SILCA's quest to produce the finest products has in recent years swelled to include lubricants. Many will remember the excellent NFS Chain lube that dramatically reduced wear while delivering excellent drive efficiency. Sadly, due to the lack of production of an element of that lube, NFS dissappeared.
Undeterred, Silca have continued to strive for the ultimate lubrication - not only for perfromance (wax based Super Secret Lube) but also for durability and longevity.
To that end, and hot on the heels of the highly successful Super Secret Lube, Silca have released Synergetic - an oil based 'wet' lube.
SYNERGETIC Lube is based on technology originally developed in F1 racing, to reduce friction and nearly eliminate wear in all metal components.
While it still delivers on performance, it is the durability that is remarkable. Synergetic lube is for the demanding cyclist who wants to experience the lower friction, increased lifespan, and silence of the most advanced lubrication technologies without the extra work involved with deep cleaning, drying and waxing their chain.
The majority of cyclists are unphased by the 'performance' aspect of lubes and more interested in using oil based wet lubricants for both ease of use and reduced time commitment. While hot melt wax and drip wax may ultimately be slightly more efficient and cleaner running, the requirement of starting with a perfectly clean, dry chain, and the 300 mile re-application intervals are not for everybody.
SILCA set out to develop the world’s fastest, quietest, longest lasting
oil based chain lube utilising the nano scale tungsten disulfide found in
Super Secret lube to reduce surface wear and friction within the chain.
Unbeknown to Silca when they began the development of Synergetic was that combination of their base lube with WS2 particles and an anti wear additive (ZDDP), commonly used in racing car engines, creates a synergistic effect when combined. Ultimately the result helped reduce friction by 50% and wear by 95%.
The reason behind this is a phenomenon known as a Durable Tribofilm. Formed under pressure it caused the WS2 and other additive to form a highly lubricious solid on the surface of the metal which acts not only as a lubricating surface, but also as a wear surface - resulting in less wear on components.
There is plenty of tech behind this lube, including its performance against F1 engine oils, which shows reduced wear on component parts during the test period.
SILCA Synergetic oil has tested internally to be the fastest and quietest oil-based lubricant ever tested, losing only 4.9 watts on 250 input (98.1% efficiency), however, it really begins to shine when focusing on longevity and durability of the chain and mating components. Best of all, because the lubricant forms a durable tribofilm at the metal surface, and is strongly attracted to itself, the lube proves to be exceptionally waterproof, remaining inside the chain even in testing under full water submersion.
There's more test data and info on Silca's own website but the best and most easily understood info is from CEO of Silca, Josh Poetner in the video below - delivered in his own easy style, it is simple to understand and very impressive if you have a spare 20 minutes!
Thanks to its unrivalled durability, Silca supply the Synergetic lube in just a 2oz bottle and - in order to save you money and ensure you don't liberally dispense / waste your prized lube - each bottle is fitted with an 18 guage, medical grade Luer Lock precision applicator tip, to ensure you accurately deliver just one drop per roller on your chain.
The durabilty of the lube and its ability to withstand higher loads with less wear make this not only ideal for normal road, mountain, gravel etc bikes, but also the ultimate in e-Bike lubrication too.
Josh :"This is the lube for every rider who wants to take advantage of this tech explosion happening in lubricants, but doesn't want to remove/strip/dry/wax their chain.. I keep saying that this is 97% the experience and performance of our wax lubricants for 1/10th the effort.. so our super speed focused customers will continue to hot melt wax or use Super-Secret drip wax, and everybody else is a candidate for Synergetic.
This is also without a doubt, the best e-bike lube probably ever invented. The lubricant film is capable of handling significantly more pressure than any other oil based lube we've ever tested, so this product will last longer, run more smoothly, AND specifically more quietly than any other drip lube in e-bike use."