I'm going against the grain on the 'never use WD-40 on a bike' rule after it saved a rusted derailleur on a 1990s Schwinn last week.

A customer brought in a bike that sat in a Seattle garage for a decade, and after three days of trying penetrating oil, a single spray of WD-40 on the seized pivot bolt got it moving in 10 minutes, so when do you think the blanket ban on it is actually wrong?

3 comments

3 Comments

coleman.karen1mo ago

Totally agree. That rule is for people who use it as lube, not for freeing up rust. Sometimes you just need the right tool.

emmafisher1mo ago

But what happens after it frees things up? That stuff dries out and leaves a gummy film that attracts more dirt. You got lucky with a one time fix on a junker. On a modern bike with tight tolerances, that film will wreck your shifters and derailleur pivots fast. It's a quick fix that often leads to a bigger bill when the parts wear out from grinding paste.

willowroberts28d ago

People act like every rule is a law but life is mostly about knowing when to break them.