Lifespan of a Campagnolo chain?

[saab2000]

I have to remove a 10-speed chain. It has slightly under 1000 miles. I have replacement links and the miles have not been hard or dirty or wet miles. The chain is pretty clean for the most part.

Keep? Or discard and replace?

What kind of life do you folks get from your high-end chains?

I figure I can do another 1000 but maybe it's easier to just get a new one.

[druptight]

This thread just recently happened and might provide some answers:

http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=138237&highlight=chain

[67-59]

As the other thread indicates, there are nearly as many opinions as there are cyclists...and measuring is usually the best guide.

But FWIW - I have been running Record 10 chains for several years, and usually get at least 2,000-3,000 miles. I'd be pretty surprised if you need to replace after only 1,000 miles that weren't hard, dirty or wet....

[jpw]

a thousand miles is poor value from a chain.

[plattyjo]

I waited 7 years and goodness knows how many miles before I replaced my Campy 10sp chain - and it wasn't even stretched to the brink yet!

[ultraman6970]

+1 here, under racing conditions probably will last a few months but for slowpos like me that left racing behind like 30 years ago and can't move their butts faster than 15 mph the campy chain will last a very long time. I had to replace mines because they were just old and noisy. THen moved to KMC, last even more than the campy ones.

[oldpotatoe]

I have to remove a 10-speed chain. It has slightly under 1000 miles. I have replacement links and the miles have not been hard or dirty or wet miles. The chain is pretty clean for the most part.

Keep? Or discard and replace?

What kind of life do you folks get from your high-end chains?

I figure I can do another 1000 but maybe it's easier to just get a new one.

Measure it. If to that length, replace

[Ralph]

I think Campy Chains are terrific chains. Last a long time if you take care of them, etc. Measure to be sure, etc.

However.....I've recently switched to KMC chains for my Campy equiped bikes. Equally good, IMHO. The reason I switched is because I like to use a KMC quick link. And on a Campy chain, the KMC quick link for Campy, (KMC CR) measured chain length a little extra when I used my Park chain checker on Campy links with the KMC link in it. The chain w/b .25 stretch on just Campy links when new, and be almost .5 stretch when measured over the same new Campy links with a KMC quick link in it. That doesn't mean it won't last a normal life, but it showed me the KMC link for a Campy chain wasn't a perfect fit.

When measuring a new KMC chain with my Park checker, it started life slightly less than .25 stretch, and measured the same no matter if that part of chain included a quick link or not. So I decided if I'm going to use their quick link, it fits better on their chain. BTW....The quick link for a KMC or Shimano chain is a 10R. The Campy 10 chain is just a tad narrower than the KMC or Shimano 10 chain.....thus different quick links. Don't know about 11's.

[saab2000]

Measure it. If to that length, replace

Thanks. Yours is the opinion I was really looking for.

I'm having a Serotta coupled by Bilenky and just disassembled the bike. In the end I'll probably put a new chain on but we'll see.....

[AngryScientist]

Thanks. Yours is the opinion I was really looking for.

I'm having a Serotta coupled by Bilenky and just disassembled the bike. In the end I'll probably put a new chain on but we'll see.....

i have kmc chains on pretty much everything i ride now. they are reasonably inexpensive and have served me well. the truth is that your chain is probably in fine shape with <1k miles on it in favorable conditions, but if it were me and i was "freshening up" a newly coupled bike - i'd just throw a new chain on and forget it. probably not the frugal choice, or engineering choice that drives pretty much everything else i do, but hey; that's what i would do in your shoes.