Chain life

[lankox]

I have 700 miles on my Moscow and noticed today that the chain was skipping in the rear when shifting the front from 48T to 38T. I have ordered a chain checker on Amazon but 700 miles seems way too low. Any thoughts?

 

[Latitude]

Sounds like low mileage on the chain... try increasing the cable tension?

 

[Lightning P38]

Mid drive motors are hard on chains.
You might see if you can get a higher quality chain. Check with your bike shop on what they recommend.

 

[TheEqualiser]

Mid drive motors are hard on chains.
You might see if you can get a higher quality chain. Check with your bike shop on what they recommend.

Moscow is a hub drive though. I just changed the chain on my Moscow yesterday (after about 3000km). It should certainly be going more than 700 miles but it all depends on use - hills vs flat, road vs trails, light rider vs heavy, throttle user vs big pedaller. I would suggest cleaning & lubing everything and re-index front & rear derailleur while you wait for your chain checker to arrive.

 

[Sierratim]

I have 700 miles on my Moscow and noticed today that the chain was skipping in the rear when shifting the front from 48T to 38T. I have ordered a chain checker on Amazon but 700 miles seems way too low. Any thoughts?

I wouldn't expect a wear problem at 700 miles. How often do you clean and lube tour chain? I do mine monthly. A stiff link can cause early 'skipping'. This would be related to a need for clean (and lube).

 

[lankox]

The chain checker came in and my chain is fine. I keep my chain cleaned and lubed so I'm not sure what the problem is.

 

[Sierratim]

Two thoughts;

1. Check the chainline. A misaligned chainline can allow the chain to jump cogs. Sheldon Brown discusses this HERE, along with ways to help bring a chainline into alignment if needed.

2. Check the chain length. Derailleur tension on the chain my be too low if the chain is longer than than needed. This Park Tool article on Chain Sizing is a good overview.

Good luck.

 

[linklemming]

Its typical for shifter cables to stretch during initial use. As such your rear derailler is probably off a tad. When its skipping, stop the bike, get off and look at where the rear derailler upper jockey wheel is. You will likely have to adjust the barrel adjuster. Easy enough to unscrew the barrel adjuster 1/4 turn and repeat.

Its very rare to have a new chain/gears skip due to wear, especially in 700 miles. In my 40 years of cycling I have never had a new chain/gears skip due to wear. Typically the chainrings and cassette also wear and you dont notice a problem until you put on a new chain and then the chain skips (it actually more accurate to describe this behavior as jumping and only happens under load).

Here is a good video:

I doubt you will need to worry about the limit screws if it worked fine before unless you have damaged your derailler

 

[Fred]

I checked my chain and think I may need to replace it on my Amego Infinite+ --with 8-speed freewheel and after about 4,000Km.. Essentially an NCM Milano+. Is there any specific chain recommended?

 

[jkvt]

It's not a mid drive so the only real additional wear and tear being done to the chain is because of the weight of the bike so I wouldn't go too crazy. KMC X8 is all I use on my Moscow and I haven't had issues. 4000km is a lot for one chain though. You might want to check to see if the freewheel is ok. It's tough to do that, I find, without having a good one to compare it to. You could get a new chain and see if everything works well, or just swap out the freewheel while you're at it.