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For the second time in a year I have suffered from cracking endplates causing the chain to deform and - eventually - split. On both occasions I was running an SRAM 9-speed chain. The first time this occurred (about a year ago) it was a pc971 chain. Today it was a pc951.
The very odd thing about this is that during a 6 mile journey, three of the endplates split one after the other even though the chain had been fine for 50-60 rides. I only had two sets of spare link plates in my kit so when I heard the third plate dragging through the mech I needed to take it easy in order to get home.
How can a chain run for 3 months and suddenly start falling apart within 30 mins? The broken plates were at various locations on the chain and - like I say - this is the second time this has happened in this way.
I had checked the chain using a bikehut chain checker and it was supposedly fine.
The crack appears to start at the hole where the pin goes through and then always follows a path to the outside edge of the plate near to the middle or maybe 75% of the way towards the other end of the plate.
I really don't understand what I could have done to cause this.
Any advice gratefully received !!
Hi there.
Several friends in UK and France had bad experiences with the PC9*1 series chains a couple of years back. All were plates failing as you described with no obvious common justification.
They all just moved to KMC (or back to Shimano with the non-trail-friendly link) and have shunned SRAM.
I am still using old stock PC48/58/49/59 without any such failures.
PaulD