OCHAIN | R

I'm really loving the Ochain R so far.

I've heard a lot of people be uncertain of it - "just get a low engagement hub" - "just get a high pivot" - "overengineering" etc...

All I have said to them is to try it.

Firstly, the rear end of the bike feels so much more planted - I have a V2 Santa Cruz megatower and thought pedal kickback was pretty awful on the V1 and a little better on the V2 but still noticeable - you instantly feel how much more calm and controlled the rear end of the bike is with the O Chain. It just feels as if your suspension works better.

Secondly I also can't stress how much I love a quiet bike and this really helps to make the rear end shut up if you have a noisy bike.

Thirdly and most importantly (for me at least), it has made me faster - I have been clawing back times on almost every trail that I have been riding and you really feel the extra speed that you can gain with this thing on rough chattery sections where the bike just feels so smooth.

Another benefit of the OChain R is the adjustibility. It's really nice to be able to adjust the degrees of float on the cranks for what kind of riding you want to do. To be completely honest - i pretty much always just leave it on 12 degrees because I'm used to that now and it feels great. I think that the negative impact of the O Chain on pedalling is pretty negligible - especially for the benefits you get going downhill. If you are really worried about this - that is why the O Chain R is so good as you can lock it out for the uphills which I have only ever felt the need to do on a couple really long days with proper slog pedals - most of the time it really doesn't bother me at all.

Installation is also really easy. Took me 5 mins to attach it to crank and then chainring and then I was off.

I would say there are still a few things to watch out for:
-UPS charged me around £100 in tax to ship to Scotland - it is said by O Chain before buying it but just watch out because it is pretty expensive.
-If you just buy the Ochain R then it doesn't come with the bolts to install it to the 104 BCD chainring - so you will have to buy these. Apply loctite to these bolts because they can come loose quite easily and losing them is a nightmare.
-I bought a hope, t type compatible 104 BCD chainring and I've had no problems at all but I know that some people have had issues with finding compatible chainrings so just watch out for this too.

Despite these minor issues, I'd still highly recommend it. I'm loving it and its transformed my riding for the better.

Works brilliantly but was stung for £100 by ups when it arrived in the uk before they would deliver it so please bear this in mind, my own fault for not checking :(

also fyi sram 104 bcd 34t chainrings (t-type and 12 speed x-sync 2) dont fit this and therefore makes running t-type almost impossible

Just for context, I installed it in Santa Cruz Bronson 2024, and I ride flat pedals.

Long story short, I would buy it again. It transformed the way the bike feels, but it needs some getting used to.

Positive things:
- chain slaps - gone
- jerking moves on the feet from suspension - gone
- Overall, you can tell that the bike becomes way quieter
- Suspension works much better
- If for any reason you feel that your feet are falling off the pedal when you jump, Ochain compensates for that by bringing the cranks up (had no idea that would be an added benefit)
- Haven't noticed any issues with the climbing, even with a 12-degree setup

Something you can consider as a con:
- provided mounting screws for 3 bolt sram version are necessary, you can't use original ones as they are too wide and they don't fit correctly
- Correcting your feet' position in Five10 shoes on the trail is almost impossible. You try to lift a foot, and the cranks follow the feet for 12 degrees. It's a lot for a small correction
- Now I can hear actual tires hitting elements of the trail

It's the best upgrade you can buy for your bike and yourself.
It reduces leg fatigue and gives you a better feel on the bike.
This also adds an extra level of safety.
I'll never ride without it again!

However, you should definitely pay attention to the torque settings and apply Loctite to the four small screws to prevent them from coming loose.

All in all, the best product for your bike!

The thing does what it says on the tin and thats great, though there are some design shortcomings:
1. the timing of the spider has a positive offset at the engagement point. This should be a negative offset. It would allow compatibility with oval chainrings. All it would take is that the direct mount would be -12 degrees compared to the current product, everything else stays.
2. the rubber o ring under the selector is prone to get out of its groove (requires disassembly to fix), because the selector gets bent under the spring/elastomer load when used unless one is very careful to press the pedal on the bike when selecting very consistently. It would be enough to use a square cross-section o ring with more thickness to avoid this.

also, some of us would not mind to pay double for a forged carbon / aluminium composite version :)