# Homemade Chainstay Protector Mini Review



## Cobra Driver (Jun 2, 2011)

After an extensive search both here and on the net for a chainstay, I was turned on by the "tape" process I read here so I pursued it further.

With the wealth of info I've gleaned from here I figured it was time to giver back a little. Now let's get something straight....the wrapping technique is not the focal point here I don't wrap swingarms for a living  Although I could give you some tips there if needed:thumbsup:

So I went to Lowes in the electrical dept and found the splicing tapes I was looking for. As a matter of fact I found several and couldn't decide which to buy so I bought the best 3 that were appealing:

1) 3M Temflex Rubber Splicing Tape Item 2155










2) Scotch linerless Rubber Splicing Tape Item 2242










3) Scotch Professional Grade Moisture Sealing Electrical Tape Item 2228










Ok, so time for some talking. First of all pricing is kind of hard to pin down because this one was on sale that one was regular price the other was on the Fathers Day special plus I put in for my military discount of 10% but rest assured they were not over 5 bucks. The big difference is that #1 and #2 are huge rolls of 15 ft length while #3 is 4 feet long. Now I figured that 3 would make up for that by it's width, more on that later.

So as you can see from #1, it just didn't come out nicely. The slightest pull and it stretched and came out uneven during the practice roll. It was easy to take-off and attempt a re-application but with all the stretching that had gone on it was far out of shape and looked like ass. Plus it has some kind of material covering that must be dealt with during the application process. Basically a serious NO-GO as we say in the Army.

Now #2 was easy to unroll, held up nicely during application, didn't stretch easily or lose its form and was a pleasure to work with. If you make a mistake or want to attempt that pass again to even it out...go ahead!!! It comes off easily, holds its form and reapplies beautifully basically a solid GO, but still I was looking forward to #3 which was my favorite.

Well now #3 basically had a cover to deal with, super tacky so if you make a mistake good luck. Removing it and trying to reapply was impossible because once it touches itself, your committed. The part that turned me on the most, it's width became a detriment, it did not apply nicely nor look attractive. Heres the worst part, once applied it is SUPER TACKY. I can just see that black strip turning orange in one trip from the dirt where I live in Alabama.....yes our dirt is orange or consider it a gentle whisper of henna....hows that?  Anyhow...I digress. This #3 became a serious letdown but I was so impressed by 2 that it was going to be Oooooo Tayyyy Panky.

So after this test run that took about 20 minutes, mostly to find a comparable tube, I went on to apply #2 to my bike. To do this as nicely as I could it took me about 10-15 minutes. I'm pleased.

A few notes here. First off make your life easy and take the rear tire off, it makes it much easier to wrap around the tube. Also, if you can get a work stand, my PCS-10 is like gold to me, it will make your life much easier anytime you need to work on your bike. The spousal unit is still wondering what happened with that watch I bought for her on Valentines Day that was lost in shipping :eekster: Also, to ensure a solid adhesion I washed the frame off with diluted Simple Green 1:10 mix and then rinsed and dried it.

So without any further babbling :rant: Ladies and Gentlemen #2


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## The STIG (May 20, 2011)

looks good,we just wrapped my sons frame tonight. same red dirt here in GA


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## whoda*huck (Feb 12, 2005)

Nice clean job. BTW, that'd be a chainstay protector, the chainstay is the tube you've wrapped it around.


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## 2gunnz (Jun 30, 2006)

Looks good!


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## Cobra Driver (Jun 2, 2011)

whodaphuck said:


> Nice clean job. BTW, that'd be a chainstay protector, the chainstay is the tube you've wrapped it around.


:madman::madman: HA you have me LMAO...TY for that piece of info.

Sorry for the mistake, I'll go curl up in the corner now


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## trboxman (Jul 7, 2010)

Don't take this the wrong way but your issue with the 3m tape is 100% user error issue.


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## smokinoak (Aug 17, 2010)

when I first glanced at this thread,I thought it said Homemade chastity.Did not want to look at first,but got the better of me.


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## Cobra Driver (Jun 2, 2011)

trboxman said:


> Don't take this the wrong way but your issue with the 3m tape is 100% user error issue.


Used it the same way as the other 2 soooo...that removes any human factors. Weather conditions were the same, temperature, humidity, barometric pressure and true altitude.

Although I did shift my work area about 3 feet to the right to get a bit more breeze from the fan and there is a drop-off difference in that 3 feet of about 1/8 inch. Not to mention the temperature drop from 105 to 104 with all that breeze.

So maybe that was it.

Naaa...maybe it was because as my 1st try I was still trying to get the hang of it.
But it did stretch and deform much too easily. I'd like to see an example of yours if u don't mind.


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## trboxman (Jul 7, 2010)

Pardon the crappy cellphone pics.


















I would agree that it's likely a first try issue.


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## Colo Springs E (Dec 20, 2009)

I don't mean this antagonistically... but why does anyone put on/apply a chainstay protector? Is there something in particular about wanting to keep that area of the bike unscratched or something? thanks -Eric


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## trboxman (Jul 7, 2010)

A chain can gouge the hell out of an aluminum chainstay. The protectors cut down on that and they dampen the noise of the chain slapping on the chainstay.


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## Colo Springs E (Dec 20, 2009)

trboxman said:


> A chain can gouge the hell out of an aluminum chainstay. The protectors cut down on that and they dampen the noise of the chain slapping on the chainstay.


??

If the chain breaks?

20+ years (off and on) of mtn biking, I've never had an issue with either.


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## stumblemumble (Mar 31, 2006)

Hands down best thing for dampening noise is a length of that split corrugated tubing used for containing multiple wires, spread it open and place on the chainstay (on the side of the chain), then wrap with whatever tape you want. 
Guaranteed to remove all chainslap noise and protect the frame.


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## trboxman (Jul 7, 2010)

Colo Springs E said:


> ??
> 
> If the chain breaks?
> 
> 20+ years (off and on) of mtn biking, I've never had an issue with either.


Some folks are lucky that way...


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## ProjectDan35 (Jul 19, 2010)

Cool. I'll go buy some of the #2 product and ditch my Lizard Skins.


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## Cobra Driver (Jun 2, 2011)

trboxman said:


> Pardon the crappy cellphone pics.
> I would agree that it's likely a first try issue.


Pics look great, the wrap looks fantastic and if you got that with #1? Very nicely done. :thumbsup:


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## ProjectDan35 (Jul 19, 2010)

How do the ends stay together?


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## AZ (Apr 14, 2009)

Try pipe wrap sometime, much better results than the electrical stuff IMHO.


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## Bail_Monkey (May 8, 2007)

Cut an old intertube into just over 1 inch strips. Start near the rear dropout and wrap towards the cranks with even spacing. (The rubber will stretch). Zip tie the end...


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## Cobra Driver (Jun 2, 2011)

ProjectDan35 said:


> How do the ends stay together?


The rubber vulcanizes to itself. It has no adhesive but sticks to itself upon contact and stays that way. At the front of the bike, you cant see it, but for the sake of it I wrapped a small zip tie, tucked it away and trimmed the end off.


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## Gary H (Dec 16, 2006)

I've always preferred tennis racquet handle wrapping stuff. It's very light, cheap and does the job very well. I need a different color though. lol


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## BritOnTour (Feb 17, 2011)

The OP clearly did not read the instructions on how to apply splicing tape. The correct thing to do before wrapping the tape around the chain stay and overlapping itself, is to STRETCH IT AS MUCH AS YOU CAN! Pull it like an elastic band until youfeel the tension increase rapidly, almost to the point of breaking, then when you wrap it around the tube, keep it stretched as it overlaps.

The action of stretching it, increases it's bonding abilities, and ensures a much cleaner finish and tighter fit. To finish off, don't cut it, just hold the end onto the tube with your thumb and pull the remaining piece until it breaks, then smooth it down. It will stick almost instantly.

This wil also reduce the amount of stickiness apparent with #3.


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## ProjectDan35 (Jul 19, 2010)

I used the # 2 product. Here's how it came out.


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## James_spec (Jul 28, 2011)

Does tape rapping the chain stay offer better protection then say just buying a lizard skin and slapping it on?


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## Gasp4Air (Jun 5, 2009)

Tape (name your type), old tubes, store bought protectors, golf/tennis grip tape, old (unused) condoms - hell, just about anything will work. I've used the splicing tape and it works well - one small caveat - because it bonds to itself so well, to remove it it has to be sliced lengthwise - there's no unraveling it.


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## PnkCrnk (Nov 25, 2010)

James_spec said:


> Does tape rapping the chain stay offer better protection then say just buying a lizard skin and slapping it on?


I would say they work the same but the Lizards Skins, you'll have to take it off periodically and clean it because dirt can get inside. The tape method is sealed and you don't have to take it off when you wash your bike.


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## RJRiegler (Aug 18, 2010)

I made mine a SINGLE SPEED.....no chainslap here!  But when i was riding a geared bicycle I used my old Tonka Truck tire from when i was a little tike...zip tied on and good to go


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## aan (Jul 30, 2011)

I made one of these on my bike and used a zip tie on the very end to make sure it didn't start to unwrap itself while riding..it works perfectly and looks pretty good too.


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## 29er noob (Aug 14, 2011)

I saw a post in the 29er forum where a guy used paracord that looked really good.


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## blkcheerio (Jan 10, 2011)

+1 on the Park PCS-10. Absolutely love it.. but im surprised to see no one mentioned using roadie bar tape. Comes out looking better IMO. Doesnt look asyou'll cluttered to me. Wrapped me and my brothers rig just recently. Used the end tape that came with the bar tape to close the ends of mine. Used electrical tape and zip ties to close the end of his

























Note to the OP. Dork disc and reflectors need to go...


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## Rad Rider 415 (Nov 20, 2010)

I use old bar rap off my road bike.... Just about anything works!


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## Blksocks (Dec 22, 2009)

Hmmm... I just use simple electrical tape and it hasn't come off yet.


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## Blksocks (Dec 22, 2009)

Ganymede_Illusion said:


> I was going to do this on my Response as I noticed I was getting chain slap like I read on here. Being aluminum frame I decided to protect it well. I got some tape and such and started to do it when I noticed it already had a protector. A thick, clear tape just enough to wear the chain would slap.
> 
> So people here are saying that the "expensive" bikes don't have any chain slap protection? Well my cheap DB does....so ha!


A LOT of expensive bikes (frames with names) have the clear tape and some do not. A LOT of the cheaper ones do and don't. Just depends on the company. :thumbsup:


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## PoPo (May 16, 2011)

Heres one with an inner tube. Took about 15 mins to cut tube up and wrap.
Doesn't look too bad, especially when clean, quietens the chain slap a lot.


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## blkcheerio (Jan 10, 2011)

Another big part of why people use splice tape or roadie bar tape is because its thicker and not only will it protect. But it deadens the sound of the 'chain slap' which can really get to be annoying depending on where and what you ride. My bike had the clear protector tape on it as well.. but made noise like crazy. Much MUCH quieter now


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## B42 (Oct 27, 2010)

What's chain slap?


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## Dewaholic (Aug 9, 2011)

B42 said:


> What's chain slap?


:thumbsup:


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