My new chain is totally coated in lube. I would never ride a bike with a chain like this normally. All that goop is just going to collect flotsam from the road and wear out the chain.
Should I clean this coating off the new chain too?
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The coating is generally a form of wax, which is an excellent chain lube, and less apt to attract dirt than most chain oils. All you really should do is wipe off (with a dry cloth) any excess. If the wax seems excessively heavy you can add a little solvent to the cloth, to just wipe off the outer coating. You want to leave the lube on the inside of the chain, where it's really needed. |
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I just got a new Shimano CN HG-53 and it was covered in a honey-like lubrication. I wiped all that stuff of and used my own lubrication on the chain. Worst part of the factory-applied lube was, that it was all over the place just waiting to collect all kind of dirts on my first ride. |
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Sheldon Brown says no (http://sheldonbrown.com/chains.html):
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I would recommend leaving the manufacturers grease in place but I know it's seems a bit over done on some chains. If it seems like it'll attract too much dirt you could take a degreaser like Clean Streak and spray some on a rag and then make one quick pass around the left and right sides of the chain. Avoid getting the degreaser in contact with the rollers along the top and bottom. |
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I always find it more worthy to ride the new chain as is, and clean it when needed. Since if you'll need to clean it anyway, at least take advantage it is already lubed, although with a less-than-ideal lube. I use KMC chains, by the way, and they are in the sticky end of the spectrum, but I didn't perceived any dust-attracting property, at least not more than any other lubed chain, wiped to remove excess or not (I never remove the excess, but try to put just the "right" amount of oil, not an easy goal although...). |
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It depends on the brand. Most brands used to use a heavy packing grease that was very tacky and an absolute dirt magnet. It's more of a preservative for the metal than a lubricant. Some manufacturers have moved away from that type of grease to a lighter lube that you can use out of the package (Shimano moved to this lighter lubricant if I remember correctly, SRAM has not). Regardless of brand, if the new chain feels overly tacky you can use your favorite lube and over-apply it to the chain then give it a thorough wipe down to remove the excess. Your lighter lubricant will combine with the heavier lubricant and help remove it. You can also use a non-water based solvent on a rag to achieve the same result, just be sure you re-lube the chain afterwards. |
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