snapping chains like crazy - is it my drive train?

[digby]

What do you guys think? Today I snapped my 3rd chain since april. In april I snapped a year old kmc kule chain doing front wheel gaps, about a month later I snap a fresh kmc kule chain as I'm about to throw down some power for a tap, today I snapped a fresh, as in maybe 6 rides total fresh, shadow interlock doing a front wheel gap to near face plant on a rock. None of these are from the pin unriviting itself, they are all sheared chain links, the plate is pretty much just ripped in half.

My drivetrain setup is a king rear with funbolts and a steel king cog. 2 year old track cog up front on tryall ffw cranks. No Derailleur, sometimes a singleator, recently a rennen. The chainline is dead straight too. This is seriously starting to piss me off along with getting pretty dangerous now too. Snapping a chain on a front wheel gap is un pleasant at best.

I'm about 5' 10 and 185 pounds. I'm guessing my legs are pretty strong too from destroying all these chains.

After thinking about Ive come to the realization that there is very little flex coming from the track cog or the king setup. They are either too well built or too solid to flex, so the chain takes all the abuse. I'm thinking about switching to ffw, a locked acs or a eno as this way even though something will eventually break, there'll be some flex so the chain doesnt snap on me so quickly and I'll at least get some kind of warning that things are about to go bad when my freewheel starts making noises like chewbacca taking a shit.

I can deal with a loss of engagement, a slight loss of reliability and a loss of that solid feeling you get with a king. What I cant deal with is snapping chains every month.

[jmkimmel]

Straight chainline? I don't know about that hercules. That rennen was kinda off....maybe try the wipperman bmx?

[digby]

well yes, my lazy ass never got to the hardware store to get a longer bolt for the thing, but for the last few months, the 2 cogs have been lined up pretty much dead even. A singlelator before, and a xtr before that. Always a pretty much straight chainline. The rennen has been on for 3 rides, which makes up about half the life of the shadow chain.

Wipperman BMX or something with the word "TRACK" in big letters on it will most likely be next.

That or I could put on the one remaining kmc kule I have left sitting in the garage and see if I can snap it in 5 rides instead of 6.

[tomacropod]

sounds like you need to check all the teeth on your cogs for bent, squashed or otherwise deformed teeth which are putting weird stresses on the side plates.

- Joel

[thetart20]

Edit: Arse, didn't read. Uhm... KHE Collapse chain?

[lucky13]

I know they don't look all burly like a shadowlock, but I've never had issues with Whipperman Stainless or nickleplated chains. But if you really want the burl, maybe go for the whipperman timing chain,.. it is literally a timing chain off of a mercedes diesel.

I'm curious, are you running the correct chain to cog spacing? you know.. 1/8 vs... Oh hell, I don't even know that stuff,. I always run mtb stuff to be sure of compatibility. I always wondered if you guys were mixing cogs teeth spans/chain link lengths with those Shadowlocks...

[Elan]

i have a wipperman chain you can buy from me, its fucking \huge

[rtorrenga]

What size track cog are you running?

[lucky13]

i have a wipperman chain you can buy from me, its fucking \huge
It's the timing one huh? I'd put money on that NOT breaking,....evarrrr

[Cryo-Cube]

hmm there is something wrong...
if its really just that you have that much pedaling power you should also worry about your bar.

[felix]

Maybe it's your technique?!?!
How do you gap? Like Tunnicliffe or more like Spanish mod riders?

[rtorrenga]

Besides making sure that you chainline is straight, the only thing I would recommend is increasing the size of your front and rear sprockets if possible. Keep the same ratio, but increase the size of both sprockets. This will reduce the amount of tension on the chain.

[Elan]

its probably your chaing skills. if you ahve a shitty chain break, get someone elso to do it once.

[digby]

gap like tunnifcliffe but I dont go anywhere near as far.

running 18/15

I'm not sure if it has anything to do with how I install them, as I'm ripping the plate in half instead of a pin coming loose or something.

[Elan]

sounds like a cog problem. inspect bot your cogs for even wear. run a chain around them and see if it sets the same all the way around

[digby]

yup, that one is likely it, the track cog in the front is "iffy" at best.

What do you guys think for the king vs freewheel for giving the chain some relief?

[Elan]

same

[Don Coyote]

I would disassemble a few links from the broken chain, and see if the inside of the remaining plates have any evidence of damage. If the problem is damage due to deformed / bent cogs you should be able to see it on some of the other plates.

Is it always an inside plate that breaks, or always outside? That would also indicate damage induced failure rather than just snapping due to strain.

You could get some long chainring bolts, some washers/spacers, and another identical ratio chainring / cog combination, and run dual chains? I saw a three-chain singlespeed once.

[Tipsy Jock]

Could it possibly be the 2 year old track cog? Ideally you should replace each part of the drivetrain with the others

[Elan]

Could it possibly be the 2 year old track cog? Ideally you should replace each part of the drivetrain with the others
thats pretty much what i was trying to say. :werd:

[tomacropod]

oh my gad I said all that good shit at post number, like, 4.

- Joel