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SEVEN DAY CYCLIST
CYCLING, BUT NOT USUALLY RACING
LATEST UPDATE: APRIL 26th
HOW DO WE DECIDE OUR OVERALL RATINGS FOR PRODUCTS WE REVIEW?
SILKOLENE PREMIUM DRY LUBE
100ml £8.99 (when sold individually)
The light blue one in a presenation box of three, Silkolene Premium Cycle Lube Dry can also be bought separately. Fuch’s Silkolene have been around for a long while, so you’d expect this to come with a pedigree. aimed at road and dry weather use, it has performed very well, albeit in ideal weather conditions. Silkolene tell us that the Dry Lube is mix number forty-something, providing a mix of longevity, peformance, and application. In my opinion the effort was well-worth it.
Pros: Neat dispenser nozzle, very decent mileage.
Cons: rather runny.
Spec
PTFE based lubes are not unusual, and this one makes no claims to eco-amiability. However, it is not petro-chemical based, rather a mixture of “PTFE, wax, and synthetics.” We’d not expect to know much more, but the notion is the usual one; apply and the lube penetrates into the links and leaves things looking shiny and ready to repel gloop. It is aimed at road racing and dry weather use. Tested in the early summer of 2018, it is hard to have found drier conditions on the road, on the forest trail, and down the towpath.
Application
The brightly coloured tube - hard to miss in the depths of the shed - is matched by the lube itself. There’s a neat “twist ’n’ go” nozzle. First off, remove the whole thing to remove a silver foli seal. After that,there’s no need to remove the nozzle at all.
Needless to say, run the chain through a chain bath or other cleaner witha suitable dose of degreaser. The test coincided with a new-ish chain, but even then the chain manufacturers protective lube needed to go.
Silkolene empahsise the need for a good shake, making sure all the ingredients are in suspension. Whilst doing so you may well sense a sloshy sound. Be prepared, the lube is runny. Whilst you expect this from a dry lube, a few too many drops of precious fluid ended up on the patio slabs. No need to squeeze, or only very lightly, and keep the nozzle only a little above the horizontal for best value.
Slowly turning the chain backward,consistency of coverage could be easily identified. Wipe up any wastage, especially splatter on braking surfaces. Wastage was, in fairness, no greater than most dry lubes I have used.
Recommended cure time is thirty minutes, and best stick to it. Post cure, the chain looked pretty dry, and felt it, too. However, given the silence, something was working.
Performance
To reiterate, testing conditions have been ideal for dry lubes. Yet even in the context of a long hot dry spell, performance has been very pleasing. A single application has managed over 400 miles of mixed terrain riding and there’s still no hint of a death rattle. Pretty good.
Efficiency seems to be very good. Right from the off silence has greeted each turn of the pedals. Smooth, too. Having said that, it was a nearly-new chain, but dosing up an older chain ona n older bike produce the same result. Changing was silky as well, qucik and quiet.
Increasing longevity of components is one of the big pluses of dry lubes, and Silkolene emphasise this in their literature. Keeping it clean as you hit the road or trail whilst shedding gloop. Certainly plumes of crushed limestone on the towpath commute have not done more than discolour the chain; post gravel ride inspections have also revealed no unwanted passengers. A quick wipe with a rag has soon dispelled the dulled patina, bringing back an appropriately happy gleam. time will tell, but I get the feeling that this will prove a plus.
A drenching from the watering-can hasn’t denuded the chain, seemingly, so there’ll be an update later, when the English summer gets back to normal. Attempting to find some gloop, a sprint through some farm track ruts filled by mis-directed irrigation sprays, gave the odd dirty spalsh, but nothing that adhered. Storms, nearly four hindred miles into the test,didn’t strip the lube the chain, either.
If push comes to shove it can, of course, doa job on cables and cleats. On the whole, I’d prefer something more everyday and viscose for those jobs. However, a careful drop or two does a job.
Conclusion
Mileage so far matches some other dry lubes, such as Joe’s No Flats and Rock ’n’ Roll Absolute Dry. So Silklene Premium Cycle Dry Lube finds itself in the hurly-burly of flooded market. Even so, it is certainly one I’ll be considering for the future. Why? Frankly, I like the nozzle and the cleanliness. More importantly, away from the hi-spec (amd generally priceier) ceramic and wax concoctions, it has provided the silentest, smoothest ride I have known in a long-while - even if a relatively new chain may have added to the feeling.
Verdict 3.75/5 The strong, silent type with a likeable nozzle.
Steve Dyster
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PUBLISHED AUGUST 2018
