Cycling · Head-to-head
SILCA Super Secret 2.0 Chain Lube vs Squirt Cycling Products Long Lasting Chain Lube
Which should you buy? Our verdict on both, pulled from our full The Best Chain Lubes: 4 Compared (and One to Skip) comparison.
Super Secret 2.0 gives you wax-type behaviour from a bottle, with a maker-stated interval of 350 to 400 km and an independently measured friction figure for the previous formula under four watts. Squirt does most of the same job for far less money, with a wider and less predictable interval and a mid-table wear result.
SILCA Super Secret 2.0 Chain Lube
Buy itA drip-on wax coating with tungsten disulfide that behaves like hot melt wax without the pot, provided you strip the chain first and give it time to cure.
- Dries to a wax coating you can handle without getting a black stripe on your leg.
- SILCA states 350 to 400 km per application, which is a long interval for a drip product.
- Compatible with hot melt wax, so it works as a top-up between immersion re-waxes if you later go that way.
- Needs a fully stripped chain to bond, so applying it over factory grease wastes the bottle.
- SILCA asks for at least four hours of cure time, with overnight preferred, so you cannot lube just before a ride.
- The long-duration independent wear data that built this product's reputation was run on the previous formula, not on 2.0.
Squirt Cycling Products Long Lasting Chain Lube
Buy itThe original wax and water emulsion: cheap, clean, biodegradable, and a genuine step up from the oil-based dry lubes it sits next to on the shelf.
- Cheapest realistic route into wax lubrication, and widely stocked.
- Squirt states you never need to degrease again once you are running it, only occasional cleaning after a gritty ride.
- Independently certified as readily biodegradable, at 88.5 percent biodegradation after 28 days under OECD 301B.
- The water carrier has to evaporate fully before you ride, which is slow in cold or humid weather.
- The stated interval is very wide, 30 to 300 miles depending on conditions, so you are judging by chain noise rather than a number.
- Wax emulsions are known to struggle to get back inside a freshly solvent-cleaned chain, which is why Squirt asks for a second coat ten minutes after the first.
Side by side
The 8 criteria below are the ones our full comparison judged every product on, narrowed to these two.
| SILCA Super Secret 2.0 Chain Lube Our pick | Squirt Cycling Products Long Lasting Chain Lube | |
|---|---|---|
| Our verdict | Buy | Buy |
| Best for | The rider who wants wax-level cleanliness and wear protection but is never going to own a dedicated slow cooker. | Commuters, gravel riders and anyone who wants a clean drivetrain on a budget and does not mind lubing the night before. |
| Price tier | $$$ · premium | $ · budget |
| Lubricant family | Drip wax coating, emulsified wax with tungsten disulfide | Wax emulsion in a water carrier |
| Does it have to dry or set? | Yes, at least 4 hours, overnight preferred | Yes, water must evaporate fully before riding |
| Maker's stated reapplication interval | 350 to 400 km (220 to 250 miles) or when noisy | 30 to 300 miles depending on conditions |
| Conditions the maker claims | Better wet-weather performance than version 1.0 | All conditions above freezing; a separate Low Temperature version covers 0 to 32 F |
| Chain prep the maker requires | Chain must be very clean and dry; SILCA sells a stripper for factory grease | Fully degrease factory grease, then two coats ten minutes apart |
| Equipment beyond the bottle | None | None |
| Modelled chain life, independent 6,000 km wear test | About 4,500 km (previous formula tested) | About 3,150 km |
| Measured drivetrain loss at 250 W, clean chain | 3.82 W (previous formula, independent lab) | 4.04 W (independent lab) |
Which one is right for you?
Pick the SILCA Super Secret 2.0 Chain Lube if
the rider who wants wax-level cleanliness and wear protection but is never going to own a dedicated slow cooker.
Know before buying: needs a fully stripped chain to bond, so applying it over factory grease wastes the bottle.
Pick the Squirt Cycling Products Long Lasting Chain Lube if
commuters, gravel riders and anyone who wants a clean drivetrain on a budget and does not mind lubing the night before.
Know before buying: the water carrier has to evaporate fully before you ride, which is slow in cold or humid weather.
The bottom line
Our overall pick is the SILCA Super Secret 2.0 Chain Lube - A drip-on wax coating with tungsten disulfide that behaves like hot melt wax without the pot, provided you strip the chain first and give it time to cure. Choose the Squirt Cycling Products Long Lasting Chain Lube instead if commuters, gravel riders and anyone who wants a clean drivetrain on a budget and does not mind lubing the night before.
Want the full picture, including the other options we compared and the popular one we'd skip? Read the complete The Best Chain Lubes: 4 Compared (and One to Skip).