I am new to Zwift and cycling in general and wondering what maintenance I should do on my Zwift ride + Kickr Core.
Regarding lubricating the chain I’ve found contradicting information:
On the official equipment maintenance page
“Caring for and Maintaining Your Zwift Ride”
it is stated that you do not need to put any lube on the chain.
While here on the forums
“Zwift Ride Frame Chain Lube”
it is stated the opposite: that you will need to lube the chain eventually.
Please let me know which information is correct, and please correct whichever post is incorrect for others to avoid having the same conundrum. Cheers!
Treat it like any other bike chain albeit one that is being used in clean and dry conditions. So yes, it needs lubrication, and will have come with factory grease that is vaguely ok but not very good at preventing chain wear.
Note that with a powerful fan going the chain will probably accumulate dust over time because all of that is blowing about in the air.
So still keep up the regular cleaning processes, but not as much as for outdoor rides.
IRL I prefer the Morgan Blue race oil on SRAM Red 12 speed chains. Regardless of conditions I prefer the wet oil to the dry one. It seems to work better and I have a silent drivetrain for longer.
Forgive me if this is a dumb question (or has been answered previously): if I want to use Muc-Off’s C3 Ceramic Dry Lube on my Zwift Ride do I need to degrease/clean the factor lube off first, or can I just apply when I feel the factory lube has worn off?
Riding with a newly waxed chain is going to make a mess. Use a towel, or drop cloth, plastic, SOMETHING that will catch the crumbs that flake off. Also wiping the chain down doesn’t quite do it as the wax is everywhere in the chain.
There is a whole art to chain waxing. One of the better systems to help wax chains is by Silca. It’s got better temperature control, and they seem to have the best wax for chains. Although it’s not without some drama itself.
The chain will be very stiff fresh off the wax treatment. Work it in before you put it on the bike. Most of that stiffness will be gone after a few minutes, but if you backpedal, check it with no load in case it jumps around.
You can use a Crock Pot, but the idea of temperature control goes out the window. You can easily scorch the wax and ruin it. Even on low, a crock pot or generic can be over 100c degrees. The Silca brand wax is for 75 degrees, and 125 if you use one of their ‘strip chips’.
Also be aware that coated KMC chains effectively can’t be waxed as the wax won’t adhere to the coating. New chains should be either cleaned with a good chain degreaser or prep kit, like the one Silca sells, or use the ‘strip chips’ they sell to remove the factory coating making way for the wax.
Waxing a chain on a trainer should ward off sweat causing the chain to rust and seize up. That happened to me, and using noise blocking ear buds, I never knew that the chain had some major seized link sections. I was using a different ‘wet’ lube (that smelled like a toxic waste dump so I didn’t use it a lot) and within 5 or 6 months, the chain was garbage, the sweat apparently ate through, or washed off the lube. I couldn’t fix it and had to toss it, it was that bad. Hoping waxed chains last longer. RIDE ON!!!
I’ve been looking into replacement chains and was thinking about getting the Shimano CN-6701. Its width is 2.2mm instead of 2.38mm for 3/32", will it still work or are there better options? If so, which ones specifically?
It will work. I have heard from quite a few people via the Zwift Ride Owners Group on Facebook that they have used various Shimano and KMC chains with no issues. 10 speed chains like the CN-6701 and 11 speed Shimano chains are the same width internally so it would not make any difference which of those you picked. Shimano chains are generally very quiet. Wippermann are stronger and better hardened if that’s a concern.
The Zwift Cog is designed for 8-12 speed chains and it has a fair amount of space between the plastic guides since it needs to accommodate more variation in chain line. But the Ride’s chain tensioner has less room for a wider chain so I would avoid anything wider (on the outside) than the KMC Z1 Narrow that is recommended by Zwift.
I’m not sure of ease of the replacing the front chainring on a Zwift Ride, nor of the physics really involved – would a harder chain lead to faster wear-out of the chainring and cog?
A better hardened chain maintains its original length better over time so it continues to fit the teeth properly. That leads to less wear on the chainring and cog.
Has anyone used the indoor specific drip waxes with the Zwift Ride: the Dynamic Watts Up or the Ceramicspeed UFO Drip Indoor? I suppose the chain needs to be degreased before using these.
I don’t own a zwift ride but I’d just use my regular hot wax. So if you are already waxing, just use your regular hot wax, if you are not hot waxing already start hot waxing. It’s a maintenance game changer
