Originally Posted by
thedoc46
Hi,
On my recently donated bike, I have Campagnolo Chorus 9 groupset. However I've noticed that it has a SRAM 971 chain installed. It was my understanding that a nine spd Campy groupy should be using a 9 speed campy chain.
Any chain will work.
C9 chains might work a little better with old cassettes - Exa Drive ramping is designed to engage a protruding chain pin, and unlike the rest of the world Campagnolo didn't switch to flush peened rivets until they introduced 10 cogs.
Exa Drive on left, Ultra Drive on right
That said 9 speed cassettes from ~2000 on use the 10 speed Ultra Drive design made for flush rivets.
C9 chains are also very long lived - I was just reaching 1/32" of stretch on my last one when I moved to 10 cogs around 5000 miles. The last other-brand chain I used didn't take 2000 to break 1/16".
The down side is that they might break easier than chains with flush peened rivets - I've broken 2 or 3 C8 and C9 chains since 1997.
However, it is also my understanding that 9spd campy chains are hard to come by.
Your favorite UK provider should stock them.
For example, Ribble sell Record C9 chains for $28.18 (you don't pay VAT as an American)
Campagnolo 9 Spd Record Chain, Chains, CHAINS