Description:Rust free!! 40% more durable than other steel chains. Specially dimensioned rollers decrease the risk of chain suck. Compatible with all 9 speed systems. 298g.
Submitted by
Jamie Strong
a Racer
from Skaneateles, NY USA Date Reviewed: March 24, 2008
Favorite Trail:
Any
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$50.00
Purchased At:
Can't remember
Strengths:
None
Weaknesses:
Side plates too weak and prone to failure
Similar Products Used:
SRAM, Shimano, Suntour, Others
Bike Setup:
Cyclocross/commuter w/ SRAM, Shimano, Truvativ
Bottom Line:
I live in the wet Northeast so I decided to pay the long dollar for this chain to use on my commuter bike to prevent chain rust. I keep my chains lubed and clean, but this failed after only a few hundread miles. The chain side plates fail which causes the chain to rapidly snap. Fortunately for me it did not create a dangerous situation (I was in traffic). Upon closer inspection a few other link side plates are also cracked. I think the stainless is too low in tensile strength and prone to metal fatigue. Simply put, nobody should bother with this chain.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
KillerT
a Cross Country Rider
from Copenhagen, Denmark Date Reviewed: November 8, 2007
Favorite Trail:
Rude Skov
Duration Product Used:
2 Years
Strengths:
No rust!
Weaknesses:
Eats cassettes like you won't believe...
Bike Setup:
Modded Kona Caldera 2005
Bottom Line:
I've used this chain for 4200 km of riding through everything the Danish climate had to offer (rain, snow, salty roads, mud, you name it) and there is absolutely no rust on the chain.
After this considerable distance with reasonable (but probably not sufficient) maintenance, the chain is now worn so badly that it skips on the cassette... time for a replacement.
The stainless steel is a bit hard on the cassette - I've gone through two XT cassettes and one HG50 in the time I've had this chain.
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Submitted by
Tom
a Cross Country Rider
from Delco, PA Date Reviewed: June 4, 2007
Favorite Trail:
Beaver Valley
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$55.00
Purchased At:
speedgoat.com
Strengths:
Stainless!
Weaknesses:
If not lubed with quality stuff lots of chain suck. Also experienced sticky links
Similar Products Used:
Anyother
Bike Setup:
Dos Niner sram XO rear XTR front
Bottom Line:
I thought it would be the magical chain maintenance free. Not the case I had lots of problems after giving my bike a good cleaning. sticky links, chain suck, it sucked. I went to a motorcycle shop and bought a can of Maxima chain Wax cured all my problems. If you buy this chain make sure you buy yourself a can of Maxima Chain Wax. Chain stays nice looking though no rust so far
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Submitted by
Ryan
a Weekend Warrior
from Ventura, Ca Date Reviewed: January 27, 2007
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$55.00
Purchased At:
Pricepoint.com
Strengths:
I think the Connex link is a great idea, that's the last thing you have to worry about. The stainless steel is great idea as far as strength and rust are concerned.
Weaknesses:
STICKY LINKS!!! Stainless on stainless is notorious for gulling and I'm pretty sure that’s a contributing factor to the links. It still RUSTS at the pins too!!! A little pricy for how it worked.
Similar Products Used:
SRAM 951 and 971
Bike Setup:
2006 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Expert
Bottom Line:
Great idea on paper, but needs to be worked out in practice still. The rusting of the pins is probably due to the low grade stainless magnetizing itself from constant rubbing/rotating and causing the iron in the dust to collect in that region.(I only had the rust form once and that was when I took it off and left it in a water saluable degreaser for an hour) I think if they sorted out some sort of thin, low wear teflon/plastic washer that kept the plates from rubbing to prevent gulling that may fix it, or some sort of super lube that prevents gulling.(Lapping compound mixed with chain lube comes to mind J/K) Also 316L Stainless wouldn't hurt either, they are probably using some crappy 301-303 stainless at best, I couldn't find the spec on that.
Bottom line, keep a steel chain lubed and rust free, it will last longer than a stainless chain that gulls and creates the worst sticky links ever. Before it got sticky it worked well. Just my $.02, use your best judgment.
In case you’re wondering, YES, I did keep it clean and lubed.
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Submitted by
Jason
a
from fulton, ny, usa Date Reviewed: September 1, 2006
I have had a few. One I race with, one I play with. The one on my race bike has endured two six hour races, and plenty of trail time with one snapped link that was fixed with a sram link. This chain on my fuel was purchased the same time and is not used as much, maybe 15 hours. The connex link once unhooked when I back peddled while in my big ring. I lost the link. Recently it snapped when I started to climb five minutes into a ride. The link plate was cracked on the load side of the link pin hole, three plates in all. I fixed it by removeing the bad links and added another section of wippermann links. Short time later I was attempting another climb and it broke in the same way. I wonder if they got a weak batch of steel. I have emailed them, and have not had a reply. Anyone try emailing them in german? no speackinzee english? I have had poor results from using their chain. I need reliability, not some good some bad. I will not be buying another wippermann.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
RYAN N
a Cross Country Rider
from TULSA, OK Date Reviewed: July 30, 2006
Favorite Trail:
Womble
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Price Paid:
$50.00
Purchased At:
website
Strengths:
Strength, requires minimum of maintenance, runs smooth, connex connector works!
Weaknesses:
cost (worth it)
Similar Products Used:
SRAM 991 (solid pin), various shimano
Bike Setup:
Planet X hardtail, Truvativ cranks, XO RD, SRAM 990 11-34 cassette
Bottom Line:
This works. No rust after 1600 miles with only minor maintenance. Doesn't wear on the rear cassette, either. Took it off the bike once for a serious soaking cleaning; otherwise I just wipe it off and reapply lube.
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Submitted by
Greg Rawl
a Weekend Warrior
from Fort Myers, FL, USA Date Reviewed: July 9, 2006
Duration Product Used:
2 Years
Price Paid:
$40.00
Purchased At:
Performance
Strengths:
Rust free and durable when no defects
Weaknesses:
Defect Prone
Similar Products Used:
Shimano, SRAM
Bike Setup:
Dura Ace Road Bike
Bottom Line:
My first 9x1 chain lasted in excess of 2,000 miles until I replaced it when the strech reached spec limit. I installed my second chain and it broke on a warm up ride with less than 300 miles on it. Inspected chain and found not problems. Measured strech after break and was like new. If you get a good on they are great and if you don't...
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Submitted by
Sam Samaha
a Weekend Warrior
from Phoenix, AZ USA Date Reviewed: April 13, 2006
Favorite Trail:
Back yard
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$70.00
Purchased At:
LBS
Strengths:
Quick release link, and stainless steel construction is great. Made in Germany.
I'm not sure I'm using the same chain as some of the members on this review.. I don't understand how so many have broken them? Maybe they installed it wrong? Maybe they're trolls.. I have no idea, but I've never seen a chain that wears as well as this one does.. after some 300 miles, it still looks like new.
Shifts like butter with my XTR front and XO rear deralleur.. and I'm using Boone Ti chainrings up front too..
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Daniel Hay
a Cross Country Rider
from Lamadd ,It Date Reviewed: January 15, 2006
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$55.00
Purchased At:
mtbstore.com
Strengths:
I think the connex link is a good idea but it needs work.
Weaknesses:
The chain broke before I could get out of my driveway.
Similar Products Used:
scram,shimano
Bike Setup:
specialized enduro
Bottom Line:
Three of my riding buddies and I bought this chain neither of us got 200 mi out of it. By the time I was finished with my first ride with this chain it was so short I had to add 4 links from a spare chain. This is unacceptable by any standard. I’m not a large man I only way 140lb and this is the first chain I have ever broken.
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Submitted by
Hans Koeller
a Weekend Warrior
from Colorado Springs, CO Date Reviewed: October 15, 2005
Favorite Trail:
hansandcamella@mail.com
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$44.00
Purchased At:
JensonUSA
Strengths:
The chain works great now. The best thing about it is it's stainless steel construction.
Weaknesses:
The CONNEX link is NOT compatible with 11 tooth cogs. At least not the 11 tooth Shimano LX cog. The link would ride up wreaking havok on my cog and snapping my derailuer each time it came around. I simply replaced the CONNEX link with a regular link. Now it works great.
Similar Products Used:
SRAM PC- 68
Bike Setup:
KHS FR1500 with a Manitou Stance fork and Shimano LX cogs.
Bottom Line:
I do not like that this chain is advertised as compatible with all 9 speed drive trains when it is clearly not when the CONNEX link is installed. However, I will purchase another if this one lasts as long as it is boasted to. If you want a durable quality chain this is probably for you. If you're a racer who wants a light chain look elsewhere.
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Submitted by
Anthony L
a Downhiller
from Montreal,Quebec,Canada Date Reviewed: June 8, 2005
Duration Product Used:
Tested or demo'ed only
Strengths:
K for all you posers who think your good by lying about your chain you can all get the *** of this website......your ruining the products apperance making fgood buyers by products that break.
Weaknesses:
i havnt even owned this chain yet but for anyone who says shimano or sram is trusty your full of **** I broke every shimano i had and for all you posers who think sram is good i bought my pc 99 and snaped it 8 times within the first month.... im a hard rider but dont tell me shimano or sram is good
Similar Products Used:
wipperman is not a bad compagny.... i had the teflon 9x8 previously..... it lasted 1 year riding everytday at least 20 miles.... even through winter as it rusted....i went dh riding and guess wat it broke once out of its entire life. compared to sram thats a little bit out of the ordinary dont you think
Bike Setup:
devinci ollie, diabolus, holzfeller, gigapipe, atom lab trail pimp, dhx 5, sram 9.0 powerglide 2 ,E13, odi, sherman slider plus
Bottom Line:
SHIMANO:THE WORST COMPAGNY EVER:only a true poser would say there good
SRAM:THEY CAN MAKE EVERYTHING GOOD EXEPT CHAINS(very weak) AND SHIFTERS(MADE oF PLASTIC SO ANY IMPACT AND TEHRE DONE)
Wipperman:THE BEST CHAINS THERE ARE BEFORE ROHLOFF
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Submitted by
Chuck
a Cross Country Rider
from GA Date Reviewed: June 7, 2005
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$50.00
Purchased At:
pricepoint
Strengths:
well it would have been the stainless steel, but since it hasn't lasted long enough to rust i guess there are none
Weaknesses:
i've never had a chain break so fast in more than 15 years of riding
Similar Products Used:
shimano, sram
Bottom Line:
fellow rider had this chain and was raving about how easy it was to clean up, so when i went through my drivetrain i thought why not give it a shot (since i have a job now). what a waste, 3 miles into some easy singletrack it broke. next ride, it lasted 8 mi before it crapped out. i even thought there might have been something i missed on the installation, like lighting some incence and candles, but when i checked the reviews out here it seems that these chains just suck. don't waste the cash unless you feel lucky. I have ridden $15 chains for year before failure like this. Kudos to pricepoint for taking it back with no problems.
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Submitted by
K L
a Racer
from Bend, OR / Chicago, IL, USA Date Reviewed: May 18, 2005
Duration Product Used:
More than 3 years
Price Paid:
$20.00
Purchased At:
Sinclair Imports
Strengths:
Not sure.
Weaknesses:
Stiff links. The shift from small chainring to big chainring is very slow because the links are stiff. I was in a road race spinning at 29 mph in my small chainring because I couldn't figure out that I had to spin *REAL* slow to get the shift up to my big chainring. Yeah, I should've tested it beforehand, but I figure a chain is a chain.
Unreliable. I had this chain explode on me TWICE, both times in extremely awkward situations. Once I was on a 60 mile out and back road ride in the middle of nowhere and the chain exploded in the middle of an intersection. At first I thought it was the connex link that failed, but it wasn't so *thanks to the connex* link I was able to ride back with about 3 usable gears... This was a practically new chain.
The other time the chain exploded on the Slick Rock Trail about 2.5 miles in. Let's just say that having 3 usable gears after that made the trail *real* fun.
Basically, the chain is extremely weak under certain types of shifting conditions. If you're cross shifted and try to go to your small chainring under load you've got a good chance of breaking your chain.
These are the only chains I've broken, and I've ridden numerous Shimano chains under all kinds of conditions so I think Wipperman's are simply poorly engineered.
Cervelo Soloist full DA, Fisher Supercal 29er XTR/XT
Bottom Line:
This chain won't necessarily leave you stuck in the forest/desert with no chain tool because it's easy to fix once it breaks. Thanks Wipperman!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Joey
a Weekend Warrior
from Nova Scotia, Canada Date Reviewed: May 13, 2005
Duration Product Used:
2 Years
Price Paid:
$50.00
Purchased At:
nashbar
Strengths:
Stainless, durable.
Weaknesses:
nothing
Similar Products Used:
Shimano OEM whatever
Bike Setup:
A chain, some gears.
Bottom Line:
I don't know why everyone is breaking these chains. I havn't had any problems with mine. About 1500 miles, and barely even any stretch. This chain does NOT rust. If you see rust on the chain, it's more than likely from your cassette. This has been through two winters (exposed to road salt), and no rust. I'll buy another when this one eventually wears out.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
David
a Cross Country Rider
from Warroad Date Reviewed: May 9, 2005
Favorite Trail:
anything narrow and twisted
Duration Product Used:
2 Years
Price Paid:
$50.00
Purchased At:
Colorado Cyclist
Strengths:
No rust,very durable,strong,connex link
Weaknesses:
none that I've found
Similar Products Used:
Shimano
Bike Setup:
2001 Jekyll 3000,Wipperman Stainless,Aztec Powerlines,Conti Survival Pros,Race Face chainrings
Bottom Line:
I just installed my second Wipperman stainless after the first one wore out after a full season of riding.The connex link is great,makes cleaning a snap(you need to install it properly for the ones with skipping problems)I'm a heavy rider(245 lbs) and have had no problems with this chain.No cracking,breaking or anything.This is the only chain I'd buy
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Submitted by
Jorge Pinto
a Weekend Warrior
from Almada, Portugal Date Reviewed: March 4, 2005
Giant Escaper'92 with FSA chainrins and cassette XT
Bottom Line:
Probably the best chain for winter. I only used it under rain and mud conditions. Not mud, more "pasta" conditions. It did not stained at all. The rust on the chain that other bikers saw was from the cassette. This chain is expensive and heavy compared with others that does almost the same job.
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Submitted by
Jake Bean
a Weekend Warrior
from El Paso, Texas Date Reviewed: February 27, 2005
Favorite Trail:
Anything With Rocks!
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$40.00
Purchased At:
Jenson USA
Strengths:
Absolutely None!
Weaknesses:
Snaps like a toy!
Similar Products Used:
None
Bike Setup:
Giant VT One, Manitou Minute 1:00
Bottom Line:
This is by far the worst chain I've ever used, ever! I put it on my bike and expected it to hold up, since I paid $40 for it. They claim its so strong and durable, what a lie! I put it on my bike, and I had snapped it twice, TWICE, in 20 minutes, no joke! Do Not Buy This Chain!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
jeff
a Weekend Warrior
from martinez, ca Date Reviewed: February 11, 2005
Favorite Trail:
anything single track
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$30.00
Purchased At:
ebay
Strengths:
hmmm, hard to find, mine did rust, nice for SS!! However the quick link is great, very easy and keeps chain strong.
Weaknesses:
This thing chain sucked very badly from ride one, the sram i had before didn't, but then the sram chain broke on my wife's bike!!! Shifting is only so-so.
Similar Products Used:
Shimano, Sram, connex nickel plated.
Bike Setup:
rocky mountain element, xtr/xt, race face, time, easton, etc.
Bottom Line:
Garbage, will not ever buy stainless from connex again, nickle plated is great, that's what i have now, no chain suck, shifts better, etc.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Neil
a Cross Country Rider
from Coconut Creek Date Reviewed: September 13, 2004
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$50.00
Purchased At:
nashbar
Strengths:
Stainless, will not rust
Weaknesses:
The weakness is that it is weak. After less than 1000 miles on a road bike, I had two cracked links. That's pretty bad for a $50 chain, that claims longevity...
Similar Products Used:
Shimano
Bike Setup:
Litespeed Unicoi
Bottom Line:
I wrote Wippermann, but from what others have said I don't expect to hear from them. Save your money, go with a trusty Shimano or SRAM. I will never buy another Wippermann product.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
BOBBY R
a Cross Country Rider
from Ontario, Canada Date Reviewed: August 20, 2004
SANTA CRUZ BLUR, FULL XTR, HOPE MINI, CHRIS KING HUBS WITH MAVIC 3.1'S, EASTON CARBON BAR, THOMSON SEAT POST, CHRIS KING HEADSET, EGG BEATER TI.
Bottom Line:
THIS CHAIN IS BAD BAD!! BUILT THIS BIKE UP AND THOUGHT I WOULD ADD IN THE STAINLESS STEEL WIPPERMAN CHAIN AS A TREAT, BOY WHAT A MISTAKE!! AFTER A COUPLE OF LIGHT RIDES WE WERE CLEANING HER UP AND MY SON NOTICED A CRACKED PIN LINK, SO WE TOOK OFF THE CHAIN TO INSPECT CLOSER....12 CRACKED LINKS!!! TWELVE!!!SENT WIPPERMANN AND EMAIL TO SEE IF THEY WANTED IT FOR QUALITY CONTROL INSPECTION, NEVER HEARD BACK. POOR QUALITY PRODUCT + POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE = DO NOT RECOMMEND!
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Submitted by
Tony
a Cross Country Rider
from Salt Lake City, Ut Date Reviewed: August 1, 2004
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$40.00
Purchased At:
nashbar.com
Strengths:
Significantly crisper shifting.
Weaknesses:
I think the price is a bit steep, but for what it does, I am good with it.
Similar Products Used:
sram
Bike Setup:
Specialized Enduro, XT drivtrain, disc brakes
Bottom Line:
I had a Sram chain which was getting old. I switched to the 9 X 1 SS chain and noticed a significant difference. I am also liking the "non rusting" part as the chain is SS. I am hoping to get a lot of usage out of this chain.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
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