Crank Drive - Stronger chain necessary? Gear change sensor worth having?

[johneb]

After around 3 years of deliberation, getting great advice from this forum and Woosh, and a change from two wheels to three, I've finally decided that a BBS01B setup is the best option overall for my needs. In preparing my shopping list for a build next Spring, it struck me that a stronger chain might be advisable, but I quickly reconsidered when I saw the price of ebike specific chains, especially as my HP Scorpion needs 4m of the stuff!

My riding will be mainly sedate (although I hope to become a bit more adventurous once I've built up confidence in the kit), so no rapid, jerky gear changes anticipated. Is it worth getting an ebike specific chain, or just a good quality standard one, especially as the BBS01 is only rated at 250w?

Also, I'd be interested in opinions regarding gear change sensors - do they lessen the strain on the drive chain, or is just a 'blip' of the brake lever when changing gear (Shimano XT rear mech) just as good?

 

[anotherkiwi]

I will be using standard nickel plated Wippermann Connex 8 speed chain with my GSM. E-bike chain might be a good idea if you are 10 speed or higher because the side plates are thinner.

Do you have problems changing gear now? With a trike chain you don't have many problems with excess torque from my experience.

 

[johneb]

I will be using standard nickel plated Wippermann Connex 8 speed chain with my GSM. E-bike chain might be a good idea if you are 10 speed or higher because the side plates are thinner.

Do you have problems changing gear now? With a trike chain you don't have many problems with excess torque from my experience.

Thanks for the reply, AK. No - gear change is smooth at present, although I have yet to work out whether my current 8-speed cassette will be okay when I lose the triple chainwheel - may need to follow you with the wide range Sunrace....

 

[Deleted member 4366]

The gear sensor is definitely worth having, and it's probably essential for any bike with hub gears.

 

[Woosh]

I agree with d8veh. You don't have to worry about protecting your gears when you ride.

 

[RobF]

The gear sensor is definitely worth having, and it's probably essential for any bike with hub gears.

I agree with d8veh. You don't have to worry about protecting your gears when you ride.

Bosch crank bikes cut out immediately you pause pedalling which means there's no bother changing hub gears.

 

[tommie]

Choices...

Tap brake lever,
Pause peddling,
Fit gear sensor if the BBS has that cable from the Motor.

and KMC or Wipperman chain

 

[DynatechFan]

Not an ebike expert (so sorry if this is a daft question) but many years of cycling under my belt - what's the typical failure mode of ebike chains?

In 30+ years I have never broken a chain but I have seen poorly maintained ones trash a transmission. I have also worn out a lot of chains. My main user bikes have at least 2 chains which I rotate out to clean regularly (always KMC quick link ones) - IME you can wear out 3 or 4 chains before the (usually the 11t) casstte shows significant wear. And you can wear out 2 cassettes before your chain rings get crunchy

I had a Merida crank drive bike on loan for a month and was quite concerned about the transmission wear, the gear changes could be terribly crunchy - if it had been my bike I would have run at least 2 chains and expected to swap out to new cassette/chains at least once a year

 

[Trevormonty]

I had a Merida crank drive bike on loan for a month and was quite concerned about the transmission wear, the gear changes could be terribly crunchy - if it had been my bike I would have run at least 2 chains and expected to swap out to new cassette/chains at least once a year

You shouldn't crunch gears on factory middrives (bosch, shimano), just need to easy off or stop pedaling for a second, motor will run on slightly and complete gear change. Takes a little while to get hang of. Chain life varies depending on drivetrain and type of riding. In my case 1000kms for eMTB 11spd and 2500kms for commuter 9spd.

 

[anotherkiwi]

The OP is talking about a trike. Trike chains are 2.6 times longer than a bike chain. The extra length absorbs torque which is a bad thing when you don't have a motor and a good thing when you do have a motor. I don't see a gear sensor being particularly useful.

Trike chains run a very long way through tubes which protect them from the elements and keep them cleaner.

Trike chains have fewer chainline problems which also adds to life.

I don't think you can directly compare chain life/gear changing on a pedelec trike to chain life on a pedelec bike.