The chain is one of the most important components of your bike to maintain. Keeping it clean and lubricated helps your bike perform better and prevents excessive drivetrain wear. All chains wear out eventually though and if you don’t replace them in time they can end up damaging the rest of your drivetrain, resulting in a costly repair.
That’s exactly what happened to this beautiful American-made Speedvagen OG road bike. It’s a bit tragic, especially since I love Speedvagen bikes so much. Fortunately, we keep a massive inventory of replacement parts in stock so our techs can give neglected bikes like this a complete overhaul.
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Checking for Chain Wear
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Visually, this Speedvagen OG road bike looked pretty good. But when our Service Writer, Nick, dug a bit deeper, he found some serious issues. The biggest was a severely worn chain. As chains wear, they experience “chain stretch.” Of course, a metal chain isn’t literally stretching. The material of the chain rollers and pins is wearing away, lengthening the distance between the chain pins.
It’s important to keep tabs on chain stretch because it’s the main indicator of chain wear. You can literally measure the distance between chain pins with a ruler, but the easiest method is to use a chain checker tool. Our mechanics use a three-pronged Park Tool CC-4 chain checker or Pedro’s Chain Checker Plus II. Three-pronged chain checker tools are the most accurate because they measure rollers from the same side to isolate roller wear from pin wear
This chain was EXTREMELY worn.
Most 10-speed bike chains should be replaced when they have lengthened by 0.75%, while 11- and 12-speed chains should be replaced when they have lengthened by 0.5%.
When our Service Writer, Nick, measured the 11-speed chain on this Speedvagen, he found that the chain had lengthened by well over 1.0%. It was so worn that the chain checker tool couldn’t even measure it!
The teeth on the big chainring had a noticeable shark tooth profile. Time to replace it.
This chain was so worn that it damaged the teeth on the big chainring and cassette. If we just installed a new unworn chain, it would skip on the worn teeth.
To get this Speedvagen into tip-top shape, we decided to replace the big front chainring and the cassette along with the chain.
Fortunately, the small front chainring was spared because it appeared the previous owner never used the little ring as it showed almost no wear. Once everything was replaced, the Shimano Ultegra R8000 drivetrain shifted like new (because half of it is new!).
Rebuilding Chris King Hubs
This Speedvagen also came with wheels built up with a beautiful pair of Chris King hubs. These are anodized in the Matte Punch color, which has been highly desirable ever since it was discontinued after 2019. The bike even had a matching Matte Punch headset and bottom bracket.
When we spun the wheels, however, we noticed that the hubs felt a bit gritty and they also had a bit of play. Other than the good looks and being made in the USA, one reason Chris King hubs are so desirable is their incredible longevity and reliability. They use high-quality bearings that can last the life of the bike, as long as you stay on top of servicing them.
Servicing the Chris King hub bearings.
One of our Master Bike Techs, Carl, is a huge Chris King fan (he runs Chris King on his own bikes) and he made quick work of the hubs. He pulled them apart, serviced the bearings, and rebuilt them with fresh grease. When he was done, the play was gone, and the wheels spun for days.
This Speedvagen OG was now ready for 1,000s of new miles. As with all Speedvagens, this example didn’t last long on our site before it sold. Hopefully, the new owner checks that chain regularly!
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