What is Cross Chaining and how does it affect the Cruiser?
In order to achieve the wide gear range that our customers like, we have set the Cruiser up with its current drivetrain which has a wonderfully useful band of gearing. The one element that results from this set up is the fact that the Cruiser ( any bike actually ) does not like to be used in the large front chainring/large rear cog combination – this is called “cross chaining”. We are now adding one chain link to each Cruiser to solve this issue but keep in mind that this is bad technique and can lead to problems because there is barely enough chain to accommodate the two large circumferences of those rings. That gear that you’re trying to reach is a redundant gear and can be achieved in the middle chainring. Similar to this scenario is the small chainring/small cog combination. Trying to run the chain around these two small circumferences creates slack in the chain that overloads the rear derailleur and has the potential to do harm to your drivetrain. This is also bad technique and sh
