Everything the app does, screen by screen. WaxSync tells you exactly when to re-wax your bike chain, so you stop guessing and ride on a clean, fast, long-lasting drivetrain.
What WaxSync does
WaxSync tells you exactly when to re-wax your bike chain, so you stop guessing and ride on a clean, fast, long-lasting drivetrain.
A freshly waxed chain only stays fast for a certain distance. WaxSync counts that distance down for you, ride by ride. It reads your mileage from Strava (or you can add it by hand), makes wet and mixed rides wear the wax faster, and shows each chain moving from healthy to time-to-wax at a glance. If you run several chains, it also manages the rotation so you always have a fresh one ready.
Everything stays on your device. There are no accounts to create, no ads, and no tracking.
The basics
The four tabs run along the bottom:
Today is your at-a-glance status. Start here every day.
Bikes is where you manage each bike's details.
Library holds the waxing how-to guides.
Settings is everything else.
The status words. Every chain sits in one of these states, shown on a badge and always backed by a word (never colour alone):
ON WAX: plenty of wax life left. Nothing to do.
DUE SOON: getting close to the wax point.
WAX NOW: it has reached the wax point. Time to wax, or swap on a fresh chain.
BORROWED TIME: it is past its safe limit. Wax before your next ride.
NO CHAIN: the bike has no active chain yet.
The wax life countdown. Each chain has a wax life measured in distance. As you ride, WaxSync counts down how far is left until the next wax is due. Wet and mixed rides use that life up faster than dry ones.
First launch
The first time you open WaxSync, a short Getting Started walkthrough appears. You can swipe through it or tap Skip, and replay it any time from Settings (see Help and Guides). It covers adding a bike, reading the countdown, confirming ride conditions, and telling WaxSync when you have waxed.
Then the Today screen invites you to add your first bike, two ways:
Import Bikes from Strava (or Connect with Strava first, if you have not linked it yet). This pulls your bikes straight from Strava, already linked so rides match automatically.
Add a Bike Manually, if you would rather not use Strava, or want to add a bike Strava does not know about.
Today tab
The home screen. It shows one card per bike, most urgent first, with a plain-English summary underneath.
Reading a bike card
Each card shows the bike's name, its status badge (the words above), a progress bar, and a few numbers:
of wax life left: how much of this chain's wax life remains. If it is overdue, this reads past the wax point instead.
since wax: how far the chain has ridden since its last wax.
A bike with no chain yet reads No chain on this bike yet. Add one to start the wax countdown. A chain that has gone past its limit shows a Borrowed Time callout that tells you how far past it is.
Confirming a ride after you ride
When a new ride comes in from Strava, the card asks one quick question so the wax maths is right: it shows the ride and asks How were the conditions? with three buttons, Dry, Wet, and Mixed. One tap confirms it and updates the countdown. If several rides are waiting, you can tap Mark all dry to clear them together.
The summary and sync lines
Below the cards, a single line sums up your fleet, for example All 3 bikes on wax. Nothing to do. or 2 of 4 bikes need attention.
Under that, a sync line shows Syncing rides... while it works, Rides synced with the time when it is done, or a Sync problem message you can tap to retry. Pull down on the screen any time to sync straight away.
Rides that need a bike
Nearly every ride matches a bike automatically. In the rare case that a ride has no bike tagged in Strava, a quiet line appears low on the screen, for example 1 ride needs a bike. Tap it to open Rides to Review and assign or ignore each one. Indoor and trainer rides are ignored automatically and never appear here.
The bike status screen
Tap a bike card on Today to open its full wax-status screen.
Photo at the top. If the bike has no photo yet, tap Add Photo to set one from your library. You can change it later on the Bikes tab.
Status panel: the badge, the progress bar, and the three points along it, warning, wax due, and limit, which mark where the chain moves from healthy, to due, to past its limit.
Metric tiles:
Since Wax: the distance ridden since the last wax. A + wet/mixed note appears when wet or mixed rides have added extra wear on top.
Wax Due In: how far until the next wax. It flips to Overdue once you pass it.
Odometer: the bike's total distance.
Chains (only when chain rotation is on): how many chains are in service.
The buttons
Swap Chain (when chain rotation is on): put a fresh, pre-waxed chain on the bike.
Wax Now (when chain rotation is off): tell WaxSync you have waxed this chain.
Log Ride: add a ride by hand.
The rides list
Under Rides you see the last 60 days of rides for this bike. Each ride carries a small mark showing where it came from: an orange dot for From Strava, or a violet pencil for Added by hand. Rides that count toward the current wax life show a green drop and a faint green wash. Tap a ride's conditions pill to change Dry, Wet or Mixed, or its ... menu for Edit Ride and Delete Ride.
When Strava rides are present, the official Powered by Strava logo sits under the list.
History
At the bottom, History opens the maintenance log for this bike (see Bikes tab, History).
Waxing a single chain
When chain rotation is off, tap Wax Now on this screen. WaxSync asks Waxed your chain? with:
I Waxed It Today: restarts the countdown from today.
Different Day or Wax...: opens a short form to log a wax on another date, or with a different wax profile.
That one tap is all it takes to reset the wax life.
Bikes tab
Where you manage each bike's identity and details. (Today is about status; Bikes is about the bike itself.)
The list
Each row shows the bike name, its type and odometer, and a status dot with its zone word. Tap the round + button to add a bike. Tap a row to open Bike Info.
If you have no bikes yet, you see No Bikes Yet and a button to add your first one.
Bike Info
A read-only summary: the photo and a Details panel with Type, Brand, Model, Odometer, Wax profile, and whether Strava is Linked. Tap Edit in the corner to change anything.
Edit Bike
Change the photo, Name, Brand, Model, Type, and Odometer.
Set the Default Profile (which wax profile this bike's chains use).
Archive Bike: hides the bike from your lists but keeps its full history. Use this for a bike you no longer ride but do not want to lose. Unarchive any time.
Danger zone:
Reset Bike Data...: wipes this bike's rides, history, and chain statistics, but keeps the bike, its photo, and its chains. Recent Strava rides return on the next sync.
Delete Bike...: removes the bike and everything with it. There is no undo. The app offers Archive instead if you only want to hide it.
Add a Bike
If you use Strava, the quickest way is right at the top of the sheet: Import Bikes from Strava pulls your bikes in already linked (or connect first, then import).
Or add one by hand: a photo, a Name, and optional Brand, Model, Type, and Odometer.
Pick a Default Profile.
Leave Create initial chain on to start tracking straight away. The initial chain is marked active and freshly waxed at the current odometer. You can name it (for example Shimano CN-M8100) and add more chains later to build a rotation.
Bike types are Road, Gravel, Mountain, Commuter, E-Bike, and Track.
Rides
Where rides come from
From Strava: once a bike is linked, your rides flow in automatically and match to the right bike by the bike you tagged in Strava. Tag your rides in Strava for the best results.
By hand: use Log Ride on the bike status screen for a ride Strava did not record.
Indoor and trainer rides (for example ROUVY or Zwift) are ignored and never enter the app.
Log Ride
Give the ride a name, a distance, the conditions (Dry, Wet, or Mixed), and a date. The ride is added to the bike's odometer and counts toward the chain's wax life. Wet and mixed conditions use wax faster. Just installed WaxSync? Log the rides you have done since your last wax so the chain's wax life starts in the right place.
Edit Ride
Open a ride's ... menu and choose Edit Ride. You can always change the conditions and the Counts toward current wax switch. For rides you added by hand, you can also change the name, date, and distance. Rides from Strava show those three as read-only; to correct them, edit the activity in Strava and sync again.
Counts toward current wax decides whether a ride adds to the Since Wax total. Turn it off for a ride you do not want counted (for example a ride from before the last wax).
Delete Ride
From the same ... menu, Delete Ride removes a ride and updates your totals. A ride you added by hand is gone for good. A Strava ride returns on the next sync unless you change it in Strava.
Rides to Review
Opened from the quiet needs a bike line on Today. Each ride has an Assign menu to pick a bike, or Ignore this ride. Assigned rides count toward that bike; ignored rides are kept but never counted.
Chains and rotation
Rotation is for riders who run several chains per bike: keep pre-waxed spares ready, swap a fresh one on when the wax runs out, and wax the used ones in a batch whenever it suits. It is off by default, tracking a single chain per bike.
Turning rotation on
Settings has a Manage chain rotation switch. With it on, the bike screens gain Swap Chain and a Chain Rotation section.
The Chain Rotation screen
Open it from the bike status screen. At the top, a simple loop shows how rotation works: a chain that is Waxed and ready goes On the bike, comes off To be waxed, and after waxing returns to ready.
Below the loop, your chains sit in bins:
On the bike: the chain currently fitted.
Waxed and ready: spares waxed and ready to swap on.
To be waxed: used chains waiting for their next wax.
Retired: chains you have taken out of service (kept for their statistics).
Each chain row has a button for its next step: Wax Now and Retire... for the one on the bike, Put This Chain on the Bike for a ready spare, and I Waxed This Chain for one that needs wax. Swipe a row for the same actions as a shortcut.
Tap Add Chain (the +) to add a chain you own.
Swap Chain
From the bike status screen, Swap Chain takes the current chain off and puts a pre-waxed spare on. If no spare is ready, it tells you to wax one or add a new chain first. If the chain you fit has a well-used quick link, WaxSync asks Did you fit a new quick link? so it can track the link's wear.
Waxing a chain
Wax Now or I Waxed This Chain asks Waxed your chain? with I Waxed It Today or Different Day or Wax.... Waxing the chain on the bike restarts its countdown from today; waxing a used spare makes it ready for the next swap. Because you can wax several at once, this is how batch waxing works: wax them all, then mark each one done.
Chain details, rename, retire, quick links
Tap a chain to open its detail screen. Here you see its Lifetime distance, Wax Cycles, and quick-link usage. You can Rename it, Log Wax, Replace Quick Link, or Retire Chain.
Quick links are rated for a number of closures. WaxSync counts each time you install a chain and warns you with Quick link worn, fit a new one at the next install as it nears the limit. You can set the rated uses per chain on its detail screen.
Library
The Library holds the waxing how-to guides, available offline. Search with Search tutorials, and tap the bookmark on any guide to save it.
The guides are:
The complete hot wax process (start to finish)
Prepping a brand-new chain
Cleaning a used chain for re-wax
Melting and dipping technique
Curing and re-installing
Quick-link handling
Each guide opens as numbered steps with any safety notes called out, for example a reminder that wax is flammable and a hot pot should never be left unattended. You can also read all of these on the waxing guides page.
Settings
Name: your name.
Strava: connect or disconnect, match bikes to Strava gear, import bikes, choose a default bike, and sync (see below).
Distance: choose Kilometres or Miles.
Appearance: System, Light, or Dark.
Manage chain rotation: the rotation switch described above.
Notifications: reminders and the weekly summary (see below).
Wax Profiles: the wax-life distances and condition factors per lubricant (see below).
Multiple bikes: WaxSync is free for one bike. Unlock multiple bikes is a one-time purchase to manage as many as you like, with Restore Purchases if you have bought it before.
Help and Guides: replay the swipeable walkthroughs any time.
Version: the app version.
Erase All Data and Settings: removes every bike, chain, ride, photo, and setting, and disconnects Strava. It asks twice, including typing the word ERASE, because it cannot be undone.
Strava
Account: shows Connected, with Disconnect, or the Connect with Strava button when you are not linked.
Ride sync: shows when it last synced, with a Sync Now button.
Match Bikes to Strava: link each WaxSync bike to its Strava gear. Rides tagged with a linked bike are assigned automatically.
Import Bikes from Strava: creates WaxSync bikes from your Strava gear, already linked. Each imported bike starts with its chain marked as waxed today; tap Wax Now after your next real wax to reset the countdown.
Default bike: rides with no Strava bike tag go to this bike. Leave it as None to review them by hand.
Notifications
Turn on Allow notifications, then choose which to receive:
Wax due soon: a bike is getting close to its wax point.
Wax now: a bike has reached its wax point.
Borrowed time: a bike has gone past its limit.
Spare chain due: a spare is waiting for wax (rotation only).
Weekly summary: a weekly digest of your whole fleet.
You can also set a Sound, hold notifications overnight with Quiet hours, and mute individual bikes. WaxSync only notifies you about maintenance, never marketing.
Wax Profiles
A wax profile holds how far a lubricant lasts and how much faster it wears in wet or mixed conditions. Tap one to edit it.
Wax life in dry riding: the Warning, Wax due, and Limit distances, which must rise in that order.
Condition factors: sliders for Dry, Wet, and Mixed, each shown in plain words such as "uses wax 33% faster", with a live example line.
Built-in profiles have Reset to Original to restore the factory numbers.
Saving applies straight away to every chain waxed with that profile, so the countdowns on Today may shift. The built-in profiles are Standard Hot Wax, Premium Hot Wax, Standard Drip Wax, Premium Drip Wax, and Hybrid Wax.
Multiple bikes (the one-time unlock)
WaxSync is free to manage one bike with every feature included. When you add a second bike, it offers Room for the whole fleet: a single Unlock purchase, yours for life, with no subscription. Restore Purchases brings it back on a new device or after reinstalling. One bike always stays free.
Home screen widgets
Add the Chain Status widget to your home screen for your fleet at a glance, without opening the app.
Small: your most urgent bike, its status, and how far to the next wax.
Medium: up to three bikes with their status and distance to wax.
Large: up to five bikes with status bars, plus the last sync time.
Tapping a widget opens that bike in WaxSync.
Your privacy
WaxSync keeps your data on your device. It connects to Strava only to read your rides, and you can disconnect any time. There are no analytics, no ads, and no tracking, and WaxSync never sells or shares your information.
Getting help
Tap the small question mark in the bottom corner of any main screen to open its guide.
The in-app guides live in the Library and in Settings, Help and Guides.
WaxSync
