Running cassette and chain until both totally shot

I just let my chain wear a little too much and now need a new
cassette. I figure I will keep the old cassete for when the chain gets
about shot and put it back on and see how far you can wear down a
chain/cassete. Any experience on wearing cassettes/chains until they
jsut can't shift right anymore?


This is part of sort of an experiment on just how cheap you can keep a
bike going. I'm a cycle commuter (4,000 miles/year in wet sandy
Florida on a recumbent - 300 links!) and hope to write a book soon
about a "whole life view" (exercise, time, money spent, health,
happiness, taxes, subsidies, etc.) of transportation "Moving at the
speed of life".

Tires are easy to account for, chains/casettes are not. While spending
half an hour a week on chain cleaning may make your chain last, the
labor doesn't add up. I choose to use lots of exfoitating lube. I used
to have a "system" with chains in a solvent/drip dry/wax/on bike
rotation, but with a recumbnet you are talking about 9 chains.

The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of making a big
chain enclosure out of out of the sort of materials they make RC
planes out of. Keeping the crud off first seems the sanest approach.

On Dec 26, 6:12*pm, MajorBob wrote:
I just let my chain wear a little too much and now need a new
cassette. I figure I will keep the old cassete for when the chain gets
about shot and put it back on and see how far you can wear down a
chain/cassete. Any experience on wearing cassettes/chains until they
jsut can't shift right anymore?

This is part of sort of an experiment on just how cheap you can keep a
bike going. I'm a cycle commuter (4,000 miles/year in wet sandy
Florida on a recumbent - 300 links!) and hope to write a book soon
about a "whole life view" (exercise, time, money spent, health,
happiness, taxes, subsidies, etc.) of transportation "Moving at the
speed of life".

Tires are easy to account for, chains/casettes are not. While spending
half an hour a week on chain cleaning may make your chain last, the
labor doesn't add up. I choose to use lots of exfoitating lube. I used
to have a "system" with chains in *a solvent/drip dry/wax/on bike
rotation, but with a recumbnet you are talking about 9 chains.

The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of making a big
chain enclosure out of out of the sort of materials they make RC
planes out of. Keeping the crud off first seems the sanest approach.

Just run the cheapest chains and cassettes that will work with the
dryest lube--like Dupont Teflon wax and stop fussin'. That chain is
going to pick up crap and wear out--when it does--throw it away and
put on another. Just stock up on tandem chains when Nashbar has a
blowout--theirs are the quite good KMC ones with 230 links. Both the
eight and nine ones are $30 right now. I'd be quite comfortable making
two 8spd chains out of three with a chain tool, using only one quick
link--with the nine--not so much.;-)

"MajorBob" wrote: I just let my chain wear a little too much and now need a
new
cassette. I figure I will keep the old cassete for when the chain gets
about shot and put it back on and see how far you can wear down a
chain/cassete. (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
What will you learn by doing that, that you can't learn by just continuing
to ride with the old cassette and chain?

Bob Major wrote:

I just let my chain wear a little too much and now need a new
cassette. I figure I will keep the old cassette for when the chain
gets about shot and put it back on and see how far you can wear down
a chain/cassette. Any experience on wearing cassettes/chains until
they just can't shift right anymore?

This is part of sort of an experiment on just how cheap you can keep
a bike going. I'm a cycle commuter (4,000 miles/year in wet sandy
Florida on a recumbent - 300 links!) and hope to write a book soon
about a "whole life view" (exercise, time, money spent, health,
happiness, taxes, subsidies, etc.) of transportation "Moving at the
speed of life".

Tires are easy to account for, chains/cassettes are not. While
spending half an hour a week on chain cleaning may make your chain
last, the labor doesn't add up. I choose to use lots of exfoitating
lube. I used to have a "system" with chains in a solvent/drip
dry/wax/on bike rotation, but with a recumbent you are talking about
9 chains.

The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of making a big
chain enclosure out of out of the sort of materials they make RC
planes out of. Keeping the crud off first seems the sanest
approach.

Why did you put on a new chain in the first place? If you knew the
chain was out of pitch from measurement or by how it lay on the
chainwheel, then you should have known that sprocket tooth profiles
had worn to suit.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/chain-care.html

I change chains when I can measure that it is approaching 0.5%
elongation because after that, sprocket profiles become worn faster
and higher on the tooth, the feature that makes a new chain not
properly engage a driven sprocket. The driving interface is forced
and will engage. However, if the chainwheel is sufficiently worn, it
will not allow the chain to disengage and this effect is known as
"chain suck" and can be damaging, especially on small CW's because
exiting chain is pulled into the incoming chain, and if they overlap it
can brake rear axles or bend right chainstays.

So what is "exfoitating" or should that be "ex-foliating" which makes
no more sense to me then the former. Xplain!

Jobst Brandt

MajorBob wrote:
I just let my chain wear a little too much and now need a new
cassette. I figure I will keep the old cassete for when the chain gets
about shot and put it back on and see how far you can wear down a
chain/cassete. Any experience on wearing cassettes/chains until they
jsut can't shift right anymore?


This is part of sort of an experiment on just how cheap you can keep a
bike going. I'm a cycle commuter (4,000 miles/year in wet sandy
Florida on a recumbent - 300 links!) and hope to write a book soon
about a "whole life view" (exercise, time, money spent, health,
happiness, taxes, subsidies, etc.) of transportation "Moving at the
speed of life".

Tires are easy to account for, chains/casettes are not. While spending
half an hour a week on chain cleaning may make your chain last, the
labor doesn't add up. I choose to use lots of exfoitating lube. I used
to have a "system" with chains in a solvent/drip dry/wax/on bike
rotation, but with a recumbnet you are talking about 9 chains.

The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of making a big
chain enclosure out of out of the sort of materials they make RC
planes out of. Keeping the crud off first seems the sanest approach.

"exfoitating lube"

huh?



--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971
** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **

On Dec 26, 4:12*pm, MajorBob wrote:
I just let my chain wear a little too much and now need a new
cassette. I figure I will keep the old cassete for when the chain gets
about shot and put it back on and see how far you can wear down a
chain/cassete. Any experience on wearing cassettes/chains until they
jsut can't shift right anymore?

I don't think you'll gain very much compared to just running the chain
until it reaches the normal wear limit of 1/16" of elongation per
12". After that the wear is more rapid and the feel of the chain
starts to bother me even if I weren't concerned about the cassette
teeth.

This is part of sort of an experiment on just how cheap you can keep a
bike going. I'm a cycle commuter (4,000 miles/year in wet sandy
Florida on a recumbent - 300 links!) and hope to write a book soon
about a "whole life view" (exercise, time, money spent, health,
happiness, taxes, subsidies, etc.) of transportation "Moving at the
speed of life".

Tires are easy to account for, chains/casettes are not. While spending
half an hour a week on chain cleaning may make your chain last, the
labor doesn't add up.

I have yet to see any real data substantiating such claims of
increased longevity. The only report I've seen here that attempted a
controlled experiment actually came up with the opposite result - the
portion of the chain that was thoroughly cleaned regularly ended up
wearing faster than the other portion that got no cleaning.

but with a recumbnet you are talking about 9 chains.

I agree with landotter's suggestion to use Nashbar's tandem chains. A
couple years ago they were on sale for only $8 and I got some which I
then split in two for a cost of only $4/chain. I've had no complaints
about their shifting performance or durability.

The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of making a big
chain enclosure out of out of the sort of materials they make RC
planes out of. Keeping the crud off first seems the sanest approach.

And it would let you keep them well lubricated without concerns about
which lubricants tend to pick up dirt. But you're going to have to be
careful not to damage that enclosure - RC planes are optimized for
light weight and are not very durable.

On Dec 26, 8:23*pm, A Muzi wrote:
MajorBob wrote:

{snip}
I choose to use lots of exfoitating lube. I used
to have a "system" with chains in *a solvent/drip dry/wax/on bike
rotation, but with a recumbnet you are talking about 9 chains.

The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of making a big
chain enclosure out of out of the sort of materials they make RC
planes out of. Keeping the crud off first seems the sanest approach.

"exfoitating lube"

huh?

Make sure you're married before using it in Alabama.

I like "recumbnet" better! Does it get Altavistas?

On Dec 26, 8:03*pm, wrote:
Bob Major wrote:
I just let my chain wear a little too much and now need a new
cassette. *I figure I will keep the old cassette for when the chain
gets about shot and put it back on and see how far you can wear down
a chain/cassette. *Any experience on wearing cassettes/chains until
they just can't shift right anymore?
This is part of sort of an experiment on just how cheap you can keep
a bike going. *I'm a cycle commuter (4,000 miles/year in wet sandy
Florida on a recumbent - 300 links!) and hope to write a book soon
about a "whole life view" (exercise, time, money spent, health,
happiness, taxes, subsidies, etc.) of transportation "Moving at the
speed of life".
Tires are easy to account for, chains/cassettes are not. *While
spending half an hour a week on chain cleaning may make your chain
last, the labor doesn't add up. *I choose to use lots of exfoitating
lube. *I used to have a "system" with chains in a solvent/drip
dry/wax/on bike rotation, but with a recumbent you are talking about
9 chains.
The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of making a big
chain enclosure out of out of the sort of materials they make RC
planes out of. *Keeping the crud off first seems the sanest
approach.

Why did you put on a new chain in the first place? *If you knew the
chain was out of pitch from measurement or by how it lay on the
chainwheel, then you should have known that sprocket tooth profiles
had worn to suit.

*http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/chain-care.html

I change chains when I can measure that it is approaching 0.5%
elongation because after that, sprocket profiles become worn faster
and higher on the tooth, the feature that makes a new chain not
properly engage a driven sprocket. *The driving interface is forced
and will engage. *However, if the chainwheel is sufficiently worn, it
will not allow the chain to disengage and this effect is known as
"chain suck" and can be damaging, especially on small CW's because
exiting chain is pulled into the incoming chain, and if they overlap it
can brake rear axles or bend right chainstays.

So what is "exfoitating" or should that be "ex-foliating" which makes
no more sense to me then the former. *Xplain!

Jobst Brandt- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Thanks again everyone.

I wound up in the new chain/old sprocket situation because I replaced
it just after it hit the1.0 indicator on my chain checker and didn't
ride until after the old chain was hauled off - lesson learned.

Exfoliating - the kind of drier lube that sluffs off, like white
lighting (I use Ice Wax).

On Dec 26, 10:00*pm, landotter wrote:
On Dec 26, 8:23*pm, A Muzi wrote:

MajorBob wrote:

{snip}

I choose to use lots of exfoitating lube. I used
to have a "system" with chains in *a solvent/drip dry/wax/on bike
rotation, but with a recumbnet you are talking about 9 chains.

The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of making a big
chain enclosure out of out of the sort of materials they make RC
planes out of. Keeping the crud off first seems the sanest approach.

"exfoitating lube"

huh?

Make sure you're married before using it in Alabama.

I like "recumbnet" better! Does it get Altavistas?

peter wrote:

But you're going to have to be
careful not to damage that enclosure - RC planes are optimized for
light weight and are not very durable.

He might be talking about expanded polypropylene foam, as used in
crashable electric RC planes. For its weight, EPP foam is very
durable and resilient. Whether it's wear-resistant enough to
withstand the inevitable flailing of a mile-long chain on a recumbent
bike is an open question.

Chalo