Ok I guess I got a few questions here.
Can you tell a difference by eyeballing the 2?
I put the chain back on that came with my bike.
I’m not sure what size it was.
Since the bike was used when I bought it, I can’t be sure it was the stock chain. It’s a z chain if that helps. (They’re common in 1/8" right?)
I also don’t remember what size 48t rocketring chainring I ordered from my lbs.
Is it possible to interchange the 2?
1/8 on 3/32 or vice versa?
I’m guessing you can run a 1/8" chain on 3/32" components?
I don’t wanna rebuy a cog, chainring and chain just because I’m a moron with a bad memory.
[quote=“thehappyrobot”]One more thing, would I know if it was a 3/32" chain?
Like it would be really, really tight on the ring and/or cog(if they were 1/8") ?
And there will be no negative effects of using a 1/8" chain on 3/32" components?
Thanks fellas.[/quote]
I’ve run my current bike like that (1/8th cog and a 3/32 ring) for hundreds of miles with no ill effect whatsoever. if you have a good chainline there should be no noticeable effect whatsoever.
And you can’t physically put a 3/32 chain onto a 1/8th ring or cog, there is no way. the chain just won’t slide down over the teeth of the cog. it’s that much more thin.
Yes 1/8" is visually bigger, especially if you have it on 3/32" chainrings and cogs. You cannot use a 3/32" chain with 1/8" components it just won’t fit. I got an 1/8" cog and I could not fit the 3/32" chain on it or my 3/32" chainwhip. I had to buy an 1/8" chain and rotafix.
That said I haven’t read anywhere (doesn’t mean much though) that using a 1/8" chain is harmful to 3/32" chainring and cogs and from use it feels a lot better to me than my 3/32" chain, but this could have just been because the newer chain (it was a Z chain too) was of a higher quality than the stock chain that came with my Pista, but I don’t really know about that.
There’s really no problem using a 1/8" chain and 3/32" components. In fact, it’s a good way of fudging a chainline which may not be perfect, since that extra bit of chain can pick up some of the slack. I guess it is conceivable that using this combination could increase wear somehow, but I doubt you’ll notice.
Also, I know you didn’t say this, but for the record, not all Z chains are 1/8". Most shops have 3/32" Z chains that go on all junky old five, six and seven speed drivetrains.
3/32" is lighter and is generally preferable to 1/8" in virtually all applications. 1/8" is basically a relic, at this point.
I use 1/8" too, but only because that’s what all my cogs and chainrings are, from before 3/32" was widely available. If I were starting over from scratch, I’d definitely go with 3/32".