Just out of curiosity, and some info for others, what chains do you use?
Any recommendations or ones to avoid? And how often do you change them?
KMC Kool Chain $20
or KMC Super Kool chain for $5 if I can find them. They;re similar but they have lots of holes, weigh a lot less and look Super Kool.
If I rode one bike only it would get changed probably once a year or so, but I seem to change chains usually because I’m changing gearing, or changing bikes.
KMC 4G…they r fat.
Kookie bike have few good Izumi chain…they aint that expensive. But the"NJS" one is very expensive but noone cares bout NJS cept the dude from selling hte CW track bike on ebay.
KMC K810.
3/32" drivetrain and Kool all the way.
KMC 1/8 ‘super-light’ Kool Chain
Connex 3/32 on the others…
A knowledgeable bike mechanic friend of mine once told me that the notion that chains ‘stretch’ is a bit of a misnomer. Chains wear rather than stretch, he informed me. Do you guys buy this? 
Agreed.
All chains “stretch” - that is they wear at pins/bushings and lengthen as a result, stretch is a misnomer. I use the Wipperman guide - “10 pins at 107.4 = replace” - and change out rather than risk wear on the expensive bits of the drivetrain.
I have found the main difference is that the cheaper chains seem to fail precipitously, a recent Kool Chain had me looking at the BB it got so noisy within the limits!
One good bit about the Kool is they look Kool, particularly the Super Kool (not $5 very often tho!)
If anyone knows a better balace between cost and durability than Kool - I would like to give it a try!!
I too have heard such information, the wear of the bushings causes the ‘slack’.
Nexus:
Buy a nice chain and lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly (quit being a tight arse). Ride it through winter/rain and lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly. Even when you don’t use the chain, lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly. lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly. lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly. lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly. lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly. lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly. lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly. lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly. lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly. lube the ‘shit out of it’ regularly.
Chains like lube, like a woman going through meno-pause (sp?). Good quality chain and lube will be your friend. Cheap Chain and Cheap lube will wait until you are asleep and kill you.
Oops. I meant, for $5 more than the Kool chain.
so… 10 pins at 115 is pretty bad? 
Is that measure of chain length from the first pin to the tenth?
the measure inside the rollers of the pins
near new Kool … 
Thanks Pete!
ok, the “lube the shit out of it” comment is a little misleading.
too much lube will attract too much dirt and cause it to eat your chain.
best method is to thoroughly lube the chain, soaking in lube for a while if you can.
then wipe ALL the excess off.
then wipe it again.
if you can actually get it almost dry, but still with a good… sheen is the only way i can describe it… then your chain will be well lubed, and will last it’s best.
best results i ever got were when i ended up with a tupperware container full of triflow somehow. i would completely clean and dry tyhe chain a couple of times, then drop it into the container.
let it sit over nite.
then put a wire mesh thing i made into the container that held the chain out of the oil, and let it sit for 24 hours while draining.
then wipe the chain several times.
install back on bike.
wipe again.
i had 2 new chains when i started doing it this way, and i’d swap them out week at a time with one being serviced and the other being used.
i use a similar method for my MTB chains with one sitting in kero and being shaken every day for 4 days, then drained for 2 then lubed and reinstalled while i start on the other. and it gets stupid long wear times out of the cassettes and chainrings. roughly double the wear i’d otherwise.
I’m the king of ‘little’ mis-leading…Apologies, I should of said to wipe off the excess…Tri-flow ROCKS…Pedro’s Ice wax is good for rain cycling or riding under water
You guys are far too patient.
Or…
Maybe I’m just not dedicated enough, but I really couldn’t care less if my chains last a long time. Having to buy new chains means I get to buy more bike stuff, and therefore spend more time in bike shops, which can’t be a bad thing can it?
I agree. Plus, if a chain costs $20 it’s a better use of my time to change it more often rather than fuck around with buckets of degreaser and Triflow
Pair of philistines