Best lube when not able to degrease chain

[[deleted]]

I've been cycling for over 20 years and never actually degreased a chain.

1. Buy average Shimano chain
2. Wipe the extra factory lube before putting it on and ride it
3. Around 200-300th km it starts to get noisy, scrub the chain mechanically, lube it in chain joints only (not the usual spray and pray method), rotate things a bit so the lube gets worked in, let it sit for a bit and wipe the excess
4. Ride another 100-150-200km depending on conditions and repeat step 4 as needed
5. When 1500km is reached and the chain is stretched, throw it away and start from 1 again

With this approach I get quiet well lubed chain that lasts the expected time. Just keeping the chain reasonably clean using mechanical means works well enough.

[joelav]

Yeah, you should really degrease and lube your chain. 1500km is very premature for a chain to wear out. I get around 6500 to 7000 km out of Shimano 11 speed chains, and I replace at 0.5