Shimano chain reliability!?
 

Sorry to be the newb fretting over simple issues, but I appreciate insight from those with more experience.

I've put 4700 miles on the chain that came on my roadbike. While cleaning the chain recently after a sloppy ride I noticed a subtle noise about every 4-5 links as the chain circled the cog. Sheldon's site led me to measure the chain and sure enough I've got at least 1/16" of stretch. Time for a new chain (or maybe past time). My bike (Giant FCR2) came with a shimano HG-73 chain. In looking at reviews of this particular chain I found many reviewers complaining about quality. Some claimed breakages (multiple) inside 1000 miles. WTH.

Am I safe replacing my chain with another HG-73 or have I just been unusually lucky with this one?

Can you upgrade a chain? I put a lot of miles on my bikes and I'm not very handy! Would this be a good place to spend a little extra?

Any 9 speed chain will be fine. Get one with a master link so that you can easily remove it for cleaning. You will need a chain tool to cut the new one to the proper length.

I've never had a problem with shimano chains but prefer SRAM powerlink chains for ease of install. Upgrading to higher end chain (HG93, SRAM 991, etc) will get you a bit of weight savings. SRAM claims better shifting and more duability on higher end chains because,allegedly, nickel plating allows smoother shiftingsheds dirt better. I think thats basically marketing. Best route to durability is keeping the drive train clean and lubed properly. In addition to replacing chain, you should check your chain rings and cogs for wear. Worn rings will chew up a chain, and a new chain on old worn cogs won't shift properly. That said, you should get at least two chains worth of wear out of chain rings and cogs, assuming you have been riding a relatively clean drivetrain and haven't been riding a worn chain for a long period of time.

I use this bike as a rain/beater bike, so reliability is key. I want to avoid mechanical issues along wet/cold roads. I keep the chain cleaned and lubed reguarly. If upgrading the chain is mostly a weight savings issue, it sounds more like a treat than a neccessity for me.

If I've waited too long to replace the chain resulting in excessive ring and cog wear, will this be noticeable to me... like the chain/cog noise I noticed when I was cleaing the chain?

If the chain shifts smoothly after replacement can I figure alls well that ends well?

Thanks!

First I replace my chain about every 1800 miles. This way i can get 3 chains to a cassette. Second with 4700 miles on the original chain and cassette you will need to replace both or you will have mismatch between the chain and cassette, this will cause the chain to skip. Third and last I use Sram chains as they seem to shift smoother and, in MHO, are of better quality.

Boy did I land in an expensive hobby. At 10,000 miles a year, you're talking 5 chains and 1 or 2 cassettes, maybe rings... not to mention tires, brakes, wheel truing, etc. It's going to be more costly than my car and I rarely use the bike for commute. Sounds like I better learn to do more maintenance myself!

Thats why I ride a singlespeed to work. No maintainence issues. I buy $6 chains at Walmart every two years. My Campy Athena crank rings are over 20 years old and work great. Probably have 30,000+ hard miles on them from this bike and previous bikes. My single sprocket freewheel in the back is $25. It is probably on its last legs after 5 years but I am sure getting my money's worth. The bike sees rain, snow and other bad weather. It is actualy more fun to ride than my road bike, and I keeps my raod bike clean. It simply allows me to ride more ofter for less money.

I replace my chains and cassettes together at about 6000 - 7000 miles and get one chain per cassette and only pay for one. At 1800 miles per chain you are paying for three chains and a cassette in less distance. Poor economy.

As to Shimano chain reliability, I've NEVER had one break in 100,000 miles of using them and typically putting the above 6000+ miles on each. The reports of broken Shimano chains almost all come from improper installation and/or reusing one of the standard pins after chain removal. Installed correctly (it isn't that hard) they are very reliable. And, I use Shimano chains on my rain/beater bike too and have never had a failure on it either.

Installing a master link (SRAM's, KMC's or Wippermann's Conex all work) is useful if you want to remove the chain for cleaning. I always clean the chain in place so they aren't a benefit for my use.

Replacing after 1800 miles seems excessive to me. I've never really monitored avg miles I get out of a chain, but I would be surprised if I got less that 3k out of the SRAM and shimano chains I have used. At 10000 miles a year, with a cleaned , well lube drive train, I would say two chain changes , with one change of the casette and rings. But miles will vary depending on weather, maintenance, and riding conditions.

If you're not using a quick-link, there's no reason to start. I've had reliability issues with them. A pin won't mysteriously come apart in mid-ride.

Well, there are various reasons for upgrading, but in your case a straight replacement is fine.

If you've waited too long, then you'll have shifting issues on the now worn out cassette. No way to tell for sure until you try it. But at 1/16", you should be fine.

Yep. :D

How many miles you should expect to get from a chain before stretching to 1/16"/ ft varies from rider to rider. I use Record 5.9 and D-A 7700 chains and always get more than 5000 miles before a 1/16" stretch. I have never had chain skip and have never worn out a cassette cog or a chainring.

I prefer to follow the instructions and use the recommended special pins and special links for joining the chains.
I think nickel plated chains can last longer and do look better on the bike. I cannot confirm that they are more cost effective.

Recently a friend asked me to help him tune up his bike. The 10-speed Ultegra chain was making a lot of noise and not shifting smoothly. The chain was stretched 3/16"/ft. He checked his records and said that the chain had nearly 9000 miles on it. The cassette looked pretty chewed up so we replaced both.

Al

fwiw, you don't need to remove the chain to clean it or even buy one of those fancy schmancy cleaners. Wipe it down and keep it oiled regularly and it'll be like new until it dies.

I've exclusively used the Shimano HG-73 on my 9-speed mountain bike with a SRAM powerlink. I've now used the same powerlink on three successive HG-73s. I regularly replace my chain when wear is about 1/16" but reuse the same powerlink. I do carry a spare powerlink but it's still new in the pack. I clean my chain regularly and lube it regularly. I've considered trying a different chain but not because I have had any problem with what I'm using. Never had a chain or Powerlink fail on MY bike - only on bikes of others that are not cared for. That's my experience.

I've been running DA for about 12 years. I had 9 speed triple for 6 (still in use on my spare) and last 6 years with 7800 10 speed. I have averaged +5,000 miles per year in that time, and never had an issue with durability on either group or broken a chain. I am meticulous on lubing/cleaning them, usually lubing every 100 miles with frequent wipedowns. Never taken a chain off to clean, usually do it once a month or as needed with simple green and a good Pedros brush. I get between 4-5000 miles on chain life, 6-7,000 miles on cog sets. As far as chain rings go, on the 9 speed group, I had to replace the middle ring after about 17,000 miles when it developed scallops on the teeth. On the 10 speed group (double), I've just started to notice significant wear on both rings after 20,000 miles on the group.

Your experience seems to be normal. You can't go wrong with using either DA or SRAM.

That's far from correct. By cleaning it you're flushing the fine grit out of the chain, a process that's not covered by your oil and wipe.

By cleaning the chain, you are flushing out the factory lube and oil which will lead to premature wear.

The way most people clean a chain off the bike you're not even doing that - just removing the lube while leaving much of the grit in place.

By oiling it on the inside of the link and cycling it a bunch of times I not only flush out the grit, I replace it with fresh oil. The grit gets wiped off with the extra oil.

If you'd like to make it complicated, be my guest... but my chains run quiet, last for thousands of kms and still look new until the end so that's good enough for me.

I read the same horror stories when I did the research. I bought an HG-93 which some people claimed broke easily, one guy with self described chicken legs broke it three times in one trip.

As others have said if it's properly installed you shouldn't have a problem. I'm a weightlifter and I'm strong enough to spin the back wheel on bitumen roads while climbing with a 39/23 gearing and I haven't broken it yet. Also it helps not to do anything stupid like pushing the power while using the small/small or large/large chainring/cassette combinations.

It is also important to oil your chain. The factory grease (wax) might be okay as a lubricant but it offers zero protection against rust if your chain gets wet (guess how I know this :-)).

Shimano OEM quality chains unfairly get a bad rap.

Usually the breakage problem isn't the chain, or even the closure pin, but because these are often on the first bikes people own. That means they have a high proportion of newbie owners, who have not yet learned to shift properly. Newbies tend to shift too late, under too much load, and without lightening up the pedal pressure, all of which are death on chains.

Bye and bye, the chains break, and they get replaced, possibly along with a lesson in proper shifting. The new chains almost always do better than the originals, which shouldn't be a surprise since by that time the riders' skills are improved, reducing or eliminating the cause.

Which is just my way of telling you, that any decent chain won't break if you don't shift under excessive load, and give it decent care.

Wiping down the outside of the chain is flushing out the factory lube now? Lol

I'm picturing both Laurel & Hardy, as well as The Three Stooges, working on cleaning a chain...

Step 1: Light the blowtorch.