How long should a chain last on a E-MTB

RobF

Esteemed Pedelecer
Sep 22, 2012
4,732
2,312
Thanks for that.

Reading;

A 2 year warranty is offered with all Shimano products from Chain Reaction Cycles (3 years on Dura-Ace and XTR products).


Would this be guaranteed or wear and tear, as I think this is going to be happening about every six months from my experience.

The worn one is original Haibike unit.
I think you will always struggle against 'fair wear and tear' when making a warranty claim.

But the longer warranty may indicate Shimano expects those products to last a bit longer.
 
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soundwave

Esteemed Pedelecer
May 23, 2015
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Usage during competitions, events, circuits or activities other than those for which the bicycle/component has been conceived will greatly reduce its useful life and is not covered under warranty.

the cassettes chains ect was never meant or designed for ebikes so if you are wearing them out fast not much you can do about it warranty wise.

clean lube and index the gears as much as you can after a ride is what i do as it goes out of wack anyway if i leave it on mine.

if it is not shifting gear nice and smooth up and down all gears then it needs checking.
 
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Denis99

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May 26, 2016
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Chains, cassettes and front chainring sprockets are a consumable item.

It's not so much that they stretch, more like that they wear the cassette and chainring(s).

Difficult to say how long this drivechain will last in terms of miles.
Lots of variables, rain, mud, grit, amount of climbing under strain, how the chain is looked after in terms of luring and general cleanliness.

Pays to rotate at least two chains , remove one after say 100 miles and throughly clean whilst fitting the other clean chain.
This way you are protecting the more expensive cassette and front chainring.

Taking this approach, once the 2 or3 chains have reached the minimum wear limit.

Once this minimum wear limit has been reached, you can then fit another 2 new chains to your existing cassette and chainring, thus extending the life of the expensive parts.

Eventually though, the whole lot will need replacing.

I got 2,000 miles out of the cassette and chainring running like this.
 

Mac_user82

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jul 16, 2014
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How long should a chain last on a E-MTB?

I took my Shimano Steps mid engine in for a check up, and was told the chain had stretched towards its upper limits, it had on done 1100 KM (Approx 700 Miles), is this normal for an E - MTB?.
I have always kept it clean and lubricated with a good quality lubricant suitable for the dusty conditions over here, at this rate of having to replace a chain it is getting expensive.

Any comments or suggestions.
Since a couple of weeks a go i have changed my lube around now I am using finishing line wet lube it seems to be more better for my e-bike I would strongly recommend it

I have just recently bought a Park tool 5.2 chain cleaner which has magnet inside the bottom of the chain cleaner and the first time i used it i got about table spoon worth of metal fillings out of the chain i couldn't believe how much was their which wouldn't be doing the chain any good at all more metal filings more wear to the chain

Since i have been using this method over the last couple of weeks my wear has cut down a awful a lot.

I have checked the chain since and then and their seems not to be much wear on the chain at all with using this method

All i do now is just degrease the chain every 20 miles to get out the metal fillings out not many but always a few laying around in the bottom of the park tool chain cleaner

I would very strongly recommend getting a park tool 5,2 chain cleaner it would cost you about 20 pounds to buy and then you would be amazed to see all the metal filings in the bottom of the tool



http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/park-tool-cyclone-chain-scrubber-cm5-2/rp-prod8207?gs=1&gclid=Cj0KEQiAlsrFBRCAxcCB54XElLEBEiQA_ei0DB5j9JppHGJFrmyO-KQYW3_PSTdH7qKsIp-717BO6dwaAj6y8P8HAQ&gclsrc=aw.ds

i use this as a degreaser and bike wash which works really well and getting the bike really clean
https://www.cyclesurgery.com/en/p/fenwicks-fs1-bike-cleaner-concentrate-1-litre-P5334103.html

i dilute 1/10 to wash the bike down and if i want to clean the chain then i just use it straight out the bottle i would advise buying 5 litre version which would save you more money in the long run


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
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Trevormonty

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jul 18, 2016
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I've stopped using these chain cleaners as risk of getting degreaser into mid drives bearings is to great. Now just wipe chain down and relube with finishline, 1000km so far on CX drive with lot off road.
 
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Mac_user82

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jul 16, 2014
317
122
42
Chains, cassettes and front chainring sprockets are a consumable item.

It's not so much that they stretch, more like that they wear the cassette and chainring(s).

Difficult to say how long this drivechain will last in terms of miles.
Lots of variables, rain, mud, grit, amount of climbing under strain, how the chain is looked after in terms of luring and general cleanliness.

Pays to rotate at least two chains , remove one after say 100 miles and throughly clean whilst fitting the other clean chain.
This way you are protecting the more expensive cassette and front chainring.

Taking this approach, once the 2 or3 chains have reached the minimum wear limit.

Once this minimum wear limit has been reached, you can then fit another 2 new chains to your existing cassette and chainring, thus extending the life of the expensive parts.

Eventually though, the whole lot will need replacing.

I got 2,000 miles out of the cassette and chainring running like this.
i think it also depends what gears you are using too some stretch more then others for example if you are on the top cog then you are going to be stretching the chain a lot more then you would be then the chain line parral to the front crank their would be less stress because you are line

If you were riding with a gear hub then their would be a lot less stretch on the chain because you are always in line with the front crank un like a deraiileur set up where you are always up and down the gear ratio
 

trouty

Pedelecer
Nov 4, 2016
98
134
69
west yorkshire BD20
I have seen a few folks using Putoline chain wax spouting its benefits and longevity ,
so thought I would give it a shot .
the SO was not impressed with my plans to fry up bike chains on the cooker but then saw these mini fat fryers available in Aldi


and ordered a tin off evilbay



after a one off time clandestine melting it on the cooker to pour it into the fryer .1 kilo filled to jus below the max fill line

fascinating watching the patterns as it warms up


chain ready to cook


chain cooked




back on the bike when it cools down and we will see how it performs in the future .
 

BillyBoy88

Pedelecer
Nov 10, 2016
75
78
Paphos Cyprus
I have seen a few folks using Putoline chain wax spouting its benefits and longevity ,
so thought I would give it a shot .
the SO was not impressed with my plans to fry up bike chains on the cooker but then saw these mini fat fryers available in Aldi


and ordered a tin off evilbay



after a one off time clandestine melting it on the cooker to pour it into the fryer .1 kilo filled to jus below the max fill line

fascinating watching the patterns as it warms up


chain ready to cook


chain cooked




back on the bike when it cools down and we will see how it performs in the future .
Would the heat affect any "O" rings in the chain.
 
D

Deleted member 4366

Guest
I did a whole load of experiments on chain lubricants back in the 80's when I was doing 40,000 miles a year on my motorbike and I had to adjust the chain just about once a week because of wear. Each chain lasted about 5000 - 8000 miles. Wax does nothing to prolong the chain-life. It just makes a horrible smell in the kitchen. I tried just about every type of proprietary chain lube, but the best thing I found was a regular squirt of hypoid 90 gear oil.

I tried some of that White Lightning dry chain lubricant on my bicycle a couple of years ago. it was a complete waste of time. It just accumulates in the derailleur as a big waxy mess that soon does a better job than valve grinding paste.

An O-ring chain would be a good solution for long life, but I've never seen one for a bicycle, and I bet they'd be expensive anyway. I'll stick with my £9 chains from Ebay - still going strong after 4000 miles. I just yesterday put a squirt of some fancy 80 grade transmission oil on it, which was the first for about 6 months. My cheapo DNP freewheel is also still going strong with no sign of wear yet as well.

I'd love to see some of your worn out cassettes. How do you know that they're worn?
 

trouty

Pedelecer
Nov 4, 2016
98
134
69
west yorkshire BD20
Ok d8vhd I taken your findings from the 80s on board .
Maybe tech has moved on a bit in the last 30 ish years .

Putoline chain wax is not just wax it is saturated in Graphite more like a grease .

I have been using EP90 gear oil on my chains for ages because I have 25 litres of the stuff from my landrover trialing days but it makes a real mess on the jockey wheels and cassette when mixed with mud and dust .

so will look on this as another experiment and see how it performs in the dales mud for this year .

we used to use melted grease for our chains on the trials bikes in the 70s
with good results
 
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robwalley

Pedelecer
Apr 17, 2012
175
30
Gloucester
Common sense would suggest the wear is a combination of torque, friction and quality. Hub gears should wear much less without the friction of derailleurs and a touring setup and style will help, I can vouch for this. However as someone else stated the torque of the 500w mid drive will stretch and reduce life span.
 

IR772

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 5, 2016
931
1,044
Leominster
What bike was that from and how many miles has it done?
Haibike Sduro (Yamaha) 968 miles.

I am not a road cyclist, my bike gets used for purpose eMTB (electric Mountain Bike), not so mountainous but very hilly.
 

Emo Rider

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jan 10, 2014
659
414
My Haibike Sduro Trekking, with a Yamaha system, has its original chain and sprockets. After over 1600 miles is showing little in way of wear. I replaced the chain and cassette on my old bike, a Panasonic crank drive, twice in 8,000 miles. I had a customer with a Yamaha powered Haibike Fullseven come in for a chain, cassette and chain ring replacement with over 4,700 mile on the clock. This bike was used soley for commuting and never saw trails or mud.
 

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