How does hot chain waxing work?

Principles behind chain waxing

I though I knew how to lube a chain but I didnt really understand the obvious mechanics of what I was trying to achieved when I was lubing it. What I mean by that is I thought I was lubing the chain to reduce the friction between the chain and the chain rings and cassette, seems about right but no! I got that wrong. What you are actually trying to do is lube the internal surfaces of the chain that articulate (bend) when passing over/around the chainring, cassette and to a more extreme degree the jockey wheels and reduce the contamination from road/trail grit from sitting on and entering the chain.

Principles behind chain waxing

So the friction from the drivetrain you experience when you pedalling comes mainly from the chain articulating back and forth as it makes its way around the chainring(s) weaving through the jockey wheels and back around the cassette. The molten wax flows into the gaps in your chain then once remove cools to produce a hard smooth (polished once ridden) surface making it extremly hard for grit and dirt to enter.

The chain above has been wet lubed, you can see the build up and retention of dirt and grime.

Freshly waxed chain read to hit the road/trails, clean dry plates with no way for the dirt to penetrate inside.

Steps to achieve to the best waxed chain results

The chain needs to be spotless, remove all factory grease (if new) or lube/dirt and grime on a used chain with  white spirt (also called mineral spirt), this will need at least 3 fresh applications, the white spirit then need to be removed (again this will need at least 2 fresh application). This is to leave a perfectly clean metal surface with no residue. The chain once dry is submerged in molten hot wax and then removed and hung over the wax container to drip and cool down. There will be a small amount of dried wax on the outside and between the chain plates and the chain will have dried stiff, you can run the chain over round plastic surface surface, some people use the edge of a work stand or put a nail through a jockey wheel on the wall and run the chain over that to break off any lose wax. You can now put the chain back on your bike, the ideal run in period is around 20 minuites for most waxes before the wax has reached its optimum polished finish.