Oval chain rings?

PabloNZ

Member
Mar 26, 2018
30
20
Wellington, New Zealand
Is anyone running an oval chain ring on their emtb? From what little I understand about them they help to even out the power transfer from the crank to the chain for a smoother ride. But do you think smoothing that power transfer would also have a tangible effect on chain/component wear (less jarring)? Or even reduce motor wear?
 

eFat

Active member
Founding Member
Feb 4, 2018
342
270
Switzerland
The main issue with most motors is that the crank arms are not directly connected with the chain ring.
 

kane

Member
May 16, 2018
26
18
Brechin, Scotland
I have one on my Canyon Strive and i never noticed any performance differences. It felt a bit weird at first but you get used to it in about 5 pedals.
 

Kernow

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Patreon
Founding Member
Jan 18, 2018
1,436
1,149
Cornwall uk
I use them on my normal bike , they are great for relieving knee pain etc and easier climbing . I don’t think they would make a lot of difference to the motor wear etc but should still have the same effect for your legs and climbing etc . Not sure if the chain retainer on the Shimano Steps would accept the varying diameter of the ring , the chain device on my normal bike is ok but it only covers the top of the chain there is nothing under the chain .
 

ccrdave

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Patreon
Founding Member
Jan 16, 2018
1,405
1,105
uk
Its an interesting point that somebody mentioned if the chainring is not directly connected to the cranks ( a la spesh) the effects would be negated right?
 

Doomanic

🛠️Wrecker🛠️
Patreon
Founding Member
Jan 21, 2018
8,463
9,932
UK
Worse, you could end doing harm, like the old Biopace chainrings did.
 

Kernow

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Patreon
Founding Member
Jan 18, 2018
1,436
1,149
Cornwall uk
Its an interesting point that somebody mentioned if the chainring is not directly connected to the cranks ( a la spesh) the effects would be negated right?
Yes that’s a very good point I didn’t think of that , the oval would be no use at all as the cranks can take up,drive at any point Hence the oval would never be in the right place to work . I guess that’s concluded this thread certainly for the shimano system anyway , not sure how the others work
 
Jan 18, 2018
14
25
Australia
Is anyone running an oval chain ring on their emtb? From what little I understand about them they help to even out the power transfer from the crank to the chain for a smoother ride. But do you think smoothing that power transfer would also have a tangible effect on chain/component wear (less jarring)? Or even reduce motor wear?

This would not work on most E-Bikes.

Oval rings rely on the specific location of the ring to be mounted in relation to the crank arm. Most E-Bike systems spin the chain ring independently to the crank arm. So as soon as you pedal, the chain ring would spin faster than the crank, or if you pedal backwards, the chain ring does not spin. The "high" point of an Oval ring is designed to pull more chain on the downward stroke, and this would change on an e-bike system.

Cheers!!
 

Kernow

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Patreon
Founding Member
Jan 18, 2018
1,436
1,149
Cornwall uk
My very first mountain bike had these way back in the eighties early nineties, it was supposed to be more efficient !
That was the old biopace rings , apparently they had the oval positioned wrong . The current oval rings from absolute black are very good , certainly eased my knees on long road rides
 

Theolegit

Active member
Patreon
Founding Member
Mar 27, 2018
146
126
Halstead
I had an oval on my yt Capra and it was really good as it helped with my climbing however, now I have an ebike I have a motor so don’t see the point
 

EMTB Forums

Since 2018

The World's largest electric mountain bike community.

518K
Messages
25,448
Members
Join Our Community

Latest articles


Top