ChainMate

Fully Electronic Chain Oiler

Motivation for the project - one of many chain problems I've experienced over the years, due to poor chain maintenance.

Long Distance Rider's Life Simplified

Regular chain lubrication, as annoying as it may be, is essential. It took me years to learn this simple fact, mostly, the hard way through many painful experiences. Still, after a long day of riding, the last thing that a sweaty, hungry and tired rider wants to do is lube the chain, If the bike doesn't have a center stand, it's even less fun. While this is true for any rider, long range moto-travelers probably feel the most pain.

In addition to the hassle factor, once a day or once in 500 miles is not really enough to keep the chain properly lubricated. Constant chain lubrication, while the motorcycle is moving, can substantially extend chain's life.

ChainMate was developed as a hobby project, using off-the-shelf components as much as possible. Over the years, several different versions were implemented and tested, from a simple gravity-fed oiler to a Bluetooth enabled one, controlled via a smart phone app. Latest version is a simple solution that keeps chain lubed without any bells and whistles.

Various version of the oiler were tested for tens of thousands of miles on pavement and dirt by motorcycle riders on six continents. There is no substitute for real-life testing in challenging environments. Many flaws and problems were detected and corrected by pushing a design to the point of failure.

A number of companies offer various solutions for the continuous motorcycle chain lubrication. Their products vary in features, sophistication and prices. ChainMate was developed with quality, functionality and price in mind. There are no expensive molds, no fancy retail packaging, no expensive contractors, distributors or sales agents to jack up the price.

This oiler was designed with following goals:

1. Quality - better or at least equal to any any existing oiler on the market;
2. Price - cheaper than any comparable (fully automatic) oiler on the market;
3. Low power design - oiler can be connected to the battery all the time (even when parked for several months) without discharging the battery;
4. Easy installation - no vaccum hoses, no extra wires to wheel to sense motion;
5. Easy to use - one LED and one button, and
6. Robust design - from the motion detection algorithms to overvoltage protection, plumbing and enclosure box (can be submerged in water).

Principles of Operation

The automatic chain oiler dispenses tiny amounts of a lubricant (whatever user might prefer) on the motorcycle chain every minute or so while in motion. Once motorcycle stops at a light or when parked, no oil is dispensed.

The rider can adjust the amount of oil dispensed so as to keep the chain properly lubricated without excessive oil flinging off. On dusty roads, rider may even want to disable oiler, if the lubricant used attracts dust. All user-set parameters (amount of oil dispensed, dispensing enabled or disabled) are “remembered” even after motorcycle is turned off..

Oiler uses very low power electronics. In addition, when no motion is observed, oiler goes into a sleep mode, consuming virtually no power. For this reason, user can tap power at any point (before or after ignition relay) without worry of draining the battery, even if the motorcycle is not started for several months. Background pages provide more details about the what's inside the system and the history of the development.

Oiler set - 60ml oil reservoir, controller box (with electronics and a pump), hoses and mounting hardware.

Current design has a simple one button and one LED user interface and has been thoroughly tested on rough roads of SW USA, Southern Africa , Europe and South America. Distinguishing features of this oiler are:

• Free choice of lubricant - the pump will not be damaged by any kind of lubricant;
• Robust design - designed for and tested on long journeys through tough terrain, in various weather conditions and temperatures;
• Low power consumption - can be connected to a motorcycle battery for more than a year without draining it;
• Easy User Interface - one button and one LED;
• Set and forget operation - once parameters are set to user's liking, there is nothing else to do (except disable oiler on dusty roads);
• Easy installation - oil is not gravity-fed, so the lubricant can flow up as well;
• Wide mouth oil reservoir for easy fill-up will keep your chain properly lubricated for up to 4000 miles.

Availability and Pricing

A limited number of units is available for riders who are interested in testing the oiler. Price of the test units is the nominal cost of the parts - $50. However, a detailed feedback on performance, ease of use and usefulness for your type of riding is expected. If interested, please visit the order page.

Full production is supposed to start in the summer of 2025.