Sram keeps the road bike chain in check

A botched shift can be the difference between victory and defeat in a race. For road cyclists who rely on Sram gears and want to ride on the winning side, the US component manufacturer has developed a chain catcher that prevents the chain from falling off the chainring.

Sram wants to banish to the realm of legend the stories of the shifting process with dropping chains, which scratch the down tube in the bottom bracket area and make it necessary to dismount in order to lift the chain back onto the small chainring. For this purpose, Sram's engineers have developed an attachment that acts as a guard rail for the chain.

The attachment should be easy to fit and adjust without affecting the position or setting of the derailleur or requiring readjustment. The Sram chain catcher weighs just 12 grams and is compatible with the braze-on versions of the Sram Red-2012 and Sram Red front derailleurs as well as the Force, Rival and Apex groupsets.

If the frame does not have a braze-on mount, the chain catcher can be fitted with a suitable clamp in diameters of 34.9 or 31.8 millimetres, which is available separately. The small shifting miracle will be available for the first time from June 1, 2012.

www.sram.com