How often do you have to adjust your chain?

[swee'pea99]

It's fine to keep the same sprocket and chain for longer than normal periods however, the danger is in wearing the chainring. Having said that, the cost of a new chainring, chain and sprocket once per year or even longer depending of course on your mileage, probably compares favourably with changing the chain 4 or 5 times and the sprocket a couple of times in the same period

.
Edit, fossy beat me to it.

Does a worn chain inflict more wear on the chainring than a new one? (I must check mine tomorrow...haven't done...um, ever, come to think of it...)

 

[totallyfixed]

Does a worn chain inflict more wear on the chainring than a new one? (I must check mine tomorrow...haven't done...um, ever, come to think of it...)

Chainrings are harder than cassettes and sprockets but like anything you should keep an eye on them, yes a well worn chain if left on for too long will wear a chainring so in profile it looks like a shark's fin. A new chain put on a worn chain ring will not seat properly with obvious consequences.

 

[fossyant]

As said above, because the chainring is much larger, the wear is much less, but a worn chain will increase wear. Chainrings, despite being aluminium, still wear better than a steel sprocket as there is much less mechanical stress going to it.

I only changed my Chainrings on my fixed to gain an Extra two teeth or a couple of gear inches.

 

[totallyfixed]

42,000 miles on the original chainring and still looking good, although I do have my eye on a new steel frame
[with the approval of the boss].

 

[Christopher]

I put on a Condor 1/8" stainless steel sprocket to replace a 3/16" Dura-Ace. The new sprocket is wearing away but more slowly than the DA one did. Generally I replace the rear sprocket when the teeth start to look like inverted 'T's rather than '/\'s. By the way the front ring was so worn I could feel the chain rubbing on it as i rode - similar to the grinding-metal feel you get when cross-chaining on a geared bike.

Personally i have never bothered doing the tapping thing with the front ring, or ensured an absolutely perfect chainline. Got both close enough and in thousands of miles of riding fixed I have never unshipped the chain.

 

[swee'pea99]

I put on a Condor 1/8" stainless steel sprocket to replace a 3/16" Dura-Ace. The new sprocket is wearing away but more slowly than the DA one did. Generally I replace the rear sprocket when the teeth start to look like inverted 'T's rather than '/\'s. By the way the front ring was so worn I could feel the chain rubbing on it as i rode - similar to the grinding-metal feel you get when cross-chaining on a geared bike.

Personally i have never bothered doing the tapping thing with the front ring, or ensured an absolutely perfect chainline. Got both close enough and in thousands of miles of riding fixed I have never unshipped the chain.

And how often would you say you adjust the tension?

 

[Rob3rt]

42,000 miles on the original chainring and still looking good, although I do have my eye on a new steel frame
[with the approval of the boss].

Sorry those funds have been earmarked for a saddle that weighs 3 grams!

 

[mangid]

Only time I adjust the tension is after a puncture :-(

 

[Deleted member 1258]

42,000 miles on the original chainring and still looking good, although I do have my eye on a new steel frame
[with the approval of the boss].

Yes I have my eye on a new steel frameset for a fixed build but I'm busy with other things and can't fund it, I'm currently looking at the Surly Crosscheck

http://www.tritoncycles.co.uk/frame...rly-cross-check-frameset-hospital-green-p1342

 

[totallyfixed]

Yes I have my eye on a new steel frameset for a fixed build but I'm busy with other things and can't fund it, I'm currently looking at the Surly Crosscheck

http://www.tritoncycles.co.uk/frame...rly-cross-check-frameset-hospital-green-p1342

Like how they give the weight of the frame based on the smallest possible adult one I reckon you could find. Still, it's steel and has a choice of colours [do you get pi55ed off when the US spell checker tells you colour should be color?]. I digress, I am looking towards the Pearson steel because the angles are the same as the one we ride.

 

[totallyfixed]

Sorry those funds have been earmarked for a saddle that weighs 3 grams!

I can handle that Rob, it's the new TT bike [I also now need one having sold one last year] and a pair of climbing wheels that are needed. Just did a quick mental calculation and I may have to remain seated for a little while longer.

 

[swee'pea99]

FWIW, I just checked (never having done so before) and both chainwheel and sprocket look fine - no shark's tooth at all, as far as I can see - but when I use the old steel rule to check the chain, I find that at the 12" mark, it's out by about 3/32" - sort of midway between 1/16th and 1/8th. My gut feeling is, from the posts on this thread, that adjustment intervals are proportional to hill-climbing. Living in a land of hills, I'm just going to have to get used to frequent tightenings.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

Like how they give the weight of the frame based on the smallest possible adult one I reckon you could find. Still, it's steel and has a choice of colours [do you get pi55ed off when the US spell checker tells you colour should be color?]. I digress, I am looking towards the Pearson steel because the angles are the same as the one we ride.

I like the Pearsons, shame about the silly names, it looks like the steel one is any colour you like as long as its black, though they will I suspect do a custom colour if asked, I'm not to worried about the weight on the Surly, I recon if I buy it I'll have to go small on it, my Pearson's a 54 but the Surly's longer in the top tube and I recon I'll need a 50, lots of seat tube on display.

 

[MrGrumpy]

I have to adjust mine about once a week this time of year, my fixed is the only bike I ride in the winter, I'm doing around 100-120 miles a week, my Pearson has track ends and I tend to pull the wheel forward, but I daren't tighten the nuts any more, I'd never get the wheel off by the roadside if I had a puncture.

ditto here, chain tensioned nearly every week, new sprocket was fitted in the autumn and whilst it looks good, the front chain ring is now looking all very pointy and the the noise is more apparent. Hoping to keep it altogether to the end of this month, then it will be new chain, sprocket maybe and front chain ring. Done a fair few miles but I am hard on my bikes.

Oh and I`ve unshipped a few times, scary, and I was not going slow!

 

[Deleted member 1258]

ditto here, chain tensioned nearly every week, new sprocket was fitted in the autumn and whilst it looks good, the front chain ring is now looking all very pointy and the the noise is more apparent. Hoping to keep it altogether to the end of this month, then it will be new chain, sprocket maybe and front chain ring. Done a fair few miles but I am hard on my bikes.

Oh and I`ve unshipped a few times, scary, and I was not going slow!

I've never unshipped a chain, I've broken one though, how's your chainline? You shouldn't be unshipping on a regular basis.