Chain life expectancy - which lasts longest

[brainbow]

Heard today that the SRAM PC-X1 is fastest wearing chain, and that has prompted a discussion on brands, drivetrain types and chain life expectancy.

My line with custy's is that folks can reasonably expect btwn 500-2500 (Seattle), with exceptions on both sides.

What chain's wear fast/last longest? What drivetrain config lasts longest/wears fastest?

maybe even worth mentioning where/what climate chain is subjected to...

[Bentley]

I can only speak from my experience, I generally ride SRAM PC1071, and I get lots of miles out of them, I'd say 2500mi is on the low end, probably more like 4500.

I think a lot can be said for maintenance of the chain as the biggest reason. I tend to wash my bike regularly and I take the chain off the bike for a good cleaning about once a month. That includes a run through the Ultrasonic cleaner.

I would offer that keeping the chain clean is a big reason I get good mileage, but I also use a good lube, generally Pro Gold, NFS are my go to lubes.

My 2cents

Ray

[Blue Jays]

Wipe chain aggressively after every ride with a rough old cotton towel.
NFS lubricant applied before noticeably “needing” it...so chains, cassettes, and chainrings all last much longer.

[Matthew]

Pretty much have always used Ultegra chains. Probably replace them before I need to, around 2000-2500 miles. Keep them cleaned, lubed regularly and get good mileage out of them. 10 and 11 speed.

[Dave]

Wippermann has done chain wear tests for a long time. They've got a video done years ago in the days of 10 speed and now they have one for 11 speed. Although their best chain always does better than any other, a lower level wipperman chain doesn't do particularly well.

I did some real world wear testing with Campy 10 chains and found that they wear like no other, with far less than .5% elongation, even after 6,000 miles, but I also found that the roller wear and side clearance wear was huge, after that many miles. I'll never use one that long again. I always buy chains in groups of three, and alternate with reasonable frequency. If you do that, the cassette will last for the life of all the chains and you'll never get new-chain skip. Each chain can also be used longer, since you don't toss them early to prevent new-chain skip.

The only wippermann chain I used was a 10 speed model and I was not impressed with the shifting, so I didn't use it for long. Their quick links are the best.

https://bikerumor.com/2018/01/29/wip...lasts-longest/

[11.4]

When the chain measures as being too long and ready for replacement, it's already putting undue wear on the chainrings and cassette.

I also use NFS lubricant and have found it keeps everything much cleaner, including during winters in the Pacific Northwest, and it prolongs life of the chain. It's the single biggest change in chain longevity I've found in the past ten years. I also use cheap microfiber rags, bought in bulk at Home Depot, to clean the chain -- I simply wipe the chain off after every ride and the microfiber does a much better job than a terry cloth towel. Definitely worth it. Everything simply gleams.

I ride a mix of KMC X11 Gold chains and Shimano Ultegras. I've tried a lot of others and not found good reliable quality, but these two have been good. I find the KMC's seem to last a bit better and I can make a $64 chain last easily 3500 miles in the summer and I switch it out before it measures as really worn. In the winter I'd use Ultegras at $21 a chain, and have no problem making them last 2500 miles in mucky conditions.

I do test my chains now a bit differently. I take the chain off the bike and hang it on a wall against a precision meter tape, and take the measurement. Then I soak and clean it extensively in odorless mineral spirits and then in an ultrasound cleaner to remove completely any grit inside the links. It's the stuff inside that wears your chain, not the stuff on the sideplates. When I remeasure it, it's typically elongated more because you get the grit out and the chain can relax to its full length without being braced in part by grit inside the chain. It's the difference in chain lengths, before and after cleaning, that I use as a reference for how long a chain will last. I did this enough to know how many miles I can ride before I get this kind of elongation, and now I just replace at the mileage intervals as recorded on my computer. When I intend to discard a chain, I typically do a measurement just to be sure I didn't overdo it -- I don't want to see a chain that's worn a good bit because that's sh*tty economy if it eats up your cassette and chainrings just to save the chain, and by the same token if I never see any post-cleaning elongation it tells me I can try going a little farther on a chain. This method tells me precisely how long (and how consistent) a chain is (and some brands measure out differently from others, believe it or not), and makes the chain the sacrificial part of the system.

[gary_a_gooner]

I thought that 2500 - 3000 was low for a chain, but guess not. That's my typical mileage.

[biker72]

I'm running my very first SRAM chain and only have a few hundred miles on it.
I generally get close to 5000 miles on Chorus, Ultegra, and 105 chains. I do take pretty good care of them. Don't ride in the rain or get muddy.

[Brian Smith]

Originally Posted by 11.4

When the chain measures as being too long and ready for replacement, it's already putting undue wear on the chainrings and cassette.

I also use NFS lubricant and have found it keeps everything much cleaner, including during winters in the Pacific Northwest, and it prolongs life of the chain. It's the single biggest change in chain longevity I've found in the past ten years. I also use cheap microfiber rags, bought in bulk at Home Depot, to clean the chain -- I simply wipe the chain off after every ride and the microfiber does a much better job than a terry cloth towel. Definitely worth it. Everything simply gleams.

I ride a mix of KMC X11 Gold chains and Shimano Ultegras. I've tried a lot of others and not found good reliable quality, but these two have been good. I find the KMC's seem to last a bit better and I can make a $64 chain last easily 3500 miles in the summer and I switch it out before it measures as really worn. In the winter I'd use Ultegras at $21 a chain, and have no problem making them last 2500 miles in mucky conditions.

I do test my chains now a bit differently. I take the chain off the bike and hang it on a wall against a precision meter tape, and take the measurement. Then I soak and clean it extensively in odorless mineral spirits and then in an ultrasound cleaner to remove completely any grit inside the links. It's the stuff inside that wears your chain, not the stuff on the sideplates. When I remeasure it, it's typically elongated more because you get the grit out and the chain can relax to its full length without being braced in part by grit inside the chain. It's the difference in chain lengths, before and after cleaning, that I use as a reference for how long a chain will last. I did this enough to know how many miles I can ride before I get this kind of elongation, and now I just replace at the mileage intervals as recorded on my computer. When I intend to discard a chain, I typically do a measurement just to be sure I didn't overdo it -- I don't want to see a chain that's worn a good bit because that's sh*tty economy if it eats up your cassette and chainrings just to save the chain, and by the same token if I never see any post-cleaning elongation it tells me I can try going a little farther on a chain. This method tells me precisely how long (and how consistent) a chain is (and some brands measure out differently from others, believe it or not), and makes the chain the sacrificial part of the system.

I'm not sure how, on this forum, to produce a 3-row string of heart emojis. Pretend you see those here, because that post rocks.
Ex-customers of mine recall the advice I grew to give - don't lubricate your chain unless you're prepared to clean it first.

[mtechnica]

I use one of the two pin elongation gauges. If it fails the first (.75) test I toss the chain to avoid wearing the cassette and chainrings. I would say I get 2000-3000 miles out of KMC chains with minimal maintenance. I don’t believe in the taking the chain to the spa treatment with fancy time consuming cleaning methods. I will soak it in chain lube and run it through a towel by turning the cranks. YMMV, but to answer the question, the gold KMC chains seem to last the longest. Also fwiw I cross chain frequently and will ride in the wet.

[bikinchris]

How long a chain lasts is a lot like fuel economy ratings compared to real world.
Rider speed, weight, load, hills, shifting habits and other things play a part in how long a chain lasts. Saying "my chain lasts XXXX miles" means very little to other people.
Kind of like saying I get 30mpg out of my Ford Transit Connect.

[brainbow]

This is great -predictably, lots of input from the methodical camp. My Wipperman Black Ed 10sp chain has 3300mi on a RB-1/Sram Red/28 Pro One's tubeless on SL23's, and a few more to go.

Meanwhile, same chain on my 'cross/rando/daily' has 2000+ and will need to go middle of winter.

And my drivetrain is basically my business card when I'm out and about, so it's not 'normal'.

Wknd Warrior cross racers/commuters see a fast decline in the tolerance of their rollers, and so hence the low end of the average.

[muz]

My Campy 11-speed chain seems to last about 2500 miles. In comparison, I just replaced the chain on my fixed gear commuter, more than 2 years and 10,000 miles, including some riding in the rain.

[weaponsgrade]

The SRAM PCX1 on my mtn bike is measuring 12 1/16" after about 850 miles. I measure chain wear with a ruler and replace before the chain hits 12 1/8". Conditions don't get too sloppy here and I wipe down the chain after every ride with an old shirt.

[Tony]

1X drivetrains wear chains out much much faster than a 2X. Fixed gear with a good chain line will out last all other drivetrains.

Clean chains (rings, cass) last longer than dirty ones

Don't include the quick link when measuring wear, it will be longer than the rest of the chain.