# SS Chain Tensioner Shootout???



## LWright (Jan 29, 2006)

Can someone point me towards a recent comparison review of chain tensioners?
Was looking for something that does not add noise. I have a Paul Melvin which works great, but it adds two pulleys and is noisy.
Bought a single pulley Godspeed and not only is it also noisy, it is a heavy piece of junk!
So, tensioner shootout?


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## ddujnitsud (Oct 25, 2006)

I'm still rocking my Sette roller tensioner that was intended to be a temporary deal at $12.95 but it's workin well. 

I'd like to go with a YESS tensioner that mounts on the BB but the Sette won't fail.


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## sean salach (Sep 15, 2007)

DMR STS tensioner is rock solid, simple, cheap, set and forget. I only notice noise when backpedaling. Works great with 8spd chains.


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## nuck_chorris (Jun 6, 2008)

surly singulators rock! when you initially buy one you receive two springs , a push up type and a pull down spring which is great. After A while the most useful spring will wear out and you will have to replace it or use a zip tie. 

When I lost my little C clip that holds the tensioner together surly went all out and sent me a whole tensioner arm complete with o ring and spring ,free of charge, how is that for customer service? 

plus it is you can use it with 3/32 chain or you flip the "sidewalls" around and use a 1/8 chain


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## veloreality (May 10, 2009)

forward components ebb


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## nuck_chorris (Jun 6, 2008)

veloreality said:


> forward components ebb


not just yet, maybe when the new prototype comes out.....maybe


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## LWright (Jan 29, 2006)

nuck_chorris said:


> surly singulators rock! when you initially buy one you receive two springs , a push up type and a pull down spring which is great. After A while the most useful spring will wear out and you will have to replace it or use a zip tie.
> 
> When I lost my little C clip that holds the tensioner together surly went all out and sent me a whole tensioner arm complete with o ring and spring ,free of charge, how is that for customer service?
> 
> plus it is you can use it with 3/32 chain or you flip the "sidewalls" around and use a 1/8 chain


The Surly and the Godspeed look the same. I do not like the Godspeed at all. The tooth wheel "floats" on the outer bearing surface, instead of being firmly attached.
Also there is a lot of slop between the body and the hanger bolt, like a spacer is missing.
Is the Surly better built?
Think I like the idea of a grooved pulley over a toothed pulley to reduce noise. or are they just as loud?


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## Roger___ (Jan 27, 2004)

Rennen Rollenlager, been using same one for going on three years. Great piece of work.

Soulcraft HolyRoller, just got one of these for my wife...like the looks and functions well....like the quickrelease butten for quick reset.



LWright said:


> Can someone point me towards a recent comparison review of chain tensioners?
> Was looking for something that does not add noise. I have a Paul Melvin which works great, but it adds two pulleys and is noisy.
> Bought a single pulley Godspeed and not only is it also noisy, it is a heavy piece of junk!
> So, tensioner shootout?


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## nuck_chorris (Jun 6, 2008)

LWright said:


> The Surly and the Godspeed look the same. I do not like the Godspeed at all. The tooth wheel "floats" on the outer bearing surface, instead of being firmly attached.
> Also there is a lot of slop between the body and the hanger bolt, like a spacer is missing.
> Is the Surly better built?
> Think I like the idea of a grooved pulley over a toothed pulley to reduce noise. or are they just as loud?


The bearing are not sealed like that one but it does what it is made to do, it is loud only if your aliment is off and the chain hits the sidewalls. but ive been pretty happy with it even with the fact that i have to clean the pulley once and a while.

has anyone ever tried to use a sealed pulley on a singulator?


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## nickav21 (Dec 25, 2009)

I've been using the Sette tensioner for about 4 months now with a KMC-z410 chain and a Sette conversion kit. I couldn't be happier. I have yet to have a single slip in the chain or anything. Just smooth as can be.

The Sette tensioner allows you to really push on the chain hard to keep it really tight. It was extremely easy to install and is surprisingly rugged. It stays where you lock it down and doesn't give an inch even through the toughest terrain. I can't really see any reason to spend more money on a "nicer" one when this gets the job done perfectly.


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## [email protected] (Oct 17, 2009)

nuck_chorris said:


> not just yet, maybe when the new prototype comes out.....maybe


Have there been some problems?


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## quelocotony (Dec 3, 2006)

Can someone post a picture of the Sette Tensioner? Just picked one up from Pricepoint (cheap) but I didn't realize it would be so massive. Or at least it looks that way. 

Just wondering if my eyes are playing tricks on me since I have not yet installed it.

I'm beginning to wonder if I should have sprung for the Rennen (not so cheap) tensioner. 

Thanks!


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## bad mechanic (Jun 21, 2006)

If you want quiet, then the White Eno Eccentric hub or the Forward Components EBB are hard to beat. Neither runs anything extra on the chain.

Please avoid a strung tensioner. Why would you go back to relying on a spring to keep your chain tensioned?


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## bad mechanic (Jun 21, 2006)

nuck_chorris said:


> not just yet, maybe when the new prototype comes out.....maybe


Why not?


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## FKMTB07 (Mar 29, 2007)

Just started running a Yess ETR-B on my Scandal 29er. It's great!

The ETR-B definitely works better on 68mm bb shells. I had planned on using it on an old Rockhopper frame w/ a 73mm bb shell, but since the tensioner was the only spacer between the frame and the bb cup (Shimano LX M-582 hollow-tech crankset), the granny tabs on the crank rubbed the mount for the tensioner. On the 68mm shell of my Scandal 29er, the tensioner is the inner-most spacer, followed by another 2.5mm spacer, then the bb cup, and there is no rubbing (XT hollow-tech cranks on the on-one).


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## Martin6 (Jul 11, 2006)

FKMTB07 said:


> Just started running a Yess ETR-B on my Scandal 29er. It's great!
> 
> The ETR-B definitely works better on 68mm bb shells. I had planned on using it on an old Rockhopper frame w/ a 73mm bb shell, but since the tensioner was the only spacer between the frame and the bb cup (Shimano LX M-582 hollow-tech crankset), the granny tabs on the crank rubbed the mount for the tensioner. On the 68mm shell of my Scandal 29er, the tensioner is the inner-most spacer, followed by another 2.5mm spacer, then the bb cup, and there is no rubbing (XT hollow-tech cranks on the on-one).


Good to know since I just ordered one for my old M2 S-Works frame. (My FC EBB is still lost in mail wonderland.) I've already ground off the granny tabs on the XT M-760 crankset so hopefully there won't be any rubbing issues.


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## FKMTB07 (Mar 29, 2007)

Martin6 said:


> Good to know since I just ordered one for my old M2 S-Works frame. (My FC EBB is still lost in mail wonderland.) I've already ground off the granny tabs on the XT M-760 crankset so hopefully there won't be any rubbing issues.


Other than that issue, the ETR-B is rad. You'll dig it. Taking the rear wheel off and putting back on is super easy, since there's nothing to interfere with the wheel at the dropouts. No realigning of the wheel in a horizontal dropout, checking the disc brake alignment, etc. either.


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