1x11 chain on a 2x11.

[Andrew Br]

Can I use a 1x11 chain on a 2x11 bike ?
Reason for asking is that I can find 1x11 chains at 2/3 the price of 2x11.
I struggle to get more than 1500 miles from chains and it's often under 1000 miles in Winter so I would appreciate the saving.

[Andy64]

A 2x might be a little longer, to get round the bigger front ring, so keep an eye on the length. But other than that, I'd go for it

[robgul]

I don't believe there's any difference - for example the KMC X11 chain is specified for 1x11  and 2x11  drivetrains. 

The only issue will be number of links - a 2 x will have a bigger (large) chainring, whereas the 1 x will have smaller chainring and bigger cassette largest sprocket.

Check the number of links and compare to the chain you already have* (I have noticed that more chains nowadays have 118 links instead of the usual 114)

* my chain measurer for fitting/cutting new chains for customers is 2 panel pins about an inch apart on a long piece of wood mounted vertically on the wall - hook the old and new chains on side by side and you can see where to cut the new one - you'll notice the "stretch" which is reall wear.

[Andrew Br]

Many thanks for the advice.
New chain goes on tomorrow (1400 miles from the existing one, yay !) so I'll count the links when it's off and then, if the "1x11" chains are long enough, I'll order a couple.

FWIW, for the 1st time ever, I've soaked the replacement chain in white spirit to remove the pre-applied oil and I'll put my current lube of choice (Synergetic Wet Lube) on a few days before I ride the bike.

So far, I've been underwhelmed by this lube: "up to 500 miles between applications" my arse. I've been lucky to get 100 miles before I can feel it drag and the chain starts squeaking.
I've got 50% of the bottle left so I'm going to use it up. After that, who knows ?
Previously I used Wolf Tooth WT 1 lube. That also needed more re-application than advertised and led to spectacularly brown chains if I just ran the chain through a cloth to dry it after a wet ride. I've never had this problem with more conventional lubes.
On the positive side, both the WT 1 and the Synergetic did keep the chain and cassette cleaner than the lubes (various) that I've used in the past.

[Hot Flatus]

'Clean' might just mean more solvent and less lube.

I now just use Morgan Blue Synlube if it's wet, and MB Rolls Pro if it's not wet, and degrease once a week.

Chain never squeaks.

[mrcharly-YHT]

Why remove the pre-applied lube?

Every book, source, pundit agrees that the factory lube is superior.

[Kim]

Why remove the pre-applied lube?

Because it's horribly sticky and picks up crud?

I tend to give a new chain a superficial wipe in a GT85-soaked tissue, just to remove the worst of it from the outside of the chain, leaving the lubricated parts alone.

[mrcharly-YHT]

Why remove the pre-applied lube?

Because it's horribly sticky and picks up crud?

I tend to give a new chain a superficial wipe in a GT85-soaked tissue, just to remove the worst of it from the outside of the chain, leaving the lubricated parts alone.

Huh - that's not been my experience of Shimano chains, they are vaguely waxy and don't pick up grime.

KMC were covered in something like automobile grease and terrible.

[Kim]

I tend to use SRAM chains, and they're definitely in the latter category.

[Andrew Br]

This is a KMC chain and it is (was) covered in sticky crap.
One of the companies that measure friction from lubricants recommended cleaning the factory grease off before using the chain; I figured that I might as well experiment.

[Hot Flatus]

Why remove the pre-applied lube?

Every book, source, pundit agrees that the factory lube is superior.

They don't, because it isn't. It's not lube. It's some sort of waxy grease. SRAM probably the worst, Shimano better.

Chain lubrication is one of those topics which has almost religious divisions.

[robgul]

Why remove the pre-applied lube?

Every book, source, pundit agrees that the factory lube is superior.

They don't, because it isn't. It's not lube. It's some sort of waxy grease. SRAM probably the worst, Shimano better.

Chain lubrication is one of those topics which has almost religious divisions.

If there are religious divisions then lots of the customers when I ran a bike shop must have been heathens as I saw lots of bone-dry chains on bikes in for servicing!

My own view is to leave well alone with the lube on new chains and just run with them - Shimano always seemed to have a very thin lube (surprising as I'm pretty sure they're made by KMC and re-badged - that said I seldom sold Shimano based on high price and and until recently the special pin connection rather then a magic link)

[Hot Flatus]

KMC might manufacture some chains for Shimano, but the high end ones are Izumi.

[Kim]

If there are religious divisions then lots of the customers when I ran a bike shop must have been heathens as I saw lots of bone-dry chains on bikes in for servicing!

No point lubing your chain if you're about to pay someone else to do it...

[mrcharly-YHT]

Why remove the pre-applied lube?

Every book, source, pundit agrees that the factory lube is superior.

They don't, because it isn't. It's not lube. It's some sort of waxy grease. SRAM probably the worst, Shimano better.

Chain lubrication is one of those topics which has almost religious divisions.

They don't?

New chains come pre-lubricated with a grease-type lubricant which has been installed at the factory. This is an excellent lubricant, and has been made to permeate all of the internal interstices in the chain. The chain and this lubricant need to be warmed during application.

This factory lube is superior to any lube that you can apply after the fact -- well, unless...see below.

Some people make the bad mistake of deliberately removing this superior lubricant. Don't do this!

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/chains.html

KMC https://www.kmcchain.eu/Maintenance

A new chain usually feels sticky at first. These are residues of the high-performance grease used during assembly. Remove this grease with a thin-bodied oil or cleaner (no aggressive grease solvents!), lightly oil the rollers and remove excess oil with a cloth.

We recommend never to degrease the chain completely.

[Andrew Br]

Degreased chain fitted today.
Before I did that I scraped an incredible amount of crud from the jockey wheels and derailleur cage; they had both looked fairly "clean" until I got scraping.
Riding the bike afterwards there was a slight clicking in certain gears. Closer examination showed that the lower jockey wheel was wobbling about allowing the chain to contact the derailleur cage.
It didn't respond to attempted "fixing" so new jockey wheels on order. The old ones have done 8900 miles.

The chain on this bike (Dirty Disco) has 112 links so the 1x chains are long enough.

[Hot Flatus]

They don't?

https://www.kmcchain.eu/Maintenance

A new chain usually feels sticky at first. These are residues of the high-performance grease used during assembly. Remove this grease with a thin-bodied oil or cleaner (no aggressive grease solvents!), lightly oil the rollers and remove excess oil with a cloth.

We recommend never to degrease the chain completely

 

[Cudzoziemiec]

A new chain usually feels sticky at first. These are residues of the high-performance grease used during assembly. Remove this grease with a thin-bodied oil or cleaner (no aggressive grease solvents!), lightly oil the rollers and remove excess oil with a cloth.

We recommend never to degrease the chain completely

KMC are apostates!

[Hot Flatus]

Here's what Leonard Zinn says about factory grease (with expert help):

https://www.velonews.com/gear/tech-wearables/technical-faq-should-you-leave-the-factory-lube-on-a-new-chain/

TLDR: Always remove the factory grease

[Andrew Br]

New jockey wheels* fitted this afternoon. It was as easy as it looked on the Youtube videos !


*Red, shiny.

[Andrew Br]

'Clean' might just mean more solvent and less lube.

I now just use Morgan Blue Synlube if it's wet, and MB Rolls Pro if it's not wet, and degrease once a week.

Chain never squeaks.

I did a "solids" content on the lube* at work. There's not much solvent in it (less than 5% IIRC) so it must be a very low viscosity oil of some sort.
I'll try the Blue Synlube next time. I need a wet lube because:- Manchester and I do a lot of miles on the TPT which doesn't dry out very quickly in some parts.
My new cleaning regime will involve removing the jockey wheels from time to time and more regular degreasing.

*Synergetic Wet Lube.

[Hot Flatus]

 

Morgan Blue chain cleaner is excellent. I wipe it on with a brush. Let it penetrate then run the chain through a pan scourer. Rinse with hose and spin off water. The chain cleaner is also good on cassette, chain rings, and derailleur.

I used to swear by those thin high-solvent lubes like Progold, but I just stick a heavier one on now. I love using the Rolls Pro on the fixie. Quietens the chain nicely.

[Andrew Br]

LBS recommended Progold; I think I still have 1/2 a bottle somewhere......

ETA: Just had a look; no Progold (must have used it all, perhaps as a chain cleaner !) but I do have most of a bottle of Fenwicks "Professional" (another LBS suggestion), most of a bottle of Green Oil and parts of MucOff 4 wet lube and some MucOff ceramic lube. The latter seemed to work reasonably well but made the chain and cassette blacker than Satan's conscience despite putting a drop on each roller and wiping, wiping, wiping.