Chainlift

Rsnoeyink

Member
Having just replaced my tires, I am really intrigued by this. Of course my derailleur came off, and then the cable got all screwed up. It was not as easy as Robert makes it look putting it all back together. Now I'm dreading a flat miles from home.
 

cpml123

Zen MBB Master
Having just replaced my tires, I am really intrigued by this. Of course my derailleur came off, and then the cable got all screwed up. It was not as easy as Robert makes it look putting it all back together. Now I'm dreading a flat miles from home.
Zip tie really helps to keep the parts together. I use that on my S40.
 

RAR

Well-Known Member
Has anyone tried this on a Silvio 1.0, 2.1 or S30? https://chainlift.com/
https://chainlift.com/
I did email the company and got a quick response that it would work on a V20 and Silvio. Those are the only ones I asked about. I did place an order so I will update the thread once I receive it and give it a try.
I just spread my fork apart a little bit to keep pressure on the chain stays, that way nothing comes off except the wheel.
 

Jim Parker

Cruzbike, Inc. Director
Staff member
Ok, I just got mine and tried it out. Photo below. Here is my report:

Unfortunately this did not work for me on a V20. The device does pull and hold the chain from the top and rear of the cassette. On a standard bike, this is all you need to slip the wheel off to the rear.

On our bike the wheel must go straight down to be removed, and the chain is still right there engaged at the bottom of the cassette. And the device actually prevents manually moving the chain off the cassette. The chainlift was also pressing pretty hard on the RD cable, enough for me to worry about getting a kink.

Maybe I am missing something. I emailed customer service and got a prompt reply offering to set up a video call and saying that it does work for the V20 and S40. I am impressed with that, but would be encouraged if anyone else here on the forum had success with this.

upload_2021-4-2_15-29-30.png
 

billyk

Guru
Ok, I just got mine and tried it out. Photo below. Here is my report:

Unfortunately this did not work for me on a V20. The device does pull and hold the chain from the top and rear of the cassette. On a standard bike, this is all you need to slip the wheel off to the rear.

On our bike the wheel must go straight down to be removed, and the chain is still right there engaged at the bottom of the cassette. And the device actually prevents manually moving the chain off the cassette. The chainlift was also pressing pretty hard on the RD cable, enough for me to worry about getting a kink.

Maybe I am missing something. I emailed customer service and got a prompt reply offering to set up a video call and saying that it does work for the V20 and S40. I am impressed with that, but would be encouraged if anyone else here on the forum had success with this.

View attachment 11119

With your name and title, I'm guessing you have a Q45 available to test this on, right?

I'm interested, but if you can tell us, that'd be really nice.

Is the cassette and axle/chainstay situation the same on the earlier-generation Q45s? I have the first year version.

Thanks,
 

Jim Parker

Cruzbike, Inc. Director
Staff member
With your name and title, I'm guessing you have a Q45 available to test this on, right?

I'm interested, but if you can tell us, that'd be really nice.

Is the cassette and axle/chainstay situation the same on the earlier-generation Q45s? I have the first year version.

Thanks,
I already returned the Chainlift. However, the front end of the V20, S40, and Q45 are nearly identical (V20 fork is a bit narrower), so I'm pretty sure the result would be the same. On older models of the Q series, the front end was like the T50 is today, but I would expect similar results with the Chainlift. I'm hoping other folks who purchased the Chainlift will chime in with their results.
 

Gary Hudson

Active Member
I already returned the Chainlift. However, the front end of the V20, S40, and Q45 are nearly identical (V20 fork is a bit narrower), so I'm pretty sure the result would be the same. On older models of the Q series, the front end was like the T50 is today, but I would expect similar results with the Chainlift. I'm hoping other folks who purchased the Chainlift will chime in with their results.
I really wanted this to work. As a newbie to cruzbike taking the bike on and off the trainer/wheel is still a daunting task. I'll put another bike on the trainer for the summer instead of moving the Vendetta back and forth.
 

Derek

Active Member
Ok, I just got mine and tried it out. Photo below. Here is my report:

Unfortunately this did not work for me on a V20. The device does pull and hold the chain from the top and rear of the cassette. On a standard bike, this is all you need to slip the wheel off to the rear.

On our bike the wheel must go straight down to be removed, and the chain is still right there engaged at the bottom of the cassette. And the device actually prevents manually moving the chain off the cassette. The chainlift was also pressing pretty hard on the RD cable, enough for me to worry about getting a kink.

Maybe I am missing something. I emailed customer service and got a prompt reply offering to set up a video call and saying that it does work for the V20 and S40. I am impressed with that, but would be encouraged if anyone else here on the forum had success with this.

View attachment 11119

I just tried this today, and I didn't run into the same problems that Jim ran into. The chain was pulled down low enough to clear the trainer cassette and i was able to move the RD cable out of the way as not to risk a pinch. (See attached photo)

2 things done differently: 1. had the Chainlift push further up the chainstay, and 2. the arm which grabs the chain swivels independently if you pull it "out" (toward the wheel/trainer) and twist. So you need to pull it out and spin it counter clockwise to drop the chain lower. (See attached "v2" photo)

However, I did run into a problem when I removed the skewer to move the frame off the trainer. The grey part of the Chainlift which pushes against the chainstay (the anchor point when swiveling the chain off of the cassette) created enough pressure to separate the chainstays (despite the non-drive-side [NDS] chainstays being zip-tied together). Seems the zip-ties keep the chainstays from falling apart from the "V" into a "I I" but the rear-facing force of the Chainlift pushed the front chainstay backward into an "X" pattern which the zip-ties don't seem to protect against. So, the RD ended up falling out. Big mess.

Would like to know if anyone has a solution for creating a little more "staying power" for the chainstays beyond the amount of holding strength that the NDS zip-tie approach provides? would zip-tying the drive-side chainstays together as well help? (i seem to recall someone saying this is not recommended due to potential interference w/ the cassette/chain)

The only other thing I can think of would be to remove the skewer just a bit (enough to remove it from the right chainstays/RD and put in a stubby skewer from the drive side), before attaching the Chainlift.
 

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