I've been having worse and worse chain-skipping problems, and occasionally even auto-shifting. I was really perplexed about what it could be - it seemed pretty sporadic, also - like not correlated to the period of pedaling, nor to the period of rear freewheel turning.
I finally consulted with our friend Sheldon Brown and found out my chain and sprockets are probably worn out. He doesn't go right out and say it, but...does this mean I need a new chain and sprockets? Is it generally necessary to replace any sprocket with major shark-fins going on, or are the rear ones more important, or what? And any advice on finding some cheap in good shape (free ride?)?
Replace the chain first. If the skipping stops, voila! If not, you'll probably need a new casettte, possibly new chainrings. Do you have STI type shifting? The indexing could be off as well which is a cable tension adjustment thing.
Thanks, I'll try a chain first.
About the shifting, I have friction levers, and often times the friction nut is the culprit. There's very occasional autoshifting when that nut is tight anyway, but I'll take Sheldon Brown's advice on that one and grease up the cable guide.
Most shops I've ever gone to have said that when you change the chain, you MUST change the cassette as well.
Now, years ago, I used to ride more than I do now. I would change the chain once a year because it had gotten cruddy and had rusted over the winter. I did not change the cassette. The chain slipped for a few days, settled in and I was good for the next year.
Later, I "upgraded" my bike and found that I had to change the chain more often. And then it wouldn't work right until the cassette had been changed as well. I was told to change the chain every 1000 miles. I was told to change it more often than that. I was told to clean the chain after every ride. To wash the chain every week. To get one of those chain measure tools and change it when recommended.
I was changing my chain 3 or 4 times a year.
I continually pissed of the mechanic for my continual asking for an explanation as to why this had changed and never received a satisfactory answer.
Personally, I think they don't make components like they used to.
I've read that not shifting properly will drastically reduce the life of your chain too. Cross-chaining (small front – small rear, and large front – large rear) should be avoided especially with the very narrow chains used with 9 & 10 speed cassettes. Shifting without easing up on the pedal stroke will also degrade the chain and gears over time.
Get a chain and cassette. You will almost always regret getting the chain and not the cassette.
Chain wear is primarily a matter of how dirty it gets. The bushings get worn out by the combination of grit and lube. Proper shifting and chain line are very far down the list of things that will prolong chain life.
And I think chains just don't last as long around here, along with everything else. Lots of rain equals lots of grit. I ride a pretty modest amount and go thru ~4 chains a year on the road bike and 4 chains on my 2 'cross bikes (which get raced a lot).
But, if you change chains a lot you can get more life out of your cassette, which is nice since the cassette is way more expensive. I always buy the cheapest chain I can.
Thanks for the advice!
I'm getting a feeling here that a chain is one example of where I should maybe go for new merchandise, since those at free ride will likely be worn out already (although my last chain was a free-ride one, and it's lasted me these 2 years or so...).
Anyway the Internet™ says they're only $15-25.
I have a chain breaker at home, so I can install it myself. But how do I go about shopping for one? Any sizes to worry about, or are they fairly universal given the type of bike (multi-speed road)?
Edit: Okay okay, I'll look at cassettes too.
Figure how many speeds your cassette is and get a matching chain. The chains vary by width. As I said I just get the cheapest one that matches the speeds I need.
To be clear, you have to get a chain that matches the number of speeds. Your options will be 7,8,9 and 10 most likely. If you need something for 7 or lower just get the 7spd chain.
Related question:
Is there any difference between a $30 cassette and a $100 one that I, as a commuter/recreational cyclist (who previously didn't even know how to shop for a chain) would notice?
Probably not, unless you weigh your bike...
To be clear, you have to get a chain that matches the number of speeds. Your options will be 7,8,9 and 10 most likely. If you need something for 7 or lower just get the 7spd chain.
For optimal performance you may also need to shorten the chain slightly. There are a couple of methods to figure out the correct length. The method I use is to wrap the chain around the largest cog in back and the big chainring without threading it through the derailleurs and overlap the end by one complete link (1 inch of chain). There's a good picture of the overlap on this page
http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=26
down a bit.
@alnilam
there any difference between a $30 cassette and a $100 one that I, as a commuter/recreational cyclist (who previously didn't even know how to shop for a chain) would notice?
The link in your sentence above links to a screw on freewheel. If that's what you have then it won't be a problem, but if you have a freehub where the ratcheting mechanism is attached to the hub and the cogs come off it individually or in groups, it won't work. So before you buy something, make sure you know which type you need.
You can get inexpensive casettes too.
Thanks for the tips!
Screw-on freewheel is indeed what I need; I always call them cassettes despite being corrected on it a bunch of times. Oops!
