Shimano HG-91

Price Paid:  $20.00 at Various - universalc

Favorite Ride:
Vintage Steel

Bike Setup:
Various: Fuji Olympic, Bridgestone RB-1, Miyata 1000, Peugeot PX-10

Summary:
I prefer this chain to most of the others for my vintage bike.

I guess in order to put this review in perspective, I have to mention the setup of my bikes and the manner in which I ride them. Most of my bikes are vintage road racers that have friction shifters (usually on the downtube) as opposed to the integrated indexed brake/shifters (brifters). I don't put excess force on my drivetrain by shifting in inopportune moments, such as going up hill, and instead I shift beforehand or relax my pedal stroke and then shift. I hope this does not come off as arrogance, but to date I have not had a chain break on me and the Pedro wear indicator says my chain is perfectly tensioned even after hundreds and hundreds of miles.

At first I was a little hesitant to use this chain as I have read A LOT of bad things about Shimano chains on various review sites & forums. What you have to understand is with things as "insignificant" as chains people only really write about them if something goes terribly wrong. The truth of the matter is there are tons of people riding with Shimano chains and what lube they use is more of a concern than the actual chain.

Having said that, there really does seem to be a slight difference between chain makers. The SRAM chain I used was definitely easier to install and remove with their powerlink system (made it really easy to clean), but it was kind of heavy and the shifts were clunky and loud. This Shimano chain is a little harder to install with the chain pin, but it does result in a smoother and quieter ride. I tested the chains on the same bike - initially I had the SRAM chain and felt, "a chain's a chain," but when I installed the Shimano chain it felt smooth and quiet, almost to a fault. As I shift using friction shifters, at first it was hard to know when I had properly changed gears. It took me a while to get used to it, but it's like getting used to a light clutch (car analogy) - in the end it's definitely a good thing.

Also, there is a difference between this chain and the Shimano HG-51 chain, mainly in weight and color. This is the lighter, silver colored version and since the difference in price is something like $8, I don't mind paying the difference.

Strengths:
The Shimano HG-91 chain comes in silver and looks great. It shifts smoothly and precisely. The price is only $20.

Weaknesses:
As others have stated, with Shimano chains you HAVE to use the chain pins. Read the instructions! Don't reuse the other chain pins or you'll probably be back here posting negative reviews about this chain!

Similar Products Used:
Sram PC-890 Chain, KMC/Izumi chain

Price Paid:  $0.00 at OEM

Bike Setup:
PC 89R hollowpin chain, on 3 racing bikes (MTB, CROSS, and ROAD) because it looks super sweet, and seems to shift a bit faster but rougher.

Summary:
A chain. Nothing special. Have to use chain pins.

3s because the cheap shimano HG chains are the same.

Strengths:
Transfer power to the rear wheel. You need one. Essentially the same as 9spd Dura-Ace chain.

Weaknesses:
Essentially the same as the cheap Shimano HG chains. Looks ho hum. NO MASTER LINK.

Similar Products Used:
Sram PC 89R hollowpin.
Basically every SRAM chain out there.
Z chain (whatever their 'nice' one is) which was worthless.

Price Paid:  $0.00

Bike Setup:
Giant OCR1

Summary:
This came stock on my Giant OCR1, and it is terrible. There were frozen links from the start, and the chain skips like a school girl. My suggestion: don't buy this chain!

Strengths:
Shimano logo

Weaknesses:
No reliability, sloppy shifting