MoltenSpeed Wax, 1Lb Bag

Prepping the chain can take a bit of work, but once it's set up, it's super quick and easy. I highly recommend the Wipperman Connex link; it's a little pricier than some others, but is incredibly convenient. May initially run a little louder than a freshly cleaned and lubes chain, but once excess wax flakes off, it quiets down. Runs and shifts smoothly.Pic is after a 75 mile ride, just wiped off excess wax that flaked off. Not sure how long it'll hold up, but re-waxing is super simple - just pop the chain off, drop in melted wax, stir it about a little, then pull it out, give it a wipe and let cool.There may be a couple extra steps than the usual wipe/relube, but the benefit is zero degreasing necessary, sparkling clean cassette, and a chain that can be handled with bare hands. Since I sometimes transport my bike in the car, the fact that the chain doesn't leave grease marks anywhere is a huge plus.Pick up a cheap crock pot, a reusable link, some mineral spirits, and some denatured alcohol, and you're all set. Once the initial chain cleaning is done, pack away the degreasers, you'll rarely need them.Update: still running the waxed chain. There are some wax flakes to deal with; after mounting the chain, I run it through a cloth, both forwards and backwards and through all the gears - bonus is it's a good opportunity to double check indexing. Running the chain forwards and backwards through the cloth or rag gets most of the excess.I probably re-wax more than strictly necessary, simply because it's so easy. After a few rides, turn the crock pot on before going for a ride. When getting back, it's fully melted; pop off the chain, drop it in. After a mile or two, runs super smooth and silent, and stays super clean.Update: after about 1,500 miles or so, have had few issues, other than one. When travelling, it's not very practical to take the crock pot. I find it's best to re-wax every 200 miles or so, and especially after riding in wet conditions. Also, if you live in a hot area (El Paso), you may receive a wax block instead of granules. Didn't affect the performance, just had to cut it into chunks before melting.

After watching some on-line videos on waxing by those who have done specific chain lubrication testing, the Molten Speed Wax was the most highly rated lubricant available today for most conditions. I was looking for something that would stand up to all the dirt and dust of gravel riding without needing to be cleaned after every ride. This stuff works great! MSW has a really great set of instructions on how to clean and prepare the chain. Once you go thru it the first time, it's really quite simple. You'll need to get a few solvents and cleaners from your local hardware store as well as a small crock pot/slow cooker, but once you do, it's a breeze. I love the minimal maintenance and clean, quiet operation of a waxed chain.

I prefer wax lubes like "White Lightning" because they keep the MTB chain super-clean, and "Molten" is just a step up: all wax, no carrier medium, with teflon and moly for extra smoothness. (You could add teflon and moly powder to to wax lube, but Molten is actually cheaper). The key is soaking the chain in hot wax-it expands the links sp the wax penetrates the chain thoroughly. It sounds like a pain, but is actually easy, not at all messy, and really fun! I think I'm going to do the MTB chains twice a year and keep on using white lightning weekly.Be sure to have:a crock pot, like:Elite Gourmet MST-250XS Maxi-Matic 1.5 Quart Slow Cooker, Silver (Stainless Steel Finish)($12 w/prime shipping)master link pliers, such as:Park Tool Master Link Pliers($14 with prime shipping)You will also need a wire hanger to make a "swisher tool" (to dunk your chain and hang it to cool-see their website for info!) Also fun!update: 18 months later, and I have been doing all my chains every 6 months (every 3 months for my commuter), and don't really need to lube much in-between (only if it rains a lot or chain gets dirty) awesome!tip: it'll be stiff when it cools...put a broom handle in your shop stand and pull the chain back and forth around it to loosen the links before you re-install.tip for 1x drivetrain: push each link onto the chainring when re-installing