Are quick links REALLY single use?
#1
Curmudgeon
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Are quick links REALLY single use?
Quick links are described as “use only once” in the user/installation documentation.
is that just super cautious input from the manufacturer or truly a smart practice?
I have reused them before but, hey, maybe I was tempting fate.
is that just super cautious input from the manufacturer or truly a smart practice?
I have reused them before but, hey, maybe I was tempting fate.
#3
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Depends on the link. Some say 1 use, some 1 use means the life of the chain. I've always done life of the chain running 9-10 speed SRAM chains and throw the old one in my bag as a spare when replacing a chain.
No experience with 11-12 speed.
No experience with 11-12 speed.
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Agree about Wippermann. I use KMC chains on my folder, and it says not to re-use it but as the chain path involves only one front and one rear sprocket (IGH), I figure there's less likelihood of the link uncoupling itself. I have re-used the link about 5 times so far, and it still requires some effort to disconnect it.
Not sure how I'd feel about trusting the link on a derailleur-based drivetrain where the chain flexes sideways. But remember that you can get the Wippermann links and use them on other brands of chains.
Not sure how I'd feel about trusting the link on a derailleur-based drivetrain where the chain flexes sideways. But remember that you can get the Wippermann links and use them on other brands of chains.
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I generally get around 10K miles on a KMC 10sp link with multiple chains and works out to around 20+ remove/replaces. I change it when slight grooves from wear show up in the inside of the link. Never had one fail yet.
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I am very paranoid, and I re-use my Shimano links for the life of the chain. So far, I have never had a problem.
From a product liability standpoint, they have nothing to lose by telling you to change them each time. A bike shop will do that, too.
From a product liability standpoint, they have nothing to lose by telling you to change them each time. A bike shop will do that, too.
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Using a KMC 8 speed chain here, still using the original "missing link" after about 1k miles.
Still hard to remove after about 10 times.
Still hard to remove after about 10 times.
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I consider "single use" to mean "use with one chain" and toss both when worn. IIRC there was some patent or another which kept folks from advertising reuseable links, calling them single-use instead; helps sales, too.
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I've always reused them. Some are directional, especially with 10-speed and greater. Make sure to get the direction correct.
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+1 However, after the chain has been discarded, I keep used links with my on-bike tool kits as an emergency repair part if a chain is damaged during a ride. It only has to be good enough to get me home.
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I keep new ones as spares; I would be too lazy/forgetful to take the worn link out and replace it when I get home. I also have a little piece of coat hanger wire bent into a double hook tool to hold the chain ends while I insert and close the link, that I keep with them.
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I have always assumed that single use meant, on a single chain. This makes sense as both the chain and link will wear over time. Therefore do not reuse on a new chain. Perhaps I have this wrong, but I've disconnected and reconnected the same link on a chain for the life of a chain. Probably a few dozen disconnects and reconnects for various reasons. It would be completely absurd to expect to literally only snap it together once and apart once and then not reuse it.
Common sense suggests that if it doesn't actually snap together anymore, then it should be replaced. But I've never had one that didn't still have a positive snap when reconnecting throughout the life of the chain.
Also, in all the things I've read in forums like this, I have never once read where a master link failed in any way. Not saying it hasn't happened, but I've yet to hear of it.
Common sense suggests that if it doesn't actually snap together anymore, then it should be replaced. But I've never had one that didn't still have a positive snap when reconnecting throughout the life of the chain.
Also, in all the things I've read in forums like this, I have never once read where a master link failed in any way. Not saying it hasn't happened, but I've yet to hear of it.
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Aardy, try the Wippermann Connex link mentioned above. Connects and disconnects without tools. Bike shops, online dealers and Amazon have them. Great engineering.
I've got the removal pliers for KMC links, but the link isn't going to fall off any time soon.
#17
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What has changed? 10-15 years ago it seemed like ANY use of quick links was considered substandard care/maintenance. Now it seems like the preferred method for chain connection. Has the quality of quick links improved? Are they now engineered to the same standards as a normal chain link? Or have cyclists just come to accept them as they are, and just deal with the slight inferiority compared to a traditional link?
Dan
Dan
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What has changed? 10-15 years ago it seemed like ANY use of quick links was considered substandard care/maintenance. Now it seems like the preferred method for chain connection. Has the quality of quick links improved? Are they now engineered to the same standards as a normal chain link? Or have cyclists just come to accept them as they are, and just deal with the slight inferiority compared to a traditional link?
Dan
Dan
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Has the quality of quick links improved? Are they now engineered to the same standards as a normal chain link? Or have cyclists just come to accept them as they are, and just deal with the slight inferiority compared to a traditional link?
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#22
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The quick link is still an inferior attachment method relative to the older approach of using a pressed-in pin, and then peening (mushrooming) the end of the pin. However, yesterday I saw a Shimano chain in which the pressed-in pin was only secured to only one of the two chain side plates; installation error.
Reason for quick-links: if installed with some care and observation they are good enough for the vast majority of miles put on by the vast majority of riders. The Shimano pressed-in pin was the best attachment method in terms of integrity and security, but shops hated them because they took 60 seconds longer to install, and you had to actually read the documentation. Campagnolo chains were similarly superior, but shops didn't want to buy a $200 peening tool.
PS: do NOT donate your old chain to your local bike Co-op; it causes us far more trouble than it is worth. A stretched-out chain has less than zero utility to anyone; please discard.
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This is a very expensive hobby. Even quick links can be pricey. I find it silly that someone can spend several thousand on a bike and still quibble about the price of a quick link.
#24
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What has changed? 10-15 years ago it seemed like ANY use of quick links was considered substandard care/maintenance. Now it seems like the preferred method for chain connection. Has the quality of quick links improved? Are they now engineered to the same standards as a normal chain link? Or have cyclists just come to accept them as they are, and just deal with the slight inferiority compared to a traditional link?
Dan
Dan
#25
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Dan