best chain?
 

Seems like every other day people start threads about how noisey their drivetrain is and people always say that cheap chains are probably the cause, but which is the best (smothest/fastest etc) 1/8 chain and more impartantly, which colour chain is the fastest (I am guessing the answer is probably pink)?

die.

I say the fastest color is red :p

Get a KMC "Z" I have one, no compliants and I think they have them in Pink.

Jeff

Stay away from Izumi.

Go with a KMC 510HX or similar KMC chain for 1/8" drive chain. I don't think they come in colors, unless you count nickel plating as a color.

KMC chains are cheap but reliable. The "pink" they come in are more of a dark color. They match my Soma decals perfectly to give you an idea of what color it is.

SRAM makes a very nice SS chain, though it doesnt come in colours. Still, the master link system they have is second to none

im running that chain even with the master link and have no complaints yet

this may be true in some cases, but i have the same exact kmc on both my fixies - one is loud as crap, the other is dead quiet. cogs, chainline, rings all play a factor in noise.

I never spend more than $10 for a chain. I'm not too picky when it comes to ss/fg chains.

SRAM is a noticeably better than KMC, and far cheaper than track chain. People also say similar things about wipperman, but I've never used those.

But if you want color, you probably don't care about how well it operates.

I've been riding KMC Z chains and they're okay, but I just got a KMC Kool chain and I think it rides a little better, smoother and more quiet. It's a BMX chain I believe, pretty heavy duty. I'd like to try an Izumi Super Toughness chain sometime when I don't care about spending $35 on a chain, anyone have good experiences with that one? From what I've heard, Izumi Eco chains are trash...

Sorry, do you mean 'and far cheaper than a track chain' or 'a far cheaper track chain'? and if it is the first, what do you mean by 'track chain'?

and I don't really care about the colour, or even the color

I'd give you advice, but your English is antiquated. Get with the program Join the 21st century, ******!

in my experience, pink most definitely makes you faster. (and on that note, i can't wait to get my t-mobile pedals!) as far as noisey drivetrains are concerned, if i clean my drivetrain every day or every other day- no noise. if i clean it once a week- loud. it doesn't seem to matter if it's the dura-ace or the $10 pink KMC, cleanliness really seems to be the key.

This is true (except for the pink stuff)...my drive train is most silent after a good degreasing and relubing. After a few days it starts to get noisy again..but really, when you are out on the road with wind and traffic the noise of your chain is sorta irrelevent as long as its running fairly smoothly.

I run an Izumi Super Toughness.
Had it for a few months and no problems.
I like it, so far.

HKK Vertex are the ****. Strong, silent, buttery smooth.

used the sram PC1 with master link for a while, and although it is a very nice chain, I used to use it on my fixed-gear, and it didn't hold up too well. Wanted a Wippermann Whitestar but picked up an Izumi to try it out, and so far it's fine. Update after some mileage pending, of course.

I had one of those and it was noisy as hell.

get the cheapest chain you can find and replace it every month and a half. Z chains are usually about $6. Not too pretty, but they work. No use paying $18 for a chain thats going to stretch out in a month anyway.

Well, good chains dont stretch out in a month. Or even 6 months.
Its also worth mentioning that if you ride brakeless, you probably dont want to skimp on chain quality.

If you want a 'fast' chain, Wipperman 1G8 don't give. They weigh a ton, are reasonably quiet depending on the cleanliness, but they make an amazing sprint chain for track. Otherwise I've had good experiences with KMC KOOL SL chain, even though it feels a little spongier in a sprint.

I've had whipperman chains and hkk. Maybe I've gotten bad batches. After a month and a half they are all stretched put, not terribly though. after three months, they all were bad enough to wear out cogs. I'm now of the mindset that I'd rather keep buying new chains than new cogs every 4-5 months. I make it about a 8 months on a cog now. I think I may have really high standards as I tend to replace drivetrain parts as soon as they show a good amount of wear. I've never been a fan of riding parts into the ground.

I'm going to stick my neck out and say that I think the whole chain quality issue doesn't really amount to a hill of beans. Its kind of a crap shoot as to wheather your chain is silent or not..I've had silent and noisy chains on both the cheap and expensive sides of the chain scale. I've never broken a 1/8" track/BMX chain. And as as far as chain longevity goes, it has more to do with the conditions you ride in and your chain maintenence methods and doesn't really have much to do with the cost of the chain. So in my opinion, its a case of cheap being good enough.