Does chain-wear matter on a fixie?

[swee'pea99]

I just did the steel-rule thing to my chain and found it about 1/8" over at the 12" mark. I know that with most bikes that would be considered replacement time (if not late) - but does it actually matter on a fixie? What's the downside of riding with a worn chain? Would you replace, and if so, why?

 

[cougie uk]

Imagine if the chain got so loose that it came off the sprocket or chainring ? I'd replace for the small cost of a chain.

 

[Juan Kog]

What cougie says. Also you will get more life out of the sprocket and chainring .

 

[Deleted member 1258]

I change the chain on my fixed before it gets too worn

 

[Dolorous Edd]

I imagine it does matter a bit less than on a derailleur, because the chain does not need to jump from one sprocket and 'land' on the teeth of another sprocket. Also, the sprocket and chain ring on a fixed will be cheaper to replace, so the consequences of excessive wear are not as spendy. So I think it's reasonable to be a bit more relaxed about chain wear.

I don't think it should be ignored completely though, for the reasons given above.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

I imagine it does matter a bit less than on a derailleur, because the chain does not need to jump from one sprocket and 'land' on the teeth of another sprocket. Also, the sprocket and chain ring on a fixed will be cheaper to replace, so the consequences of excessive wear are not as spendy. So I think it's reasonable to be a bit more relaxed about chain wear.

I don't think it should be ignored completely though, for the reasons given above.

I'm never relaxed about the condition of the transmission on my fixed, they're less forgiving than a geared setup and a failure has the potential to be painful, the only time I broke a chain on a fixed I wasn't travelling quickly, less than ten mile an hour, but the broken chain wrapped round the back wheel and brought me to a rapid halt traveling sideways, fortunately without a tarmac kissing episode.

 

[Tail End Charlie]

As above, plus if it's going to break, it's more likely too when under the greatest strain, either when setting off or honking up a hill. Either way it'll be painful when you land on the crossbar.

 

[swee'pea99]

Imagine if the chain got so loose that it came off the sprocket or chainring ? I'd replace for the small cost of a chain.

What cougie says. Also you will get more life out of the sprocket and chainring .

The coming loose thing is a red herring. Wear has no bearing on the chain tightness. I keep the chain as tight as it needs to be, always.

Will I get more life out of the cogs? Does a worn chain wear them out more than a non-worn one? I really don't know, but intuitively I can't see any reason why it should. I'm open to persuasion though.

The 'what if it breaks?' does concern me . I live on a pretty steep hill and climb it every day, with great effort. A break would be most unpleasant. And I suppose if you ride a worn chain indefinitely, at some point it will break. Whether one that's 1/8" over 'the ideal' is significantly weakened, or, if not how far you can go before it is...hmmm. I would rather not find out using the catastrophic fail method.

Anyway, thanks for the comments - food for thought.

 

[tyred]

You could run a fixed, single speed or hub geared drive train for a very long time without any real issue. It shouldn't come off unless it is loose.

I've worked on many vintage bikes with seriously worn chains, the chain on my prewar Humber was actually three different brands of chains when examined. If you look at the cycling literature from years ago it is all about splicing in new links to replace the worn or damaged parts rather than replacing the whole chain.

Whether or not you want to now that most people have more spare cash and chains are probably cheaper than ever before in real terms is another issue but you definitely can.

 

[cougie uk]

The coming loose thing is a red herring. Wear has no bearing on the chain tightness. I keep the chain as tight as it needs to be, always.

Will I get more life out of the cogs? Does a worn chain wear them out more than a non-worn one? I really don't know, but intuitively I can't see any reason why it should. I'm open to persuasion though.

The 'what if it breaks?' does concern me . I live on a pretty steep hill and climb it every day, with great effort. A break would be most unpleasant. And I suppose if you ride a worn chain indefinitely, at some point it will break. Whether one that's 1/8" over 'the ideal' is significantly weakened, or, if not how far you can go before it is...hmmm. I would rather not find out using the catastrophic fail method.

Anyway, thanks for the comments - food for thought.

Wear does affect tightness.
You must be adjusting the wheelbase for it but as the chain wears it gets longer and looser unless you address it.

 

[Milkfloat]

I bought a job lot of chains for about £3-4 each. I really don't worry about wear, when it has worn I just bin it and move on with life. Even now with inflated prices they are less than a fiver each.

 

[swee'pea99]

You could run a fixed, single speed or hub geared drive train for a very long time without any real issue. It shouldn't come off unless it is loose.

See, that's my gut feeling. And tight though I am, even I don't baulk at a fiver. I just have a gut aversion to chucking stuff out that still has life left in it - environmentally if for no other reason, it strikes me as pointless and wasteful. If there's a good reason to change, I'm happy to change. I'm just not sure what that reason would be.

 

[Chris S]

I asked a similar question about chain wear on a hub gear. When my chain was worn it actually started slipping over the sprocket's teeth instead of engaging them. I assume the same sort of thing would happen on a fixie.

 

[Ian H]

The coming loose thing is a red herring. Wear has no bearing on the chain tightness. I keep the chain as tight as it needs to be, always.

Not quite. I did once run the fixed until the chain & the chainring were so worn that it would unship even if tight. Finding that out cost me a respectable patch of road-rash.

 

[Ian H]

I bought a job lot of chains for about £3-4 each. I really don't worry about wear, when it has worn I just bin it and move on with life. Even now with inflated prices they are less than a fiver each.

The only chains I have ever broken (both cracked side-plates, & not where they were joined) were cheap ⅛" ones. I buy decent quality track chains now.