New chain or new drive chain

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nomm
Posts: 440
Joined: 13 Oct 2015, 8:39pm

New chain or new drive chain

Post by nomm »

During lockdown I have offered to.fix neighbours and friends bikes for free, expect they pay for parts and donate any amount they chose to a charity of my choice

Now the latest unloved number has a very stretched chain, which has been ridden a while, and the front rings and rear cassette look like it to.

I have explained that the bike now requires a new drive chain (+ brake pads/front wheel/cable set) which really does add up ATM and puts the bike a bit beyond worth repairing.

Do I try a bodge and just stick a new chain with the worn cassettes...hoping the shifting isn't that bad?
Jdsk
Posts: 28014
Joined: 5 Mar 2019, 5:42pm

Re: New chain or new drive chain

Post by Jdsk »

What sort of mileage is it likely to do in the foreseeable future?

And do you have to make the decision... can you offer the owner an option appraisal?

Jonathan

PS: I've just had one dropped off by an NHS worker... inspect this weekend and hand it back, then fix next weekend.
Brucey
Posts: 46822
Joined: 4 Jan 2012, 6:25pm

Re: New chain or new drive chain

Post by Brucey »

it is not the shifting you need to worry about with worn sprockets; it is 'skipping' under load when a new chain is used with such sprockets.

If you need another wheel, maybe someone local to you has a good used one?

cheers
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Jamesh
Posts: 2963
Joined: 2 Jan 2017, 5:56pm

Re: New chain or new drive chain

Post by Jamesh »

If it's not too many speeds say 8-9 speed then cassettes aren't to expensive ditto chain. 10+ speeds starts getting expensive.

Price it up an give them the options

Cheers James
Jupestar
Posts: 979
Joined: 29 Feb 2020, 3:03pm

Re: New chain or new drive chain

Post by Jupestar »

I did something similar, sorted out an old Triban 3 which I’d ridden into the ground for a mate who wanted a road bike.

It was rideable on the original parts even though some of them were shot. The cassette worked with the knackered chain, but not the new chain

But parts were cheap (8x3) cassette, chain, and middle ring, £40, wheels needed truing so £30 at the LBS.

For me it wasn’t worth fixing, I would not have used it, but for him it was, chances are anything he’s picked up on eBay would have needed more than 70£ spent on it. He gave £100 to the NHS as well and still reckoned he got a great deal.

My 70yo neighbour also asked be to sort his... mint Gary Fisher Rigid old school MTB 7x3... hardly a scratch, hardly ridden original spec. All I could do was lube the chain and tweak the indexing. Such a nice bike, I loved it, gave it plenty of test ride (in the name of safety obviously). Think he rode it once and it’s been in his shed ever since,
ChrisP100
Posts: 298
Joined: 24 Sep 2020, 9:00am

Re: New chain or new drive chain

Post by ChrisP100 »

nomm wrote:During lockdown I have offered to.fix neighbours and friends bikes for free, expect they pay for parts and donate any amount they chose to a charity of my choice

Now the latest unloved number has a very stretched chain, which has been ridden a while, and the front rings and rear cassette look like it to.

I have explained that the bike now requires a new drive chain (+ brake pads/front wheel/cable set) which really does add up ATM and puts the bike a bit beyond worth repairing.

Do I try a bodge and just stick a new chain with the worn cassettes...hoping the shifting isn't that bad?

New chain/pads and cables, and you could always try Ebay for a used cassette, chainrings and front wheel.
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