Chainglider on Mk 3 Mercury

[Danneaux]

 

[JohnR]

Thanks everyone for all the additional info and ideas. It seems that there's a good chance that a 41T chainring may work satisfactorily but 40T might leave exposed teeth. The proof of the pudding is in the eating so I've ordered both of those chainrings from the source I noted in my first post and will update you in due course. I've also got the option of using the smaller chainring(s) in the summer half of the year when there's less need for the Chainglider to protect the chain from muck but I'm doing most of the cycling. Dust isn't such a big hazard in England.

[JohnR]

I rechecked my Chainglider to make sure that it isn't rubbing on the shell of the Rohloff hub gears. It isn't - it sits on the sprocket and chain and can't move across far enough to touch the hub. The attached photo shows where I had to cut the Chainglider to stop it fighting with the seat stay. It's also possible to see the holes in the bottom part of the 17T sprocket which has me wondering if 18T would fit although not in Rohloff's 15T to 17T size range. I must do some measurements and calculations to see if 18T might work as it's one way to reduce the gearing should the need arise.

The other photo shows where the muck is collecting on the Chainglider without which the muck would be collecting on the chain. Rural English roads can get a bit muddy during the winter.

[Andre Jute]

Rural English roads can get a bit muddy during the winter.

I do love English understatement.

Actually, it is in conditions like those that the big, clanking, vulnerable, difficult to fit, Dutch chain case has a slight  temporary advantage, in that the infill between the top and bottom chain runs stops the rear wheel depositing dirt on a prominently visible part of the bike, as it does on the lower run of a Chainglider. Of course, properly cleaning the back of a Dutch chain case is hellishly difficult without disassembling the whole thing... Six of one and half a dozen of the other, and I don't even want to think of cleaning all those inside corners of a Gates belt drive after riding where you do.

A mudflap on the front mudguard may help keep the muck off your crank and legs/trousers. See the discussion passim on this forum.

[JohnR]

A mudflap on the front mudguard may help keep the muck off your crank and legs/trousers. See the discussion passim on this forum.

The front mudguard (SKS Chromoplastic P55) includes a mudflap. It's visible here http://thorncyclesforum.co.uk/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=13958.0;attach=17342;image .

Perhaps something bigger would be more effective with 50mm tyres but I discovered on another bike where I fitted a big mudflap that it folded backwards when I built up enough speed. As I noted elsewhere, I reckon that the Panaracer Gravelking SK tyres pick up less mud than the Schwalbe G-One Speed tyres that they replaced. If I kept those previous tyres then the Chainglider would be even filthier.  However, smooth plastic much easier to clean than either a chain or a Gates belt but, at the moment, bike cleaning is a futile activity unless it's to prepare for some maintenance.

[PH]

A mudflap on the front mudguard may help keep the muck off your crank and legs/trousers. See the discussion passim on this forum.

This could just be an excuse to post another photo of my bike 
But yes, the longer the better, just stiff enough to not waft about, but not so rigid as to cause problems if caught on something.  At the end of a recent(ish) club ride, a fellow rider (With mudguards) couldn't believe how clean me and the bike were compared to him and his.
river by Paul, on Flickr

[leftpoole]

My Sherpa has 700 x 35 mudguards fitted. Very low down at the rear wheel. Stops dirt and water spray onto anyone following.
At the front the longer guard stops similar onto feet and under frame.
700 is enough on there own needing no extra mudflap.
Of course all answers are as mine, in writers OWN expert opinion!
John


PS I have been told in the past that I do not contribute enough.
I have also been told in the past to stay quiet.
So.... this is now. I have responded to a number of questions posed recently and I trust the answers I have given are useful?

[Andre Jute]

This could just be an excuse to post another photo of my bike 

Is that gogga (ask the South Africans) on your water bottle your pathfinder bee replacing a broken Garmin GPS? Or is it inside the bottle, a worm in your warming tequila?

[JohnR]

The Chainglider has continued to collect the muck which would otherwise end up on the chain but did give the bike a quick wash last week after this photo was taken (the Aldi battery-powered pressure washer has been a useful investment).