Originally Posted by
Al Criner
Try getting off the bike and watching the chain as you turn the cranks backward by hand. Make sure it isn't just rubbing on a derailleur or something before you start taking things apart. If will only take a minute to see if there is some obvious interference somewhere. If you don't see anything, then you can follow the other advice in this thread.
My bet for the winner. Is the chain running smoothly over the pulleys on the derailleur arm?