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revolube bicycle chain lubricant

revolube

in a world that has apparently woken up to climate change, allegedly caused by greenhouse gases and a planet that is in danger of turning into a large, spherical rubbish skip, dave brailsford's marginal gains, knowingly or otherwise, are now being directed towards day to day living. nowhere is this more prevalent but in the realm of transport; according to environmental scientists, the greatest contribution towards global warming made by the average individual, is from the pollution exhaled by their motor car. by simple extrapolation, the more efficient the vehicle, the less pollution incurred by the environment. that, i believe, is the theory.

this has extended to vehicle legislation, or at least as far as the nomenclature describing such. in this past week police scotland has been occupying the twittersphere, intent on busting several myths suffered by the cycling fraternity, the first of which concerned that old chestnut why don't you lot pay road tax?. as they rightly pointed out, road tax, as was, ended in 1937; car owners currently pay an annual emissions tax. the lower the proscribed emissions, the less money paid to the exchequer. upkeep of britain's roads is paid for from general taxation.

on that basis, where cyclists emit no emissions whatsoever, imposition of such a tax upon the cycling public would be highly iniquitous, not to mention just a tad contradictory. but persuading the motoring public to leave the car at home and cycle, instead is a task equivalent to ascending mont ventoux on a unicycle. yet, the fact that the bicycle is considerably more efficient than the motor car is scarcely in doubt. and just to head off that particular discussion, a bicycle chain transmission is reckoned to be, on average 95% efficient, while a diesel car engine, under ideal conditions, will max out at 41% (though in the real world, it's closer to 30%).

revolube

however, leaving aside the whole bicycle v car argument, in order to maintain the majority of the chain's 95% efficiency, some sort of lubricant is required. brand new chains generally feature a thin coating of grease, not necessarily for lubrication purposes, but more to maintain a shiny persona in the bike shop. few of us would be inclined to shell out for a new chain, were it blemished by one or two orange rust spots. according to laboratory tests, a chain is not at peak efficiency when brand new; the biggest gains are seen in the first few hours of use, while the chain beds in to its new home.

bicycle chain links consist of eight individual components: outer and inner plates, rollers and pins, creating seven surfaces that slide against each other. appropriate lubrication is thus required to prevent those surfaces scraping together, creating friction and lowering the efficiency on offer. revolube is a product that claims to chemically bond to the outer surface of the component parts, offering protection from both water and solvents. a common complaint (frequently voiced by yours truly) is often the black, oily coating that the chain suffers after being 'oiled'. perhaps, a bit like soapy bubbles, this oily blackness offers evidence that the lubricant is doing its job, but for those of us who desire a bright, shiny chain at all times of the year and in all weathers, it's not a good look.

revolube promises that it will leave your chain dry and as such, impervious to the dirt and dust that contributes to the aforementioned black oily coating. revolube also contend that their particular brand of lubricant prevents material loss from the chain's constitution, thus minimising what is generally referred to as 'chain stretch'.

revolube

in order to test the veracity of their claims, when adding a pair of campagnolo bora wto carbon wheels to the ritchey logic, i fitted a brand new chorus twelve-speed cassette and matching chain. revolube recommend that the chain be thoroughly cleaned down to bare metal, prior to applying the lubricant. the latter arrived in a small, 50ml bottle with an eyedropper in the lid and just like the good old days of three-in-one, apply a single drop to each and every link of the chain.

rather obviously, to verify each and every claim made by the manufacturer, it will take a lot more than a few weeks of pedalling. for instance, revolube state that it prevents oxidation, meaning, no more rust. i have tried manfully to retain the west of scotland's reputation for wall to wall precipitation, but so far, failed miserably. all the rain we've received recently has been overnight, when i'm safely tucked up in bed. the chain has suffered a brief shower, but nothing that would have even troubled a dousing of wd40.

i'm chuffed to say that, despite a few hundred kilometres of riding so far, the chain looks almost as shiny as it did when removed from the packet. and given its continued silence of operation, i must assume that its lubricating properties are working exactly as designed. revolube is definitely not cheap: one 50ml bottle retails at £47, so, in the words of one colleague "it had better be bloody good". i'll get back to you when i've found out.

revolube chain lubricant

sunday 18 august 2019

twmp ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................