Chain shortening?



Status
Not open for further replies.
S

Stephen \

Guest
The chain on my little boys bike (no gears) has started coming off frequently over the last week or
so. On examination it seems very loose and too long. Even though I'm a regular cyclist I know
nothing about maintenance. I took it in to my local bike shop today but they can't do an
"adjustment" until Wednesday. Any idea what the problem is and how I can fix it cheaply and easily?

Thanks a lot.
 
On Sat, 7 Jun 2003 21:19:42 +0100, "Stephen \(aka steford\)"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>The chain on my little boys bike (no gears) has started coming off frequently over the last week or
>so. On examination it seems very loose and too long. Even though I'm a regular cyclist I know
>nothing about maintenance. I took it in to my local bike shop today but they can't do an
>"adjustment" until Wednesday. Any idea what the problem is and how I can fix it cheaply and easily?

Have a look at the dropouts where the rear wheel axle bolts into the frame. If the slots (the
'dropouts') are horizontal, which they probably will be, then simply loosen off the nuts holding the
rear wheel on and pull the rear wheel backwards until the chain is tightened.

Don't tighten it so much that there is no play in the chain though. You can test this by pushing the
chain upwards at a spot between the front and rear sprockets. I'd guess about a 1cm of movement
would be about right.
--
"We take these risks, not to escape from life, but to prevent life escaping from us." ***** replace
'spam' with 'ben' to reply *****
 
"Ben" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> On Sat, 7 Jun 2003 21:19:42 +0100, "Stephen \(aka steford\)"
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >The chain on my little boys bike (no gears) has started coming off frequently over the last week
> >or so. On examination it seems very loose
and
> >too long. Even though I'm a regular cyclist I know nothing about maintenance. I took it in to my
> >local bike shop today but they can't do
an
> >"adjustment" until Wednesday. Any idea what the problem is and how I can
fix
> >it cheaply and easily?
>
> Have a look at the dropouts where the rear wheel axle bolts into the frame. If the slots (the
> 'dropouts') are horizontal, which they probably will be, then simply loosen off the nuts holding
> the rear wheel on and pull the rear wheel backwards until the chain is tightened.
>
> Don't tighten it so much that there is no play in the chain though. You can test this by pushing
> the chain upwards at a spot between the front and rear sprockets. I'd guess about a 1cm of
> movement would be about right.
> --
Excellent mate. Looks just as you say and I can see some paint has been worn away - the rear wheel
has moved along those dropouts. Will shift it back tomorrow and he's mobile again. Thanks so much.
Saved £5 at the bike shop and the hassle of taking it there.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

C
Replies
7
Views
713
Cycling Equipment
Charles Berista
C
C
Replies
12
Views
405
Cycling Equipment
Charles Beristain
C