info...

Remove the joining pin and the pin next to it to remove one pair of outer plates. A joining pin is the weakest link. It makes sense to remove it.

 

Cheers, that makes sense.

Tim

 

Yes, you would think so. But, I have broken two Campy 11 speed chains, one Record and one Chorus. Both at about 3000 miles. Both broke well away from the joining pin, which was quite intact. I am rather disappointed in the longevity of the Campy chains and might try a KMC which never broke on my 10 speeds. I carry a Wipperman 10 speed quick link, which gets me gingerly home.

 

@aratchet, I am curious how many miles you were expecting out of the 11 speed chain? I had long talks with the Campy guys at a couple of different shows and that is right where they recommend you change chains. I have gotten close to 4k but shifting was suffering at this point.

 

rotate chains

@aratchet, I am curious how many miles you were expecting out of the 11 speed chain? I had long talks with the Campy guys at a couple of different shows and that is right where they recommend you change chains. I have gotten close to 4k but shifting was suffering at this point.

That seems unreasonably short, IF the chain & drivetrain has been kept clean & maintained. C-40 has posted extensively on the subject.

I am rotating among 3 chorus 11sp chains (A, B, C), changing chains when it reaches about 1/3 the maximal allowed increase in roller inner space (don't go by "elongation", it is virtually nil on Campy chains).

I reach that "1/3" value at about 3000 miles, at which time I install the 2nd chain "B" and run it 3K miles. Then I install 3rd chain "C" and when it reaches 1/3 life (3K miles), I go back and re-install chain "A" and run it to 2/3 lifetime (or about 6K miles). And so on ...

I plan to continue until each of the 3 chains reaches it's estimated 9000 miles lifetime, at which point I will have put 3x9K ≈ 27K miles on the drivetrain -- then chains, cassettes, and maybe chainrings will all need replacing.

I use the Campy replacement chain pins, and the Campy 11sp chain tool. Reliable, and never a problem, if directions are carefully followed. There is a good Campy Youtube video, too.

 

@tom_h I am probably one of the most anal retentive guys when it comes to cleaning chains you will ever meet. I wipe down and run ProLink through my chains weekley. I degrease and clean my chains every other week and run ProLink through them the as well. I told a Campy rep I had over 4500 miles on a chain and I thought he was going to have an aneurism on the spot! After I told him my regimen he settled down a bit. I recently started to see signs of wear on my cassette so went ahead and changed the chain which had a little over 4500 on it. I am now running the KMC11SL, we'll see how it performs now!

 

rward325 ,

if you have access to a vernier caliper, maybe measure your roller inner space next time (although I see you've switched to KMC chain now).

A new Campy chain has a roller inner space = about 0.205". C-40 has determined that a Campy chain is worn out at 0.235", or about a 0.030" increase. During this time, the elongation (pin-to-pin distance) will scarcely change -- it stays under 0.5%.

For me, each 1/3 increment (0.010") occurs at about 3K miles, under my riding conditions.

I don't know if KMC chain will have same behaviour as Campy chain.

Possibly you could monitor on the KMC chain, say every 1K miles, both:
-- elongation (pin-to-pin distance over 12" with accurate steel ruler).
-- roller inner space (if you have vernier caliper).

AFAIK, this hasn't been done on the new KMC chains

 

chain life...

Chain life will vary a lot, depending on the riding conditions and maintenance. Using homebrew lube every 100 miles or less, the longest I ever used a chain riding the gritty mountain roads of Colorado was 6,000 miles. By that time, the roller spacing was about .240 inch and the side clearance was about .013 or twice that of a new chain. Riding in the mountains, using the little ring of a triple for about 15 of 50 miles, the chain sees a lot of high tension and that probably reduces chain and cog life.

I would expect a life of only 4-5,000 miles for an 11 speed chain, ridden in the same conditions. I rotate chains when the roller spacing increases by about .015. If you wait too long, you might get chain skip when the third new chain is put into use. After that, I rotate more frequently, until the roller spacing increases by .030-.035. Once all three chains are used-up, the cassette and all of the chains get tossed.

FWIW, all of the KMC and Shimano chains that I've used elongated quickly. Elongation was usually the wear factor that ended the chain's life, rather than roller wear, but it was a close race. The KMC chains that I tested would take about 4,000 miles to reach .5% elongation and a Shimano chain even less. With Campy chains, I've had as little as .15% elongation after 6,000 miles, so it's rarely even worth measuring.