Nagrom_

Me too, just not ruining my burrito.

TejanoTrackie 

No soup for you.

TimothyH

I wonder if people who brake chains do any maintenance on them at all.

Or if they are just chain braking freaks.

FBinNY 

Chain maintenance consists mainly of keeping them adequately lubed. That has no effect on breakage or falling off sprockets, except in very extreme cases where things like rust are severe.

The reality is that fixed gear bikes are very easy on the chains by virtue of the larger chainring, and none of the side stress issues that derailleurs introduce.

BTW - a brake is something that slows motion. A break is what may happen to a bone if the brake doesn't work.

thedapperest

Both times for me was probably poor-ish maintenance. Then again it was KMC Z410 which is obviously on the lower end

AndjaVXC

My chain that broke was a cheap-o Izumi Eco-Chain. The plate actually snapped right at the pin and it just came apart.

hardboiled718

^just curious, did the chain have a lot of wear or did you use a chain breaker on it and have a hard time getting the pin back in?

AndjaVXC

Nope, it was a new chain, and it came apart and went back together just fine when I installed it. I think it must have just been a bad link plate from the get-go.

FBinNY 

There's a DIN standard for bicycle chains. the required breaking strength is 1100kg, which is more than riders can achieve even allowing for the chainring diameter being less than half the crank diameter.

So plate breakage from hard use or even poor maintenance isn't likely. But that's not to say hat plates don't break. Here's a few known causes.

1- production defect involving defect in heat treatment, or an undersized pin hole which causes local stress cracks. This cause won't happen randomly, but involve multiple plates on the same chain, and multiple chains in a given production lot.

2- chemical attack from poorly chosen cleaners. The steels used on chains are vulnerable to becoming embrittled through exposure with various ions, notably Hydrogen and halogens. These are present in many cleaners, and also in road salt. Long term exposure to these chemicals can cause the plates to fracture under load.

3- over tension. Though it would take an impossibly heavy rider to overload a chain, it can easily be done with an eccentric chainring. Many nre fixed gear riders don't know that the correct tension is zero (slack), and pull as much slack as they can out of their chains. Because chainrings are slightly eccentric, they can act like cams and produce tremendous chain tension as the high spot comes around. Usually this bends axles and/or chainrings, but it is possible to overload a chain and crack plates this way (but not that easy).

The other way a chain can become over tensioned is when run too slack and partly fall off and snag on the sprocket. This produces a loud snapping sound, and jams the drive for a moment until the chain either falls off or pops back on.

So, when I hear of a broken chain, I search for possibilities among the three above.

Nagrom_

Do you like rice in your burrito?

tashi

Man, last burrito I had with rice in it was in California, made by a Mexican dude.

Turns out lots of **** is tasty wrapped up in a tortilla, and many folks that make mexican food aren't too dogmatic about it.

Last time I was in Mexico I didn't have any burritos though, so...uhhh...what was I saying again? Something about how awesome BC weed is?


p.s.: Canadian health care is awesome. Except for when it comes to teeth and eyes. My broken back got fixed for free but my teeth didn't, and my contacts and optometrist are expensive.


And yeah, you probably won't throw a chain. Having a brake is safer, and necessary if, like me, you absolutely hate riding fixed-gear road bikes on a road.

Leukybear 

I prefer fries though

FBinNY 

Generally no, but there used to be a guy that made beef chili burritos with rice & beans and they were among the best I've ever had.

Nagrom_

Game changer!!!
Guess what I'm gonna make tomorrow.

Nagrom_

No carbs in my burrito please.
That's what the tortilla is for, like come on guys.

veganbikes

I had a delicious burrito last night. I got both guacamole and sliced avocado as well as a ton of different veggies and rice and beans and put some delicious aspberry and Vidalia onion hot sauce on it. That shiz was amazing. I wish I had another right now.

FBinNY 

You guys want burritos. This is da place

Owlex

One time I broke a PC-1 that I'd broken and rejoined too many times. Totally my fault.


Luckily it fell off, not got locked up in the frame. I ted shredded on the back wheel to stop, and walked a couple miles home.

Huffandstuff

Made Soyrizo burritos today with rice in it, I expect my chain to snap tomorrow.

SquidPuppet

I saw that place on Triple D and it looked really creative and good.

FBinNY 

It is good.

Deb and I often have a breakfast burrito there if I'm not diving, and occasionally stop in for lunch. The only suggestion I have is to not order the large burrito if you'e alone. The large feeds 2 people OK, and the smaller one is borderline too much for one.

JohnDThompson 

Your center of gravity is above the wheel axles. When you brake your rear wheel, the inertia from your body — which makes the center of gravity above the wheel axles — continues with a forward vector. This causes the bike to pivot on the front wheel, lifting the rear wheel up.

Scrodzilla

Are you an engineer or a wizard?

FBinNY 

With all due respect, (and I mean that sincerely) doing an endo with a rear brake alone is physically impossible on level ground, and most like on descent also.

Yes slowing the bike creates torque around the front wheel, but there are two limitations.

1- because the front wheel is free spinning the fulcrum is at the front axle, vs the point of contact on the ground when a front brake is used. This has the same effect as lowering your center of gravity by the wheel's radius.

2- and most relevant the torque produced by rear wheel braking is self-limiting. As the slowing produces tipping forces, it lowers the weight on the rear wheel. That reduces the maximum braking power possible, eventually to zero (in theory only) as all the weight is lifted off the rear wheel, and thereby eliminating any chance of an endo.

This self limiting property in rear wheel braking is why coaster brakes can safely be used by children without any training in brake use. It's also why 6year old boys can have those skid contests that their fathers hate paying for.

BTW - this self-limiting property of rear wheel braking is why experienced fixed gear riders fit front brakes for urban street use. No matter how skilled one is at locking up the rear wheel, the minimum braking distance with any speed is too long to avoid rear ending a cab that cuts in front of you and slams on his (four wheel) brakes when flagged by a possible fare. Maybe this in only a New York thing, since many cities don't allow hailing cruising cabs.

JohnDThompson 

I agree, and I never claimed that an "endo" would result, simply that weight would be transferred off the rear wheel, further reducing the effectiveness of the rear wheel only braking. If you're only going to run a single brake, it should be on the front. Coaster brakes are inefficient, and generally found only on bikes that are unlikely to travel at any appreciable speed.

N.B. you can improve rear wheel only braking somewhat by scooting your butt as far back as possible, but unless you can get so far back that your center of gravity is behind the rear axle, you'll never have braking as effective as a front brake can provide.