Viewing 29 posts - 1 through 29 (of 29 total)
  • How many links in a 650b enduro chain?
  • bennyb
    Free Member

    Might sound a silly request, but sick of snapping chains, so assuming I must be cutting them to short. Can’t find any info online tho, but how many links come standard! ??? Also, I’ve upped the front chainring from 32 > 34t, will this require longer chain? Keeps snapping under load and hard pedaling, but that means my rear mech is at it’s slackest, so shouldn’t put strain on the chain right????

    njee20
    Free Member

    Depend on bike size, gearing etc.

    Bigger chainring will need a longer chain, although materially it’s generally not a huge difference.

    Are you sizing new chains to the length of the old one, or doing it right?

    leftyboy
    Free Member

    Chain round biggest rear to biggest front WITHOUT going through rear mech, add 2 full links and that should be it.

    This is the traditional way of doing it

    andyl
    Free Member

    Have a read of the Sheldon Brown site about how to correctly size a chain.

    munrobiker
    Free Member

    If you are constantly snapping them, how are you joining them? With a powerlink or with a tool? If with a tool it may well be your technique. Also, if it’s a Shimano chain, you can’t rejoin those with the pins already in the chain, you have to use a new black pin which is slightly bigger.

    bennyb
    Free Member

    Tried the biggest to biggest , added two links but still didn’t look right. Bike runs fine on the stand or just flattish ground, just when it’s a downhill and I pedal hard. Should I be deflating the shock? Bikes a medium frame 650b specialized enduro, running 34t front and 10 speed cassette.

    continuity
    Free Member

    Bike in the biggest gearing, air out of shock, compress to point of maximum chain growth and make sure the mech angle is safe.

    If you’re snapping them downhill then it sounds like you’re not joining them properly and it has nothing to do with length – as the chain will be slack when going downhill even during compression (chain growth is rarely that large).

    I_Ache
    Free Member

    Sounds like your arn’t taking into account of chain growth. I did this once. The suspension felt a bit rubbish and then the chain snapped. I used a longer chain and it was fine.

    Also Shimano chains are crap. Use a Sram one.

    medoramas
    Free Member

    Also Shimano chains are crap

    when you don’t follow this:

    you can’t rejoin those with the pins already in the chain, you have to use a new black pin which is slightly bigger.

    fasthaggis
    Full Member

    Also, if it’s a Shimano chain, you can’t rejoin those with the pins already in the chain, you have to use a new black pin which is slightly bigger.

    I never knew that.
    What happens if you use the pins in the chain?

    I can’t remember the last time I snapped a chain,but I have helped a few people re-join them with a chain splitter.
    Have I given them a death sentence ? 😉

    munrobiker
    Free Member

    Generally I’m much happier with a Shimano chain, but let’s not muddy the waters of advice with that argument.

    fasthaggis- not necessarily, it may work fine but generally doesn’t. The ends of Shimano chain pins are slightly bigger than the main body of the pin so when you push the pin out it enlarges the hole in the link slightly. You then need to use one of Shimano’s black joining pins to fill the enlarged hole- using the same pin leaves a slightly loose fit (not noticeable to us, noticeable to a chain doing however many bends per revolution) which will usually burst out again.

    Or just use a powerlink. Which is what I do.

    jemima
    Free Member

    I think 114 links is standard chain length but on a range of bikes I always end up cutting a few out.

    Again, I would investigate joining technique. I think if chain was short enough to snap on full-travel then you’d wreck your mech as well. Plus, I’d imagine you’re unlikely to be pedaling on full-power whilst hitting max travel…

    Finally, on all FS bikes I’ve had the chain growth is quite negligible at full-travel so unless the mech is almost totally stretched out on big-ring-big-sprocket then I’d say chain length is unlikely to be the problem. But I guess you may have a bike with severe chain growth with travel…

    andyl
    Free Member

    You can sometimes re-use the pins but you risk them coming out and breaking the chain at best, other stuff maybe depending on what you are doing at the time and it’s normally under load when climbing a steep hill.

    tbh I just use KMC chains and KMC quick links. Only use the chain tool to remove links.

    medoramas
    Free Member

    What happens if you use the pins in the chain?

    I’m not doing it again after I almost lost my teeth when climbing out of the saddle on short, steep climb…

    fasthaggis
    Full Member

    Ah right,that probably explains why one of my mates is a serial chain snapper.
    I will pass on that info.

    legend
    Free Member

    I’m firmly in the Shimano chains are crap camp anyway. Used them years ago, always had problems. Skip forward 10 years, thought I’d have another go, lasted 1 ride then snapped leaving the start of stage one at last years Glentress enduro! Had used the proper joining pin, snapped a dozen links from there.

    FWIW, never had the same trouble with Sram

    benpinnick
    Full Member

    “Chain round biggest rear to biggest front WITHOUT going through rear mech, add 2 full links and that should be it.” Depends on the mech & bike – for any mech the _safe_ method for a full suss is to measure, and add 2 1/2 links (and then a quicklink) or 3 links if its a shimano chain. You can often get away with just 2, but not always.

    If you’re running SRAM Type 2 mechs you pretty much must add 2.5 links or it wont work properly.

    I_Ache
    Free Member

    when you don’t follow this:
    you can’t rejoin those with the pins already in the chain, you have to use a new black pin which is slightly bigger.

    I cant be arsed with all that joining crap, just use a powerlink. The crap Shimano chain I last had still broke about 5 times before I replaced it with Sram that has been fine.

    FWIW Shimano chains and hubs are the only things of theirs I don’t like.

    dangeourbrain
    Free Member

    Benpinnick, How do you size a half link assuming you’re running a multi speed chain? I thought they only came in full links?

    I’m now worried I’m going to die a horrible half link related death.

    andyl
    Free Member

    A full link is one wide and one narrow. The quicklink forms half of the link so 2.5 + 0.5 = 3 full links. Shiamno don’t use quicklinks/powerlinks so you use 3 full links and a joining pin.

    bigjim
    Full Member

    Mr Shimano says two links, which is what some people would call one ful link

    But I use 4 as per OneUp’s guidance

    Hmm link not working, maybe this SRAM one will

    Check chain growth from rear suspension isn’t a problem by deflating your shock and bottoming it out after

    andyl
    Free Member

    ^ yeah that confused me to. But a ‘half link chain’ has links that are the length of one normal chain segment but complete one wide-narrow segment and are referred to as half link chains which supports 1 wide and 1 narrow segment being 1 link.

    I do the 1 full link, 2 segments – one narrow, one quicklink (wide) on my hard tails.

    I can’t see me adding 2 ‘full links’ ie 2 narrow, 1 wide and 1 quicklink unless it’s a full suspension.

    benpinnick
    Full Member

    The problem with the shimano advice of 1 link/2 segments, is thats based on a triple set up, where the assumption is that you’re going to run a smaller range on the cassette in any one gear, so in essence the actual performance for Big>Big sucks, but you don’t (or at least shouldn’t) care. With a 2x then 2 links gives generally nice shifting across the whole block for both rings, and on a 1x its dependent on the mech you run. Shimano as a rule go shorter, as the mech springs are made from coiled string and so shorter gets some half decent tension, whereas on a SRAM type 2, only 3 full links will work as a rule, as the mech will foul itself when shifting between the smallest 2 cogs unless the arm is horizontal in the smallest cog.

    dangeourbrain
    Free Member

    Well I never knew that, always took two links to be one of each rather than two pair. You learn something new.

    richwales
    Full Member

    Those sram power links are a nightmare to remove once fitted (10 speed) KMC are much better.

    continuity
    Free Member

    And yet you’ve all missed that he says he snaps them whilst going downhill fast – ie the chain will not be in the big sprocket but the small one and the chain is barely beginning to be stretched.

    julians
    Free Member

    I think some people are taking the original question too seriously,surely it’s a pee take

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    which is what some people would call one ful link

    That would be people who don’t know what chain links are. For the OP either get some pics up or get some hands on advice

    dirksdiggler
    Free Member

    When installing a new shimano chain, be sure to remove whatever links you need to off the end that is ‘inside plates’
    If you remove links from the outerplate end then you are pressing a new pin into a previously used plate… And will have a weaker chain.

Viewing 29 posts - 1 through 29 (of 29 total)

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