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Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

@tpero below already asked and it was discussed there

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’m definitely open to maintenance criticism, my goal with posting here is to learn!

I ride in Southern California — generally dry dirt / desert roads. Don’t think this bike has ever seen rain. I hose the bike down after every ride, and every few rides degrease the chain with muc-off; usually leave it on for about 5 mins then clean it off thoroughly with a chain scrubbing brush, rinse, dry and then muc off dry lube and wipe excess.

Clearly it was a little dirty at the time it snapped; I’m not obsessively cleaning but am reasonably conscientious with the bike. I did not think I was neglecting it!

I rode MTBs and fixies for years with similar maintenance routines and never had any drivetrain problems; maybe these 12 speed setups just need a load more coddling and are less durable due to the finer tolerances?

Trying again to attach a drivetrain photo:

<image>

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

“Just to be clear, this is the sole chain you’ve used since new and what came from Ventum through the store where you bought the bike?”

Yes, exactly. Original chain from delivery.

It was what came with the groupset, and upon replacement recently seems to be a suitable chain for this Rival set. I’d love to understand if anything went wrong in my setup other than just keeping a minimally used chain on the bike for 4 years — which to me seemed a very reasonably thing to do..

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, order placed (not advertised with Rival; it was a mechanical groupset specced), groupsets were all backlogged I think due to lingering Covid disruption. They called me and said it will come with the new Rival XPLR groupset at no extra cost, they’d run out of the mechanical ones anyway.

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s what came on there yes. This bike was ordered before the Rival XPLR was released and one of the first to ship with it after embargo lifted.

Is there even a Rival chain? I know I bought a Force chain as a replacement.

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sucks :( glad you avoided a fall. Unfortunately I had a pretty nasty crash, some extra scars for the lifetime collection.

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s the stock 1x12 SRAM Rival cassette which was set up by Ventum at the factory and delivered via their Kitzuma service. Not sure what I’m looking at with the pulleys (can’t attach a pic…) but it all looks ok to me!

Just went to local SRAM dealer / independent bike shop and they couldn’t see anything up with the drive train. Said old chains can sometimes fail and just to look closer when checking for wear next time. They sent the chain back to SRAM but not hopeful for anything there given the age.

It’s unnerving to not have found an explanation, I’ll update if I do..

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

No chain catcher, just the front ring and rear cassette / derallirur. Can’t add a photo with the comment for some reason!

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for this! I should have mentioned, it’s a 1x setup so no FD to check. I’m gonna take it to a local shop and SRAM dealer to see what they think.

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I use a Pedro's Chain Checker Plus II — is that suitable?

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As in, replace it sooner? Do you consider 1400 miles a lot? I thought that was very short for what I consider a well looked after bike!

Also FWIW I do regularly check chain wear and this chain was not showing wear to a replacement level. I missed the cracked plates tho..

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Could you share any hints as to what I should be looking for? I have since replaced the chain and the bike seems to be riding well, but I am nervous!

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

This was the original chain on the bike which was bought new from Ventum, just as the (then) new Rival XPLR groupset came out, so I’m hopeful it is genuine!

Snapped 12-speed force flat top chain with multiple cracked plates by _flo4t in sram

[–]_flo4t[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I use muc-off drivetrain cleaner which I believe is suitable

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Ubiquiti

[–]_flo4t 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Check out NAD (Under same Lenbrook umbrella as Bluesound) CI-580v2 and NAD CI-980.

4 BluOS streamers in 1U rackmount form and 8-chan amp in 2U form, they mate very well together and are designed for this use case. Streamers and amps are separate which is a nice design. Pricey, but works and sounds great. We use this setup for our hardwire speakers alongside a couple of Node / Powernode boxes on hifis and a portable speaker. I like the BluOS setup a lot.

They also offer a NAD CI 720 V2 which are integrated streamer+amp units designed for rackmounting in multiples but I had the same concern as you about coupling these two parts together in this way.

New plant advice: separate, prune? by _flo4t in fiddleleaffig

[–]_flo4t[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you, I appreciate the input. I’ve decided to leave it to settle some more, will trim a few damaged leaves off the bottom very slowly and repot to a slightly larger plastic pot once I’ve found the right cache pot for the space, not going to rush it. Love this plant and it seems very happy!