Originally Posted by
mario69
Hi all,
I've just started playing about with bike maintenance beyond seatpost adjustment. So please be patient

I'm at the chain stage right now. I've been reading docs on the Web so I'm beginning to form an idea. My question is this: what's wrong, really, with cutting a chain by simply pushing a pin
nearly all the way out and then back in when I reconnect the chain? I've taken my old (6000kms) Veloce 10sp chain off the bike and have been practicing cutting and joining bits of it using the Park CT-5 tool. It seems fine to me and I can loosen stiff links. Can anyone explain to me why this technique should not be used? Does a pin that has been pushed out, even if not entirely, lose the property of holding a link well enough? The Campagnolo manual mentions the word "death" on every other page...
Thank you for your time.
Mario
When you extract a pin on a modern chain, you enlarge the hole in the sideplate slightly. The original pin will not have the same interference fit as it did before being removed and can cause the chain to fail..