Originally Posted by CoogansBluff

Got a road bike about 3-3 1/2 years ago. Was told that first year to replace the chain every 2,000-3,000 miles, something like that. And that if I didn't, it would wear out the sprocket, crank. And since chain is the least expensive, better to sacrifice a decent chain for the long-term good of the more expensive stuff that an older chain will ruin. OK, so started doing that.

Then, sometimes with a new chain, it would skip a little, and so some folks on here who work in bike shops say whenever you buy a new chain, buy a new sprocket too. I didn't follow that advice. Found that the new chain would slowly take the shape of the old sprocket, or for whatever reason, it would start working better.

Now, I can't get a new sprocket because of global supply issues. Was told by bike shop just to stay with old chain and sprocket as long as I could hold out. Now, whole drive chain is working as well as ever. Except for the chain coming off every 10 rides or so, everything seems fine. No skipping, no problems. I don't know how many miles I'm into this chain, but it's probably 6,000.

And finally, I've had a hybrid bike for probably 8 years now. I've never gotten a new chain. I don't know how many miles it has on it. Not as much as my road bike because the old hybrid is in semi-retirement.

So why should I buy so many new chains?