Proper Care and Maintenance of Your Chain

As I'm sure you know, proper mountain bike maintenance is essential to your bike performing its best and lasting as long as possible. And with today's expensive bikes, you want to make yours last as long as you can! There are many things you need to check on and maintain such as brakes, cables, tires and suspension components. One thing that is very important to maintain is your chain because without it, you are not going anywhere.

Many people thing that simply dripping some oil on their chain is all they need to do to keep it up to par but that is not the case. Bike chains require additional maintenance that many people overlook. They also require replacement from time to time as well which many people really overlook. In this article we are going to talk about what needs to be done to keep your chain working its best.

These maintenance items consist of the following:

• Chain cleaning
• Chain lubrication
• Chain replacement

Since your chain uses oil to keep it lubricated it tends to collect dirt on that oil and then gum up the chain itself. When this happens your performance will not be at its best and you can have things such as slipping occur when shifting gears or even chain binding in extreme cases which can lead to the chain coming off the chain rings while riding. This is why you need to do regular cleanings of your chain to prevent these types of things from happening. This does not have to be done every ride of course but the time in between chain cleanings will vary on your riding conditions. If you ride in wet or muddy conditions then you will need to clean your chain more often.

There are several ways you can clean your chain and some are easier than others. One way is by using a chain cleaning liquid and a brush to clear the dirt off. Many people use an old toothbrush to do this task. There are also specialty chain brushes made that do a good job. One really good method is to use a chain cleaning kit that consists of a mechanism that you run the chain through that contains brushes that clean the chain from all angles. These are fairly inexpensive and do a really good job.

Just be sure to use the proper chain cleaning solvent to avoid damage to your chain. There are even all in one chain cleaners and lube but we don’t think this method is a real effective way to clean your chain.

Another chain maintenance item of course is proper lubrication. If your chain is not properly lubricated it will have problems similar to a dirty chain such as not shifting properly and binding. Plus dry chains tend to be noisy as well. Make sure to get a quality lubrication that matches your riding conditions. There are wet lubes, dry lubes, wax based lubes and so on designed for wet and dry conditions etc.

This is not something you want to skimp on and you don’t want to use something like WD-40 to lubricate your chain either. When putting the lube on the chain you can apply it pretty heavily and then run the chain through the gears to get it settled in. Then take a dry rag and run it along the chain to take off the excess lubrication. If you have too much lube on the chain it can attract more dirt and gum up the chain.

Finally you need to consider replacing your chain when it’s time to do so. Chains get stretched out over time and need to be replaced. If you don't replace the chain you will once again get the shifting problems and in more extreme cases you can damage other parts of your drive train which can get very expensive. When replacing your chain make sure to get the right type as well. There are different manufacturers such as Shimano and SRAM and most of the time they are interchangeable. Just be sure to get the right size to match your rear cassette. If you have 3 gears in front and 9 in the back then you need to get a chain for a 9 speed rear cassette. Even after getting the right type there is a good chance you will need to take a link out or add a link to match the current chain’s length. This may require a chain tool to take out the link pin and to put it back in when you are done making the adjustment.

Just take off the old chain by removing a pin and lay it on the ground stretched out. Then put the new chain next to it and match the length. Then install the new chain and insert the pin or the master link depending on the type and you are good to go. New chains come with lubricated links and many people say you should not lube it right away to work in the factory lube but that’s a debate for another day.

So the bottom line is that if you care of your chain it will take care of you and give you trouble free riding for a long time to come.

Posted by Mike Treiber