Flex problem or design problem?
Looking for suggestions, information, and experience. I have a full 7 speed Super Record Merckx and when I am in high gear I get chain rub against the inside of the outer face of the FD when pedaling hard at the very top of the stroke on the drive side (from 12:00 o'clock to 3:00 o'clock). When pedaling very hard in high gear, I can look down and see the chain move slightly to the right during this quadrant of the pedal stroke. It only occurs during extremely hard pedaling, but that is rather normal for me and I don't want to change my pedal stroke to accommodate the bike. The FD has been adjusted out as far as it can go without coming into contact with the inside of the crank arm and there is still a little rubbing in high gear. Is this likely being caused by crank flex or frame flex or is there some other issue that could be a factor? Is this a bit of a Super Record design problem? I was thinking of trying a narrower chain (9 speed) to see if this might resolve the issue, but I was concerned that a narrower chain might not work so well with the Sachs freewheel. But even if that does resolve the issue, should these clearances normally be this tight? Thanks for any input!