# 10, 11 and 12 speed chains. Breaking?



## LarryFahn (Jul 19, 2005)

Hey guys, I'm a heavy guy and I'm a masher. My cadence is low and slow (60ish) and my gears are hard (26f-30r is my 1-1) I used to break about 3 9spd chains a year. In 2010 I built my bike up with a 2x8 setup and never once broke a chain. 
The bike I want seems like it won't take a fd. I'm not interested in a $400 cassette that I'll wear out in a few months and I'm not interested in breaking chains every ride either. 

How long has your chain and cassette been lasting you guys? Ttyl, Fahn


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## leeboh (Aug 5, 2011)

Spin, don't mash. Buy 3 chains with each new cassette. Rotate the chains before the chains stretch too much. Try some lower gearing? Surely with your current set up you could tweak the lower end?


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## TraxFactory (Sep 10, 1999)

60 is pretty low, so you must be putting out some big power. Like leeboh said trying to spin more would be a good thing. Possibly your shift technique could use some work?, this is usually when I see chain breakage. Im 240lbs but more of a spinner and have zero chain breakage issues.


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## TooTallUK (Jul 5, 2005)

Learn to spin. It will make you a better rider and cost you less money and reduce how much time you spend fixing your bike.
Seems to be enough good reasons to try.


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## LarryFahn (Jul 19, 2005)

This has nothing to do with spinning. It has to do with how durable products are. Low cadence=low heart rate. 
My 8spd chain and cassette lasted me years without breaking a chain. Are the new 10, 11 and 12 speed chains prone to breaking?


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## scottzg (Sep 27, 2006)

I used to break 9sp chains all the time, but i haven't broken one in years- i've gotten better at shifting and letting up on the torque. Running a bash ring has helped a lot too. Maybe you've experienced the same?

Anyway, my 10sp stuff has held up fantastically and i think the chains wear longer... but my 9sp isn't giving me problems either.


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## Gigantic (Aug 31, 2012)

LarryFahn said:


> Hey guys, I'm a heavy guy and I'm a masher. *My cadence is low and slow (60ish)* and my gears are hard (26f-30r is my 1-1)


The bold type says it all. Spin, spin, spin!!! I used to break chains every 300-600 miles, but I was a masher and I often shifted at the worst time, in the middle or beginning of a steep hill. Two things increased chain life for me: switching to a 1x, ditching the fd and raising my cadence. I know spin at about 80-95 rpm and haven't broken a chain in 2 years. my last chain lasted 1000 miles of riding and was still within tolerances when I replaced it, but I usually change chains every 600 miles. With that interval, I'll average 4 chains per cassette and 8 per chain ring. $30 for an eleven speed chain every 3 months is a lot cheaper than replacing the entire driveline every 6 months because I let the chains wear out.


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## zerodish (Jun 17, 2006)

I've only actually broken 2 chains one a department store generic and an old style Sram connecting link. I have heard of the more aggressive riders switching to 8 speed chains. The 8 and 9 speed chains have bulged side plated that allow the pit to protrude a bit. This gives you some leeway when connecting the link. The chains I dig out of recycle bins generally have a pin pull out. There is one chain that can be considered a lemon and that is the Ultegra 6700 10 speed chain. The 10 and above chains just need more precise joining because the pins are flush. Realistically the 9 speed chains are more common than the 8 speeds so tend to be made of higher quality. Whippermann tests their chains and publishes the data so you can get high quality in all sizes. If you need more speeds find out what Santana is using. Every one who buys a Santana can afford to sue the company so they tend to spec high strength parts. Sram chains can be pulled apart and rejoined if you are careful. Shimano chains can be rejoined if you file .001 inch off the pin with a diamond nail file. Connex service materials and downloads - Connex by Wippermann I use 20 front and 39 rear that I make out of chainrings. I test these on the concrete erosion control ramps under underpasses. These don't weather and have amazing grip. It's just a matter of leaning over the handle bars so you don't wheelie.


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## NYrr496 (Sep 10, 2008)

I'm a big boy and I used to break chains before I developed smoothness. 8 speed, 9 speed... Now, I ride ten and 11 speed and cannot remember the last time I broke a chain.


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## hdparrish (Jan 24, 2008)

LarryFahn said:


> This has nothing to do with spinning. It has to do with how durable products are. Low cadence=low heart rate.
> My 8spd chain and cassette lasted me years without breaking a chain. Are the new 10, 11 and 12 speed chains prone to breaking?


I believe the inner width of the rollers on chains from 8-speed and up are the same. However, newer chains (> 8 speed) have thinner plates and are thus narrower overall.

Unsure what effect this has on tensile strength, but it absolutely makes higher-speed chains more vulnerable to lateral forces. Every time I have snapped a chain, it was while shifting late, under load, as I was mashing. In those cases, it requires surprisingly little torque to pop a link.

Even so, I doubt Robert Förstemann could exceed the tensile strength of a 12-speed chain that wasn't being laterally stressed.


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## TooTallUK (Jul 5, 2005)

When you went from a SS that you mashed out of necessity to a bike with gears you stopped having to mash so much and you didn't break chains. Even if it was from a 3x9 to a 2x8 you possibly had straighter chain lines having 2x up front.
Chains are incredibly strong things and break from bad practice and abuse, not because of manufacturing or inherent weakness. If mashing was the most efficient way to ride then the pros would mash. They don't. If you mash then a 1x11 will likely see you continue to break chains.


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## leeboh (Aug 5, 2011)

LarryFahn said:


> This has nothing to do with spinning. It has to do with how durable products are. Low cadence=low heart rate.
> My 8spd chain and cassette lasted me years without breaking a chain. Are the new 10, 11 and 12 speed chains prone to breaking?


 Cadence has nothing to do with HR. More specifically, what chains? I only run sram with a quick link, not the shimano with those crappy push pin things, IMHO.


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## scottzg (Sep 27, 2006)

leeboh said:


> More specifically, what chains? I only run sram with a quick link, not the shimano with those crappy push pin things, IMHO.


Huh. I've had multiple quick links fail (the thin part of the link where the pin connects shears away) but never a problem with a shimano pin. The way shimano finishes their pins is more robust than sram's, but the sram chains are more tolerant of having a pin pressed back in to a link.


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## leeboh (Aug 5, 2011)

scottzg said:


> Huh. I've had multiple quick links fail (the thin part of the link where the pin connects shears away) but never a problem with a shimano pin. The way shimano finishes their pins is more robust than sram's, but the sram chains are more tolerant of having a pin pressed back in to a link.


 I only use the quick connect link on my sram chains to take off and put back on. No issues ever. Commute, road, tour, mt bike. YRMV.


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## GuitsBoy (Sep 24, 2013)

Ive pulled a few chains apart, toasted numerous freehubs, and even taco'd a couple of cassettes. It happens, though it happens a lot less frequently these days. While I still mash just as hard as I always have, I shift a lot better now. If you're shifting under load, you may be pulling the links off the pins sideways, even if fails while you JRA. 

And not to be a brand snob, but I had a ton of KMC 9 and 10 speed chains fail over the years. I've yet to have an 11 speed SRAM chain come apart on me. Could also be that the sram chains are so cheap to replace, so they never see more than 400 to 500 miles before I swap them out.


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