BCBike

My bike has a minor roughness feeling while pedaling in some gears. Anyway I have had the entire bike tuned up including the BB bearing checked, everything producing positive results. My shop said the apparent cause of the roughness is sand pebbles or fine grit caught in the chain and that it should decrease or completely go away after a few rides. I have had a number of bikes and have never came across a problem like this. Just wondering if anyone else has ever had something like this happen?

Anyhelp is good thanks

harov3

First, sack your bikeshop. "it should decrease or completely go away after a few rides" is not a maintenance schedule of any description. Second remove the chain, soak it in kerosene or similar, next lubricate the now clean chain with your choice of lubricant.

Edit: Forgot to mention I ride in sand all the time.

mav67

I've had this problem before. I agree with your bikeshop's diagnosis but not their cure. As Harov said, just clean the chain and re-lube. Maybe also worthwhile to check that your BB area is clean.

gattm99

If I took my chain off and soaked it everytime it got sand in it I would be broke from buying stupid chain pins.

Keeping it clean is the best solution but I think anyone who rides trails is going to get fine grit in their chain and never get it all out.

zx108

i use finish line teflon lube after every ride. and it works ok. i ride in all diffirent kinds of sand everyride.

but if it is really gritty, i would clean it up and re-lube it.

BCBike

BUT can you feel that its caught up in your gears?

gattm99

Yeah, I'm not sure how you could be getting roughness in some gears, If there is dirt on a cog its going ot be picked up and distributed amoung all the cogs in your cassette. The roughness is comming from your chain. Your shop is probably right, as your ride the small bits of sand and dirt will be ground up into finer and finer particles eventually becoming so fine that you don't feel it. Of course if you regularly trail ride the sand will be replaced while this happens so it will always be rough.

I just cleaned my chain with my park snap on chain cleaner. If was rough from my last ride, the chain cleaner got alot of the dirt out but even afterward it was still a little rough. After relubbing it felt pretty smooth but nowhere near as my road bike.

I wouldn't bother with this after every ride but cleaning your chain regularly will make it last way longer and feel smoother.

BCBike

Ok, yeah its just I really havent been riding in much sand ETC and have never had this happen with any of my other bikes. I was thinking maby something has some damage and thats why it only does it in certain gears?

gattm99

All I can think of is to check the cogs that it is rough in for wore down broken teeth.

Ronin

I ride in sand also. Clean,clean,clean..... and plan on replacing chains as needed.you know I never feel the sand at all. It just causes lot's of extra wear.You might have something else going on.

OldNick

My 0.02

IMO, If you had the bike "tuned" by guys who said what they say, about taking two aspros and it will
go away, I wonder about the tuneup.

Sand will grate. IME you hear it as much as feel it. It will also grate in any gear. I very much doubt it
would be feelable while pedalling until it was really serious...I mean really!

Bearings/brackets/pedals would grate in any gear.

Chain path is quite a "rumble", and will actually vibrate the chain under light loads (bike on stand and
pedalling lightly by hand) and can be worse in some gears than others.

If the chain is vibrating in some gears (mine did it more noticeably on the smaller back cogs) it
sounds like:
* derailer alignment
- the derailer is not _quite_ "ghost" changing gears for you, but is constantly pushing the chain a

bit.
- this can cause a "grating", "grinding" _or_ vibration under heavy loads, as flex of the bike can
make it worse, especially if the pressure is on the way down to smaller cogs. Just a little more, and every time you pedal hard the bike will partially "shift up a gear" on you.
- the chain path at the rear should be as close as possible to straight, across the chosen
sprocket, and the two derailer sprockets/idlers. Look down on the bike, and line them up so you see
if it's straight.
- IME, this will get worse as you go to the smaller cogs, as the derailer sprocket gets closer to

the rear cogs as the chain slackens, and the chain also attacks the sprocket at a sharper angle.

* technique
It may be "crossing up" of the chain. With a triple chain ring you should not really ride with the front
set to the large chainring, and the rear on the largest 1 (7 speed?) or 2 (8 speed?), or the front on
small ring and the rear on the smallest 1 or 2. This causes the chain to have to grind against the
sides of the sprockets, because it crosses the full width of the two sets as it travels along its length.

Place the front in lowest gear (smallest) and then place the back in highest (smallest) then look at

the chain.

Hope this helps.

WannaGetGood

=not good.

willtsmith_nwi

Save your money and get a chain cleaning tool. It doesn't do the absolute BEST job in the world, but it's very good and getting the brushes where they need to be.

BTW, soaking the chain won't affect any particulate matter in the chain. It will just break down the grease. In order to get that stuff out, you have to flush fluids through it.

I use isopropyl alcohol with a chain tool. It's cheap, it's mild (so it does NOT break down perfectly good lube (I use extreme purple)) and it flushes water out which protects the chain from rust.

Finally you can get a SRAM Powerlink or Connex Link to thwart Shimano at their money extorting racket (replacement pins).

OldNick

Any luck yet? Lots of replies.

Al.canoe

All my rides (about 6-years worth), save for about 6-weeks in the mountains each year, are on sand covered hardpack. I never have this problem in the gear train, much less in the chain. The chain tolerances look too small to allow grains of sand to get into the works IMO. I use White Lightening and have for about 5 years.

If it was me, I'd throw away the chain, use SRAM or the German Stainless chain and check all the cogs/rings for wear. I've been using that Stainless Steel chain for bout a month now. Really nice. It seems more rugged than the SRAM and now I don't have to worry about water crossings and rain.

Al

The Selector

first thing

1. get a SRAM "powerlink" so you can take your chain off in a snap

2. get a pop bottle and a little degreaser

3. put chain and a little degreaser in bottle and shake vigorously

4. take chain out wash off with water and let dry

5. put chain on bike... oil it with tri flow (or whatever) let dry over night

6. go ride... after spray it with GT 85 (which is a degreaser and lubricant with teflon) let sit for a few... then wipe the chain, pulleys, and cassette off really good. its a quick and easy cleanup

7. after a few time with the quick clean up, start form step 3

hope this helps

I live in the Adirondacks and there is sand all over the place for some reason

saff_cossie

Agree with most of the responses on here r.e cleaning it and not leaving it to "go away". I got caught in a sand storm about 3 weeks ago as I cycle along the beach road here. My chain went from slick to gritty and crunchy in seconds. Got the bike home, first wiped the excess oil from it (which could have been part of the problem as it was a wet lube and not a dry one), flushed it through with WD40, dried it again and then lubed it.

It still took another 2 rides for it to go and I will likely replace it soon to be on the safe side. Also thoroughly clean the cassette and jockey wheels.

HTH

Al.canoe

I can't imagine using anything but a wax lube. Sand just doesn't stick to my chain or cogs/rings much less get into the chain parts. It really is self cleaning as claimed. I lube the chain about every two or three rides or 36 to 54 miles. It takes just a few seconds. I pass a rag once over the part of the chain I just wet with wax before I turn the crank to a new section. That's to remove the dripping excess. My chain always looks spotless and sand free as there's nothing for dry sand at least, to stick too.

Al

BCBike

I used chain wax for my dirtbikes and could not ask for a better product, never had any problems. I should have used it for my MB from day 1.

Thanks

pakole

You know you can just remove the guide wheel on the rear derailuer and you can remove the chain off the bike. No chain breaking at all.