Shimano chain life

Mike, what is the soil type or types your route rides on? Is there
digging or construction locally for spreading grit on the road
surface? You ride in the desert? windblown sand?

"Colin Campbell" wrote in message
...
Lou Holtman wrote:
Neal wrote:

"Lou Holtman" wrote in message
...
Neal wrote:
My latest bike has a Shimano Ultegra 10speed drive train. I only
have 1200 miles on it and already the chain is measuring close to
the replacement point. I'm used to Campagnolo equipment and I have
gotten 4000 miles on Campy chains. Is this typical chain life for
Shimano? I lube the chain every 100 miles with Prolink. I also
checked another Shimano equiped bike with only 1100 miles on the
chain and it is showing considerable wear too. Is the Dura Ace chain
more durable?

Neal


How did you check the chain wear? A Rohloff caliber gives a
pessimistic chainwear with a Shimano 10 speed chain.

Lou

I first measured with a ruler to 12 inches and then tried a Park
gauge. Both methods indicated wear.

Neal



Hmm. The last chain on my singlespeed was a (9 speed) Shimano chain and
it wore out extremely fast. Much faster then the SRAM chains I used in
the past. On my road bikes I get very good mileage (10000 km) with
Campagnolo 10 speed chains with a good clean and lube regime.


Lou

I have also had very long life from Campagnolo chains. I removed the
chain, cassette, chain rings, and derailleurs from one bike when I
changed from a triple to a compact double setup, and the chain had 21000
km (13000 miles), and was not worn out.

On my other road bike (still a triple), I had 14000 km when I replaced
the cassette and chain due to occasional skipping that the LBS didn't
(or couldn't?) fix.

If you want good durability on a single speed, use track components. My
track bike is going strong with the original Suntour chain. I probably
rode that chain over 10000 km before the LA Olympic Velodrome was
replaced by the indoor ADT Event Center velodrome; I've only used it
sporadically since the new track opened. Obviously, if you use your
single speed on the roads, you'll need to take some care of the pieces,
but it still ought to last, and last, and last....

I'm using a KMC - Z610HX singlespeed/BMX chain and a singlespeed sprocket
now. I was attrackted to the anti drop feature of this chain. We will see
how it wears.

Lou

On 2008-04-24, datakoll wrote:
here, an 8 speed HG Shimano chain well cared for, cleaned everyday if
griity from road sand, rarely goes over 2000 miles at 1/8th over.
using Valvo synth trans oil.
I hesitate to believe any claims beyond 2000 miles as accurate.

I got 4500 miles until 1/8th over an 11" span (my ruler is only 12"
long) from a 9 speed SRAM chain cleaned probably about 10 times during
its life.

I checked the wear when I cleaned it and sometimes made a note of it.
2900 miles into its life wear was only 1/32". That was in September, at
the start of the muddy season. There were probably a disproportionate
number of cleanings over those last 1600 miles between September and
March because of the mud, but that's still when 3/4 of the total wear
occurred.

I used a drip-on lube similar to FL Teflon.

Conclusion: mud, sand, grime kills chains. Cleaning them makes little or
no difference. I still do but only because I like that clean chain
feeling.

On Apr 25, 3:48*am, Ben C wrote:
On 2008-04-24, datakoll wrote:

here, an 8 speed HG Shimano chain well cared for, cleaned everyday if
griity from road sand, rarely goes over 2000 miles at 1/8th over.
using Valvo synth trans oil.
I hesitate to believe any claims beyond 2000 miles as accurate.

I got 4500 miles until 1/8th over an 11" span (my ruler is only 12"
long) from a 9 speed SRAM chain cleaned probably about 10 times during
its life.

I checked the wear when I cleaned it and sometimes made a note of it.
2900 miles into its life wear was only 1/32". That was in September, at
the start of the muddy season. There were probably a disproportionate
number of cleanings over those last 1600 miles between September and
March because of the mud, but that's still when 3/4 of the total wear
occurred.

I used a drip-on lube similar to FL Teflon.

Conclusion: mud, sand, grime kills chains. Cleaning them makes little or
no difference. I still do but only because I like that clean chain
feeling.

"all Gaul is divided into three parts (Ben read latin): people who
lie, who don't lie and those confused by cyclometers"
and yawl know where Ben stands.

4500 miles from a Spam chain. wierd. No sooner, whispering "chain",
doth some kook show up claiming eternal life. check the posts.
inevitable inevitable.
incroyabbbbble.

another pool table rider like herr white cloud

"my chain..."

On Apr 24, 2:07*pm, "Neal" wrote:
"Lou Holtman" wrote in message

...



Neal wrote:
My latest bike has a *Shimano Ultegra 10speed drive train. *I only have
1200 miles on it and already the chain is measuring close to the
replacement point. *I'm used to Campagnolo equipment and I have gotten
4000 miles on Campy chains. *Is this typical chain life for Shimano? *I
lube the chain every 100 miles with Prolink. *I also checked another
Shimano equiped bike with only 1100 miles on the chain and it is showing
considerable wear too. Is the Dura Ace chain more durable?

Neal

How did you check the chain wear? A Rohloff caliber gives a pessimistic
chainwear with a Shimano 10 speed chain.

Lou

I first measured with a ruler to 12 inches and then tried a Park gauge.
Both methods indicated wear.

Neal

We sell the park tool(CC-3) and use the Rohloff and the park is more
pessimistic than the Rohloff. The Park 'gauge' type, CC-2 is a poor
tool.

On Apr 24, 2:05*pm, "Neal" wrote:
"bfd" wrote in message

...
On Apr 24, 10:23 am, "Neal" wrote:

My latest bike has a Shimano Ultegra 10speed drive train. I only have 1200
miles on it and already the chain is measuring close to the replacement
point. I'm used to Campagnolo equipment and I have gotten 4000 miles on
Campy chains. Is this typical chain life for Shimano? I lube the chain
every 100 miles with Prolink. I also checked another Shimano equiped bike
with only 1100 miles on the chain and it is showing considerable wear too.
Is the Dura Ace chain more durable?

Neal

Question, was your "Campagnolo equipment" made for 10 speed
drivetrain? I think the issue is not so much Shimano versus Campy
versus others, but probably more that the 10s chains are so narrow/
thin that it is possible to *wear* them out in about 1000 miles or
so.

I wouldn't spend the $$ on a DA chain. Instead, find the cheapest
chains and replace when needed. One of the problems with 10s is that
consumables like chains and cassettes are very expensive. Unless
you're racing and *NEED* to count every gram, use the cheapest and
replace often. Good Luck!

Yes, the Campagnol setup is Chorus 10 speed. *I actually got 4800 miles on
my last Campy chain. The Shimano chain is not much narrower than the 9 speed
chain. The Campy chains are narrower. *The difference in price between an
Ultegra chain and the Dura Ace is only $5. ($21 vs $26) *so if it lasts
longer it might be a better deal.

Neal

shimano and Campag(annd all others) 10s chains are all 5.9mm, for
info. shimano 9s chains are 6.5mm.

On Apr 25, 1:18 am, "Lou Holtman" wrote:
"Colin Campbell" wrote in message

...



Lou Holtman wrote:
Neal wrote:

"Lou Holtman" wrote in message
. ..
Neal wrote:
My latest bike has a Shimano Ultegra 10speed drive train. I only
have 1200 miles on it and already the chain is measuring close to
the replacement point. I'm used to Campagnolo equipment and I have
gotten 4000 miles on Campy chains. Is this typical chain life for
Shimano? I lube the chain every 100 miles with Prolink. I also
checked another Shimano equiped bike with only 1100 miles on the
chain and it is showing considerable wear too. Is the Dura Ace chain
more durable?

Neal

How did you check the chain wear? A Rohloff caliber gives a
pessimistic chainwear with a Shimano 10 speed chain.

Lou

I first measured with a ruler to 12 inches and then tried a Park
gauge. Both methods indicated wear.

Neal

Hmm. The last chain on my singlespeed was a (9 speed) Shimano chain and
it wore out extremely fast. Much faster then the SRAM chains I used in
the past. On my road bikes I get very good mileage (10000 km) with
Campagnolo 10 speed chains with a good clean and lube regime.

Lou

I have also had very long life from Campagnolo chains. I removed the
chain, cassette, chain rings, and derailleurs from one bike when I
changed from a triple to a compact double setup, and the chain had 21000
km (13000 miles), and was not worn out.

On my other road bike (still a triple), I had 14000 km when I replaced
the cassette and chain due to occasional skipping that the LBS didn't
(or couldn't?) fix.

If you want good durability on a single speed, use track components. My
track bike is going strong with the original Suntour chain. I probably
rode that chain over 10000 km before the LA Olympic Velodrome was
replaced by the indoor ADT Event Center velodrome; I've only used it
sporadically since the new track opened. Obviously, if you use your
single speed on the roads, you'll need to take some care of the pieces,
but it still ought to last, and last, and last....

I'm using a KMC - Z610HX singlespeed/BMX chain and a singlespeed sprocket
now. I was attrackted to the anti drop feature of this chain. We will see
how it wears.

I get a good 2K out of the cheapest KMC "bmx" chains with single
speeds. I could probably do 3, but after 2 it's time to change colors.
Ten bucks a pop and strong! Also sold as *mart and Diamondback brands.
Like I mentioned in another post, the last one was chrome and $8 from
"Dick's Sporting Goods" in a strip mall, as my LBS only stocks more
expensive and much noisier Sram stoff.

On Thu, 24 Apr 2008 15:45:31 -0700 (PDT), datakoll
wrote:

I hesitate to believe any claims beyond 2000 miles as accurate.

From my postiing to r.b.t on April 23, 1997 (thanks Google Groups):

"As promised, I cleaned and waxed my road bike chains yesterday
afternoon. I decided it was finally time to replace my high mileage
Dura-Ace chain because it had 3/32" of "stretch" over two feet, but I
though I'd run it until it needed waxing again. So I put it back on
the bike and headed for last evening's club ride. On the ride I was
telling the group that I'd finally decided to replace my high mileage
chain, and we got into a discussion of chain cleaning, lubrication,
and life expectancy. Within a couple of miles, while I was
downshifting the front derailleur, the chain came apart. It looks like
one of the pins pulled out. So after 18,138.6 miles of repeatedly
pushing pins in and out, one of them failed. Guess I should have been
using those black pins all along ;-).

"When I finally reached the parking lot at the end of the ride with a
chain now one inch shorter, I was (of course) greeted with hoots of
dirision and a chorus of "Workin' on a Chain Gang". So My Dura-Ace
chain (at least most of the links) made it to 18,142.4 miles."


--
jeverett3ATsbcglobalDOTnet (John V. Everett)

"Qui si parla Campagnolo-www.vecchios.com" wrote in
message
...
On Apr 24, 2:05 pm, "Neal" wrote:
"bfd" wrote in message

...
On Apr 24, 10:23 am, "Neal" wrote:

My latest bike has a Shimano Ultegra 10speed drive train. I only have
1200
miles on it and already the chain is measuring close to the replacement
point. I'm used to Campagnolo equipment and I have gotten 4000 miles on
Campy chains. Is this typical chain life for Shimano? I lube the chain
every 100 miles with Prolink. I also checked another Shimano equiped
bike
with only 1100 miles on the chain and it is showing considerable wear
too.
Is the Dura Ace chain more durable?

Neal

Question, was your "Campagnolo equipment" made for 10 speed
drivetrain? I think the issue is not so much Shimano versus Campy
versus others, but probably more that the 10s chains are so narrow/
thin that it is possible to *wear* them out in about 1000 miles or
so.

I wouldn't spend the $$ on a DA chain. Instead, find the cheapest
chains and replace when needed. One of the problems with 10s is that
consumables like chains and cassettes are very expensive. Unless
you're racing and *NEED* to count every gram, use the cheapest and
replace often. Good Luck!

Yes, the Campagnol setup is Chorus 10 speed. I actually got 4800 miles on
my last Campy chain. The Shimano chain is not much narrower than the 9
speed
chain. The Campy chains are narrower. The difference in price between an
Ultegra chain and the Dura Ace is only $5. ($21 vs $26) so if it lasts
longer it might be a better deal.

Neal

shimano and Campag(annd all others) 10s chains are all 5.9mm, for
info. shimano 9s chains are 6.5mm.




Some websites state the Shimano 10 chains are 5.88mm wide and others say the
chain is 6.1mm. What is meant by width? Is it measuring the lenght of the
pins or the side plates? I have also read that the Wipperman 5.9 mm
connecting link does not work on Shimano chains because it is too narrow. Is
this correct?


Neal

| Mike, what is the soil type or types your route rides on? Is there
| digging or construction locally for spreading grit on the road
| surface? You ride in the desert? windblown sand?

Yep, you guessed it. I've set up a velodrome inside a working quarry.
Couldn't afford to pave it so a lot of dirt gets picked up as I ride, plus
all the dust from the quarry operations. It hasn't rained in 12 years, so we
he don't have enough water and have to clean things by sand-blasting. Guess
chains don't like that.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com