# Need a strong chain.



## Nocturnus (Mar 28, 2005)

So my new PC-951 broke today while out. Bent a pin out of the link and it was not the power link. Could of finished my ride, but no chain tool. Anyways. Whats good 9sp chain to get next.


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## mitzikatzi (Sep 9, 2008)

Shimano, KMC, Wipperman/Connex etc etc no special order. I like Wipperman/Connex beacause they come with a quick link that is easy to use.


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## Nubster (May 15, 2009)

KMC X.9...get it and forget it.


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## Shocker99 (Apr 5, 2011)

x3 for KMC.................Affordable & strong.


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## jerry68 (Aug 23, 2007)

and inspect your chain regularly, and replace it at least once a year.


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## Nocturnus (Mar 28, 2005)

I check and clean my chain every weekend. This chain was also just over a month old. I'll have to call the shops around here and see what they got.


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## mtnbiker72 (Jan 22, 2007)

Shocker99 said:


> x3 for KMC.................Affordable & strong.


:yesnod::yesnod::yesnod::smilewinkgrin:

and comes with a quick link


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## One Pivot (Nov 20, 2009)

Neat to see KMC getting some attention! Ive been running them for a while.. dirt cheap and they work. Good stuff.


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## anthony.delorenzo (Aug 17, 2006)

Wipperman 9 speed Connex gold chains are the strongest I've used, having tried SRAM, KMC and others. Strong enough that I'm running them on my singlespeed and my fixie.


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## mudforlunch (Aug 9, 2004)

I run a SRAM 991 Cross Step. I used to break chains a lot before I switched to these guys, and have little to no problems.


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## CornbredNE (Apr 18, 2011)

Nocturnus said:


> So my new PC-951 broke today while out. Bent a pin out of the link and it was not the power link. Could of finished my ride, but no chain tool. Anyways. Whats good 9sp chain to get next.


Just for couriousity, how old was the chain? I had recently broken a 971 chain after only 100 miles or so on it.

Has anyone else had similar experience with this kind of breakage on SRAM chains? Since this break, I've upgraded to a SRAM 980 cassette, and a 990 chain with good results...


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## Nocturnus (Mar 28, 2005)

Was just a little over a month old.. maybe 20 whole miles on it.


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## CornbredNE (Apr 18, 2011)

Nocturnus said:


> Was just a little over a month old.. maybe 20 whole miles on it.


That's scary, I didn't have many miles at all on the one I broke. I'd guess less than 100. I had made a few hard shifts doing a fairly flat singletrack, but nothing that should have caused failure. I hope this isn't a trend...


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## asetliff (Jun 7, 2011)

I've snapped a few sram chains but still using them. I'm looking to try something else. Lately I've been having trouble with the link just falling out on a downhill or fast section. I've lost two in two days and looking to try somethign different.


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## Metamorphic (Apr 29, 2011)

Out riding with the kids today. They don't manage their momentum well and tend to stop on hills a lot...particularly if there's some kind of obstacle. So they stop, I stop, they go, I get on to go. I'm already in a low gear, but I'm not moving. I stand on the peddle and snap the chain. 

The side plates of the links say "KMC" and "XSP". From what I'm gathering KMC is the clyde chain. But is there any way to tell if this is a low end part of their product line? Trying to figure out what to change out for.


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## EclipseRoadie (Oct 7, 2007)

Just broke a KMC 971 with one ride on it. Had a chain tool, so I SS'ed the rest of the ride, but the chain is useless now.


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## jonshonda (Apr 21, 2011)

I use a KMC x10sl and love it. I am a clyde at 280#, I think my boss who is a power lifter uses XTR with zero problems.


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## mtnbiker72 (Jan 22, 2007)

EclipseRoadie said:


> Just broke a KMC 971 with one ride on it. Had a chain tool, so I SS'ed the rest of the ride, but the chain is useless now.


SRAM makes a chain called the 971...KMC does not:thumbsup:


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## Knight511 (Nov 26, 2010)

I broke my PC-90 (yup, old ass model with not so many miles on it) this week and picked up a PC-991 at my LBS. We will see how well this goes. I will also be adding a multitool with chain tool to my bag now... I wasn't far from home when mine broke, but it really could have sucked.


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## sir_crackien (Feb 3, 2008)

i have actually had very very good luck with Sram PC-991 chains, both the hollow pin and the cross-step ones. in the past i use to break shimano chains all the time but the new ones seem to be standing up to be abuse ok but they still are not as durable of sram chains


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## Pitch (Aug 9, 2008)

Wipperman Connex 8/9sp> XTR/Dura Ace> KMC X9>Any SRAM 950-990 series

SRAM chains always seem to be on sale. Me thinks it is because they have to hit a certain price point to keep people buying them. I usually break a few chains a year, but Wipp's have been the best for me so far; on SS and geared bikes. For the $$, KMC X9's are decent (2 breaks this year), but Wippermans can be had in the $35 range, so it is a no-brainer for me. And I clean a chain lightly before every ride or 2, and a thorough cleaning every 2 months.


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## EclipseRoadie (Oct 7, 2007)

mtnbiker72 said:


> SRAM makes a chain called the 971...KMC does not:thumbsup:


oops... meant KMC 999


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## zenkem (Dec 18, 2007)

Cutter 9 speed chain!!! I have over 1K miles on mine and it's still within tolerance, this is a new record for me. I just purchased a replacement just in case but I'm still running it without issue...

Cutter 9 Speed Chain from Hucknroll.com

Just noticed the change in direction of this thread...but hay...Cutter makes an awesome chain...


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## zenkem (Dec 18, 2007)

zenkem said:


> Cutter 9 speed chain!!! I have over 1K miles on mine and it's still within tolerance, this is a new record for me. I just purchased a replacement just in case but I'm still running it without issue...
> 
> Cutter 9 Speed Chain from Hucknroll.com
> 
> Just noticed the change in direction of this thread...but hay...Cutter makes an awesome chain...


I should have never posted this, cause yesterday my chain finally broke. I still manage to ride for another 40Km after fixing it with a quick link but I believe now is a good time to put my new chain on...


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## thehotrodpig (Jun 14, 2010)

I really like the shifting of my xtr chains with xtr cassettes but recently have broken two of them. Chain had less than 200 miles on it with good maintenance. Might be time to try something else.


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## donalson (Apr 13, 2004)

I used the shimano LX level (HG73 I think) chain with a sram quicklink... never had an issue with it... cheap to boot

carried a spare chunk of chain and quick links with me when I rode (along with a multi tool with a chain breaker)...

whatever you do skip the hallow pin chains...


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## mestapho (Sep 3, 2011)

I've had bad luck with shimano and no problems with Connex or SRAM. 

Hollow pins are not for clydes.


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## velomanct24 (Apr 21, 2009)

I always go with Wipperman on my road bike which I thrash the crap out of. Last chain had over 10k miles of many many high torque sprints.


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## GTscoob (Apr 27, 2009)

I used to use SRAM and never had issues. I've got a Wippermann on my road/cross bike and it shifts like junk. I put a KMC on my GF's bike and it shifts like butter and should be strong so now I'm trying KMCs on my bikes. The KMCs are cheaper than SRAM and shift better.

IIRC KMC makes the Cutter chains as well as the Shimano chains. I dont particularly like their masterlinks so I use a Wippermann Connex master link on the KMC chains and throw the KMC link in the bag for a quick trail repair in case of a broken chain.


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## Metamorphic (Apr 29, 2011)

Broke my chain today. Shimano XT. 300 miles on it. Chain checker at the LBS says it was stretched till doneness. 250'ish pounds. Lots of hill climbing in granny. 

I'm thinking there's an untapped market for a chain that's designed to go the distance at high power settings.


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## velomanct24 (Apr 21, 2009)

How well did you maintain the chain? I just got in from riding my road bike with a chain that has over 10k miles on it, including years of track style standing starts/sprints (2kw peaks). I did break it once, but that was during a shift. It shifts fine on a newer cassette with only 500 miles on it. It's a Wipperman.

The guys who tell you to replace the chain every 3 or 5k miles owe me about $70, haha.


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## Metamorphic (Apr 29, 2011)

velomanct24 said:


> How well did you maintain the chain?


About as well as possible on a mountain bike in winter. Even if you clean it after every ride, that doesn't mean much when it gets a mud ****** within the first 1/2 mile.


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## mgbowman (Jun 19, 2011)

Replaced cassette and Sram chain with KMC x9. Snapped yesterday on my third ride. All my Sram chains have lasted the life of a cassette.


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## markymark (Oct 30, 2004)

kmc x10 or x9 are the best. Although I did break my x10 on the road bike during a shift under power as I was crossing an intersection and realised I was about to be run over by a car the other day. Of all the times to break.

No chain can match the awesome power of a clyde+adrenaline+fear+badshifting...

Took the bad link off there and then, put it back on easy and it's shifting better that ever. KMC - #1.


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