Chainset wear advice

[ed_o_brain]

The teeth on that big ring do look slightly hooked.

I don't think the "broken teeth" are a problem though. They look like they are there to aid shifting.

Make sure the LBS fit quality replacements that will wear well. TA and Stronglight chainrings come well recommended. I found I got best wear out of SRAM chains, but so long as it is well plated any chain should be okay.

A steel ruler of at least 12 inches in length should be fine for checking chain wear. Each link (set of outer plates + set of inner plates) should be one inch. On a new chain, 12 chain links should be 12 inches. This is a good link to read up on:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/chains.html#wear
Courtesy of the late Sheldon Brown.

If you are in London then single speed is a good bet.

 

[swee'pea99]

Much more worn? That outer chainring is only fit for the bin.

Blimey, you guys are brutal! Like I say, I've ridden far worse with no problems. More to the point, nothing in Jon's post suggests any 'worn-chainset-related' problems. I'd say solve the problems - snapping cables, non-shifting gears. Neither of which has anything to do with chainset-wear.

 

[mickle]

I agree with porkypete, it's totally shaggered. If you ever see a chainring on my bike in that condition shoot me.

A ring like that doesn't support the chain. On a new ring the chain sits in the teeth and nothing moves. On a worn ring the chain rollers are constantly moving as they travel around it, accelerating wear where it matters; between the pin and the roller.

 

[swee'pea99]

If that's the case, doesn't that suggest staggeringly crap durability? I got my chainset second hand - which is to say, on a second hand bike - and well used, and I must have put upward of 3,000 miles on it since, on crappy London roads, and it's still fine. 1100 miles and dead? Is that normal, or anything resembling it?

 

[tyred]

I've seen much worse and rode bikes which were worse than that and don't remember any shifting problems. But after only 1,100 miles, it shouldn't be like that and they are obviously very poor quality parts.

 

[Chris James]

I've seen much worse and rode bikes which were worse than that and don't remember any shifting problems. But after only 1,100 miles, it shouldn't be like that and they are obviously very poor quality parts.

I am pretty surprised that the large chain ring can be quite so shagged in such a short period to be honest.

Mind you, the chain looks like it has been covered in a mixture of lard and iron filings so that can't help.

I don't think the shop is taking the mickey though.

 

[beancounter]

You've had the bike 8 months. How often have you cleaned and oiled it?

bc

 

[mickle]

You've had the bike 8 months. How often have you cleaned and oiled it?

bc

Quite. The chain has been murdered and in it's death throes has fatally injured the chain ring.

 

[jay clock]

The whole thing looks really really filthy. Do not underestimate how much that will knacker things.

First turn over a new leaf. Promise to look after your bike.

Then clean the whole thing within an inch of its life (you can remove cassette first (the back cogs) as personally I would bin them and start afresh. For 15-20 quid it will be worth it to know it is all fresh

Then I would buy a new chain, new cassette and new outer front ring, plus the correct tools and fit them. Tools you need are allen keys, a cassette tool, a chain whip, a chain tool, and possibly a special little tool that holds the nuts on the back of the chainring whilst you tighten the allen bolts like this http://bike-nashbar.amazonwebstore....froogle&utm_medium=organic&utm_source=froogle

Google the Park tool website for info and come back here.

The shifting probs may need new cables and a decent tweak. Find a friendly local bike shop

Finally, buy mudguards and clean your bike weekly

PS am betting your brake blocks are knackered too. I ruined a new pair in one day on a grubby winter's ride

 

[jon.mithe]

Yeah cleaning... I quickly wipe it down when its been in the rain, and have lubed the chain probably 4/5 times in 8 months just to stop it rusting (without cleaning it...). Most of that black stuff I belive is my brake pads and grease/rubber off the road.

Theres no way I could clean it every week, living/working in london is busy enough but I also care + maintain guitars most weekends. But I'll aim for a good clean once a month, twice if I have the time. And will definitely give it a good all over clean this weekend when I try and fix everything. I will promise to keep it clean(ish) it in the future!

Thanks for the tools advice, noticed on the video there were some special tools he was using. Also I'll look at getting on of those bike prop up things, friend said setting up gears with the bike upside down doesnt work well. I will also will get some proper oil for the derailleur.

Ruined in one day?! I'm going through a set of cheap shimano deore v-brakes every ~3 - 4 months atm (that is the pads are almost down to the metal, probably a little bit below the min). I do tend to cycle quite fast and often have to slam the brakes on more than once on almost every trip (cycling in london is fun...). I find my brakes take a hammering when it rains.

The bike is a Marin Fairfax 2007 I got in the sales when the 2008 models came out.

 

[jay clock]

Cleaning it properly will take an age if it is that grubby, but once clean should be do-able in 20 mins once a week. If you don't, the grunge and crud will multiply the frequency of maintanance (and cost) dramatically

 

[PatrickPending]

as mickle said get a chain checker - chains worn beyond a certain point wear out your casette / front hainset, but if you change your chain when the chain checker tells you to, then your chainset/casette will last for aages (20,000km on mine and still going strong!)

 

[swee'pea99]

Do you need a chain checker to check a chain? Like ed o brain, I've been using a 12" steel rule: line it up and see if the tiny line by the 0 and the line by the 12 both line up with the same point on 'their' links, and if they do, you're sorted...and if they don't, you can pretty easily gauge how much you're out by. Am I missing something?

 

[Dave5N]

[quote name='swee'pea99']Do you need a chain checker to check a chain? Like ed o brain, I've been using a 12" steel rule: line it up and see if the tiny line by the 0 and the line by the 12 both line up with the same point on 'their' links, and if they do, you're sorted...and if they don't, you can pretty easily gauge how much you're out by. Am I missing something?[/quote]


Yep. simplicity.

 

[Steve Austin]

That front chainring is completely knackered!!! so that will have worn the chain badly, which will have worn the cassette.
Its new cassette, new chainrings and new chain time.

Two schools of thought with drivetrains
1: run it into the ground until it stops working, replace the whole lot. This normally expensive.
2: Replace chain when it reaches .75 wear. Keep drivetrain clean and tidy. Drivetrain will last longer, and this sometimes works out cheaper as parts don't wear out completely.