I watched a video from Zero Friction Cycling where he tested a bunch of chain checker tools.
<Screenshot shows the results from the video> The original video can be found here.
Only a few were accurate, and the Park Tool CC-3.2 check that I’ve been using for a few years now, seems to be one of the bad ones.
Today, I decided to get the CC-4 (the Shimano checker they recommended isn’t available in Canada, apparently), and rechecked the chains on my bike.
It went from “beyond 0.5mm wear” with the CC-3.2 to “not even close to 0.5mm” on the CC-4.
I guess I figured out why my chains weren’t lasting long… according to the CC-3.2. 🤑😭
What chain checker tool(s) are you guys using, and have you used any that were just flat out wrong?
I’m not big on watching long videos so, I found this article that hopefully adds to the value of your post.
https://www.bikeradar.com/advice/workshop/how-to-know-when-its-time-to-replace-your-bicycle-chain
I’m aware of the article. Funny enough, they have a photo of the inaccurate tool I was using.
And it seems to be widely circulated that you should change a <10 speed chain when it reaches 0.75mm, but the Zero Friction guy says that replacing it before 0.5mm is probably going to save your other components.
I run pretty cheap stuff on my bike, so replacing a $25 chain too often doesn’t really same me much when the cassette is like $35 😂
Yeah I saw that too. I don’t have much experience but I don’t see why the # speeds matter – the sprockets have the same shape so I would think a worn chain would cause exactly the same wear regardless of how many speeds?