Bicycle chain maintenance

Chains that have done many kilometres of gear changing effect the front chain wheels and gear changing efficiency although most likely maladjusted gear change cables. Tight cables specially when in steering turns causes problems. To long is equally troublesome. A good reference to what cables should be are new bikes. Observe the length armament on the handle bars. The same physics applies to brake cables.

Modem bikes have adjustors the handle bar end, a barrel like adjuster. New bikes turning outwards slackens the tightness on the inner wire cable. Show room bikes are not yet adjusted because they are waiting to be when a buyer buys one.

Tight internal gear hub chains will give some peddling resistance. Compounded pedalling power if the crank peddle is tight too. These commuter bikes are to high geared making them under powered living in hilly neighbourhoods. Mechanics tells us new is supposed allow for chain stretching and bearing run ins. A dozen kilometres or several weeks of use which ever comes first, peddling power will noticeably improve with a looser chain.

New bikes gives us an example of what a good transmission should be like. Comparing new bike chain wheel teeth to a well worn chain wheel of a old bike, is anything to go by, we can learn to be experts at telling difference between a worn and what they should be.

New front chain wheel teeth can be mistaken for badly worn. New teeth are blunt rather than sharp telling us what they should be. Examining new rear gear changer jockey wheels each teeth is squared. Worn out they are round.

New parts are an ideal reference for beginners learning bike mechanics to look for should be. Many kilometres of torque using gears to help in hilly neighbourhood area the chain can stretch. link plates can become distorted from the extreme chain angle between gears. Any distortion in the kinks and sloppy rear derailleur will cause routing chain problems though the jockey wheels of the gear changer that would otherwise give no trouble good condition front churnings.

We can see obvious difference straight away between a worn out front chain wheel to a new one  Warn teeth depressions between each tooth are wide and the teeth needle pointed.

Gear cables can cause inefficient gear changing causing chain ware problems  A stretched chain has done many kilometres the link pins and their bushes under torque ware and tear plus wet weather washing off lubricants can cause erosion of the chain. This is were proper chain oiling comes into the picture.

It is often a mistake to plaster chains with grease. Over oiling, rood dirt sticks to the oil or grease. You might as well plaster the chain with sugar for all the good it will do. Common two dollar shop sowing machine oil is ideal in one way, the application applies a thin coating. But in another way meant only for sowing machines washes off in wet whether conditions almost immediately. Proper wet whether chain lube oil for bicycles proves to be an expensive alternative.

Looking at the lube condition of new bikes is a good reference of what chains should be like.

Sloppy gear changing causes gear changing inefficiency. Another sign of maladjusted gear cable a contributing factor of inefficient chain derailing to each gear. Kinks in the inner wire cable to slightly bent in a chain link can cause difficult gear changing for those negotiating commuter bikes in hilly neighbourhoods.

Sometimes extra kilometres of use can be scrounged out of a chain by adjusting the gear cable and replacing twisted links pieces developed in the chain. A badly worn rear gear changer can effect chain efficiency. Angles causing the chain links to skip warn out  jockey wheel teeth doesn't help.

To tell if good condition a quick survey of a new bike. For Yours you may have a hidden twist a link. These are hard to find. Turn the bike up side down resting on the seat and handle bars.

As you turn the crank observe the chain route though the rear gear changer. Watch for minor riding up over the gear changer tooth. New bikes show a smooth round though. We tend to dismiss these minor jumps. It is likely a stiff link plate. Bikes upside down these minor bends are not under load. It is under load deflects though the gear changer cage.

As the chain glides round the chain wheel, the rear gear changer jockey wheels and rear gear sprocket at a severe angle the links ride off over a tooth flicking the derailleur jumping the chain in turn effecting the front chain wheel. If the chain has done may kilometres of hilly neighbourhood gear hill climbing help changing, odds are the front chain wheel teeth have become sharp skipping across the chain links under pulling torque common for a transmutation that has  knocked up many, many kilometres of hill climbing gear changing wear and tear.

Obviously living in a flat neighbourhood the transition system won't be subjected to so much stress as hill climbing changing help.

Finding the chain link culprit is easy enough done. The proper procedure bicycle shops have proper stands that set bikes off the ground held fast upright about waist height. Good to work on.

For the rest of us we are forced alternatively rest the bike against a post or a wall upright examining back peddle freewheel direction to observe any jumps though the gear charger jockey wheel cadge. Or unless don't have those luxuries you can use a stand that at lest tilts the bike slightly one wheel always free off the ground to spin. Failing that  we have no choice to resort to the bike upside down resting on the seat and handle bars. Bear in mind with this method you will be observing a reversed view point you'd normally would viewing the transmission components the bike upright.

A brand new bike can help determine what the condition of a transmission as a whole should be. Engage the chain both the largest front chain wheel and rear gear sprocket and back pedal. As the new bike shows  there will be no attempt of the chain to catch the derailleur cadge flicking it or try to derail.

You should be able to spin the cranks briskly. Repeating the test with the smallest front, largest rear, largest rear, and smallest front combinations can be a pretty good indication of what to expect of any good transmission should be. When yours falters compared to a new bike is a pretty good measuring easement tool.

Signs to look out for a worn transmission includes the latter a sign of a badly stretched chain, sharp front Chain wheel teeth, bent, stiff or twisted link or distorted links in part or parts of the chain, warn jockey wheels and sloppiness in the rear derailleur. If you do find a bend, twisted or distorted link can be marked with office paper white out or paint. A mark on the part of the chain you should never loose the place in fixing the chain links.

Everything is marked before you dissemble the chain if you feel  you need to replace offending pieces with another piece. Next lift off part of the chain with you thumb and forefinger on the front chain wheel. A brand new bike will show what good condition transmission should be.

A sloppy rear derailleur will cause change angle problems causing the chain to rid off the teeth of the jockey wheel and caching the derailleur cage jumping the chain. A maladjusted cable doesn't help. You may be able to help take up some of the slack by shortening the chain removing a link. Bear in mind a stretch chain is still a stretched chain and a sloppy rear derailleur is a sloppy rear derailleur.

A rather crude adjustment with a pair of pliers or a the tip of a crescent ( resolving or shifting spanner as we call them), slightly praise a gap in the rear gear changer jockey wheel cadge to help clear the chain a bit. to see if that helps. If not the rear gear changer has really sloppy movement does not help. Before beginners learning the ropes of bicycle mechanics. removing the derailleur It pays draw a picture of the route the chain runs through the jockey wheels or eye another bike. These days everybody has cell phones as cameras you can take a picture of. A spare bike is another method.

If you have already removed the chain or is missing there are lots of illustrations and photographs in bicycle reaper manuals at you local library. Besides all you need to do is to look at any bike as a model to follow.

If your modifying your or just getting it to run smoothly again using donor parts it is a mistake to assume chains are one size for all specially if your modifying the gearing range. Remember to bear in mind bikes come in 10, 12, 18 and 21 including and even some 27 speeds that use different width of chains. If you are salvaging parts for this purpose under close inspection of a couple of spare chains will reveal obvious differences which a practical school ruler will measure the widths as small as few millimetre differences.

There are obvious flush and protruding link pins. Wide and  protruding pins are off single gear or hub gearing bikes. Narrow and flush pins are rear derailleur bike chains. Once again you can inspect new bikes at any bike shop floors to give you and idea of the various chains. Before you make up your donor chains compare each chain first. The variation of chains depend on the speed of the original bike. The different external gear bike speeds result in different widths resulting in different chain angles.

The largest front sprocket with the smallest rear illustrates the point, a 21 speed (7 rear sprockets and 3 front churnings and even 27 speed bikes) the severest angle and 10 speed the lest. You can get 2 or 3 front churnings with 6 or 7 rear combinations resulting in severer various chain angles between the gear combinations. Narrow chains with the link pins flush with every link plate are the best choice for wide gearing arrangements (21 speed chains)  and the minimum angle (10 speed chains ) are not so critical getting away with some protruding of the link pins. 10 chains tend to be wide and with quite a bit of link pin protruding. The most widest chain with obvious large protruding link pins are always straight because they are internal rear wheel gear hubs no front chain wheels or BMX bike chains. These chains are no good for external gearing bikes.

A chain to wide for a wide gearing arrangement under load the teeth of front chain wheels tend to catch the edges of chain plates lifting the chain temporarily instead of going between the links slipping back into position on front chain wheel.

Not only that, protruding pins tend to catch in route the sprocket teeth and derailleur cages causing the same problem made worse if there is a severer angle or a distorted link plate. Another cause if the chain is to long. The rear gear changer jockey wheel cage assembly rest to far back against onto the chain. If the chain has been modified all items contribute to the chain crashing on the front churning. Replacing chains make sure to fit the new one with the original width.

Fit a narrow chain with flush link pins because protruding pins are critical with wide gearing arrangements and vice versa narrow gear arrangements require wider chins and the beauty with wide gear arrangements protruding link pins are not as critical.

Also make sure the chain is short enough so the rear gear changer jockey wheel cage is well clear of rubbing the chain in route though the derailleur. The biggest mistake with chains is greasing and oiling.

Overdone collects road dirt grinding away like glass in the pins wearing hem out. A light going over with sowing machine oil or CRC spray is all you need to avoid overdosing creases or oil sticking road dirt to the chain.

The normal procedure of dissembling the chain is the use of a proper chain splitter. It splits the chain by screwing a pin on the link pushing the link pins out though the link plate. The pin is not pushed right out just enough so the chain can come apart easy leaving the pin in the chain plate.

If a pin is offset to one side prodding out of the link plate will inevitably catch on the sprocket teeth and though parts of the the derailleur cages the cause of teeth jumping on on the cogs under load. It is also a sign of a distorted link plate.

The chain splitter tool is also used to adjust offset pins to help cure this kind of problem. If you haven't a chain splitter all is not lost. The chain can still be split but the hard way with a careful use of a hammer and nail punch, rather desperate and crude way of doing things, but an alternative way out although tricky not to damage the link plates can be quite effective.

Random bashing is not good a potential of buckling the link plate which buckle the link and neighbouring links causing the chain to crash over the teeth of the gear cogs.

Normally the pin is gently pushed guided out by a proper chain splitter but with a hammer knocked though the link plate. The tricky part there is no support for the chain plate you have in the proper chain splitters.

A nut will have to be used. Doing things this hard way you have to lay bikes on their sides the chain removed off the front churning over the peddle to allow a long enough lead to lay flat on the ground often with no margin. The rear wheel removed gives you some. A nut with right size hole under the pin to be pushed out is an ideal guide.

To big is useless at supporting the link plate. the pin will distort it. Equally to small tends to stop the pin causing distorting the plate with heavier and heavier pummelling trying to push it though. The hole though the nut should be the right diameter for the pin. The right size nail punch is also essential. To big a spindle for the chain link plate pin hole will spread the plate's hole resulting in distorting the link plate hole rendering it useless.

The punch spindle needs to be small enough about the same size as the pin it doesn't spread the hole link plate hole. Removing the wheel lay the bike on it's side to get a good level the chain lays flat. Lift the chain over the chain from wheel over the peddle.

You'll have to manipulate out of the front derailleur. Place the nut in position and gently hammer the tip of the pin as a primary starter fussy your not distorting the link plate. Line up the centre punch on the pin and gently tap the punch firmly with the hammer.

If you have the right sized nut the pin will pushed in a couple easy hits. Watch for the signs it's not when you begin to struggle to move the pin. Try out another nut. Don't hammer the pin right out. Just taped out enough it's protruding enough you can split the chain apart easy.

Aim to fall apart rather than having to twist it off is ideal. Don't savagely twist and bend twisting apart or you'll distort the plate. When fitting a new link don't force it together.

This step is very critical often the cause of chain reaper failure. Let it click into place. Using the nut make sure it supports the link plate making sure the pin is straight and true lining up with the link plate hole dead centre or the pin will push the plate distorting it. It is here where most chain problems originate.

If you do distort the plate this way have to go to the trouble of turning over the bike to the other side finding a suitable lay out of the chain taping the link plate back into shape. However the distortion may not be able to be corrected properly.

It always pays to make sure the pin doesn't distort the base plate in the first place. Ideally you should always make sure the pin always evenly flushed both sides of the chain. Tidy up any excess by filling flush with to the link plate.