Imagine yourself riding down the street, feeling the wind in your hair, and whoops! Suddenly, the chain comes undone, and your bike ride is brought to a premature stop. Everyone hates it when this happens, so you must know what to do.
Read on to know how to tighten your bike chain!
Ideally, your chain should be tight enough to allow you to move it up and down about one inch. Anything looser than that must be tightened immediately. Firstly, you must loosen your tire, and to do so; you need to unscrew the bolts that hold your rear tire.
Next, you will have to pull back the tire until you feel the chain tighten once again. For the final step, you have to see whether the chain has acquired the correct amount of tension. So, when you can move it one inch, you have to tighten the bolts that were loosened earlier.
If you have someone who can help to hold the wheel in place while you perform these steps, then your task becomes a little easier. In case the chain is not getting tighter even after you have done everything, then it is stretched and it is time to opt for a new chain.
Also, because the derailleur is directly linked to the tightness of the chain, you need to check it out. The derailleur helps to keep the chain tightened by gently applying a pull.
Thus, if your bike has a derailleur that does not generate chain tension, you need to get it replaced. This happens when the derailleur loses its springiness and fails to produce adequate chain tension.
We hope this helps you tighten the chain of your bike. Till next time, ride safe!
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