Should checking chain condition, stretch etc be included?

Yes of course it should, but I would guess they would only perform the check if the shifting was playing up.

We Always use the gauge when a bikes in for service but imo it’s not a great way of doing things as many drive chains will carry on working well beyond the .75-1% that’s often recomeneded for chain replacement. But at least things can be discused with the owner

Why the question ? What issues are you havibg

Chain stretch check does not indicate if chain has lateral wear (sloppy, causes poor shifting), or smaller cogs on cassette have worn out (if rider often uses same 2-3 cogs).

Drivetrain System needs to be looked at as a whole by experienced mechanic, and conversation with customer to determine if gears slip under power (not to be confused with indexing issues)

There is a cassette checker (rohloff?) but most shops don’t have it in their workshops

When I was in the trade you either knew the customers bike maintenance philosophy or we could guess by looking at the bike. Two philosophies, run it all till it’s done, or if in doubt swap it out.

The chain wear gauge helps with the latter.

If the check means they can flog you a brand new cassette because of a slightly worn chain needing “replacing” and a new one won’t work with the slightly worn cassette, sure they’ll do it. Nice little earner, especially if you have 11 speed.

😉

Yes of course it should, but I would guess they would only perform the check if the shifting was playing up.

Err no. I’m do every single bike that comes in for servicing.
I’m fully aware that chains can be left a lot longer and I run my own until they’re trashed but there’s more to it than that

A) Someone bringing a bike in for a service is doing it for a reason – For some reason they can’t or won’t do it themselves. Therefore the bike needs to go out in top condition. I phrase it like this – “How long do you want to go before bringing it back again?”
If they’re happy paying more labour in a couple of months time then fine. We’ll do the chain then. If they want it to work for a year then we need to do it now. Which also costs less labour so is more economical.

B) It’s my job to sell parts to customers. That’s what pays my wages. If I’m honest and tactful I can just give the customer the right information and let them make the decision. It’s very very rare they say no as well.

Both of the above go hand in hand. Get it right and everyone is happy. But every bike needs to be thoroughly checked. 🙂

I check chain and sprockets. But I also explain that there’s two philosophies, replace the chain frequently or leave it all to wear together and replace the lot eventually. Quite often I’ll tell people that the chain is worn but there’s no point replacing everything now, may as well get some more use out of it first.

We had an email round at work the other day. LBS were offering a ‘free’ bike health check.

How very very kind of them

It’s just if the type of person who wants all things taking care of and their bike sorted into top condition and then a week down the line the drive starts slipping/banging they’re going to be puzzled/miffed as they’ve spent their dosh having a full service

Surly it makes sense to change the chain early and save the chainring and cassette?

Surly it makes sense to change the chain early and save the chainring and cassette?

I’m not sure what’s cheaper – several chains, or a chain, cassette and chainrings. Depends on the bike, but I think it’s probably much of a muchness.

Our LBS keep thier chain checker in a velvet lined handmade titanium case , its one of the cheapest workshop tools but makes the most profit .

We had an email round at work the other day. LBS were offering a ‘free’ bike health check.
How very very kind of them

It’s called marketing. You may have heard of it..?
Someone is doing their job and it’ll work too. It’s really just a reminder that the shop is there and that they can repair bikes.

It also has the added benefit that it’ll remind people that they have a bike, and might even want to ride it to work occasionally. Of course the bike shop is hoping for business out of it, but done right it’s a win for everyone.

Always check and advise in my shop I explain the pros and cons and let the customer decide 99% are happy for the work to go ahead.

work the other day. LBS were offering a ‘free’ bike health check.
How very very kind of them

Check and Fix your bike yourself so it’s perfect, using online bits from Germany.

Then take it in and make them spend time checking it for free.

That’ll teach the capitalist scum for trying to make a living and pay the staff wages !!1!!!

I need a “Capitalist Scum” T-shirt.

I’m not sure what’s cheaper – several chains, or a chain, cassette and chainrings. Depends on the bike, but I think it’s probably much of a muchness.

It is I have tried both and what you gain in cassette life you lose in chain cost

If its my XTR cassette then i change the chain

If its not then I run it into the ground.

I dread to thing what the chain stretch was on my road bike – it woudl not take a new chain – actually it struggled with a really worn one- but it was all still working perfectly

When I was spannering, a standard service wouldn’t include a chain measurent unless the gears were playing up after new cables, transmission cleaning and re-indexing.

Punters don’t respond too well to looking for problems that need fixing before its a problem. Mind you, that may have just been a reflection of our clientele. It was more of a ‘takes all comers’ traditional kind of shop.

Fair enough

So the question which still remains slightly open is it cheaper to change the chain or let it go?

I like to run XT 10 speed with a narrow wide single up front. Sram 991 chain

“But every bike needs to be thoroughly check”.

Well if all bikes are thoroughly checked then the chain check should (IMO) be included as its an integral part of a bike running smoothly.

Gears can appear to be running smoothly on the stand but then getting a bike back and running it in real world conditions can show problems, like slipping or jumping when pedal pressure is applied rather than turning a crank by hand.

A chain check can reveal this before handing it back to the customer and then them having to return it due to said problems.

This is what happened to my mate – just got his bike back from ‘service’ and a week later his drive train is toast

Chain stretched more than Fatima’s spandex

So the question which still remains slightly open is it cheaper to change the chain or let it go?

It depends.

I usually change chains and get 3 per cassette/chainrings, and then when it’s the 1/3 chain I run it all to ‘death’. Others don’t.

BR +1, 3 chains, one cassette, once on the third chain run into ground.

Recently took to running two chains on my bikes, one wet one and on dry and swap according to conditions. Easier than degreasing a wet chain and applying dry lube and vice versa.

The important question here is, how are you lot measuring your chains? Using a chain guage or measuring with a rule?

Depends on the cost of the cassette. I run XT cassette at the moment and £30ish a time it’s a no brainer to just let it run on.

My experience is I’ve done both methods and I’ve ended up replacing the cassette no sooner by running one chain, and in fact seems to last longer with worn chain and cassette, with no shifting issues or skipping.

Personally I was wasting money on chains and binning perfectly good chains and cassettes.

But if you don’t like the idea of riding something “worn”, even just partly, then replace early.

dirtydog – Member
Recently took to running two chains on my bikes, one wet one and on dry and swap according to conditions. Easier than degreasing a wet chain and applying dry lube and vice versa.

Or just use dry in all conditions 😉 . Wet just wrecks everything unless you’re talking road and there’s very little crud to suck into the wet lube. Plus on the road it’s maybe more useful as there’s a lot more water spray. Dry is fine all year round off road. Better still, decent wax lube like Squirt.

Tried Weltite wax, Finishline wax and Finishline wax ceramic. Not got had great results with any in wet conditions, this despite applying several applications a few days before use.

I’ve not used Squirt, been meaning to give it a try.

One LBS I use checks the chain first in front of you, and if it needs changing will then have a sensible conversation with you about cassette and chainring wear.

Purple Extreme is the best lube in existence. Put it on let it dry over night it doesn’t even look like you have chain lube on the chain. Chain works brilliantly it like magic. All conditions wet or dry. I’m sure I read years back it was developed from the same stuff or is the same stuff they use for chains used in under sea drilling.