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Weird chain issue

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Old 09-29-18, 11:44 AM
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Rvs4
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Weird chain issue

Im having a weird chain issue I can't figure out on my 6ku urban track. When I set the back wheel with the desired chain tension, the chain will go very loose while I'm tightening the bolts. Regardless of how tight I pull the chain it goes loose when I tighten the bolts. I've never had this problem before and my axle is not broken.
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Old 09-29-18, 11:47 AM
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Sounds like the axle is slipping forward while you're tightening. Hold the wheel in place with your free hand while you wrench it. It also helps if you tighten down the non-drive side first.
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Old 09-29-18, 12:37 PM
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I don’t know how experienced you are, so I don’t want to seem like I’m talking down to you but I can think of a few tips that might help:

finger tighten the nuts before you tension the chain, so you don’t have to turn the nuts as many times, when you start torquing them down.

tighten the non drive side nut first, but of course don’t tighten it all the way down.

try to tighten the nuts back and forth so you get even tourque on the axle from both sides

if you’re not using a chaintug or something else, try holding the wheel centered between the chain stays as you tighten the nuts.

hope those help
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Old 09-29-18, 02:49 PM
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It's pretty crazy cause no matter what I do it still slips... I've had someone hold the front of the bike while I pull the wheel back and tighten. I've tried going side to side while pulling the wheel tight.

Even if I hand tighten the nuts...I'll have the tension nice and tight, but then when I get to the final rotation of the wrench is when the chain goes loose. I wouldn't even care so much, but I've popped my chain a couple times and busted my ass hard last week.
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Old 09-29-18, 03:07 PM
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Originally Posted by Rvs4
It's pretty crazy cause no matter what I do it still slips... I've had someone hold the front of the bike while I pull the wheel back and tighten. I've tried going side to side while pulling the wheel tight.

Even if I hand tighten the nuts...I'll have the tension nice and tight, but then when I get to the final rotation of the wrench is when the chain goes loose. I wouldn't even care so much, but I've popped my chain a couple times and busted my ass hard last week.
I’m somewhat confused about this. A little slack is actually fine, and better for the lifespan of the drivetrain. It’s also pretty traditional for track bikes to have slightly slack chains. But it’s hard for me to imagine how your chain could go so slack that it would be at risk of coming off, unless your chain line was really bad. Of course if you’re riding fixed and doing skids, you never want any slack in your chain. So if you did that, stop.
It just shouldn’t slip that much, especially if you already have the nuts tightened down to some degree before you set the tension. Sorry if this seems like a stupid question, but are you using proper track nuts? Because if you believe your technique is fine, maybe one or both of your nuts is slipping because they aren’t holding? Or maybe the threads on your axle are bad? The 6ku is a pretty cheap bike, so it’s not out of the realm of possibility that your equipment isn’t any good. I don’t say that in a condescending way, but just to point out that it could be an equipment issue and on a cheaper bike, that’s more likely. I’m just having a real hard time understanding how, what you’re describing could happen otherwise. Out of curiosity how much slack are we talking here?

My advice at this point would be to splurge on a new set of proper track nuts. Gut instinct tells me that may be where your issue is. I’d prefer to be wrong, but I don’t know how trusting I’d be of the quality of something like the axle nuts on a $300 bike.

Last edited by seamuis; 09-29-18 at 06:48 PM.
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Old 09-29-18, 03:11 PM
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Nothing wrong with a little track slack. If you are dropping the chain it's because you aren't torquing the axle nuts correctly.
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Old 09-29-18, 05:16 PM
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If your track nuts do not have built-in floating washers, it is almost impossible to tighten them without the axle moving in the dropout when you tighten it. If this is the case, either buy better track nuts with built-in floating washers or install some thick flat washers between the nuts and the dropouts.
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Old 09-29-18, 07:28 PM
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Not sure if you're doing this already, but when you hold the wheel in place push back on the tire near the seat tube and hold it in place while you tighten the track nuts. Could it also be that the cranks turn a bit while you're tightening? If the chainring is out of round it may cause the chain to go slack, I wouldn't expect precision parts from 6ku.
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Old 09-30-18, 05:36 AM
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Lots of good advice. Note that the chain ring may not be perfectly centred and the sprocket may not be perfectly circular. At certain points, these factors will work together to create slack spots and tight spots. That is, you think you've set it up correctly, then you turn the cranks and the chain becomes tighter or slacker.

Apart from that, the three pieces of advice I'd give:

1) Finger tighten the nuts first, then adjust the position of the wheel, then nip the nuts tighter alternating between left and right, about 1/4 turn each time — rather than tightening one first then tightening the other.

2) Rather than pulling the wheel back to tighten the chain, "walk" the axle back, a tiny amount on one end, then a tiny amount on the other, and so on.

3) I don't know if this actually helps, but I've always done it as it feels like it should help: always position the spanner so that when you turn it, you are moving the handle towards the rear of the bike. If the bike is on a stand the right way up, that means on the right side, the spanner handle is pointing down, and on the left side the handle is pointing up.

Use proper track nuts with the knurled integral washers. Also, check whether there is any oil or grease on the drop outs/forks that is making slippage more likely.

Good luck.
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Old 09-30-18, 07:35 PM
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Thanks everyone. I bought better nuts and that seems to have fixed the issue for the most part
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