1% chain stretch

[Halfmanhalfbike]

Just got one of those chainwear indicator tools from the LBS. It says that if the 1% indicator can fit into a link it's time for a new chain.

What difference can 1% possibly make? Is this just a case of the manufacturers exaggerating to sell more chains

I can see the point of not getting to the stage when the chain starts to skip/slip but not at 1" surely.

Am I way off base here?

 

[MacB]

I've looked into this and it ends up being a personal judgement as there are a lot of options based on opinions. Depending on who you speak to:-

chain maintenance - runs through ignore totally, wipe weekly and a bit of oil, clean regular with tool, remove and bathe in various solutions to clean and then re-lube, dismantel every link and lcean and reassemble

chain life - replace every 600-900 miles, replace based on wear indicator or measurement, leave alone until disintegrates

reasoning behind cleaning/replacing - things run smoother, you extend life of cogs and chainrings, you avoid gear slippage etc

reasoning behind minimum - let it all wear out together, you'll spend more time and money on chains than letting them all wear and replacing everything. If left in peace a chain will do thousands of miles, have seen 20000 quoted on a touring blog.

Personally I've been going with run through a rag once a week and put a bit of oil on afterwards. But then I'm switching to hub gears to make life even easier. So my natural laziness makes me biased.

 

[MartinC]

At 1 per cent the chain will start to wear the sprockets more - because it's now slightly larger than 1/2" pitch it will transmit all the load on one or two sprocket teeth instead of many. The chain will still last a long time like this but when it does start to skip you'll need to change the cassette too as the teeth will be hooked. If you change the chain now the cassette will last for several more chains.

 

[RedBike]

Once the chain has stretched it will start to wear out the cassette + chainrings. If you change the chain before it's stetched then in theory there should be very little wear on the cassette/chainrings and these parts should last for years.

Once the cassette is worn then your chains will stretch far more quickly and you'll be forever replacing the chains to keep them under 1%. (If the cassette is heavily worn a new chain will just slip on it. )

Looking at the price of chains at the moment I would be tempted to forget all about reguarly changing the chain over and just run the lot into the ground and then replace everything.

 

[gbb]

I dont know exactly when you should replace a chain halfman..., but i guess one important factor in your decision is what quality components you have, and how many speed your setup is.
I find 10 speed chain naturally wears quicker...its lighter construction sees to that. Now i run a 10 speed setup, the costs of neglect will be much much higher..worn cassetes and chainrings that could cost a fortune.

My old 8 speed setup just runs and runs...its heavier construction allows a bit of neglect compared with 10 speed.

I just replace my 9 and 10 speed chains every year ( but my mileage isnt that high..some will do it more often)

 

[Halfmanhalfbike]

Looking at the price of chains at the moment I would be tempted to forget all about reguarly changing the chain over and just run the lot into the ground and then replace everything.

Thanks for all the info. Think I now understand. I'll just keep going and replace everything at once. I don't do more than 500km per month anyway

 

[02GF74]

chains cannot stretch as they are not eleastic. As they wear they become longer.

The 1 % in elongation is the limit after which if you were to fit a new chain, it will skip on the sprockets. I have managed to get 3 chains to 1 cassette.