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12 speed chain replacement


justinlo

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I’ll never use anything else but an XX1 chain again on my Sram drivetrain My current XX1 chain is just passed 0.5 and I’ve got about 4300km on it. 

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Hi Hubbers.

 

not sure if this is the right place, but it does involve a 12 speed chain. 

So I had to replace my chain recently, old chain was a 12 speed eagle and the new one is a 12 KNCN. The issue now is it looks like my chain line all out, the chain keeps jumping on my front chaining mid cassette and up.

Didn't have this issue with my previous chain, any advice?

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Are the chains the same length?
How worn was the old chain before you replaced it? 
What do the teeth look like on your chainring?
What do the teeth look like on your cassette? 
Is everything nice and clean with fresh lube?

If all you've changed is the chain, the chain line shouldn't be a problem. 

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9 minutes ago, Mountain Bru said:

Are the chains the same length?
How worn was the old chain before you replaced it? 
What do the teeth look like on your chainring?
What do the teeth look like on your cassette? 
Is everything nice and clean with fresh lube?

If all you've changed is the chain, the chain line shouldn't be a problem. 

Thanks for the reply.

Are the chains the same length? Yes measured and cut exactly the same
How worn was the old chain before you replaced it? It was a second hand chain, about 100km plus I added about another 100km (I broke my eagle one) then saw bling, hehe
What do the teeth look like on your chainring? Still fairly new but will recheck it to make sure
What do the teeth look like on your cassette? Cassette is new, only done 100km (no hard riding)
Is everything nice and clean with fresh lube? Will give it a good wash to see if it helps.

I've never experienced this before so I find it a bit weird

Edited by Bomberman
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Need some advice 

Nx derailleur snapped the wknd

Purchased XT shimano derailleur now and shimano shifter and sunrace cassette.(was a good combo deal)

Sram front chainring.

 

What's best chain to buy for this 1x12 that will gel nicely with this setup

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21 minutes ago, MajG said:

Need some advice 

Nx derailleur snapped the wknd

Purchased XT shimano derailleur now and shimano shifter and sunrace cassette.(was a good combo deal)

Sram front chainring.

 

What's best chain to buy for this 1x12 that will gel nicely with this setup

I'm not a Sunrace fan at all, but I would got for a XT chain if I were you.

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47 minutes ago, TheoG said:

I'm not a Sunrace fan at all, but I would got for a XT chain if I were you.

But why, just out of interest? 

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9 minutes ago, Bomberman said:

But why, just out of interest? 

Its already a mix and match of all sorts, just thinking to get "most" on the same brand.  I'm on Shimano (XTR chain & cassette, XT DR, Race Face crank) 12sp and so far no issues.  Also I read somewhere that Shimano work OK with Sunrace cassettes.  I had a Sunrace 11sp before, shifting not great, swapped it out as soon as I could.

The fact that the crank is SRAM should not be a big issue, as long as its narrow wide to retain the chain.

Edited by TheoG
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2 hours ago, Bomberman said:

Hi Hubbers.

 

not sure if this is the right place, but it does involve a 12 speed chain. 

So I had to replace my chain recently, old chain was a 12 speed eagle and the new one is a 12 KNCN. The issue now is it looks like my chain line all out, the chain keeps jumping on my front chaining mid cassette and up.

Didn't have this issue with my previous chain, any advice?

sounds like your cassette is worn

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FWIW, I had a Sunrace 11sp 11-46 cassette working well with a mid-level SRAM chain, 42t chainring and Force derailleur. No unusual noise, shifting was crisp and quick enough. Correct chain length and B-screw adjustment is often under-appreciated.

Only "issue" with the Sunrace is it's very heavy.

12sp will likely be more sensitive to the wear as well as the adjustments. My guess is the jumping is related to the chainring. Friend bought a brand new OPEN WI:De that jumped chains and got the chainring swapped out and no problems since. 

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1 minute ago, DieselnDust said:

sounds like your cassette is worn

He says the chain is jumping on the chainring though. A worn cassette would make it skip on the cassette.

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1 minute ago, TNT1 said:

He says the chain is jumping on the chainring though. A worn cassette would make it skip on the cassette.

Replace the Chainring if it's a 1X Old 1X Chainring does not like New Chain.

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3 hours ago, Bomberman said:

Hi Hubbers.

 

not sure if this is the right place, but it does involve a 12 speed chain. 

So I had to replace my chain recently, old chain was a 12 speed eagle and the new one is a 12 KNCN. The issue now is it looks like my chain line all out, the chain keeps jumping on my front chaining mid cassette and up.

Didn't have this issue with my previous chain, any advice?

I would hazard a guess, your chainring needs to be replaced, especially if your chain was 0.75 or beyond on a chain checker tool. On 1 X system your chainring sees a lot more ware than on 2 X systems.

On my old 2 X systems i could replace the chain 3 times before i needed to change the cassette and chainrings

Now on 1 X i change the chainring and the chain 3 times before i do the cassette   

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43 minutes ago, TNT1 said:

He says the chain is jumping on the chainring though. A worn cassette would make it skip on the cassette.

Yip but the worn cassette problem manifests itself differently with the 12 speed cassettes. Front ring derailment and skipping on the front with a new chain coupled to slippage on the back when it's really bad. I'm sure the front ring is shot as well but skipping on the larger sprockets says those guys are shot

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3 hours ago, TheoG said:

I'm not a Sunrace fan at all, but I would got for a XT chain if I were you.

Was part of the combo deal. I do have the existing sram nx cassette but that's got alot of wear already.

 

Will go for the xt chain, if it's crappy with the sunrace then will just have to fork out for a shimano cassette then

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11 hours ago, Bomberman said:

Thanks for the reply.

Are the chains the same length? Yes measured and cut exactly the same
How worn was the old chain before you replaced it? It was a second hand chain, about 100km plus I added about another 100km (I broke my eagle one) then saw bling, hehe
What do the teeth look like on your chainring? Still fairly new but will recheck it to make sure
What do the teeth look like on your cassette? Cassette is new, only done 100km (no hard riding)
Is everything nice and clean with fresh lube? Will give it a good wash to see if it helps.

I've never experienced this before so I find it a bit weird

Some good advice in the previous comments. 

I'd recommend when you next wander into a bike shop, or order stuff online, buy yourself a chain checker. It'll be like R100, and will save you thousands. (Something like this: https://www.cwcycles.co.za/product/marvel-chain-checker).
It'll show you when your chain is .5% worn, and when it's 0.75% worn. (Have a look at this for more info: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXd-3UnqoaM&ab_channel=ParkTool)

Basically, chains stretch over time due to loads of different reasons. It's not only km dependent, but also how clean the chain is, how much you ride with it "skew" (as in flexed laterally), if it's lubed correctly, how muddy the conditions are etc etc. So some guys might get 400km from a chain, and some 1500km or more. But wear is measured in stretch, not km. It might seem like a tiny difference in length per link, but it really matters. And once it's stretched, you now you sit with a chain doesn't mesh lekker with the gears anymore because it's stretched and the pin to pin distance is too big. And when you ride it, that "not lekker mesh" eats away at the gears and causes them to have a different profile. The old chain will still work though because as it's stretched, it's gradually eaten the gears to match it's new pin to pin distance. 

 


But when you then replace the chain with a new shiny one that should mesh nicely, it doesn't because the old chain deformed the teeth, and then your new chain will jump, and your shifting will suck. Sometimes it'll only be in certain gears on your cassette.... surprise surprise the ones you ride in most often and therefore screwed up the most with the worn chain. Hence the reason for buying a chain checker, and replacing the "cheap" chain before it screws up your expensive chain rings and cassette. Based on the fact that you broke your previous chain, it's possible that it was worn out, and might have chowed your cassette and chain ring. 

So based on what you said though, my advice would be:
1. Buy a chain checker and routinely check your chain.
2. Clean your drive train really nicely, and put some new lube on the chain
3. Make sure your gears are correctly indexed. Also make sure the derailleur tension is correct. I know nothing about Eagle, but on Shimano 12sp, there's a line on the derailleur cage that helps you get it right. Might be a similar thing for eagle.
4. If it still jumps, post pictures here of your cassette and chainring. I'm amazed by how well some guys can identify worn components just from pics.
5. If the cassette is new, and everything else is in order, you'll probably need to replace your chain ring

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