Chain slack

[legrandefromage]

Re: Re:

Thanks for the replies.
All the pivots seem to be free and have spring tension, I'm running a 12/28 cassette and took the entire drivetrain off another bike which seemed to be ok, the only thing I've done is add a new chain.

I wouldn't run small/small or big/big but something isn't right with that amount of slack although the bike does seem to ride ok through the normal range of gears.

Funny how it works perfectly in the real world, because there is nothing wrong with that set up. You can ride big Big, there are no 'rules' to say you shouldn't (small small is just silly anyway) .

There is enough length to run the middle ring and granny ring in the larger gears and enough tension in the mech to keep everything from slapping around in the lower gears.

 

[Captain Stupido]

Re:

I’m with LGF. The setup on my recently built Cadex is actually almost identical (same mech) and in the real world it works fine. I noticed how slack it was on small to small and made a mental note not to shift into that. Not that I would anyway. In the work stand, at least, if you do then the action of pedalling takes some slack out of the chain where it matters.

FWIW I sized the chain by making sure I had just enough length for big-big, which is generally how I do it these days. It’s more likely that you would do this in the real world, imo, and the consequences would be worse if the chain was too short.

I suppose it’s a limitation of using a short cage mech but if you’re sensible when riding then it needn’t be an issue...

It’s equally possible that a 30 year old mech is not working quite as new - in practice it’s still probably more than good enough. It never fails to amaze me how well this old kit lasts.

 

[al-onestare]

That looks like a medium or short cage mech, for the sprockets you are using, you need the long cage version.

Yep, agreed.