And the 16 hours home, in dead-silence, is the loneliest trip BMX has to offer. This investment is better, and it comes with smiles, hugs, high-fives, ice cream, trophies and road songs, all-the-way-home. Connect with us. OK, time for the big show. Read on to find out. I feel strongly about quality tools that not only make the task at hand easier and the outcome more precise, but that you only have to buy once.
While all the tools tested are capable of pushing a pin in and out of a chain link, they certainly do so with varying degrees of ease, comfort, reliability, and repeatability. A great chain breaker should be a tool that you simply drop a chain link into, and without having to think about it, drive the pin. I sought to find the chain tools that offered the easiest, most comfortable, and carefree removal of stubborn chain pins.
Durability absolutely played a factor, too, along with any additional features that might prove useful. The winners were decided on an averaged score based on perceived value for money, comfort, ease of use, and durability.
The value score was the most subjective, based on how well the tool functions, the general build quality, and what features are offered at the asking price. Often the cheaper chain breakers require more care, while the better tools are better at self-aligning the chain for more reliably trouble-free operation. However, sizing a new chain to length is a topic that deserves its own article.
Before you get to that stage, check out this guide on checking for chain wear. Learn more in our complete guide to chain cleaning. Related reading: Guide to chain quick links and quick link tools.
Not all chain breakers will work with all chains. A speed chain is narrower than an speed one, for example. The summary table see below will help sort tool-and-chain compatibility at a glance. Confusingly, though, some chain tools rated for speed tool use will also work with the latest speed chains.
Some of the tools tested self-adjust to accommodate multiple chain widths, using either a sliding chain shelf or a threaded backing plate that allows the user to manually set up the stop for the chain. Simpler tools generally use a fixed design and have more limited versatility. All work and have their benefits, but I must warn that the tools with threaded backing plates must be used with care, and are therefore slower and more of a fiddle.
In most cases, chain breaker size is proportionate to price. Spend more and the tools often get larger. The increased size means greater leverage and increased comfort in the hand. With newer chains featuring extremely tightly-set pins, that increased leverage can certainly help. However, there are obvious exceptions to this.
For example, the X-Tools chain breaker tested is one of the heaviest tested, but reveals clear budget constraints in the build quality. Likewise, the Shimano TL-CN28 tool is small and mostly made of plastic, yet functions amazingly well.
This skinny pin is used to drive the chain pin and is a common point of failure. Most of the tools tested feature replaceable pins, and some even include a spare. The tool pin can be fixed or freely spinning. Fixed chain pins thread in place or are permanently bonded , while free chain pins are help captive by a small lockring, and typically rotate on a ball bearing. The later is something commonly seen with pro-grade tools and so the feature is often assumed to be superior.
However, some of the best functioning tools on test feature a fixed pin. All the chain breakers tested will work just fine with 9 and speed Campagnolo chains. Likewise, many will be able to shorten 11 and speed Campagnolo chains.
However, those 11 and speed chains require the chain pin to be peened after installation. This is a specific feature and not all that common at the tested price. This test was conducted before the release of this new chain size and so AXS chain compatibility was not an consideration. Some tools feature a second chain shelf, with the extra shelf used for loosening tight links.
I manipulate the chain in my hands instead, and most pro tools simply do without the feature. Given that pin failure is common, tools with spare pin storage help to ensure you can keep going after failure.
The top three tools all ended up with the same numerical score, but Birzman still took the top honours due to its combination of comfort, ease of use, and value for money.
And despite breaking enough chains that it got hot to touch, it remained perfectly straight and functional. While smaller than the Birzman, this tool features the most precise build quality on test. However, that build quality is not an exact match between the two samples I had on hand. Replacing it with a new chainring cured the problem. Dear Christian, There are two ways I do it visually.
The first is to pull the chain straight away from the front of the chainring when it is engaged on the ring. If the chain pulls away significantly, especially to the point that you can see light under it, that chainring is toast. The other way is to inspect the teeth. Being aluminum, they are soft, and when the teeth are worn, it is pretty obvious.
For me that means my Park chain-wear tool, since it takes all of 30 seconds to measure wear. Dear Mark, I agree. I use the tool that I find to be the quickest and easiest to use and that I feel also gives me a reasonably accurate relative measure. That is generally the ProGold tool, although I often use the Rohloff one as well; they yield similar results and are equally quick to use. Dear Lennard, Good article.
I usually use a Park CC-2 and replace when the average of several measurements hits. Re: variation in measurement, master links can really be different than the chains themselves. My experience with SRAM links is that they are noticeably longer, as measured, than links of the chain itself when used with Campy chains.
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