FlandersZA Posted August 1, 2017 Share Hi, I'd like to get some opinion on chain wear since I seem to be flying through chains at a high rate. I have a 9 spd setup on the MTB and I've been using the Shimano CN-HG53. My LBS guy who does my services actually sent my last chain back and replaced it for free as he was under the impression that it must not have been correctly tempered and could have been from a bad batch or something, based on the mileage done which was only around 400km. He had recently replaced a ring, cassette and chain and when I needed to send the bike in for something else, he noticed that my chain was toast once again. I hadn't even checked it because as far as I was concerned, 400km on a chain is basically new. I've kept a record of mileage and elevation on the new chain since replacement. I'm 80kg. 580km and 10000m climbing and after I'd cleaned my bike yesterday I checked it and it's showing 0.75 on the tool. Is this normal? I'm in JHB, doing typical highveld winter riding in which a dry lube seems perfectly adequate. I learned the hard way early on that not maintaining a drivetrain leads to accelerated wear and so I lube religiously and I clean my drivetrain thoroughly with a degreaser and scrubbing brush after every trail ride, to the point where I'd eat off of it. Yet here I am with another worn out chain. At this rate it'll work out cheaper to just run it into the ground, along with the rings and cassette. I've heard of guys going through chains on 50km rides but that's through mud and terrible conditions, which is not the case here. I'd been considering switching to a 2x10 or even 1x11 setup at some point but chucking on a new chain every 500km with the higher priced 10/11 spd chains will end me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew_Smith Posted August 1, 2017 Share Welcome to the club! That is pretty much what you get on that Shimano chain. I use KMC chains and will never go back to something else. Got 820km on it and was replaced yesterday. I feel your pain, especially if you are a rider who cover a lot of distance in a month. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaGearA Posted August 1, 2017 Share ask your LBS to get a new chain checker , if it falls once juts once on one of the indicating arms it's not accurate or take it off and measure with a ruler Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pure Savage Posted August 1, 2017 Share Welcome to the club! That is pretty much what you get on that Shimano chain. I use KMC chains and will never go back to something else. Got 820km on it and was replaced yesterday. I feel your pain, especially if you are a rider who cover a lot of distance in a month. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Wait, 820km, thats not a lot of use is it? Should it not be around 2000km? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurch the stalker Posted August 1, 2017 Share Wait, 820km, thats not a lot of use is it? Should it not be around 2000km?Was thinking the same thing... Also Highveld riding for me. I'm not sure on the chain model, but the chain on my hard tail Silverback has 3200km on it and besides services at the local bike shop and some chain lube I've never touched it and it's still going strong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mongoose! Posted August 1, 2017 Share Do you "cross chain" when riding ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAP Posted August 1, 2017 Share Hi, I'd like to get some opinion on chain wear since I seem to be flying through chains at a high rate. I have a 9 spd setup on the MTB and I've been using the Shimano CN-HG53. My LBS guy who does my services actually sent my last chain back and replaced it for free as he was under the impression that it must not have been correctly tempered and could have been from a bad batch or something, based on the mileage done which was only around 400km. He had recently replaced a ring, cassette and chain and when I needed to send the bike in for something else, he noticed that my chain was toast once again. I hadn't even checked it because as far as I was concerned, 400km on a chain is basically new. I've kept a record of mileage and elevation on the new chain since replacement. I'm 80kg. 580km and 10000m climbing and after I'd cleaned my bike yesterday I checked it and it's showing 0.75 on the tool. Is this normal? I'm in JHB, doing typical highveld winter riding in which a dry lube seems perfectly adequate. I learned the hard way early on that not maintaining a drivetrain leads to accelerated wear and so I lube religiously and I clean my drivetrain thoroughly with a degreaser and scrubbing brush after every trail ride, to the point where I'd eat off of it. Yet here I am with another worn out chain. At this rate it'll work out cheaper to just run it into the ground, along with the rings and cassette. I've heard of guys going through chains on 50km rides but that's through mud and terrible conditions, which is not the case here. I'd been considering switching to a 2x10 or even 1x11 setup at some point but chucking on a new chain every 500km with the higher priced 10/11 spd chains will end me. Try a KMC chain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W@nted Posted August 1, 2017 Share Definitely not normal for a chain to only last 500km... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrcg Posted August 1, 2017 Share This is indeed a frustrating quandary. Have been trying to find the best solution here too.It surely has to do with chain make, quality and care (too much intense cleaning is not advisable!), but there are a few variables which makes it hard to pinpoint.However, something few have pointed out to me: your riding style. I used to power heavy gears a lot (in races), which besides tiring me out fast, actually accelerated the wear. By keeping to more "smooth" gearing and not trapping too hard a gear, seems to make a difference. Speed is kept and endurance even more.I also wish I could get to 2000km per chain, but not possible. Unless I spin along lightly on a flat surface that aint gonna happen. And that aint gonna happen... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlandersZA Posted August 1, 2017 Share Do you "cross chain" when riding ? It's a 3x setup but I really only use the middle ring 95% of the time. I do some riding in the burbs during the week when I can't get to the fun stuff and then I'm only ever on the big ring down mine shafts. Granny is basically for that rare Mankele outing or Magalies Monster type ride. In fact, my granny ring looks almost brand new. When I got the bike (my first "serious" MTB), I was completely clueless about everything and I ran that first chain for 6000km without really looking after it well at all. Granted, I needed to replace ring and cassette after that too when I started getting slip and suck but damn, works out cheaper than what's happening now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlandersZA Posted August 1, 2017 Share This is indeed a frustrating quandary. Have been trying to find the best solution here too.It surely has to do with chain make, quality and care (too much intense cleaning is not advisable!), but there are a few variables which makes it hard to pinpoint.However, something few have pointed out to me: your riding style. I used to power heavy gears a lot (in races), which besides tiring me out fast, actually accelerated the wear. By keeping to more "smooth" gearing and not trapping too hard a gear, seems to make a difference. Speed is kept and endurance even more.I also wish I could get to 2000km per chain, but not possible. Unless I spin along lightly on a flat surface that aint gonna happen. And that aint gonna happen... That's the weird thing. I'm definitely a cadence guy. I spin faster than just about anyone I know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Long Wheel Base Posted August 1, 2017 Share Yoh something is not lekker. I use the cheaper shimano chain on my commuter which I have done close on 5000km before on it. Usually no less than 4000km. Never changed blades on my xt cranks which are like 10 years old and probably change clusters every 2 or 3 chains.Even on my tandem where I used to use ultgera chains I got more than that. Found the sram chain lasted longer on the tandem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomik Posted August 1, 2017 Share As the guy above said, don't degrease your chain too often. It strips the lube from inside and it's unlikely a single new application of lube will get into all the rollers. I suspect that's your main problem. Just wipe it clean with a cloth. I find Finish Line Clean Ride works well as you don't have to clean the chain each time (but you do have to lube it almost every ride) I'm on well over 1000km on a 1x11 XT setup (with an XT chain) and nowhere near the 0.75 marker. For what it's worth, I have over 10000km on my Ultegra chain and it's also nowhere near the marker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlandersZA Posted August 1, 2017 Share Okay, interesting. Thanks for the responses so far. I was under the impression that intensive cleaning was essential for prolonging chain life, so long as the chain is well lubed prior to riding. I will try and solve this then by process of elimination. I'll get another of the same model chain and dial back the OCD cleaning and see what happens. If that doesn't help I'll go for a KMC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew_Smith Posted August 1, 2017 Share Wait, 820km, thats not a lot of use is it? Should it not be around 2000km? Well, I cannot believe it myself, but my LBS said that's what you get. I use the KMC 10spd .94 chain. My previous chain (Shimano HG94) which I only got 500km out of. And most of my riding on the new chain was with Sportsworld MTB/road loops of +-55km a day. But yeah, I too thought I would get more. Apparently not. @Pure Savage what chain do you run on your MTB? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NelAndre Posted August 1, 2017 Share Flanders, sounds to me like you are a Hill Monkey ( www.superclydesdale.com ) with too many gears? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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