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Fab Foodie

hanging-on in quiet desperation ...
Location
Kirton, Devon.
Why bother? Single speed bicycle chains are cheap as chips and last ages if the chain-line is good and you're not Chris Hoy....
 

oldwheels

Legendary Member
Location
Isle of Mull
I got a Raleigh Shopper from a recycling place. It had a 3 speed SA hub and what appeared to be a motorcycle chain. Worked ok. I think the chain was put on as they did not have a half link to get the correct tension.
 

All uphill

Still rolling along
Location
Somerset
Motorcycle chains seem to be heavy duty and rubust, so can I use a Motorcycle chain on my single speed bicycle. The 415 size Motorcycle chain has the same 1/2 pitch as a bicycle chain and is a narrower Motorcycle chain. The roller bearings are 7.75mm diameter.
https://www.wemoto.com/info/chain_dimensions

Another consideration is that I would need to buy a Motorcycle chain with the correct amount of links including a split link, so I wouldn't need to get a Motorcycle chain splitter.

These are 415 size Motorcycle chains:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/371332414226?
I think @silva is the person to ask.
 

silva

Über Member
Location
Belgium
Strength is of little importance considering just leg power.
The reason I tried this, was to decrease the lengthening rate of the chain, because that eats more expensive sprockets.
Longer pens, thicker plates have bigger mating surfaces, so a same amount scraped off material is divided over a larger surface, and thereby less in the length direction.
Over a month I will be riding 2 years with such type 420, I choosed a Regina Urban OROY. The first one has run about 35000 km (20 months, every day, 60 km)
There's one little issue: the pin diameter is slightly larger than bicycle standard, so using a bicyle chain hreaker can get jammed.
I adjusted one by drilling out the hole to 4 mm (the pen diameter is 3.97) and that worked.
Though I just started to use a punch and a hammer to remove links, it's less work, less risky. I took a steel block, drilled a hole in it, as to be able to hammer a pen through.
 

keithmac

Guru
You can split that quite easily, grind the rivets flush and use a dispensable screwdriver/ chisel to ping the plate off.

The Shimano Ebike chain may have been a better choice?.
 

keithmac

Guru
The motorcycle sprockets are considerably thicker than a bicycle sprocket / chainring mind.
 

keithmac

Guru
I searched alot for a motorcycle sprocket as chainring, but I couldn't find any for my configuration.

I think it would be an engineering job to modify one, you'd want a rear sprocket as the front chainring but modifying a motorcycle front sprocket to fit a bicycle rear wheel would require an adaptor and a lot of work!.

Saying all that you'd be hard pressed to wear them out. JT sprockets are very hard wearing.
 

silva

Über Member
Location
Belgium
I think it would be an engineering job to modify one, you'd want a rear sprocket as the front chainring but modifying a motorcycle front sprocket to fit a bicycle rear wheel would require an adaptor and a lot of work!.

Saying all that you'd be hard pressed to wear them out. JT sprockets are very hard wearing.
I asked JT sprockets. They had 1 candidate for my gear:
Thank you for your enquiry.
JT produce final drive sprockets for motorcycle and ATV applications, and we do not offer products for bicycle fitments. Our steel rear sprockets are made from C49 high carbon steel.

We produce one sprocket that matches your 130mm bolt hole PCD, 420 chain size and 47 tooth count, part number JTR215. Please follow the link below for more information.

http://www.jtsprockets.com/catalogue/part/JTR215/

We do not offer a custom sprocket service and are unable to produce "one off" sprockets to suit your requirements.

I hope that this helps and thank you for your interest in JT.
The BCD is 130 mm, but only 4 mount holes, while mine is 5.

About wear, my experience is that the major determiner is the chains wear.
Even a hard wearing sprocket can be worn easily by a worn chain.
Imagine that a sprocket would not wear at all, the teeth would not insert in the links. Something is gotta give, and a chain outnumbers a sprocket, in amount links versus teeth, and metal mass.
 
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silva

Über Member
Location
Belgium
Ofc it isn't essential, one can run any wider chain on any narrower sprocket and the pitch is indeed most important.
Nevertheless, a correct pitch doesn't imply a suitable chain, there are chains that have a larger roller diameter which renders these incompatible.
For ex, years ago I bought some stainless steel roller chains on a flea market together with a whole bag quicklinks dirtcheap, with the idea to mount such one in winter with salty roads. I tried to mount one as a test, I could lay the chain on the ring, but after so many links the rollers didn't drop to the valleys between the teeth anymore. Later on I found in specs of the in steel printed numbers this as reason. It was an industrial chain. JFYI.

Edit: looked it up - I store data in .txt files for later reference.
The printed type was 8BSS
The specs were:

Pitch (P): 1/2"
Roller Width (b1): 0.305 = 7.747 mm
Roller Diameter (d1): 0.335 = 8.509 mm
Overall Width: (L): 0.669 = 16.9926 mm
Pin Diameter (d2): 0.175 = 4.445 mm
Link Plate Height (h2): 0.472 = 11.9888 mm
Link Plate Thickness (T): 0.060 = 1.524 mm
Average Tensile Strength (LBS): 2,727

That roller diameter, 8.509 mm.
5/16" * 25.4 mm = 7,9375 mm.
So, that industrial chain 8BSS had rollers of 0,5715 mm larger than bicycle / motorcycle specifications.
 
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