scarleton

I am running Ultegra 6800 and I just checked my chain, according to the Park Tool Chain Wear Indicator, my chain is more then 0.5% but less then 0.75% ware on it. Money it tight right now but I am looking at a 200km ride in about two weeks, any recommendations on a replacement chain?

trailangel

Ride it.

Bill Kapaun

What does it read with a genuine ruler?
Sometimes a chain checker is inaccurate and should be verified by actual measurement before trusting it.

aggiegrads

+1. Your chain is fine, and unless your planned ride is on the beach it will still have life left after your event.

FBinNY 

+1

Joining he chorus that says ride it as is, maybe first checking that it's oiled OK.

trailangel

Oh.. I think you need to make sure it's lubed with Chain-L.

FBinNY 

I didn't, but yes, that world be better.

scarleton

I road a double century on Thursday so Saturday I totally cleaned the drive train and lubed it, so in that regard I am good to go.

FBinNY 

Cincinnati? It's getting kind of cool (cold) to do rides of that length. I'm impressed.

scarleton

Yea, that is why I took the day off work to get the ride in! The weather man said it would be in the highs of the mid 40's, my not so accurate bike computer said 50's for a while and once I saw it say 60! Though the start and end where a bit lower

For the record, I have challenged myself to get this one double century ride in every month this year. The hardest, of course, was this month and next. It should be interesting!

gsa103

Are you happy with the mileage you've gotten out of the current chain, if so buy another. I wouldn't hesitate about riding another 200km, but you should order another chain.

corrado33

Ride it. Some chains will register with 0.5% when new. Some chain's spec is 1%, I say you have plenty of life left.

dsbrantjr

This is why Bill Kapaun suggested (and I agree) using a good ruler instead.

scarleton

Well, I got about 3100 miles out of my first chain. I had it replaced back before a 400k on June 6 along with putting a new cassette on the bike. Since then I have about 2400 miles on this chain, so if I could get another 1000 miles that would be wonderful, but...

The real issue I have is the shifting. I learned in the 400k the reason I was having problems with the new chain coming off the large chain ring was the fact the large chain ring was already warn down, after only 3100 miles. I replaced the large Ultregra FC-6800 chain ring and everything ran find until the last three rides, a late 340k ride in December, half of a 200k on the 31st, and then last Thursday during the double century. In all the rides, the shifting has started to act just like it did back in June. When I look at the large chain ring, it looks worn down again. I only have about 2300 miles on this chain ring. I also noticed that this time the smaller chain ring which has about 4000 miles on it is missing a tooth.

I was watching some videos on bike maintenance over the weekend and it said that you should clean and lube your drive train after every 'long' ride. Considering my short rides are normally at least 70 miles, to preserve my drive train I should be doing a full cleaning and lube after every ride.

From all I can tell, my course of action is to simply replace it all, start fresh:

New set of chain rings, new cassette, new chain

Then clean & lube it every 100 miles to 200 miles.

The question is: which chain? Right now I am running a Dura Ace, which I am find with sticking with, but I am wondering if there are better options, I am going to have do dump enough money into this bike, I would prefer to find a way to save a bit. If that means saving by purchasing a better chain now, that is fine, but if that means a less expensive chain, that is even better. Your thoughts?

corrado33

I'd like to know the reasoning why people think chain checkers are inaccurate. I've never had a problem with them. I wonder if it's because by using the checker, you wear down on the corner that makes the checker accurate. Once that wears down the checker will no longer be accurate. Therefore they're consumable items.

FBinNY 

It's not a question of accuracy any more than worrying about the accuracy of an odometer if you plan on changing oil every 3,000 miles.

Chain wear and the suggested replacement time are coarse guidelines based on averages, approximations and accumulated experience. No precision is called for because the variables are too many anyway.

That said, the guideline is based on a pitch change (stretch) of a certain amount. Most chain checkers also include roller float of the two edpoint rollers, and so may read high even on a new chain. Nothing wrong with tool, just keep in mind that it may have you replacing chains sooner than you might otherwise.

BUT - this isn't rocket science, and the replacement point is ONLY a guideline, not a hard and fast now or never point.

gsa103

Are you sure the chainrings are actually worn? The ring teeth are highly shaped straight from the factory. You should be getting about 10x that lifespan on the rings. The poor shifting could just be caused by the worn chain. 3k miles is about standard for most chains, in moderate conditions. Winter commuters will see much lower, well maintained summer riders might get 5k. You should expect cassette to last about 3 chains. You could easily drop to Ultegra chain & cassette and the only difference is a few grams.

As far as cleaning procedure, there's some opinions on cleaning & lubing. Through cleaning also washes lubricant out of the chain, and you have to be very careful to let the chain dry before adding new lubricant. I prefer simply wiping the grime off, then just adding lubricant and wiping off the excess. Depending on lubricant this should be done on a fairly regular basis (~few hundred miles or monthly).

fietsbob

worst case when you finally buy the delayed chain , you have to buy a new cassette too.

pre emptive chain replacement will let you keep the teeth wear on the cassette to a minimum.

scarleton

Well, I had this whole discussion on "do I need to replace the chain ring" on this forum when I replaced it back in June/July. Here is the post where I posted a picture of the worn down chain ring. The current one is starting to look the same and act the same, so it would seem to me that it might be time to replace it, which solved the problem back then.

https://www.bikeforums.net/bicycle-me...l#post17892073

davidad

Chain care, wear and skipping by Jobst Brandt

I don't have modern drive trains so I probably get longer chain life. I remove my chain every 800 mile and clean it in an ultrasonic cleaner. I relube with 1 part chainsaw bar oil to 4 parts unscented mineral spirits. I don't relube before my normal interval unless I get caught out in the rain. My 8 speed chain lasted over 16,000 miles.
I have a Rolhoff chain checker, but find it is not nearly as accurate as a ruler. I replace my chains at 1/16" wear.

dtrain

+1

FBinNY 

I didn't see or post on that thread, but if I had, my answer would have been "those chainrings look to be just about brand new, and you haven't begun to wear them yet"

Like others, I think you're misreading the condition of your rings, which are very unlikely to be the cause of poor shifting.

If you're having shifting issues you need to address the actual cause rather than waste dough replacing perfectly good rings. If it's a chain wear issue, measure, decide and act accordingly.

FWIW - older chains often don't shift as crisply as newer ones, not because of stretch, but because they can become more flexible side to side, and therefore need more overshift to start the shift. On FDs simply backing off the outer limit a hair, to allow overshift while keeping the trim correct per the book, solves the problem. Whenever I set up a bike, I leave a bit of overshift room in the FD adjustments, and if someone hands me a bike complaining of poor FD action, that's the first thing I check for.

scarleton

So, I *AM* hearing you all, what course of action should I be taking then? I am not a good enough mechanic to figure this out on my own. How do I really find a mechanic that really knows what they are doing? Oh, if you didn't read the old post, I am guessing you won't know that the bike is Di2. I have learned that every bike shop does not have expertise with Di2. So it is a matter of finding someone that actually knows Di2 inside and out.

CafeVelo

Where in greater cinci are you? I know some people in Dayton that can do Di2.
To join in: run the chain anyway.

Editorial commment: I typically use cheaper chains than my drivetrain suggests, because I go through 5 or 6 a year.

FBinNY 

My first suggestion is to let another rider try your bike. They may report that it seems fine, in which case it might be as simple as reducing pedal pressure (and chain load) through the shift. Many instances of hard to diagnose or correct shifting issues are the result of rider touch or expectations rather than anything mechanical.