Half Link Chain Stretch

My chain is stretching a lot at the moment. I have to re adjust it about once a week.
Do you think it is time for a new one. It is about a year old.

How far have you ridden? What kind of maintenence have you done to it: spray when it squeaks or de-grease/re-grease or nothing?
Yes I think it is time for a new one.. so you can take it apart and sell the links on Ebay for £1 each.

Do you use chain tugs and a brake?
I only ask as I found that I'd have to reset the wheel a lot more often when brakeless without tugs.

my half-link used to stretch alot brakeless, was always adjusting even with a chain tug.

I do put in the miles and sporadically de-grease and then re-grease.
Well I actually use that pedros wax stuff, I find it does quite a good job.
I do use tugs and a front brake.

It doesn't look worn out or anything, it just seems to stretch more than ever lately.
I don't really want to replace it unless it is about to break when I am skidding along minding my own business.

year old, yup I would change it :P

its recommended changing a chain every 2000 miles, remember on fixed your chain will "stretch" a lot quicker because of the stresses involved when riding fixed on the road.

gone through a couple KMC chains this winter already :(

Are you guys actually measuring chain stretch (which should just be called "chain wear") or are you mistakenly equating the normal forward slipping of your rear wheel with chain stretch/wear?

hael year old, yup I would change it :P

its recommended changing a chain every 2000 miles, remember on fixed your chain will "stretch" a lot quicker because of the stresses involved when riding fixed on the road.

I'm using SRAM PC1 chains cos they are cheap and I'm finding after about 400miles they are stretched/worn to the point of not feeding onto the sprockets properly any more.

I uses a cheapo 1/8 KMC chain on my fixed this winter, and it's done over 1,000 miles since new. It is nowhere near 0.75% stretch according to chain-wear tool. I clean the chain with white spirit and lube in chain oil every 400 miles.
My geared hybrid used to go through a new chain every 800 miles.

ditto to hippie's comment.

I am always suspicious when people say they stretch a chain in a short amount of time. As I understand it, chains stretch through wear which occurs over time. If you are strong enough to actually physically stretch the chain, you should probably be considering a late bid for the olympic team. But I stand ready to be corrected.

the fact that you can pull the chain away from the front of my chainring and almost stick your finger in there, its fucking definitely chain stretch ;)

chain "stretch" is when the pins end up with grooves worn into them by the pivoting motion the links go through during a revolution, each groove adding up to a noticeable size of slack through out the chain - not the actual stretching of the metal links. ;)

BillB [quote]hael year old, yup I would change it :P

its recommended changing a chain every 2000 miles, remember on fixed your chain will "stretch" a lot quicker because of the stresses involved when riding fixed on the road.

I'm using SRAM PC1 chains cos they are cheap and I'm finding after about 400miles they are stretched/worn to the point of not feeding onto the sprockets properly any more.[/quote]

I got a PC-1 and it was fucked straight out the box; one link was way out of alignment and was catching on edge of the cog tooth. Couldn't bend it flex it or do anything to get it quiet. I got the last Super Toughness off briankwan for £22 instead.

BillB [quote]hael year old, yup I would change it :P
its recommended changing a chain every 2000 miles, remember on fixed your chain will "stretch" a lot quicker because of the stresses involved when riding fixed on the road.

I'm using SRAM PC1 chains cos they are cheap and I'm finding after about 400miles they are stretched/worn to the point of not feeding onto the sprockets properly any more.[/quote]

Not really cheap if they are dying every 400mi are they? I'd need 2 new chains a fscking month!
I run an SRAM something (the cheapest one from Cyc Surgery) on the Soma and it's done maybe 1000k and it's fine.
The Interlock II halflink on the Raleigh still runs fine - it might be WORN but it still works fine.
The 9spd Shimano chain on the Ribble is many thousands of kilometres old and is worn past the 1/16th limit or whatever Sheldon reckons but it still works. It just means the longer I use it the more fscked the cassette will be and the worse the gear changing will be when I fit a new chain, ie. I might need a new chain AND cassette (which I have and I'm too lazy to fit).

dogsballs the fact that you can pull the chain away from the front of my chainring and almost stick your finger in there, its fucking definitely chain stretch ;)

How old is it? Do you ride through wet sandpits on your commute or something?

hippy [quote]dogsballs the fact that you can pull the chain away from the front of my chainring and almost stick your finger in there, its fucking definitely chain stretch ;)

How old is it? Do you ride through wet sandpits on your commute or something?[/quote]
sans brake, plus liking for zero slack in chain, huge thighs ;) , monopoly ride finished it off with 5hrs in wet though :(

last time it broken a tooth of the sprocket so, will change it.

Zero slack = uber fast chain/chainring wear. I like mine slack (but not slack enough to lose) for least friction.

When I install a fresh chain, my wheel is all neat and snug, with super sexy clearance with the seat tube.
Fast forward a year and that super sexy clearance is now a good finger or two.
It stretches.

Atomic.a & I were wondering this last night:
Would half-links, reluctant as they are, stretch more or less than a bog-standard KMC 1"?

half links stretch more than normal chains. it say so in the bible, luke 11:1

half links do stretch more due to the folded links, they do give a bit as opposed to straight links. mu®tle 19:3

• Riders often speak of "chain stretch" a technically misleading and incorrect term. Chains do not stretch, in the dictionary sense, by elongating the metal by tension. Chains lengthen because their hinge pins and sleeves wear. Chain wear is caused almost exclusively by road grit that enters the chain when it is oiled. Grit adheres to the outside of chains in the ugly black stuff that can get on ones leg, but external grime has little functional effect, being on the outside where it does the chain no harm.
  
  

The black stuff is oil colored by steel wear particles, nearly all of which come from pin and sleeve wear, the wear that causes pitch elongation. The rate of wear is dependent primarily on how clean the chain is internally rather than visible external cleanliness that gets the most attention. *

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/chain-care.html

"Sheldon and Brandt know more than you"

• hippy 1:69
  

I was going to cut and paste the same Sheldonian texts as hippy above ! so in that respect: +1

"And thou shalt bow down before all things Sheldonian, or one of the Lords shall smite thee with their smiting lockring tool of vengance for thou art a dunce in all things, and a veritable trove of ignorance. :p"
Addie 2:13

hippy * Riders often speak of "chain stretch" a technically misleading and incorrect term. Chains do not stretch, in the dictionary sense, by elongating the metal by tension. Chains lengthen because their hinge pins and sleeves wear. Chain wear is caused almost exclusively by road grit that enters the chain when it is oiled. Grit adheres to the outside of chains in the ugly black stuff that can get on ones leg, but external grime has little functional effect, being on the outside where it does the chain no harm.

The black stuff is oil colored by steel wear particles, nearly all of which come from pin and sleeve wear, the wear that causes pitch elongation. The rate of wear is dependent primarily on how clean the chain is internally rather than visible external cleanliness that gets the most attention. *

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/chain-care.html

"Sheldon and Brandt know more than you"

• hippy 1:69
  yeah! thats whatt I said ..pfft just cause sheldon said it first.. I said it in lesser street terms, isit..