Fixing a chain, and preventing it happening again

RED_

Hi y'all

Ok, first question is a real nooooob one, but the second I need some riding advice..

1) I broke the chain today, it's a shimano chain and I have 9 speeds on the cassette. Can I get a powerlink to fix it, or is a new chain best? Powerlink would be preferable as they're only a few quid. Are these ok to leave on, or is it a temporary measure? Can I use SRAM?

2) It happened as I was pedalling uphill, I got a bit of speed up, struggled half way up, changed to a lower gear, then snap! I think I was pushing down to hard on the pedal as I changed.

What is your top tip for going uphill easier?

Nik_B

I'm just replacing mine today. I bought a new one instead of opting for a repair in case there was any other damage or wear I didn't know about. It only cost ten pounds for the chain and is a quick release the chain tool was 7 pounds. I think if you have spare links then you should be able to fix it anyway. Now I have a new chain I will have spare links which I can carry with me. The tutorial I found for working out the length was this

http://bicycletutor.com/calculate-chain-length/

Nik_B

I forgot...when I peddle up a hill and need to change gears I briefly let off the presure on my peddles to make the gear change smoother and avoiding that horrible crunching sound you get,

dave_hill

RED_ wrote:

1) I broke the chain today, it's a shimano chain and I have 9 speeds on the cassette. Can I get a powerlink to fix it, or is a new chain best? Powerlink would be preferable as they're only a few quid. Are these ok to leave on, or is it a temporary measure? Can I use SRAM?

You can use Sram powerlinks with both Sram and Shimano chains. It isn't a temporary fix as Sram use them as their primary method for joining the chain. Plus it makes maintenance easier if you need to remove the cahin because you don't have to start faffing with chain tools. Personally I'd swap the chain for a Sram too, Shimano chains have a bit of a bad rep.

RED_ wrote:

2)What is your top tip for going uphill easier?

Sit down, change down and spin. If you need to change down while you're climbing, ease off the pressure momentarily while you change then the chain isn't under as much tension.

RED_

Great stuff, that's exactly the advice I was after.

Thanks a lot.

Grimy

Exactly what Dave_Hill said.

I run a shimano Hg73 chain with a gold sram power link, and its never failed. Its never bounced apart which I was a little concerned about becouse the chain really whips about when on a rocky decent, on my setup for some reason, and it still shifts and operates sweetly.

I know Shimano chains have a little bit of a reputation for splitting, my mate used to break his all the time a couple of years ago. But I honestly suspect its more to do with the way he'd abuse the gears and crunch them all the time. If your stood on the peddals when you shift it will send a huge shock through the chain when it jumps and thats what kills em. I was 16.5 stone when I started biking and I can really put some weight on the chain when climbing, but the shimanos been excelent and 100% reliable. As you already know, just ease off a little when shifting. Either way, my point is that the chain I'm sure will be fine so you should save yourself a few quid and get a bit more wear out of it before changing it.

Stephen-Hawking

Red exactly the same happened to me yesterday and stupidly my spare links were in the garage d'oh.

I dropped two links out and reconnected the chain with the same pin - did another twenty miles or so, but then the chain started splitting again a link was nearly out when I finninshed my run - anyone any thoughts why this would be?? I thought I'd got the pin in ok and I've never had a problem before, had this bike 18 months and this chain has been on for a couple of hundred miles - it's a Shimano.

Steve

dunker

maybe you drove the pin in a little too far or not far enough? depends which side it came out i guess? no probs with xtr chains here, 1000+ miles a chain before 0.75 stretch for £20

RED_

Well, I managed to get hold of the SRAM link and fitted it yesterday (my first bit of bike maintenance!). It was really easy and seemed to hold up well when I took it down the street, although there was a slight 'daka daka daka daka daka' noise coming from the gears.

I'll see if the noise is still there next time I go out, might need a bit of oil.

The idea of being able to remove the chain and clean it easily is really appealing, so I'd recommend getting a spare link to any other noobs.

wastelander

Stephen-Hawking wrote:

Red exactly the same happened to me yesterday and stupidly my spare links were in the garage d'oh.

I dropped two links out and reconnected the chain with the same pin - did another twenty miles or so, but then the chain started splitting again a link was nearly out when I finninshed my run - anyone any thoughts why this would be?? I thought I'd got the pin in ok and I've never had a problem before, had this bike 18 months and this chain has been on for a couple of hundred miles - it's a Shimano.

Steve

Replacement Shimano joining pins are ever so slightly larger than the original chain pins. When you rejoin a chain using the orignal pin it can work lose which is why you should always avoid splitting a Shimano chain where it has been previously joined.

thefartingcockeral

Why not try a KMC chain with the missng link connection.
Such as an x9.

pdid

I had t split my HG93 Shimano chain after killing my rear mech, rejoined with a powerlink and its been fine eversince. It gets more maintenance now as i can easily remove the chain and degrease.

I think you can get 3 powerlinks for about a fiver from Chain reaction. Definately worth buying and carrying in your trailpack.

Don`t forget when undoing powerlinks to squeeze them toward each other first. You don`t get instructions when you buty the PLinks on their own!

stumpyjon

Don't I know it ^^ :oops:

Had to post on here to find out how to split the damn things :evil: .

stev68

Blew mine up today! checked with me lbs to see if i needed a new chain,he said his mates bikes got 9 powerlinks holding it together! makes my two look lame!
just ordered 3 more from cnc for 4 quid, nice to have in the backpack as i found out this afty

wastelander

pdid wrote:

Don`t forget when undoing powerlinks to squeeze them toward each other first. You don`t get instructions when you buty the PLinks on their own!

Also helps if you use a chain hook to take the tension off of the Power Link.

Stephen-Hawking

A 'chain hook' ???

bails87

I think he means a short piece of coat hanger wire shaped like : (________________) which you can use to take the tension out of the section of chain with the powerlink in, by hooking between 2 points on the chain, say 10 links apart, even though the peice of wire is only the length of 5 link (if you see what i mean) . Although someone does make money off the idea, sure I saw them for sale on CRC.

Richielaa

I've had so much trouble with Shimano chains I've been converted to SRAM. It started off with a chain, then because I thought that was good, the bike now has SRAM kit all over it. I've just built up another bike with Shimano SLX all round, which I think are excellent. With the SLX cassette though I used the relevant chain. Snap!!!!!!
Shimano, your chains suck!

wastelander

bails87 wrote:

I think he means a short piece of coat hanger wire shaped like : (________________) which you can use to take the tension out of the section of chain with the powerlink in, by hooking between 2 points on the chain, say 10 links apart, even though the peice of wire is only the length of 5 link (if you see what i mean) . Although someone does make money off the idea, sure I saw them for sale on CRC.

Spot on - you also get one with a Topeak Alien II tool - it's the funny bit of bent metal on the side of the chain tool

handful

I snapped my chain on a rocky descent last week, can't understand how as I wasn't applying any pressure at the time. I thought it was unusual but sounds quite common looking at this thread. I'm not sure what make it was but was the standard one that came on my GT bought new in September and I have cleaned and lubed it religiously after every 'proper' ride.

I must be on a run of bad luck as I went up on the Quantocks last night and did got a pinch flat, swapped tubes and found that was punctured as well. :evil: If it wasn't for the rednecks in a 4x4 that happened past and very kindly offered me a lift I would probably still be carrying my bike back to the car! Made worse because I had done all the hard work and was looking forward to a speedy descent