Has anyone here replaced their largest chain ring with a bashguard/chain guard?
09-09-15 | 12:47 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 635
Likes: 2
From: Washington, DC
Bikes: CAAD10 5, Trek 1000 Alpha Series
Has anyone here replaced their largest chain ring with a bashguard/chain guard?
Both my wife and I have bar end shifters and I find that shifting up front needs much more concentration and finesse on my triple than on my wife's double. I barely ever use the big ring so why not just replace it with a bashguard and adjust my front derailleur's limits for the other two rings? Thoughts?
09-09-15 | 12:53 PM
#2
Senior Member
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 3,670
Likes: 43
Bikes: Rivendell Quickbeam, Rivendell Rambouillet, Rivendell Atlantis, Circle A town bike, De Rosa Neo Primato, Cervelo RS, Specialized Diverge
Just think of the outer ring as a guard and adjust the FD limits for the middle and inner rings. I've been doing that for years except that I actually removed the outer ring.
09-09-15 | 12:58 PM
#3
Banned
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 43,586
Likes: 1,380
From: NW,Oregon Coast
Bikes: 8
Yea , several bikes you leave the triple in the middle as is, so essentially have a 1 by with a bail out low gear..
1 I used a 144 BCD chainguard and a 52t middle 36t 3rd, Stinson beach - Mt Tam Hill climber .. I was lighter 30 years ago too.
have a couple with offsets to leave all 3 on .. guard ring outside, the chain watcher goes on the seat tube ..
so the chain only has 3 places to go & all 3 are chainrings..
had one on my touring bike which I occasionally had to drag the loaded bike up stairs , it saves teeth.
1 I used a 144 BCD chainguard and a 52t middle 36t 3rd, Stinson beach - Mt Tam Hill climber .. I was lighter 30 years ago too.
have a couple with offsets to leave all 3 on .. guard ring outside, the chain watcher goes on the seat tube ..
so the chain only has 3 places to go & all 3 are chainrings..
had one on my touring bike which I occasionally had to drag the loaded bike up stairs , it saves teeth.
Last edited by fietsbob; 09-09-15 at 01:01 PM.
09-09-15 | 07:13 PM
#5
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 635
Likes: 2
From: Washington, DC
Bikes: CAAD10 5, Trek 1000 Alpha Series
09-10-15 | 04:30 AM
#6
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,039
Likes: 828
From: Tallahassee, FL
Bikes: Several
No reason you couldn't, but I just took the big ring off on the bike I used on the ST. That was cheaper and a few ounces lighter. Especially since the remaining rings were smaller diameter and didn't stick out as far I decided that I didn't need a bash guard.
__________________
Pete in Tallahassee
Check out my profile, articles, and trip journals at:
https:/www.crazyguyonabike.com/staehpj1
Pete in Tallahassee
Check out my profile, articles, and trip journals at:
https:/www.crazyguyonabike.com/staehpj1
09-10-15 | 05:41 AM
#7
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 16,767
Likes: 85
I did this when using the original double crankset that came with the Shogun 400 I recovered from a rubbish dump and converted into my fixed gear. I nipped off the teeth from the outer chainring, then filed them to a smooth, round finish, and that set-up has been on the bike ever since.
The real beauty of a bash-guard like we are discussing is threefold -- it reduces the risk of chainring tattoos, it allows you to wear long pants without have to put on cuff straps or stuff the cuffs into your socks, and it makes packing up a bike for travel a little cleaner and tidier because the chain is well protected.
The LX crankset I have on my Thorn touring bike also has a plastic guard on it, and I like it as much as the one on the fixed gear.
The real beauty of a bash-guard like we are discussing is threefold -- it reduces the risk of chainring tattoos, it allows you to wear long pants without have to put on cuff straps or stuff the cuffs into your socks, and it makes packing up a bike for travel a little cleaner and tidier because the chain is well protected.
The LX crankset I have on my Thorn touring bike also has a plastic guard on it, and I like it as much as the one on the fixed gear.
