I use that name because he's been making threats of legal action against his detractors who have called him out by his or his company's name) and a fellow Aussie who has posted some rather crude criticism of the man and his company.

Zio ran afoul of "Friction Fiction" when he emailed to ask why no test results were on his website for Finish Line Wet, a popular chain lube, but the guy's finally managed to post some after first claiming it wasn't popular and that other Finish Line products he tested were NFG, so why bother? Of course the results for this one aren't very good either - no surprise there.

But the fellow did ask for experiences with this lube and since Zio's used it for years here's one:

Shimano 11-speed chain on GRX equipped gravel bike. Bike used from new with factory grease then periodically relubed with Finish Line Wet. Drivetrain cleaned now and then with a tablespoon or two of common diesel fuel as outlined in various bike wash regimens.

Roughly 50% of this bike's use has been on unpaved, dusty bike trails. Chain gets wiped-off now and then and relubed when it appears dry. A few drops on each side of the rollers while backpedaling to distribute the lube, then excess is wiped off.

The result - after 4200+ kilometers the chain now measures (via KMC digital chain-checker) wear of .15 mm averaged between 3 measurements. KMC says change 'em before wear exceeds .8 mm while Zio will install a new one when it gets to .4 mm.

Why change at .4 mm? The chain costs $30. Why take a chance on wearing the sprockets and cogs out just to squeeze a bit more life out of a cheap, easily replaceable component? Back when Zio maintained a fleet of rental bikes he swapped the chains out at just 2000 kms for the same reason. Just like pro racing teams he wanted to be sure any chain on any bike in the fleet would run happily (no skipping!) on any wheel.

Is Zio a huge fan of this lube? He does like the applicator bottle but wonders if the Mobil 1 SHC 75/90 gear oil he's also used for years (but doesn't have any data for) isn't just as good? Another wax-cult guy recently showed some tests of lubricant film-strength and Zio wonders what could be better in film strength than a lube designed for automotive manual transmissions and/or differential gears? But is film strength all that matters?

What does matter to Zio is that this test chain received pretty much zero care compared to the wax-cult regimen: no solvent cleaning to bare metal, no boiling in a wax cooker purchased just for the purpose, no $50 bags o' wax pellets or $30 squirt bottles of liquid wax for in-between lubes before removing the chain for retreatments. 

And no unfastening/refastening of the chain quick-links, which Zio thinks eventually will fail if you do this too many times. Those sell for $3-5 each. It all ads up, so the "Save money by buying my expensive product(s)" claims seem like most of the too-good-to-be true claims out there.

Could Zio realize double or triple the lifespan of this chain via religious and expensive waxing treatments? Maybe. But $90 for three of these chains is less than the solvent, a wax cooker and bag o' snake wax pellets, etc. not to mention the time spent fooling around with all this stuff. He guesses this chain will easily go another 2000 kms before replacement at .4 mm of wear.

When you make an objective comparison (Zio's not selling ANYTHING and gets nothing from Finish Line or Mobil) for his money "old school" oil still seems the simplest (and cheapest) way to take care of your chain, despite what the wax-cult zealots would like you to believe.

But feel free to wax away if you like! Chain, legs, mustache, "bikini area" ..whatever. Stay clean, enjoy the miniscule efficiency improvements touted, etc. But don't waste time in recruitment efforts on Zio to join the cult, OK?

The Friction fellow also claimed he'd asked Finish Line repeatedly for data to back up their marketing claims for their "WET" lube. But when Zio contacted Finish Line they said the guy had never contacted them. Seems like more marketing of whatever you sell vs stuff you don't with "data" to prove the stuff you sell is the best? 

Zio's gonna try using Mobil 1 on the chain of his new e-bike rather than Finish Line to see how it does in comparison. He might have some useful data in 6 months maybe? If film strength is all that matters the chain wear should be pretty low. Time and distance will tell, but even the exclusive 13 speed chain for this bike costs less than $50 so...

A Slippery Subject Part 2

 Friction Fiction?

Link to Part 1 HERE. Zio Lorenzo was doing the equivalent of "channel surfing" the other day on that popular internet site for people to upload video of all kinds. More and more these seemed aimed at somehow making money. Zio's made a couple of these himself, but the idea was to be helpful, sharing some information he thought not well represented online. He was not paid, just made 'em on request from a friend.

Being a long-time bicycle mechanic he was drawn to some chain-care videos that make some...well....questionable claims about wax. If you've been a bike rider for any length of time there's a good chance you've been accosted by one of these cult members. Zio certainly has!

Back-in-the-day the cult was smaller and perhaps the claims less questionable since they centered around how clean things would stay while maybe your chain would last longer as a result. But you still had to clean all the (perfectly good, though maybe aimed more at keeping the chain from rusting in the package than helping you go fast?) lube off the thing somehow, then boil it in the wax. 

Back then it was often just wax used to seal jars sold at the grocery store. Zio dismissed the attempts to get him to join the cult, figuring there was nothing much wrong with oil unless you were one of those clean-freaks. A well-lubricated chain is already said to be something like 98% efficient vs gears or belts, so what's the big deal?

A couple of things happened over recent years that seemed to revive and expand the waxing cult: Quick-links made it easier to remove and reinstall your chain and the era of "watts", as in measured power output or power "savings" via reduced friction, aero drag, etc, began. These developments made specialized waxes with special additives to the basic paraffin claimed to reduce friction and extend chain life popular and PROFITABLE - a 500 gram bag of this stuff can cost $50!

But you can't just buy a $50 bag o' snake-wax and dump it on your chain! First you have to clean the chain, best done (they say) via an ultrasonic cleaner and some sort of solvent, despite the fact that every chain maker's instructions Zio's read say NEVER remove your chain for cleaning. Once it's clean you'll need to boil it in the snake-wax, hoping you don't burn down your shop or garage in the process. Don't laugh, Zio knows of more than one wax-cult member who did just that!

All this for what? To avoid that "fred mark" on your calf if you bang it into the chainring? With the arrival of power-meters and talk of watt-saving, the supposed efficiency improvements now take center-stage, followed by wild claims of improved chain life and hundreds, if not thousands of dollars saved on cogs and chainrings!

Zio dismisses all the watt-saving hoopla as mostly marketing-maven bullspeak as finishing his daily bike ride one minute sooner is meaningless, but what about the longer chain and component life? Isn't that worth something?

A brand-new KMC 12-speed bike chain can be had for around $30 while 10 or 11-speed versions cost less. Zio's math says spending a lot of money and time to extend the life of a $30-40 chain is a losing proposition. If you keep a nearly-new chain on the the bike, the cogs and chainrings last almost forever based on results from the rental fleet Zio maintained for almost 2 decades.

But some of these snake-wax salesmen get pretty riled-up when you point this out as Zio assumes they're making fat stax selling $50 bags o' wax? One of these self-appointed wizards from the "World's leading independent test facility for chain lubricants" (his claim) has responded with some pretty nasty emails on the subject when asked about certain products he either hasn't tested*** or at least doesn't provide data for. The angry responses make Zio think he's hiding something, but who knows?

This is what Zio uses to lube chains these daze (and one of the products he wanted to see tested) If you want to support your local bike shop or spend extra on tiny bottles of bike-specific (though in a lot of cases the only thing bike-specific is the packaging) lube, it's your money. Apply it using this method**

Next, buy one of these things

There are many brands and Zio thinks any of 'em will do just fine. Measure your chain when new and periodically check it for wear. When it measures half-worn-out, simply replace it with a new one. Your cogs and chainrings will last a long, long time and you'll save a lot of time and money the wax-cult wastes. When it's time to clean the chain and drivetrain, a teaspoon of a solvent like diesel fuel* does the trick, something covered in the bike-washing video you can link-to above.

But no ultrasonic cleaners, no wax-boilers, no risk of fire and no $50 bags of wax pellets to extend the life of a $30/40 chain! While you're saving money think about cheaper substitutes for other bike-specific (and always more expensive) products. If you enjoy helping your local bike shop by purchasing their bike-specific products, that's OK...but if you want to save some money think of this:

Or this****:

From the grocery or auto supply store. Most of the time what's in these is the same stuff as the bike-specific waxing/polishing products, but the high-volume, low markup saves you money. Zio has taken care of fleets of bicycles for decades using cheap and easy to find products like these. Same goes for disc-brake care, many say you must use specific products or rubbing alcohol, but alcohol (not ammonia!) based window cleaners work just fine for cleaning your brake rotors after a bike wash.

As they say, IT'S YOUR MONEY!

*We'll admit an environmental argument to be made against using something as nasty as diesel fuel for this purpose. But consider a) You're not cleaning all the perfectly good grease off the new chain to apply the wax. If you do, where does that grease/oil + the solvent (made from?) end up? b) The diesel acts as both cleaner and lube so you use less chain lube overall. Don't forget you also use no electricity to power the ultra-sonic cleaner or wax-cooker. Wax-cultists say to clean your waxed chain you just boil it in water. Where does that contaminated water end up?

**1.  With your chain in the big ring and the smallest cog apply 8 to 10 drops of lube at random and run the chain backwards to distribute the lube. A very good method is the 12:12:12 method.  follow the instructions for chain position than add 12 random drops, rotate the chain 12 times than wipe it with a clean cotton cloth for 12 seconds.The cogs will do the job of distributing the lube.  Once all the lube has been distributed to the chain wipe any excess OFF the cog/chainring AND chain.

*** The guy mentioned finally DID mention testing Finish Line Wet lube in February 2024. No surprise that it wasn't highly rated but it was interesting he claimed nobody responded to inquiries he'd made to the maker. Zio contacted the maker who said they'd never heard anything from the guy, despite his claims to the contrary. Zio wonders if Mobil 1 would test any better but maybe the test protocol might be devised to make wax lubes look better since that's what the guy sells? Either way, he's content to skip the wax-cult's obsessive practices, save the money and "pay" any penalty in watts lost on his rides.

**** There's a guy out there asking $100 a liter for a spray wax product for bicycles! Might be some great stuff but how can it be worth 5 X the price of stuff you can buy at the auto parts store? What could it possible do (or not do) to your bike to justify that price?

Veloflex tires

Some things are just right!

Have you ever bought something and been delighted with...the packaging? The people at Veloflex seem to care about these things. The story (or legend) is when Vittoria tires sold out and the whole works was moved to Thailand some workers stayed in Italy and started their own company.

We love Vittoria tires, don't get us wrong (the company has been bought and sold a few times though it seems back in Italian hands now) but Veloflex remind us of the old daze of silk or high TPI cotton tubulars. And let's be clear, a great set of tires can make even a less-than-great bike ride pretty well as the installation of some high TPI, supple tires on Heather's gravel bike proved - a "night and day" difference in fact.

Conversely, a bad set of tires can make even a good bike ride like, well...crap. Zio Lorenzo's eager to put these CORSA EVOs on Heather's new Bianchi e-Aria road bike (which already rides pretty well with the mid-range Vittoria Rubino tires that came on it) to really bring it to life!

There's a lot more on the blog about the subject of tires. Type tires into the search box at the upper right to see them.

He's BAAAaaack!

 Super Gravel Monster lives on

Perhaps a bit less fugly than before? Zio thinks so. He missed having this bike to ride with Heather on her e-Bianchi Impulso allroad when they hit the local bike trail. Even with the fatter tires and suspension stem, the Torelli Gran Sasso was a bit harsh so having this back from the painter (grazie Michele Favaloro & Co!) is great.

No changes other than fresh paint and a new headset. Kind of an homage to Zio's original fire-road flyer, the Bridgestone MB-1 that was also red. Zio keeps thinking about a modern gravel bike but isn't too keen on disc brakes so Campagnolo EKAR isn't really exactly what he wants, so it's "Super Gravel Monster" for now, though one of these is tempting.

One other change is a 12-24 cogset in back. As a gravel bike a super-low gear like the 28 X 28 wasn't really useful while the huge gaps in the old 7-speed cassette were annoying. A 12-24 will close things up and make for less shifting on the flatter parts of the ride....or at least makes the gaps smaller.

REDSHIFT ShockStop stem review

 REDSHIFT ShockStop stem review*

A suspension stem you ask? Yep! This one from REDSHIFT served two purposes.

The first was replacing the 12 cm stem Zio Lorenzo stuck on this bike before he brought it down to Sicily. Too long! He stupidly failed to bring any other lengths just-in-case, so what to do?

If he was gonna buy a shorter one, why not try one of these to soften up the ride of this great Torelli Gran Sasso a bit more than the 27 mm tires (the widest that will fit on this bike) provide, especially on strada sterrata like on the old rail-trail along the sea? Zio was already running 60 psi in front and 70 psi in back but still felt more "sting" on the bumps than he liked, especially after riding his Super Gravel Monster on the same trail. Its frame is being painted at present so this Torelli is IT for unpaved roads.

Bolts right on with a shim Zio already had for the 1" steerer tube along with a shim he bought with the stem to use a 26 mm bar in the stem's 31 mm clamp. Looks pretty normal, right?

It comes with a selection of elastomers so you can get the amount of movement you prefer. Zio set his up using the recommended pair and liked it just fine. No bouncing around, just a bit more "cush" when your front wheel hits a bump. No slop or wiggle when you hop over a bigger bump though you do get a bit of movement when you land or stand up and push down hard on the bars, but nothing like that when simply standing up on the pedals to accelerate or climb. You don't notice it until you hit a bump and even then it's very subtle, but still effective.

Overall, it feels like Zio let another 10 psi out of the front tire without any of the squishiness he'd feel running that tire at just 50 psi, so he's kind of happy that he failed to bring a rigid 10 cm stem down here just-in-case!

* Zio bought this at MSRP through the REDSHIFT website.

Slam that stem!

 Slam that stem?

Fausto Coppi 1940

We see and hear plenty about not having any spacers under your stem these days. Of course back in "Il Campionissmo"s day the quill stem simply moved up or down inside the steerer tube, but note how low Coppi's position is despite this.

One thing that IS very different these days is the bar shape. Oddly enough modern handlebars with the kind of "drop" you see here are almost non-existent. All of 'em are now "compact" style, some even with horribly uncomfortable curves (almost corners!) and drops so short your forearms hit the bars when you try to use 'em.

For us this explains why so few modern cyclists ever ride with their hands down there. Our guess is the rider might actually be more aerodynamic with his/her hands up on the brake hoods than down in these too-shallow drops? That's the way it seems with the pros these days.

This "progress" seems to reduce the useful hand positions as with things "slammed" for most people a bar with traditional drops has too much drop, so these compact things sort of fix it, though the result is the drop position becomes rather useless, meaning you have fewer usable places to put your hands rather than more.