vrkelley

I've got about 5K miles on a cassette and it's starting to show some wear. When I change it out, how many chains are needed and what is the rotation method to help make the cassette last?

Also...Every chain I've seen for 105 does not seem to have a removable link. Would the mechanic have to cut the chains and add some sort of portable joiner link? What's that called?

HillRider

I'm not sure what you mean by "how many chains are needed". Do you mean how many links? A new chain will typically have 116 links wihch is plenty for any standard road bike or MTB. You will probably hae to shorten it a few links to get the correct length depending on your chainring and cassette sizes. The rotation method I use is to replace the cassette and chain together about every 6000 - 7000 miles. You can fit a new chain every 1000 to 1500 miles and the cassette will last longer but, unless you are using very expensive boutique cassettes, the cost of chains quickly overshadows the savings in cassette costs.

Shimano provides a special pin partly installed in one end of a new chain that is used to connect the chain. You shorten the chain by removing links fron the other end. They also provide a spare pin with each new chain since you never reuse one of the regular pins if you remove the chain for cleaning. This applies to all Shimano chains and your mechanic will know how to do it.

SRAM and Wipperman offer chains with reusable master links that will work with a Shimano drivetrain.

CRUM

I love this subject. If you talk to 10 "experts", you get 10 rules of thumb. Riding style, enviroment,attention and timely maintenance are all factors in how often a chain/cassette needs to be changed. A Cat 2/expert rider friend of mine goes through several cassettes and chains a year on both his mountain and road rides. But he rides hard all the time and pushes big gears whenever possible. Me, I can get a couple of 3000 mile road seasons out of a combo. But I am a wimp who loves spinning the lowest gear possible. My off road chains are changed before they need to be. I hate breaking chains and off road I used to break them a lot. The best advice is to learn how to measure wear on both and change them as needed.

stapfam

I am the opposite, but then I ride a mountain bike that does see a lot of mud. After every ride I clean the chain, with a chain cleaning tool and this does extend the life of the chain for me. Chains stretch and there is a limit on how far a chain should be allowed to stretch before it is renewed. A stretched chain will wear out cassettes and crank sprockets excessively so furthering the expense.

I rarely do 1,000 miles before I have to change a chain and rear cassettes are changed about every 3,000 (or 3 chains) and Crank Sprockets don't seem to last much longer.

As I have said- My chains do take some punishment offroad.I will break chains once they have stretched too far so don't take the chance of being in the middle of nowhere with no drive, and a bigger bill because the stretched chain has worn out the cassette prematurely.

Psimet2001 

Fact: Chain wear can be measured using techniques described both in this forum and on multiple helpful sites like Sheldon Brown's Chain Info , or using tools that are available in many places.

Want another opinion?:

I rode for years without checking my chain wear. When I started checking it, I started swapping out chains. You know what...my drivetrain performed a lot better when I did.

I don't ride tons of miles so I just make it a point to replace chains once a year (along with new cables and housings). Simple Preventive Maintenance tip. I find that my 10sp chains get around 1700 miles before they measure up to a point where I would replace them, and where I notice performance changes.

You mention 105 - which until this year has been <=9sp. You may notice different wear tendencies depending on all of the known variables: Riding habits, environment, maintenance, etc.

There are "quick-link" or master type chain links available for 9sp Shimano chains in almost every bike shop in the country. SRAM "Power LInk" and Wippermann "Connex" are two very popular ones.

So I think that because 9sp Shimano chains are so readily available and inexpensive that you should replace it once every 1200-1700 miles or sooner. You've probably cost your comapny more money in the time that you've spent reading this than it would cost you to buy a new chain.

Let me also make a general comment about chains and this forum and advise... if i had to make an analogy (which I always do) I would say that asking this forum when to get a new chain is like asking someone when they think you should get a new car...

-at a 100,000mi?
-when it will no longer run?
-when the oomph is gone, or it just doesn't perform the way it used to?
-when the interior is shot?
-when the exterior is shot?
-when you need new tires or the factory warranty is up (my mother-in-law )?
-When next year's models hit the showroom?
-....

Portis

I too, don't know exactly what you are asking but like the drunk uncle at Christmas i'll chime in anyway. I to through chains fast. Much faster than most people. On my main mountain bike i am lucky to get 700 miles on the chain before the chain checker indicates need for replacement.

The conventional wisdom is that by changing chains early enough you will prolong the life of your cassette. Sometime this works for me and sometimes it doesn't. In order to make it work, i have to catch the wear EARLY. LIke in changing my mountain bike chain every 700 miles. Trouble is that might mean as often as 7 or 8 times per year on that bike. My present solution is to change the first chain early and then let the last one go as long as it can. Then change everything all at once.

On my road bike I have 3,000 miles and am on my original cassette and second chain. Chains last a lot longer when they aren't dirty. And on a mountain bike they are dirty, regardless of what you do. Just goes with the territory.

vrkelley

I thought that I was supposed to buy a new cassette and 2-3 chains. Then rotate those chains every several hundred miles to protect the cassette.

That said, how often to I swap the chains so all wear uniformly?

lrzipris

No. All you need is one chain at a time, and clean it occasionally. Generally--and I emphasize this "generally" because, as you can see, there's room for disagreement, based on how and where one rides--you do not need to change cassettes every time you change a chain. But when you need to replace the cassette, you usually will also need to replace the chain. In your case, since your cassette is worn, replace it and the chain, then keep an eye on the chain for "stretch."

RockyMtnMerlin

Truer words have never been written on this forum. I keep my chain (Wippermann on Campy Record 10 speed) and cassettes very clean. I check them for wear often with a Park tool. I just changed one today at 4336 miles of use when the short (.75) side slipped into place. BUT, I live where it is easy to never ride in the rain. No wet roads = much less grit on the chain and on the cogs = much less wear. As said elsewhere here, eliminate the guess work; get the tool! By the way I asked the guys at Vecchios in Boulder CO (a certified Campy Pro-Shop) their opinion about when cogs should be changed. They said with the unique shapes now seen on the cog teeth, it is difficult to tell by looking. But if you put a new chain on and the shifting can not be adjusted to function precisely, you probably need new cogs. By the way they use the tool to guage chain wear.

operator

This is just pure bull. Measure the fricking chain. How much the chain has worn down or "stretched" (note the quotes) before you swap it out is left up to you.

The more you let it go, the bigger chance you have to replace your chain and your cassette.

vrkelley

So...instead of measuring the chain with a ruler or some other tool, which method are you using to determine when your bikes need a new chain then?

d_D

I think most people rotate when they would normally clean the chain, mostly because that's when it is convienient. I'm surprised more people don't do it as it gives you loads of time to clean the chain and you don't have to keep measuring.

Big R

Rotate? Chains aren't like tires which wear differently depending on whether they'r on right/left, front/back, etc.

Chains also don't have any elasticity like running shoes where if you don't wear them a couple of days the "recover" some of their cushioning.

Read the above referenced guide by Sheldon Brown...if your chain is just a bit stretched replace (not rotate) it, if it's way stretched you probably have fried your cassette.

I'm a fairly hard rider with a good chain and a good cassette. I've done 1500 + on the combo with no measurable chain stretch as of yet.

Good luck.