An Afternoon of Chain Waxing and a $300 Tire Tool...

Video: Seth // Edit: Curtis // Words: Daniel

I was fairly excited about a couple of the products in this latest batch, well, mostly just one (the $300 tire lever), but things have escalated since this all came in and since the video was shot. And, as of this afternoon, as much as it pains me to say it, I’m very interested in chain waxing.

I stopped by Seth’s to pick up some special parts he had printed, and in the 24 hours since I was last there, his enthusiasm for chain waxing had…escalated. Yesterday, it was a little more interest than you see in the video here. Today, it was full-on stoke. And, for a moment, I actually thought I was talking to a different Seth —my other friend Seth…we’ll call him “Seth B”. Seth B gets excited to follow regularly scheduled brake fluid flushing intervals and is straight up giddy about chain waxing.

Like Seth A’s initial thoughts on it - I had written it off as far too complicated and why would I mess with it- but sure enough, there I was mid-afternoon today, standing in the workshop, finding myself increasingly convinced that I was going to start waxing chains and realizing that after seeing the finished product, I owed Seth B an apology. Sorry, buddy…I shouldn’t have doubted you. (But I’m still not ever changing brake fluid or doing many other things that can be done to a bike just because.)

What led to the revelation? As you may or may not know, one of the key components of making a video for YouTube is having a good thumbnail image. Why’s that? You can make the best video in the world, but if no one clicks on it, what's the point?