Luke Drewery Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 I have seen many people running their bikes without any chain tensioner or rear mech and i am tempted to try it to save some weight, as my bike isnt the lighest in the world. Also, i think it looks better and stops you trashing your mech from bad landings. However, i have heard that it can wear your rear hub out quicker, why its this? I keep hearing it but nobody explains why, whats the mechanical disadvantage/problem that causes your hub to wear out faster? I have just bought a king rear wheel so i dont weant to run no tensioner if its going to bodge my hub up. :) If anyone could shed some light on this it would be appreciated. Cheers, Luke :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janson Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 because of how a chain is put together, it is hard to find perfect chain tension with no extra tensioner device. sometimes though, you get lucky, and with the right combination of chain, sprockets and chainstay length, you might be able to get an acceptable chain tension without any extra devices. this doesn't happen too often, and if the chain stretches a bit, you're f**ked. if the chain is too tight, you'll wear the chain and sprockets out quickly. if it is too loose, it will just come off the sprocket all the time. stick with a tensioner. there are other places to save weight. a device similar to a surly singulator or dmr tensionseeker is not heavy, and should keep the chain tight enough. i ride with a mech on the back though.. am actually running 5 working gears at the moment. you really don't notice MUCH difference with or without a mech as a tensioning device. i'd run one, or one of those expensive Rohloff tensioners, because they keep the chain tighter and safer than the dmr/surly tensioners, at least that's what i have experienced. if you kill mechs/hangers all the time, take a look at the fresh products tensioner. it looks pretty sturdy, and should most likely work perfectly fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dai the Socket Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 I've got a shimano Deore XT rear mech for sale if you'd like it. Good condition, perfect working order :) RRP of ~£49.99, but for you my friend, £20 posted :P Nick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaRtZ Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 Can you not change the springs in tensioners so that they are more powerful (giving a tighter chain and less "bounce" in it)? Just a thought. Or what about a tensioner above the chainstay? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dai the Socket Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 Can you not change the springs in tensioners so that they are more powerful (giving a tighter chain and less "bounce" in it)? ← I'd of thought so, but it'd probably be a bit of a b*****d getting correct ones and stuff, then fitting it all. I know some stock riders just ziptie the mech to their chainstay don't they, with some foam or sometimes nothing inbetween, stops the f**ker moving then :P :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janson Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 of course you can get stronger springs. if you put a tensioner on top of the stay, tensioning the top part of the chain, it would explode. all the force when you pedal is distributed through the top part of the chain, and anything bending the chain down or forcing it out of line needs to be REALLY strong to withstand the force of the pedal stroke. = no worky worky if you're not into engineering Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Nichols Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 In all honesty the only way your gonna achieve perfect tension without a mech or tensioner is... :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trialsking 55 Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 they should star making trials specific stock frames with horizontal dropouts. no mech smashy or tension problems then :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Todge Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 (edited) In all honesty the only way your gonna achieve perfect tension without a mech or tensioner is... :lol: ← But due to the vast majority of 26inch trials bike having vertical dropouts, that is not an option :blink: Im currently lucky enough to have perfect tension without the use of a tensioner and a now stretched chain, so it should last me a while like this :lol: Edited September 4, 2005 by Todge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rossi Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 I used to have a no mech on my 1065 Pitbull a while ago. It was all funky until the chain stretched, and the chain just kept slipping off cogs. See how it goes, remove a few links from the chain, and see if the tension is right, if not, get your mech back on. Rossi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James_Porter Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 I used to have a no mech on my 1065 Pitbull a while ago. It was all funky until the chain stretched, and the chain just kept slipping off cogs. See how it goes, remove a few links from the chain, and see if the tension is right, if not, get your mech back on. Rossi. ← you suck rossi...i hope :blink: :lol: :lol: i did it too, chain stretched as you expect. i put my FRESHPRODUCTS tensioner on and i dont need to worry about mech hangers no more, these things rock my socks big time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davetrials Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 And ur trex..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tipsy Jock Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 you suck rossi...i hope :blink: :lol: :D i did it too, chain stretched as you expect. i put my FRESHPRODUCTS tensioner on and i dont need to worry about mech hangers no more, these things rock my socks big time. ← Ahahaha, I doubt that was intentional but that is the most over the top advertising ever lol :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James_Porter Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 Ahahaha, I doubt that was intentional but that is the most over the top advertising ever lol :blink: ← are you having a laugh young man????? nah but seriously, ask phil at selectbikes how many mech hangers i used to go through, and these have solved the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomm Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 nah but seriously, ask phil at selectbikes how many mech hangers i used to go through, and these have solved the problem. ← And what about engageclothin? Do you want to mention them too? :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Nichols Posted September 4, 2005 Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 they should star making trials specific stock frames with horizontal dropouts. no mech smashy or tension problems then :blink: ← They do :lol: That's what the picture is of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Drewery Posted September 4, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 4, 2005 Cheers for the advice guys. :blink: From what i have heard here its not worth running your bike without a tensioner, so i may look at getting a freshproducts tensioner as i have enquired about getting my middleburn bash machined down too. I shall gather some money and see. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Rainbird Posted September 5, 2005 Report Share Posted September 5, 2005 Don't forget halflinks people, still get the chain stretch problems but can and do work depending on the setup Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bionic Balls Posted September 5, 2005 Report Share Posted September 5, 2005 i like gears...but is the White industries hub the answer to this? adam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Quigley Posted September 5, 2005 Report Share Posted September 5, 2005 My tensioner f**ked just as I got to southampton on the Bank holiday ride. Ran it just as a tight chain, no mech or tensioner, and it was fine. Until I started riding it at home, kicked for a sidehop = chain snap knee capping the stem and being out of action foe 2-3 weeks. My 2 pence is it'snot worth it, and you dont save any noticable weight anyways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davetrials Posted September 5, 2005 Report Share Posted September 5, 2005 Saving weight is bollox anyway, dont bother it doesnt make a difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monkey Posted September 5, 2005 Report Share Posted September 5, 2005 (edited) If you can work THIS out, it's meant to calculate the ring and sprocket sizes you need to use a particular chainstay length. If you get a gear two or three inches different to your usual it probably won't be that noticeable. I haven't tried this out, although I hope to soon. As for chain stretch, it's possible to buy 1/8" bushed chains (which would stretch a lot more slowly and not weigh significantly more) and 1/8" chainrings and sprockets (same again) if you're serious. If you're just experimenting you'll either get bored and go back to the previous setup fairly quickly or get serious. Edited September 5, 2005 by Monkey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomN Posted September 5, 2005 Report Share Posted September 5, 2005 Am liking the Fresh tensioner, just wanting to know if it stops you from snapping mechs not as much since the pictures shows the whole thing covering the mech to the QR. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Todge Posted September 5, 2005 Report Share Posted September 5, 2005 Am liking the Fresh tensioner, just wanting to know if it stops you from snapping mechs not as much since the pictures shows the whole thing covering the mech to the QR. ← It does stop you snaping mech hangers, due the tensioner being bolted to the mech hanger and effectively making it twice as thick. I would be very impressed if James snaps a hanger again (Y) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomm Posted September 5, 2005 Report Share Posted September 5, 2005 It stops you snapping mech hangers in the same way as every small tensioner thing does: 1) Smaller = Less likely to hit it 2) Smaller = Much less leverage, so less likely to break when you do hit it I landed (fairly hard) on my tension seeker a couple of times and nothing happened at all, they're so damn small (Y) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.