While oil-based chain lubricants remain the dominant option, chain waxing has been growing in popularity in recent years.
The purported benefits include a reduction in drivetrain friction, resistance to contamination, and an increase in chain life. It’s not uncommon to hear of riders getting 15-20,000km from a waxed chain and who doesn’t want their components to last longer?
However, there’s traditionally been a serious amount of work getting to the point of having a fully waxed chain, compared to using a traditional chain lube.
Before applying the wax, the chain typically needs to be spotless, inside and out. Even with a brand new chain, this means removing the factory grease, which can be an involved process.
However, Silca’s new StripChip and Ultimate Chain Waxing System aims to simplify chain waxing into a 15-minute process, while Finish Line has entered the chain waxing game with a new immersive wax blend.
Let’s take a closer look at what’s been announced – and find out why more brands are becoming increasingly interested in the once-niche chain waxing process.
Silca StripChip
Silca has been one of the most significant brands in popularising chain waxing and, on paper, its new StripChip is a disruptive product that almost reinvents chain waxing as we know it.
Said to be two years in the making, the StripChip is designed to complement Silca’s Secret Chain Blend Hot Melt Wax and, when used together in Silca’s new Ultimate Chain Waxing System, removes the factory grease and waxes the chain in one go.
This removes the need for degreasers and solvents, and should save a significant amount of time from having to perform at least two separate processes.
Provided the StripChip performs as claimed, it could mean never using degreasers again.
Akin to a chocolate bar in appearance, the StripChip consists of six 12g square chips – enough for six chains.
Silca says it looked to the food industry in terms of how to remove the factory grease from a new chain.
The StripChip relies on a process called oleogelation, which turns liquid fats into solid fats without going through the more commonly used hydrogenation process. The aim is to convert the factory grease into something that much closer resembles a hard, “wax-like substance”, which doesn’t break down or damage the performance of the base wax.
Silca stipulates that heating the StripChip to a specific temperature is required for this process to work, and so enters the Ultimate Chain Waxing System...
Silca Ultimate Chain Waxing system
Typically, a slow cooker has been used to wax chains, as these are considered the safest option.
For the StripChip to work its magic, though, Silca says its new Ultimate Chain Waxing System will work better.
The Ultimate Chain Waxing System consists of a 600ml wax melter (pictured above), with custom temperatures preset for its various chain waxing products – 75°C for its Secret Blend, 85°C for its Hot Wax X and 125°C for the StripChip.
Silca says there’s no risk of the wax burning and there’s a separate aluminium pot for easy cleaning, plus a vented, clear lid so you can visually gauge how the wax melting is progressing.
Silca’s instructions involve putting the new chain into the wax melter with one StripChip and the Secret Chain Blend wax at a 125°C temperature, and letting it sit for 10 minutes. You then agitate the chain and let the wax cool to 75°C, before removing it and allowing it to dry on the integrated stand.
There’s also a Chain Coupler, said to safely raise and lower the chain from the melter, and a Chain Hanging Stand to hang the chain over the melter to dry. This allows the excess wax to drip back into the pot.
Finish Line HALO Hot Wax
Moving on – and announced only today – Finish Line has jumped on the chain waxing bandwagon with the new HALO Hot Wax for immersive chain waxing.
This comes in addition to a new HALO Wax Lube (a drip lubricant) and a more conventional HALO Wet drip lube.
Finish Line says all three products are designed to deliver performance advantages for a range of cycling disciplines and conditions.
The brand goes as far to say that “no other chain lubricants are as fast, for as long”, but hasn’t provided any data to substantiate this claim.
Finish Line says the HALO Hot Wax has been formulated to improve drivetrain performance by reducing the attraction of abrasive contaminants, reducing drivetrain friction and ensuring, according to the brand, an “extremely high mileage between re-lubrication intervals”.
The ingredients include a patented friction modifier called Spherical Tungsten. These micron-sized particles are claimed to further reduce friction by creating a rolling effect on the surface of the chain.
The HALO Hot Wax packaging is specifically designed to be boiled in water, like a bain-marie.
This means you technically don’t need a slow cooker to use HALO Hot Wax, though BikeRadar’s waxer-in-chief, Simon von Bromley, says a slow cooker is generally still considered to be the safest option for waxing chains at home.
In any case, the bag is reusable and Finish Line says it contains enough wax pellets for approximately 25 chain immersions.
Unlike with Silca’s StripChip, though, you’ll still need to thoroughly clean your chain before waxing it with HALO Hot Wax.
The HALO Hot Wax retails for £39.99.
Why are more brands getting into chain waxing?
With Silca’s innovations and Finish Line joining the club, there is clearly increased interest in the once-niche process of immersive waxing for bicycle chains.
The main barrier to chain waxing is typically the initial degreasing of the chain, but the StripChip and Ultimate Chain Waxing System appear to simplify this process significantly.
At £99 / $99 / €119 for the Ultimate Chain Waxing System, £24 / $24 / €29 for a Strip Chip six-pack and then the Secret Chain Blend at £40 / $40 / €48, it’s a hefty investment to convert from conventional lubricants to chain waxing, however.
Of course, you don’t have to use the Ultimate Chain Waxing System but its built-in temperature settings are, on paper, more convenient than using a traditional slow cooker designed for cooking stews and soups.
Pre-waxed chains are also sold by brands such as Silca and CeramicSpeed. This sees the brand degrease and wax the chain for you, but this inevitably adds extra expense to the price of a chain. You’ll still need a way to re-wax the chain down the line too.
Could these products convince more riders to switch to immersive chain waxing, away from oil-based chain lubes? Time will tell, but it’s certainly interesting to see brands tackling some of the main barriers to entry.
