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    Chain too short?

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    10 Comments

    1. Powerful_Birthday_71 on

      Looks ok, why are you concerned? Does the jockey wheel cage seem stressed?

      It’d also be interesting to see it in the highest gear.

    4. MrRichardH on

      If there’s still a little ‘give’ when you push the bottom of the cage upwards, you’re fine.

    7. badger906 on

      You’ll know when it’s too short, it will grab the cage and pull it upwards every so often, effectively locking up the drive line.

      Looks fine!

    8. reed12321 on

      It looks correct but none of the advice here tells you how to ACTUALLY determine if it’s the correct length. Look on the backside of the derailleur cage. There’s a line with “51T” next to it. When you have the bike in that gear, the top of the teeth should line up with the line. You adjust this with the b-tension screw. If the line is too far away, loosen the b-tension screw. If the line is below the top of the teeth, tighten the b-tension screw. Once you have that set up, shift through the gears. When you’re in the hardest gear, the chain shouldn’t be rubbing on the cage. If it is, it’s too long. I doubt you have this issue though because of how it looks in the 51t cog.

    9. Mental_Contest_3687 on

      Looks perfect. A few follow-up points to consider:

      1. What makes you ask? Is the derailleur or a jockey wheel “complaining” (audible odd noises)? If the derailleur has a bit of “give” in this photo (eg: you can push the cage forward slightly) this looks perfect.
      2. What does this look like in the highest gear (smallest cog)? If the derailleur can pull all the chain slack back in this highest gear (smallest cog), this looks good!
      3. Check your b-tension screw. You appear to be running a 51 tooth low gear (biggest cog). When the bike is shifted into this gear, the outer profile of the big cog teeth should align with the “51t” mark on the back of your derailleur cage. That will confirm this is perfect. If not, adjust the b-tension screw until they do align!

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