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Kogel Gain Chains Come Pre-Waxed for Easy Speed

kogel gain chain pre-waxed bicycle chain for road and mountain bikes
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The hardest part about waxing your chain? Cleaning it first. Waxed chains are faster, cleaner, and easier to maintain than anything with oil-based lubes, but getting that factory grease or well-used chain lube completely off takes effort.

If that’s too much effort, Kogel’s new Gain Chains are degreased and pre-waxed for you. And they say they’re good for 3% efficiency gains, whether you’re riding outside or on the trainer.

The Gain Chains were developed with NeXT eSports team, which competes in online cycling races. They say professional e-sports teams have to double verify their data, measuring power with both crank- or pedal-based power meters and their smart trainers.

kogel pre-waxed bike chain

During testing, they found that comparing watts in both places with a waxed chain yielded an improvement of 3% compared to a chain using an oil-based lube. Even better, they say that benefit scaled with power output, remaining a consistent 3% improvement even in an all-out sprint, which could mean 10-15 watts or more!

The Gain Chain starts out at a normal chain, then Kogel uses a multi-step degreasing process, including ultrasonic cleaning to get all of the grease out from between the pins and rollers. After that, it’s soaked in chain wax, brushed, and re-packaged for easy installation. They come in four models:

  • SRAM AXS Force Flattop
  • SRAM AXS RED Flattop
  • Shimano 12-speed Ultegra/XT (fits all Shimano road and MTB 12-speed drivetrains)
  • KMC X12 for Shimano/SRAM Eagle/Campagnolo 12-speed drivetrains

What about wax flakes on my floor?

kogel waxed bicycle chain

OK, but what about wax shedding onto the floor beneath your trainer? Yep, it’ll happen, but Kogel brushes the excess off before shipping. The photo above shows a brushed chain on the left, and one fresh out of its wax bath on the right. If the gains are worth the paint, you’ll probably still wanna put a rag down under the chain, or periodically sweep away any shavings.

Not only are they more efficient, they’ll stay cleaner for longer, reducing overall maintenance and prolonging chain life, particularly for indoor-only use. MSRP ranges from $149.99 to $174.99.

Kogel.cc

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13 Comments
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Robert
Robert
1 month ago

Helps , but wax , regular slight topping up is still reqired to ensure quiet operation . Especially after wet weather riding sessions . Also not available in 8 to 11 speed chain variants .This means that some cyclists still need to do waxing similar to that shown by Steve from “Ozcycle” , on Youtube in Australia where I am from . I use Connex Wippermann chains . Power meter readings can still vary from one unit to the next ( tolerance ) , leaving room for error as well as the amoumt of care taken when applying the wax initially .

Robin
Robin
1 month ago
Reply to  Robert

Or you could just follow the directions offered at ZeroFrictionCycling, people who actually do intensive testing of chain lubes and understand how to properly lube a chain, as well as what a proper chain wax is. Ozcycle doesn’t rate so well over at ZeroFrictionCycing. They offer a very detailed, technical, and scientific critique of OzCycle’s “technique” and “advice.”

Bob
Bob
1 month ago
Reply to  Robin

Zero Friction is just an expensive lube shill. Dude is just now getting around to posting data about plain paraffin wax, and somehow it’s doing terrible. Very biased data.

Robin
Robin
1 month ago
Reply to  Bob

Prove it then. He does the testing. Obviously, you have evidence that is data is corrupt, so enlighten the world.

Dirk
Dirk
1 month ago
Reply to  Bob

I call that BS and prove it. Adam performs the testing for many companies now and is not restricted by giving critique if it doesn’t work. AB is one of those shit companies that blames and questions data.
I hot wax my chains with MSW and now with Rex. I read through it and my experience is 100% in alignment with his data. Oiled chains and drivetrains dead at 10k and even faster in winter riding. Just changed my hot waxed chain set after 32k km (3 chains + 1 cassette + 1 set of chainrings) riding in all kinds of weather. Prove me that you can do better … I run 2 other bikes both with 10k km on them and the wear is 0 !
Pre-waxed chains are worthless as key in waxing is the clearing out of wax every time. I just drop (non-wet) chains in a cleaning wax pot and apply fresh coat in a new pot. That is the routine. I do that once every 2 weeks with all the collected chains which I swap around 300km. Cleaning of a bike is 10min work as the bike has no oil flanged on it. Cleaning a cassette is boiling water which takes 1min and bristle.
Paraffin works if you have the right one (no to hard not to soft and without oil residues). But can you always get a controlled pure batch tested on the same quality ? No or you pay more then your 5euro on Amazon. Adding friction modifies reduces wear further. And honestly if you can’t buy a bag of MSW or some other wax then you are lying to yourself as changing regularly drivetrain components is much more expensive.

Ross
Ross
1 month ago

I’d love if chain manufacturers started selling naked chains without lube. If adding lube is the final step then it should be easier and cheaper for manufacturers to do. Leave the lube choice to the customer. But I don’t know if factory lube is a required part of the manufacturing process to ensure quality.

Paul S
Paul S
1 month ago
Reply to  Ross

I’m pretty sure that the chains would corrode if they weren’t coated with something. It might be possible to sell uncoated chains to the big suppliers of waxed chains, but for the regular supply-chain to the consumer, it would probably lead to a lot of scrapped chains.

Greg
Greg
1 month ago
Reply to  Paul S

Being that the chains are packaged in a sealed container, I just wish they would apply a rust inhibitor that is significantly easier to clean off with less harsh chemicals. As it is, an unpackaged SRAM chain can be dropped into the ocean and be fine for a year.

Will
Will
1 month ago

The $100+ premium over a regular chain is a bit excessive. That’ll get you most of the way to an ultrasonic cleaner and a crock pot

paquo
paquo
1 month ago

so they degrease and wax a chain and chaege a hundred bucks for it, hmmm

Dan Bellino hand massage company
Dan Bellino hand massage company
1 month ago
Reply to  paquo

The secret is they’re selling to cyclists. Who will pay ludicrous prices for nothing.

Fig Ciocc
Fig Ciocc
1 month ago

Gimmick

Robin
Robin
1 month ago
Reply to  Fig Ciocc

Oh, how so?

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