1/4 link vs the full chain?fehguy wrote: ↑Sat May 23, 2020 6:17 pmHi folks, for those who are interested, I have a 3,000 mile (sorry! 4828 km) update.
First off, shifitng is still perfect. I have never, ever, ever once thrown a chain or had a missed shift. That is miraculous! It is quiet and works beautifully.
Next, the SRAM chain has a MUCH longer life than my old 11speed Campy ones. How do I know? Well, I've become accostomed to changing my chain every 2000 miles (cough 3218km, I'm not doing this anymore!). Each time, I'll lay the old campy chain out next to the new one and look at stretch. Typically it's about 1/4 of a link of stretch (I've done this 5 times now) with the Campy 11 speed chain. The SRAM after 2000 miles was virtually unchanged. I have photos of each of the chains showing their stretch. It's not the most scientific approach but I can say that it has been consistent, and the SRAM chain was remarkably unchanged. I'll start replacing it every 3500 miles instead of 2000.
Finally, I have been so happy with the setup that I splurged on my cross bike, and put on a 10-33 SRAM 12-speed cassette with Super Record shifters and a Chrous super-compact 48-32 crankset. It works just as well.
So while I feel a bit like a heratic running the SRAM cassette and chain on Campy, it is working great. I hope this is helpful to someone!
A full road chain is about 114 links, give or take. 1/4 link elongation only amounts to 0.22%. Imo there is still some life left in it, unless the rollers are shut.
Not sure what the current prices are, but the cost per mile might be similar even if one (expensive) chain last much longer than the other. A axs red chain would have to last a long time to come down to a resonable $/mile ratio.