any 7/8speed chain will be fine, any 9 speed chain will be fine. The alfine will be fine with either...
P.S. also look at the Sram i9
P.S. also look at the Sram i9
need help with chain selection
Hi! First post on here and I hope someone can help since this is probably a simple question for whomever has the knowledge. I bought an old '93 Cannondale M500 with all of the original components... needless to say my eye has been towards upgrading. 2 days into my riding I noticed the pedals were wobbly; stripped out the cranks! So I looked around on ebay and hooked up with a dirt cheap set of Holzfeller cranks with a 34T Spot chainring. I picked up the Howitzer XR BB for dirt cheap also, less than $10 from an ebay store. Here's my pickle... What chain is appropriate if I am keeping with the original Exage (?I'm guessing Shimano?) 7-speed cassette in the rear. This is only a temporary setup as I plan on going with an Alfine IGH when I can afford to drop the cash. The front derailleur is never going back on the bike and I know I'll probably have to up the chain ring size in the front when I switch to the Alfine, but for now I just want to get the bike moving.
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I've read mixed reviews on the i9. The majority of them have pointed towards the Alfine being the more reliable unit with a broader gear range. Thanks for your help on the chain! I saw a great deal on an SRAM powerlink chain with 8 speed cassette on ebay. Are most cassettes cross-compatible with hubs? The current gear is the 17 year old Exage hub mounted to a Ritchey Wheel.
Generally change all gears and chain at the same time for best wear and easy shifting performance.
You could try using your old chain but it may skip on the rings, oil it up good first..
Or look for a new 7 speed chain. Maybe Universalcycles.com or Cambriabike.com still have them available. An 8 speed chain may also be wide enough to fit over the teeth of your cog. But a new chain may skip on the cogs and then you'd need new cogs too.
Unless you are chaining chains every 3 months (of frequent riding) the rest of the gears wear too much to match up without skipping and being unridable.
When you get your new internal geared Alfine hub get a new ring and chain all at once.
Personally I've tried frequent chain replacement, rotating between 2 chains, and wearing out one chain until it skips and I've found no noticeable longer wear with the drive train rotating or replacing chains frequently. Rotating chains may work for clean road riding, not much better for dusty and muddy riding in my experience.
You could try using your old chain but it may skip on the rings, oil it up good first..
Or look for a new 7 speed chain. Maybe Universalcycles.com or Cambriabike.com still have them available. An 8 speed chain may also be wide enough to fit over the teeth of your cog. But a new chain may skip on the cogs and then you'd need new cogs too.
Unless you are chaining chains every 3 months (of frequent riding) the rest of the gears wear too much to match up without skipping and being unridable.
When you get your new internal geared Alfine hub get a new ring and chain all at once.
Personally I've tried frequent chain replacement, rotating between 2 chains, and wearing out one chain until it skips and I've found no noticeable longer wear with the drive train rotating or replacing chains frequently. Rotating chains may work for clean road riding, not much better for dusty and muddy riding in my experience.
you will NOT be able to put a 9 speed cassette on a 7 speed free hub..with out taking one cog out to make 8 then your shifting will be wonky if you use 8 spd index it'll work just not be pleasant..If I was in your position I would just ebay a 7 speed cassette and chain and let it go...you plan on putting an Alfine on anyway so the less you spend now the faster the Alfine comes..
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