# Chain lubricant



## rcleone (Dec 7, 2015)

What is the best lubricant to use on the snow blower chain?


----------



## orangputeh (Nov 24, 2016)

rcleone said:


> What is the best lubricant to use on the snow blower chain?


any good motorcycle chain lube will do.Blaster , Liquid Wrench , etc. I also use these for cables.


----------



## rcleone (Dec 7, 2015)

My Ariens is three years old and I've never lubed the chain, thank you.


----------



## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

Even engine oil is better than nothing but a dedicated liquid or spray chain lube will stick better and might be better able to penetrate. 
With a spray you want to make sure to protect the rubber friction wheel and the plate that drives it from the spray. 
Can of chain lube will usually run anywhere from $5-$10 depending on where and what you buy.

Just two examples. 


https://www.walmart.com/ip/WD-40-Bike-All-Conditions-Lube-Aerosol-2-5oz/548992597





https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003L33Q0O?tag=outdoorgearco2-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1




.


----------



## WrenchIt (Dec 6, 2020)

Chain lubes consist of a sticky grease in solution with a solvent 'carrier'. You spray the stuff on, it seeps into all the nooks and crannies of the chain, and the 'carrier' evaporates, leaving the lubricant behind. Blaster, Liquid Wrench, WD40 are NOT lubricants, and will wash away the grease, leaving the steel exposed to rust.


----------



## Big Ed (Feb 10, 2013)

Bel-Ray super clean is a good chain lube.








Super Clean Chain Lube


Designed to resist fling-off (even in high speed applications).




www.belray.com


----------



## orangputeh (Nov 24, 2016)

WrenchIt said:


> Chain lubes consist of a sticky grease in solution with a solvent 'carrier'. You spray the stuff on, it seeps into all the nooks and crannies of the chain, and the 'carrier' evaporates, leaving the lubricant behind. Blaster, Liquid Wrench, WD40 are NOT lubricants, and will wash away the grease, leaving the steel exposed to rust.


i use Blaster and Liquid Wrench CHAIN and CABLE LUBE. These are specifically chain and cable lubes. If you say these are no good then I'll change over to something you recommend. 

Always trying to learn about better products. Some chain lubes are super expensive though and I work on a lot of machines.


----------



## rcleone (Dec 7, 2015)

wrenchit, your saying that Blaster Chain lube isn't a chain lube


----------



## ST1100A (Feb 7, 2015)

rcleone said:


> wrenchit, your saying that Blaster Chain lube isn't a chain lube


That is not the same product as 'PB Blaster' is, that is a totally different product that is meant for chains. The standard 'PB Blaster' is not meant for chains although it will work for a very short time to free up a rusted/frozen chain, it will also wash out any grease that is in between the pins and rollers, the 'Critical' part of the chain that needs the grease and lubricants.
Honda offers an excellent chain lube that contains 'Moly' and 'PTFE' or 'Teflon' that does not fling off of a chain, it also penetrates down into the pins and rollers very well and dries to a 'Tacky' coating.
Most good motorcycle chain lubricants/oils are of the aerosol spray on type that are specifically made for chains that penetrate in and dry to a tacky coating so they do not fling off. They are water resistant, meant for the severe applications a motorcycle chain encounters and are long lasting.
A good chain lubricant could cost $10-15-20 a can. Bel-Ray makes a good chain lube also as does many other companies, normally available at motorcycle shops.


----------



## CarlB (Jan 2, 2011)

i use regular all purpose bearing grease.


----------



## Ziggy65 (Jan 18, 2020)

I have a 50/50 mix of ATF and 10W30 in my hand held oiler.
I apply it sparingly and dab off any excess with a paper towel.


----------



## orangputeh (Nov 24, 2016)

I like watching Project Farm videos on youtube. sometimes the most expensive stuff is not the best.

I used to use expensive penetrating oil that cost $20 a can and found out thru his video that Liquid Wrench penetrating oil at $4 a can came out on top.

Same can be said for many shop materials like carburetor cleaner, chain and cable lubes , and more.


----------



## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

As mentioned above, things have changed and one of the ones I've been caught on is WD40. The original WD40 isn't really a lubricant but it's somehow become the "Kleenex" of around the home and garage lubes for a lot of people. Original WD40 was great for what it was designed for, "W"ater "D"isplacement. It was great for drying out ignition components.
But now they make a whole array of products so when someone says WD40 I always think they're talking about the original stuff and I'm too quick to say that's not the stuff to use. I'm pretty sure WD40 does make a specific chain lube.
I like using the original WD40 for cleaning tools. Quick spray and a wipe 

.


----------



## WrenchIt (Dec 6, 2020)

rcleone said:


> wrenchit, your saying that Blaster Chain lube isn't a chain lube





orangputeh said:


> i use Blaster and Liquid Wrench CHAIN and CABLE LUBE. These are specifically chain and cable lubes. If you say these are no good then I'll change over to something you recommend.


No guys, I misunderstood the term "Blaster". Everyone I hang out with uses that for PB Blaster - a penetrating juice like Kroil, etc. I have no problem with anything sold as chain lube until told otherwise. As said, penetrating oils will act as a solvent, cleaning out the grease deep in the chain where it is needed most.

Sorry for the confusion.


orangputeh said:


> I like watching Project Farm videos on youtube. sometimes the most expensive stuff is not the best.
> I used to use expensive penetrating oil that cost $20 a can and found out thru his video that Liquid Wrench penetrating oil at $4 a can came out on top.


The best penetrating oil is the one that works for you...just like the best tradesman is the guy who solved your problem after 3 other guys eliminated most of the possibliites. I've read a number of testimonials from guys swearing Brand X is the best, and come to the conclusion that they all will work eventually. Which one works best on a given problem is a guess. I've read that the top performer is a home brew of 50:50 ATF and Acetone. And here are more brands than I knew existed. Absent a double blind study that includes a statistically valid sample, all these 'reviews' are like those on Amazon - half come from paid shills, the others are anecdotal and worthless. I have Kroil, PB and WD on my shelf and I use them in rotation. All work for me.


Kiss4aFrog said:


> As mentioned above, things have changed and one of the ones I've been caught on is WD40.


Yup, things have changed. For me, WD screwed the pooch so to speak. WD will always be known to most people as WD40 - they have an uphill battle to broaden knowledge of their product line.


----------



## Russell Stephan (Feb 9, 2021)

I've been using used motor oil for chainsaw bar lube, dirt bike chain rust preventative, bicycle chain lubricant, and anywhere else exposed to the elements. Why waste money by spending the resource or disposing of something which still has value?

Last time I had the gear train exposed on the Ariens, you guessed it, a liberal application of used motor oil.


----------



## tabora (Mar 1, 2017)

rcleone said:


> My Ariens is three years old and I've never lubed the chain, thank you.


As they say in my ancestral homeland, "Silly Buggers"... i.e. "There'll be a serious accident sooner or later if people don't stop playing silly buggers." All chains need lubing fairly frequently... A quality motorcycle chain lube is the dope.


----------



## Russell Stephan (Feb 9, 2021)

> All chains need lubing fairly frequently...


Yes and no... O-ring chains on street and dirt motorcycles are lubed upon assembly and have little tiny O-rings to seal the weather out and the lubrication in. These are lubricated-for-life chains. However, the external metal surfaces still need oil as a rust preventative. The O-ring chains still wear out. But, they certainly last a ton longer than old-school no-O-ring chains. There is a slight down-side... The O-rings add just a bit of mechanical friction. 

My chain driven street bike has over 100k miles on the clock. It has a Scott Olier which occasionally drips ATF on the chain when the engine is running. The drip is solely for corrosion prevention and dirt removal.


----------



## tabora (Mar 1, 2017)

Russell Stephan said:


> It has a Scott Oiler


So do all 7 of mine. However all the OPE and bicycles with chains get frequent applications of Honda chain lube.


----------



## Russell Stephan (Feb 9, 2021)

Oh, and if curious as to the lifespan of a street bike O-ring chain, the drive sprocket (the one on the engine output shaft) is good for around 10k miles. The O-ring chain and driven sprocket usually see two drive sprockets before total component refresh.


----------



## Russell Stephan (Feb 9, 2021)

> ...frequent applications of Honda chain lube.


Chain lubrication is just as much ritual and ideology as engine oil skirmish dust ups. My preference is to go the inexpensive route and use what's already on-hand. It seems to work for me and I assume the rituals for others work for them.

The short answer to the question which has killed hundreds of thousands of man-lives of Internet time?

"What oil and lube to use?" Use it often... ;-)


----------



## WrenchIt (Dec 6, 2020)

Russell Stephan said:


> Yes and no... O-ring chains on street and dirt motorcycles are lubed upon assembly and have little tiny O-rings to seal the weather out and the lubrication in. These are lubricated-for-life chains.


How many snowblowers have O-ring chains?


----------



## ST1100A (Feb 7, 2015)

WrenchIt said:


> How many snowblowers have O-ring chains?


A few of the better made snowblowers have 'O'ring chains on them, others use gears on the shafts. Cheaper made ones use a plain Non 'O' ring chain.
I just did a service on an older Craftsman/Murray that had 2 original 'O'ring chains on it surprisingly.
It shocked me to see that they used the good 'O' ring type chains on it for that manufacturer.


----------



## ST1100A (Feb 7, 2015)

Russell Stephan said:


> Oh, and if curious as to the lifespan of a street bike O-ring chain, the drive sprocket (the one on the engine output shaft) is good for around 10k miles. The O-ring chain and driven sprocket usually see two drive sprockets before total component refresh.


Most of my bikes go through at least 2 driven sprockets before they wear out a drive sprocket.
The big aluminum driven sprocket on the rear wheel normally wears out faster with the softer aluminum than the hardened steel of the transmission drive sprocket does, plus the driven sprocket gets a lot more dirt on it from being exposed than the smaller drive sprocket does.
I'll get around 10-20,000 miles on the driven sprockets and 30-60,000 miles on the drive sprockets on the street bikes, the dirt bikes about the same with replacements but different mileage, the race bikes you can't give mileages for but they use up 2 or 3 driven compared to 1 drive sprocket.
All of them are running 'O' ring chains.
That's the nice thing with drive shafts, no more chain and sprocket replacement. Final drive oil replacement every 40-50,000 miles and they are still running like new at over 100,000 miles on each one of them.
One Suzuki an '83 GS1100ESD had 60,000 on the driven sprocket with the #630 chain on it before it was replaced, it went through quite a few rear tires in between.


----------



## Russell Stephan (Feb 9, 2021)

The good old shaft drive ST1100...

Funny story. During the 2003 running of the Iron Butt Rally I was slowly motoring though Eagleville, California around 3:00am during a rancher sheep drive on my ST1100. Needless to say, it was bahhhhhhhhhd. ;-) The bike had just rolled over to 142k on the clock as I passed through town. I looked at the odo and thought, "This bike is going to see a quarter of a million miles easily..."

Three miles later I hit a deer at 65MPH totally destroying the front sub-frame of the bike and ripping open the radiator. My rally effort was over... Thankfully, my person sustained no ill effects from the collision. Although, I did get a bit of deer scat on the right leg of my Aerostich riding suit.

Here's a photo of the damaged bike:

http://zggtr.org/co/graphics/pc0308_tarman_k.jpg


----------



## ST1100A (Feb 7, 2015)

Russell Stephan said:


> The good old shaft drive ST1100...
> 
> Funny story. During the 2003 running of the Iron Butt Rally I was slowly motoring though Eagleville, California around 3:00am during a rancher sheep drive on my ST1100. Needless to say, it was bahhhhhhhhhd. ;-) The bike had just rolled over to 142k on the clock as I passed through town. I looked at the odo and thought, "This bike is going to see a quarter of a million miles easily..."
> 
> ...


OUCH! That's no fun.
Fortunately you survived, the bike saw better days.
If you can find replacement parts would be something, then the cost of them, those body panels are not cheap, nor are any of the other parts especially the Cowl Stay.
'Cowl Stay' another name for the fairings 'Sub Frame'.


----------



## nbwinter (Jan 18, 2021)

I just use ATF in whatever version I have laying around.


----------



## ST1100A (Feb 7, 2015)

Your ATF will work but eventually it will drip off. ATF is usually a lighter base oil, sometimes like a 10 weight, so it will penetrate down into the pins and rollers better than regular oil will.


----------



## enigma-2 (Feb 11, 2014)

This is what I use. Well satisfied with the product.








DuPont Teflon Chain-Saver Dry Self-Cleaning Lubricant, 11-Ounce : Tools & Home Improvement


Buy DuPont Teflon Chain-Saver Dry Self-Cleaning Lubricant, 11-Ounce: Lubricants - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases



www.amazon.com


----------



## JiminRI (Mar 26, 2016)

I use regular spray chain lube on my Ariens Deluxe 28 SHO walk behind snow blower.

I also have a 42 inch snow thrower on my 1973 Sears SS-16 (Suburban) tractor. Sixteen HP Onan Twin cylinder engine driving a single stage snow thrower. Its manual specifies:
_OIL LUBRICATION
Every twenty hours of operation use any Multi-Purpose engine oil.
D. Discharge Chute
E. Mounting Points
F. Auger Chain_

So I use 10W-30. I've been doing that since I bought it new in 1980.


----------



## rcleone (Dec 7, 2015)

tabora said:


> As they say in my ancestral homeland, "Silly Buggers"... i.e. "There'll be a serious accident sooner or later if people don't stop playing silly buggers." All chains need lubing fairly frequently... A quality motorcycle chain lube is the dope.


I hope you didn't think that I was being arrogant with my answer, I never THOUGHT to lube the chain, and I was thanking for the info on chain lube.


----------



## Oneacer (Jan 3, 2011)

I use whatever Chain & Cable lube I have at the time ... 

Currently I believe it is the NAPA Mac's Brand, or could be the Liquid Wrench ... I believe I currently have both on hand.

I use this stuff for not only chains and cables, but pivot points and some gears, as well as all kinds of other applications.


----------



## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

what about using a silicone lube? i was fighting with my 1 door lock a couple week back spayed some of this in it and it worked so good afterwords that i thought i broke the lock. i have also seen this stuff in my neighbors van and he is a lock smith. i would guess it should also be good for chains or cables. i used it on my tool box and it has helped the drawers slide easier. best $4 i could have spent. next time it goes on sale i know i will be picking up a few more cans.


----------



## JLawrence08648 (Jan 15, 2017)

You don't want to use a silicon, lithium, nothing on a chain but a tacky sticky chain specific lube otherwise it will fling off on to the friction plate thus the rubber friction disk. An exception is bicycle chains. There you want one drop of a specific bicycle chain lube or 1 drop of synthetic oil per roller. With a bicycle, you are not luring the outside of the chain but inside of the roller where the pin goes through.


----------



## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

that doen't make sense tho. as far as i can tell the only way it would fling lube onto the fiction plate is if you used it immediately after applying it. the stuff is suppose to dry dry with no residue to fling. 


Quick drying
No oily residue
Resists high temperatures
Does not attract dust


----------



## Oneacer (Jan 3, 2011)

I use the Chain and Cable lube specifically, as it works well, and I would imagine someone has done some testing on these products before they sell them as being specific to an application as specific as they are labeled for ... just sayin.

Hey, I imagine anything would work, as long as it is kept clean and applied regularly ... I have seen some still working with no lube, and I imagine the average operator does not remove the inspection pan to lube the chains. 

Heck, there are probably many that dont even check the oil, or bother putting any additive in the gas.

If you want longevity out of a piece of equipment, you have to take the time to adjust and maintain it properly.


----------



## JLawrence08648 (Jan 15, 2017)

I made my recommendation and why. You use what you want, I will use what I want, others will use what they want.


----------



## JLawrence08648 (Jan 15, 2017)

I was at Harbor Freight yesterday and they had Liquid Wrench Chain lube on the shelf. I sprayed it on my arm and at first it foamed up before turning to a liquid. I wiped it between my fingers and it wasn't sticky at all. I expected STICK.


----------



## PhilThefarmer (Dec 21, 2020)

I use white lithium grease fo chain and gear but I use another type of grease for the speed selector shaft


----------

