Chains
I worked on the problem chain a bit tonight. There were at least a dozen stiff links in addition to the frozen one. I called REI and they have no chains in stock at all after their Labor Day sales! (How can that be?) But he said their shipments usually arrive on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and to call back on Thursday after everthing had been unloaded and restocked.
In the mean time, I think I may have broken one link. Oops. I think it’s back together, but confidence is not high. All it has to do is hold together for 100 more miles! At least the Seacoast Century is flat, flat flat, so even if I have to remove a few links (the broken one was near the master link), I can ride with a shortened chain since I won’t need to be in large gears.
Quite frustrating. I simply can’t figure out why this supposedly top notch chain fails after only a few hundred miles. Let’s see… how many exactly?
New chain at 6571 miles
Current mileage 7670
Okay, so I guess it’s more like 1100 miles. But it’s not like there’s stretch in the chain. I just measured it and there’s no noticable stretch at all. The thing is just falling apart. Or jamming together, that is.
Guess I won’t be buying any more Wippermans. This is a ConneX 9×1 Stainless Steel ($50). “Lasts 18% longer”. Hooey.
