Originally Posted by
saddlesores
20 years? who knew? i've been re-riveting chains since forever. noone told me, just happened to come across a warning not to reuse. did around 20k miles the last few years thailand/cambodia/vietnam/laos/china without a chain failure.
If you were using older 5/6-speed chains then reusing the pins was standard procedure. Newer narrower chains are different and their pins are both shorter and the plates thinner so the bond is inherently less tolerant of sideloads. That is why the standard pins are riveted in place and pushing them out removes the rivet "head".
As FBinNY and I stated, if you are a light rider, ride in flat terrain and shift smoothly under low chain tension, you can get away with reusing a pin. Violate these requirements and you are on your own.
BTW. every current chain manufacture tells you not to reuse a pin in their installation sheet. You do read the instructions don't you?
