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Another 'Which Chain Guide?' thread

MinorThreat

MinorThreat

Turbo Monkey
Nov 15, 2005
1,630
41
Nine Mile Falls, WA
OK, I'm going to feed myself to the wolves here…open up Pandora's box…(fill in your favorite metaphor here):

I'm getting ready to assemble my 303 RDH and I've run into a hitch: was going to reuse my trusty Syncros guide but realized it's ISCG-old and the frame is ISCG 05 (duh!).

I still want to run a 38mm chainring so that narrows down my choices some. I've narrowed it down to (unless someone can make a compelling argument for another):
Blackspire DSX C4
e.Thirteen SRS+
e.Thirteen LG1+
Gamut P40
MRP System 3 Party Crasher
Straitline

I'm not crazy about the e.13 LG1+, even though it's what Yeti ships complete 303Rs with, because I think I would rather have a crank-mounted bash take the abuse instead of my ISCG tabs. The upper slider looks a bit minimalist on the new SRS but maybe I'm just paranoid. Not crazy about the way e.13 guides are fussy about what lube to use either.

I'm impressed with the design of the Blackspire (even if it is a tad heavy) - - seems laid out well to keep the chain captured and in check but have zero experience with Blackspire.

The Gamut appears to be simple, direct and efficient; but once again I don't anything about that one.

Besides the Blackspire I am impressed next-most with the the System 3 Party Crasher. It looks robust and effective and it seems no way a chain could get past the rollers once the setup is dialed.

Straitline is a stone-axe simple design that looks REAL good with just sliders and no bearing idler. The plastic isn't fussy for chain lube either and the price seems real competitive.

Have at it, please.
 
bansheefr

bansheefr

Monkey
Dec 27, 2004
337
0
MinorThreat said:
The Gamut appears to be simple, direct and efficient; but once again I don't anything about that one.
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I have been running Gamut chain guides on both my trail bike (P20 w/ 32t gamut ring) and DH bike (P30 w/ 36t gamut ring) for the last 2 seasons and have been very happy with them. They are stupid simple, easy to set-up and light. I have found that they are a little noisier than other guides, but a small piece of road tube slipped over the lower roller solves that. Only problem I have had is the bearings in the lower pulley ceasing up at the end of the season, mainly because of my neglect (they are standard skateboard wheel bearings and are easily replaced). I have never dropped a chain on either bike.

The newer e.thirteen guides do look nice and the SRS+ bash appears to be lightened up a bit. The LG1+ looks awesome, but the ISCG tabs/thread concerns have kept me away.

I don't think you can go wrong with the P40 or SRS+.
 
S

slowitdown

Monkey
Mar 30, 2009
553
0
I've run the Gamut P30 on my trail bike and I agree with bansheefr's review of it. Light. Easy to install and set up. A bit noisy, but I didn't feel any drag.

One of my riding buddies is using a newer MRP taco-style chainguide and he loves it. It's super quiet too, doesn't even sound like there's a chainguide on the bike. Don't know about the setup -- he had the LBS install it.
 
I

illflip

Monkey
Aug 20, 2007
548
0
Newark, NJ
currently on Gamut P30. love it. only gripe was mine didnt come with flush ISCG bolts, so i had to do a little finagling with the granny tabs. they're using flush bolts now so shouldnt be a prob anymore.

had e.13 LG1 previously. loved it too.

and about the lube...most guides use plastics and using wrong lube on plastics can be bad. just because e13 is the only one to tell you not to use it, doesnt mean its ok for the rest of the guides.
 
4130biker

4130biker

PM me about Tantrum Cycles!
May 24, 2007
3,884
450
Good tip on the road tube with the Gamut- noise is the only reason I haven't tried one of those yet.

The only guide I've ever had trouble with was a blackspire. I love the stinger for two rings, it's awesome, but my single ring guide didn't hold the chain even as well as a stinger at whistler.

I had no idea that e13's are fussy with lube.. Can anyone shed some light on this? Hopefully I'm not destroying mine by using tri flow. :(

I'm stoked on my e13 guides (SRS+, and whatever the one with the bash is called) and would reccomend them both.
 
norbar

norbar

KESSLER PROBLEM. Just cause
Jun 7, 2007
11,500
1,719
Warsaw :/
Ive been runing the straitline guide for a month already. Did it on some worn down tracks and 90% of the time the riding was in mud (2 days in may I was not riding wetscreams) and I had no problem with it cleaning or the chain falling off. Takes hits very well and it is very easy to setup. Not to mention it looks much much better than any e13. Get it!
 
spocomptonrider

spocomptonrider

sportin' the CROCS
Nov 30, 2007
1,412
118
spokanistan
VooDooHoo said:
Yep and yes to everyone regarding the Gamut.:thumb:
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+1 I've been super happy with mine. By far the easiest guide that I have ever setup. No fiddling with tiny nuts and bolts few moving parts. Sometimes less is more.

4130biker said:
Good tip on the road tube with the Gamut- noise is the only reason I haven't tried one of those yet.

I had no idea that e13's are fussy with lube.. Can anyone shed some light on this? Hopefully I'm not destroying mine by using tri flow. :(
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A piece of sticky velcro around the bottom roller also works to quiet things down. Jacy (Sam's mechanic) used to wrap all of the parts that the chain came in contact with in tubing or velcro to make it quieter.

As for the e-13 there was a thread not to long ago on this issue, I didn't pay much attention as I run a Gamut guide but if I remember correctly certain petroleum based lubes can cause the plastic to crack. It had to do with the chemicals getting leeched out of the plastic from the lube causing the cracks. Tri-flow may have been one of the ones they said not to use.
 
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PhilipW

Monkey
Mar 13, 2007
311
0
Leominster, MA
4130biker said:
I had no idea that e13's are fussy with lube.. Can anyone shed some light on this? Hopefully I'm not destroying mine by using tri flow. :(
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I've recently become an armchair (chemical) engineer. :thumb: All plastics are vulnerable to certain solvents used in many common chainlubes. For example, WD40 is 50% Stoddard solvent...also called mineral spirits. It is used to dissolve grease, dirt, etc. This chemical component also causes irreversible damage to all plastics, mostly cracking by breaking down the chemical bonds. When your polycarbonate bashguard (of any type, not just ours) becomes brittle, it won't absorb an impact at all. There are a few other compounds that aren't terribly plastic friendly, most notably heptane, butane, and orange oil. There are a good number of chain lubes that don't list their contents (proprietary), but many do have MSDS forms that list contents.

Some of the good lubes I've run across that are easy to get are Pedros Syn, Triflow (preferably in the drip bottle), Finish Line, Motorex, White Lightning, or any others that are listed as plastic safe. If you have any doubts, many manufacturers should be able to tell you either the contents or if the lube is safe for plastics.

I would err on the safe side for any plastic parts, not just ours. Our current blend has a fairly high chemical resistance while still remaining suited for use in a chainguide.

And knowing is half the battle! ;)

Cheers,
philip @ e*thirteen/the Hive
 
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xy9ine

xy9ine

Turbo Monkey
Mar 22, 2004
2,940
353
vancouver eastside
gamut rocks. been running the same one since 2006, and it's been flawless. super light, simple to set up, and the guys there rock. big fan.
 
MinorThreat

MinorThreat

Turbo Monkey
Nov 15, 2005
1,630
41
Nine Mile Falls, WA
PhilipW said:
Some of the good lubes I've run across that are easy to get are Pedros Syn, Triflow (preferably in the drip bottle), Finish Line, Motorex, White Lightning, or any others that are listed as plastic safe. If you have any doubts, many manufacturers should be able to tell you either the contents or if the lube is safe for plastics.
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Tri-Flow was the one I was concerned about. Not that I'm so stuck in my ways that I can't change but it's worked well for me.

I find it puzzling that you specifically mentioned it as a recommended, Phillip, since, from what I found on its MSDS, it contains 7% mineral spirits and 10% heavy naphthenic petroleum oil.

BTW, to everyone: as mentioned, a product's MSDS is the best way to find out exactly what's in something. And darned near every liquid consumer and industrial product HAS to have one readily accessible to read, which means you can usually pull it down from their web site. (Turned out to be quite handy when the log oil I was using on my house got discontinued and I had to hunt for a compatible replacement.)
 
Gary

Gary

my pronouns are hag/gis
Aug 27, 2002
8,425
6,314
UK
I bent my gamut bash pretty easily.. well, a ft william rock did
 
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PhilipW

Monkey
Mar 13, 2007
311
0
Leominster, MA
MinorThreat said:
Tri-Flow was the one I was concerned about. Not that I'm so stuck in my ways that I can't change but it's worked well for me.

I find it puzzling that you specifically mentioned it as a recommended, Phillip, since, from what I found on its MSDS, it contains 7% mineral spirits and 10% heavy naphthenic petroleum oil.
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I should have clarified that I was talking about Triflow Superior Drip Lube, not the Dry Lube, which does appear to have a little bit of mineral spirits in it, perhaps to clean and help deliver the lubricating materials onto a cleaner surface (mineral spirits should evaporate fairly quickly).

As with most lubes, you want to get it into the bushings rather than slop it all over the place. Chemical reactions are pretty interesting. :clue:
 
Gary

Gary

my pronouns are hag/gis
Aug 27, 2002
8,425
6,314
UK
eh? I didn't even know Gamut did a metal bash.

if it wasn't clear, it was a plastic gamut bash I bent. (edge flattened/deformed and bent out sideways)
 
Uncle Cliffy

Uncle Cliffy

Turbo Monkey
Jan 28, 2008
4,490
42
Southern Oregon
IH8Rice said:
if i had a Gamut on there, it would have been far worse. i can bend their bash ring with my hands which probably would have broken 2 tabs instead of 1 :rolleyes:
but hey, the backplate would have survived!
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Yup. I think that pic of your MRP needs posting in every chainguide thread till the end of time. ;)
 
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