Chain Question

[makbike]

I have always been told that when you replace the chain on your bike you need to also replace the rear cassette and the front chainrings, is this true? I took my bike to a new shop yesterday for basic TLC (to have the bearings repacked, BB checked/lubed, cables replaced, etc). The owner was surprised when I told him my chain, cassette and chainrings were the originial ones (I purchased the bike in the mid 1980's). He wanted to replace the chain but I declined given the bike shifts with no problems and I have at home a new chain, cassette and triple (exBF had promised me he would put them on my bike this season). When I asked him if you could simply replace the chain without replacing the other components he said "yes" that shops traditionally tell customers that they need to replace all three so the shop can make more money. I always thought the three wore together and therefore had to be changed out together. Is this guy correct?

[Blueberry]

From what my very trusted LBS tells me, if your chain has stretched more than 1/8", you will likely have to replace the cassette too. They usually install a new chain, see if there's a skipping problem, and then replace the cassette if needed. From what they've said, it takes even longer to need to replace the crank.

Hope this helps,

CA

[DebW]

For a bike from the 70s and 80s, the mantra was that you could usually replace the freewheel without replacing the chain. But if you replaced the chain you should replace the freewheel also. Freewheels wore faster than 5- and 6-speed chains, and an old freewheel wouldn't mesh properly with a new chain. Now the situation is reversed, and cassettes last much longer than chains if you replace the chain regularly before it's too worn. 9- and 10-speed chains are much narrower than the old chains and don't last more than ~1500 miles. Chainrings should last much much longer than chains or freewheels/cassettes.

My advise is to not replace your chain or freewheel until you have problems. When the chain starts skipping across teeth on your freewheel, replace them both. What replacement parts do you have? If they were bought in the last few years, you may have an 8-speed chain to replace a 6-speed chain, and those 8-speed chains have a pretty short life, in my experience. Once you go that way, you'll be replacing both chain and freewheel every couple years, and given the availability of freewheels these days, I'd hold off as long as possible.

Regarding chainrings, you have to look at them separately. If they've worn to where the teeth are needle-sharp or the chain doesn't sit firmly in the bottom of the space between teeth, then replace them. When you put on a new chain, check that it seats well in the chainrings because the old chain was stretched with more spacing between links.

[lizbids]

Yeah, I agree with only changing things when you need to. If your chain is stretched and causing shifting problems, then change it out. If the teeth on your cogs are all bent out of whack, change it. Not all bike shops are honest!

[Mr. Bloom]

This is something else...

I can attest that Makbike has maintained her bike well (not as good on her saddle pack, but the saddle pack's preservation is a testimony to duct tape )

But this is something else: She's got a 20 year old chain...but I broke mine in the first three months I was riding.

Hmmm, maybe I need to lose more weight.

[DebW]

But this is something else: She's got a 20 year old chain...but I broke mine in the first three months I was riding.

Hmmm, maybe I need to lose more weight.

That's the difference between a 5- or 6-speed chain and a 9- or 10-speed chain. The new ones are much narrower and therefore much less robust. And the pins are typically flush to the sides of the links in new chains, making the chain more susceptible to failure. That's why I advise to keep the old chain as long as possible, because you won't find another as robust and you'll be replacing them annually.

[makbike]

Mr. Silver:

I retired the old blue bag today and put me new Carridice Zipped Roll pack on my bike. I'll miss my trusted friend!

I picked my bike up today, glad to have it home safe and sound in my garage. The real shocker was I found out my exBF worked on it for he has been hired as a PT mechanic at this new shop. The next real blow was to find out the chain rings I purchased back in January don't fit the bolt pattern on my bike, what's a girl to do? The bearings in the wheels were in great shape, the BB is okay but the spindle (whatever this is) is pitted. Looks like my little blue bike is going to get some new parts this winter.

Mr. Silver, will you and the Silver family be coming to Louisvile next weekend for the Old Kentucky Home Tour?