That moment I realized I was lubing chains wrong for like 5 years

I was at a shop in Austin last month watching a mechanic prep a customer's bike. He wiped the chain down with a rag first before putting any lube on. I always just dripped lube straight onto a dirty chain because I thought more lube = better. He asked if I ever got that grinding sound after a few rides. That's when it clicked. All those times I thought my chain was wearing out early, it was just me packing grit into the rollers. Now I spend the extra 30 seconds wiping first. Anyone else figure out a basic thing way later than they should have?

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skylerm553mo ago

Wait, you mean I've been doing this wrong too? I always just dumped lube on and thought the more the merrier. That grinding noise was just normal wear and tear in my head. Wiping first makes so much sense now, I feel kinda dumb for not figuring it out sooner.

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stellas563mo ago

More is better" got me into trouble with my toaster once.

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