The Power of a Clean Chain

So I posted a while back about my accident. What I didn't mention was how my bike started making this terrible grinding sound. Well I discovered this week that that was caused by the chain catching on the motor cog and then being ripped off. This vibration was being amplified through the bike to make it sound like my freewheel was damaged. I thought about it and realized that I hadn't lubed the chain in a while. So, I broke out the chain lube and proceeded to drench the chain in the stuff. As I went along the chain action got smoother so I decided to lube the motors freewheel and the three tensioning sprockets on the bike. After I thought it had had enough I gave it a bit more for good measure and let it soak in.

Todays ride was incredible. Not only was it easier to pedal, my bike was actually quieter than when I first put it together. The motor makes a slight whirring sound and nothing else. All the horrible sounds that started after my accident went away. In fact the motor seemed more responsive and I could accelerate faster.

I've learned my lesson about chain maintenance. So if any of you put your cyclone bikes together and think the motor is terribly loud, check your chain.