Simple question:
I need to do some work on an older hybrid bike that has a kmc z chain mounted on
I searched around here and google and many ppl talk about it have a special replacement link

Mine has a black rivet similar to the shimano replacement rivet
Can i just remove this and reuse it or do i need to grab a replacement rivet at my lbc?
thx

Not aware of special pins for 8- or 9-speed KMC Z-chains. They come with a master link. Doesn't have to be used.

Not referring to 10-speed, are you?

na its an 8 speed chain

and there is no master link :/

Do not repin that. Buy an 8 speed KMC missinglink or compatible sram masterlink.

allright i guess ill look for a kmc missing link at my lbc tomorrow or get one online

its my first time dealing with a non shimano chain... i might just replace the dam chain

Almost all 8/9/10 speed kmc chains come with the masterlink.

Ironic actually, because they are much more user friendly to install and you have the option of taking the chain on and off without having to use a special replacement pin to reassemble the chain.

arrg it suckthat this bike does not have one, cant get the work on it done

oh well many thx for your help

You can take a chain off a derailleur bike without breaking it. What repair requires taking the chain off (other than some ridiculous cleaning job?)

Can those KMC chains be repinned without a special pin?
I have never needed to or tried - have just shortened to correct length and used the masterlink. Masterlinks make life simpler.

How do you get it out of the rear-triangle?

Saw your chainstay in half.

There is no special pin. E.g not repinnable because they come with masterlinks. You risk chain failure if you reuse a pin after breaking the chain.

thanks. that makes good sense.

If it's the OEM chain, there will be no quick link. Replacement KMC chains come with a quick link, or you can buy the link separately.

i was hoping to do a ridiculous cleaning job... lol

Stock KMC chain on my RANS has a master link.

Perhaps I should have included "large volume" OEM in my comment.

'large volume' only by recumbent standards

Which most consumers get when purchasing a replacement chain

just buy a SRAM 8 speed powerlink and use that. it will work fine.

There's a lost-art to using a pin-tool to push out a pin and re-joining the chain later. Most people are too brutal with the tool and end up damaging the chain and/or pin in the process and end up with self-destructing chains later. While the swagged & stepped ends of the Shimano chain-pin does require a special replacement-pin to be used whenever a pin is pushed out, I've done many a KMC chain without problems.

One of the tricks to only push out the pin just enough to get the inner link out. That's typically 9 half-turns of the pin-tool on an 8-spd chain and then you have to flex the chain sideways to open up the outer-plates enough to get the inner-link out. A lot of people push out the chain an extra 2 half-turns so the pin is flush with the inner surface of the outer-plate. But I suspect this may expand the hole a little too much. Or they push the pin out completely and end up mangling the side-plates trying to get the pin back in.

I'm going to call this ridiculously bad and unsafe advice unless you can confirm that 8 speed KMC chains aren't peened, either semi peened or fully peened. I guarantee you will break 9/10/11 speed chains with this method.

There is no reason to play with fire with KMC chains like this seeing as how they come with masterlinks. It's not lost art, it's dangerous.

Yeah, and no one should ever patch a tube cause some people can't do it correctly.

Do you know the difference between a KMC 8-spd chain versus the 9/10/11-spd ones?

What model chain did the OP said he has?

Yes, it's safe to do on a KMC 8-spd, but not on the 9/10/11-spd ones. You can tell the difference because the ends of the pins on the 8-spd stick further out and they're smooth and slightly rounded. The 9/10/11-spd chains have a more square end that's been peened flat with a dimple mark.

And what was the most common way to break chains before Shimano came out with their Hyperglide chains?


One needs to be able to make distinctions between different things in life. Such as seeing the difference between a red versus green traffic light because you want to drive differently when there's one shown versus the other. Not all chains are created equally and have different tools and techniques to service them. Sure, you can be on the safe side by saying to stop at every single traffic light you see, but a lot of times, it's not the required thing to do.

I don't have to use a master link to put these together, do I?
Do we have a consensus on that?