Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-09-11
THE CHAIN AND ITS CARE

part OF the bicycle Were II only for the
simple turning of the chain, there would
be plenty of friction at the points. This is
not all. however. When the wheel is in
motion the same friction is on the chain.
in addition to the friction caused in passing
over the sprocket wheels through the force
OF the power furnished by the cyclist in
pushing the pedals. There are times when
the friction is even greater. owing to the
increased power applied at the pedal end.
When running the wheel a level the
friction is at a minimum. When riding the
wheel up hill. or back-pedaling in de-
scending a hill, the friction is Increased in
proportion to the grade. In other words,
the sleeper the hill ridden the greater the
friction. and. consequently, the greater the
strain on the chain. The maximum of
friction is reached when the steepest of in
clineS is ridden.
Nine times out of ten, IL the chain runs
easily, the bicycle will operate smoothly
and noiselessly. That this is apparent can
be seen from the fact that the chain gets
the power of propulsion direct, transmit
ting ii to the rear or driving wheel of the
machine The front wheel revolves on its
own accord in the natural order of things.
and consequently noEe Of the power or a
very small portion of IL, is used by this
wheel Its main use is for steering pur
poses, and for that reason il would be a
dlfficult matter to place the driving gear On
this wheel, under the present style of con-
struction.
If a study of the chain is made. and the
number of pieces of metal counted that en-
ter into its construction, one would be
prised- In all wheels the number of links
vary from forty-five to fifty or more. That
is, coun ting only the links and each link is
constructed of two pieces. leaving room in
the center to fit over the teeth of the
sprocket wheels. Allowing a chain fifty
links. 1t will be seen that there are just
one hundred pieces of metal alone. one on
each side. that so to make up the links.
Separating the links the solid pieces of
metal which fit in the space between the
teeth of the sprockets. There are fifty of
these, which would make the total number
OF pieces of metal amount TO one hundred
and fifty. Then there are the small rive.s
which run through and connect the links
with the solid pieces, and which provide
for the free working of the different parts.
There are one hundred of these metal
pieces, which, added to the other total,
would make grand total of two hundred
and fifty pieces Of metal
Take each piece Of the last one hundred
rivets. AS before stated. they connect the
links with the solid pieces. and provide for
the free working of the chain as whole.
These rfvets run through The chain, and.
consequently. they work on either end as
a hinge or pivot. This doubles the amount
of friction. There are one hundred of
them, ard each piece has a hinge duty to
perform at each end 1t is thus seen that
there are two hundred points of friction
from this cause alone. If one joint fails 10
work freely, 1t is apt to cause the chain tc
creak and make pushing the wheel a
slightly harder task The larger the num-
her that fail to work properly, the greater
the power needed in propelling the bicycle.
This friction is In the chain alone. and I'M
der ordinary circumstances only. When the
pressure is applied the strain on the wheel
is increased, and. consequently. the friction
is greater, at the same ratio as the strain.
Then there is considerable friction at the
sprockets. The moment the tooth of n
sprocket enters a link there is friction
greater than that at any point of the chain.
The tooth pulls the chain at the link. while
the solid portion Of the chain comes in
close contact with the space on the sprock-
cts between the teeth, giving increased
friction. There are always 4 certain num-
Der Of links of the chain on the sprocket
wheels; the larger the wheels the greater
the length of chain on the same. The in
creased amount of friction the chain
can thus be readily seen by the observant
reader.
With all the strain and the great amount
of friction 1t is really wonderful to see how
much a chain can withstand, after duly
considering the different pieces that enter
into its composition. 1t is true that now
and then the strain becomes SO great that
the chain will snap. If the balance OF
the wheel was constructed as strongly as
is the chain the bicycle would be extremely
strong, and capable of standing much
more than the machine of today. If more
care was exercised there would be a great
decrease in the number Of chains swapping,
but most riders overlook this important
part Of the wheel. It would be much bet
ter for the rider and the machine itself
IL some of the care that is bestowed in
making the frame of the bicycle look nice
was given to the chain and its proper work
ing.
So much for the construction of the
chain. Now for its proper working. This
require much care. In the first place
be sure that the chain is working on a
line. That Is that both sprockets are even
so as to keep the chain working perfectly
straight. Sometimes 1t happens that the
sprockets are slightly out of alignment.
and, OF course, the chain will work In
way to fit the teeth of the sprockets. In
this manner the chain becomes crooked,
tremeiy hard and causing more or less
grinding and creaking. Once chain is
worn in this manner it Is of no further
use. and If placed on bicycle, the
sprockets of which are in line, will wear
the sprockets In a bad shape in an ex-
tremely short time. This is defect that
is frequently noticed on cheap wheels.
and sometimes In high grade machines.
Look out for it in purchasing bicycle.
If the chain is working true little
graphite is perhaps the best thing that
can be used. 1t is not necessary to entirely
cover the inner surface of the chain with
the mixture. A little bit answers well;
too much catches grit and dirt. There
are q number of different varieties OF
graphite placed on the market, some in
stick form. some in powder form and some
mixed With oil and other materials The
writer would recommend the use OF pow
dered graphite which has been mixed with
oil. The cyclst can prepare the mixture
himself Not so much oil to make II
liquid in FORM but inst enough to make
thick paste. Place this around the edges
of the teeth, and on the chain place II
mostly on those portions which come direct
in contact with the teeth The oil from
the mixture will find its way In sufficient
quantities to keep the rivets of the chain
properly fabricated, and prevent them from
running hard or squeaking. Too much OIL
Is an abcmination. 1t does no good, but
on the contrary causes more worry and
trouble than could be imagined. When a
chain Is literally dosed- with oil it will
Invariably grind ard squeak, and, there
fore, It is unwise to use OIL for this pur-
pose. For one thing oil has not enough
body to Withstand the friction and strain.
Something heavier is required. and SO far
graphite is about the best thing that has
been discovered.
An experienced rider can easily find
<oueak n hicycle but to the novice this