Omnium | White Industries Chain Issue
 

Hey All,

I changed my chain myself for the first time and i'm getting a clicking/crunching could when i'm riding. I have a Omnium Crankset with a 17T White Industries Freewheel which I know is compatible with a 1/8 chain because that's what I had previously. Any idea why I might be getting this clicking/crunching sound when riding? Other than the sound everything else is fine.

Do you have pictures? I would guess maybe you have chain tension issues or maybe something is worn out or you put the wrong chain on it or something odd like that. Pictures might help.

sounds like the previous member said, maybe the chain tension (usually crunchy if too tight and rattles when too loose) OR what it could also be is the freewheel and the chainring aren’t aligned with each other and the chain is at an angle when rotating.

I want to make sure I have this straight - you put a new chain on the chainring & FW that you had already been using, right? If so, and if as previously mentioned you have properly tensioned your chain there may be nothing you can do but tolerate a little bit noisy drivetrain for a while. First off - different brands of chains can make different amounts of noise. And when you put a new chain on drivetrain bits that were worn in by a predecessor they need a little while to used to each other before (hopefully) quieting down. Good luck...

My guesses:
Chain is too tight.
Chainring and/or cog teeth became worn from the old chain and are now not conforming to the new chain.

Pics of current chain tension and close-ups of teeth would help.

White Industries freewheels don't have the best tooth wear characteristics. It's probably a symptom of worn teeth+new chain as Rolla said. It will lessen as the new chain wears in.

I’ve thought about WI freewheels

Wondered if they’re worthwhile if shimano or acs freewheels are fairly cheap and last pretty long.

Coworker gave me a bike thinking the freewheel was dead. I think I just kept dripping in ATF and spinning back and forth until tilting this way and that until the pawls freed up.

Finding SS bigger than 18t eludes me sometimes.

I run a 17T White Industries freewheel with IRD cranks with zero noises, smooth and quiet.
Chain tension and alignment usually cause noises.

IMO, yes WI is a worthwhile upgrade. I've never had a Shimano or ACS that lasted at all, and every one of them had the trademark "clunk." Also, Box 2 makes a nice freewheel for a little less than WI. I've had one on my SSCX for a year or so; still in great shape.

OP, it might help if you could describe the noise a bit more precisely...but I'll throw this out there: when did you buy the WI 17t freewheel? I ask because until recently they were ONLY compatible with 3/32" chains. Only the more recent 17t from them is compatible with both 3/32" and 1/8" chains. Probably not the case, but if you have the old-style 17t freewheel and are mistaken about your last chain, that would be the issue now that you are running a 1/8" chain.

Cedwards2301, you do know the correct chain slack I trust. (The chain should never go tight. At all points of the chain cycle - say a half dozen or more full revolutions of the pedal - you should always be able to lift the chain about 1/2".) Tight chains on single speeds have been a popular trend and it is possible to get bikes to work doing that but it is very likely that when the chain goes tight, you are grinding bearings or causing other steel on steel with force that were never intended to happen.

If you go to a velodrome and look at the very expensive bikes that they race, you will see loose chains on all of them.