KMC X8 8-Speed Silver X-Series High-Performance Bicycle Chain

Okay, first off I'm not an avid bicyclist. I know very little about bikes, other than what I remember when I was scabbing up my knees as a kid. Recently, a friend gave me a Raleigh 21 speed mountain (I think. It has knobby tires, but no suspension. Low gear, is very, very low) bike. It's old, maybe 20 years or so. It wouldn't shift at all, the derailer's, chain and shifting mechanisms were all gummed up and stuck. Using some solvent and light oil, I got everything moving, and functioning as they should (Thanks Google, lots of good info out there on adjusting 20 year old Shimano derailer's and shifters). After I was done, I went for a test ride. It all worked, just not well. The shifting was super clunky and hesitant, and I was getting what felt like the chain was skipping off the rear cassette (I learned that word on the inter web. Thanks again, Google). I couldn't get in all of the gears, no matter how much adjusting I did. Basically, if I was on the smallest gear on the rear cassette, I the front one wouldn't shift to the far left. If I was on the large gear in back, the front wouldn't go all the way to the right, big, gear on the front. On closer inspection, I found several links of the chain were stuck and not rotating as they should. More solvent and lube. After trying and trying, it became clear that no amount of oil was going to loosen them up. So I came here and found this chain, and threw in the recommended chain tool. 36 hours later, Prime did it's thing, and my new chain and tool arrived. Back to Google to learn how to remove links, and get the chain the right length. The included quick link connector threw me off a bit, as it essentially adds a link back in, after you size the chain. As other reviewers stated, it takes some elbow grease to push the pins out, but nothing too crazy. The tool Amazon recommended worked perfectly. I even used it to push the pin back into the links I removed, and it did the job just fine. Once the chain was on, I took another test ride. All I can say is WOW!!! The old Raleigh feels like a completely different bicycle! Smooth, noise free shifting, and it rides so much smother. There is less effort required to pedal now as well. The gear skipping thing is 100% gone, and I can silently snick into each and every gear, every time I hit the shifter. I was actually a little surprised how big a difference this chain made. It's like a completely different bicycle now. Really, it's that good, and made that big of a difference!!! One side note. I didn't degrease and re-oil the chain as some other reviewers suggested. The oil, lube or whatever it was shipped with seemed about right. It's not super saturated in the stuff, and seems to be a pretty good lube. As the magic link thingy is easy to remove and is reusable, I'll wait until it needs a cleaning, and do it then...

I purchased this to replace a really old and original chain on my Schwinn 24 speed mountain bike. I purchased the KMC X8.99/X8 Bicycle Chain and not only does it look great, it seems to be of better quality than my original. It comes with everything you need, including instructions and a missing link link. Once I had everything measured and popped the pin out, everything from there was pretty straightforward. Got the chain back on, and using the missing link, (which my original did not have) it makes it very easy to connect the chain together, and be on your way. I ended up using a different missing link only because of the color, but the one that comes with with the chain seems of better quality than the one I used. (this is just a recreational bike) The missing link link that comes with it is the same nice silver color as the chain. The chain overall came nicely lubricated, good packaging and fit perfectly after sizing it correctly. My old chain was very old and with this new chain my bike feels different when pedaling. Everything works. Shifting is smooth, no skips or jumps and very quiet. I have already ridden 30 miles on it and am happy I changed it. The chain just overall seems high quality and much nicer than my old chain even when new. Most importantly the compatibility, and fit is perfect on my bicycle. The size and links of the chain match up with my original.

Utilized this chain when installing a Bafang E-Bike mid-drive kit on a Trek Dual Sport bicycle. Smooth shifting. Would recommend.

Have had great experience with the 10 and 11 speed Kmc chains, so natural choice when replacing old 8 speed chain on my bike trainer that lives year round outside under my porch. Chain is fully coated with nickel, measures like a new chain, quiet, what’s not to love? Had it a week now, it’s quiet on my 8 speed mtb and shifts fine. Quick link was no trouble. One thing about the chain: I’ve used the same chain breaker tool for 20 years now for shortening new chains. This is the first chain I couldn’t break using the tool and my hands, the mushroomed hardened pins are insanely strong. I had to operate the chain breaker with a large pair of channel lock pliers. I think that says good things about durability but have a plan if you expect to be able to separate and repair a gnarled chain in the field. Lastly: I see several reviews complaining about receiving the wrong chain from amazon. Kmc has changed their packaging and there is now no mention of the model number. No kmc x8.99, or ‘silver’ like before. It is labeled with just x8. I also thought I’d received the wrong product until I checked the UPC code under the bar code. It in fact matches the upc in the kmc product catalog. Inexplicable to me but that’s the packaging as of Jan 2020. If your chain is all silver then it is the x8.99 and you’re good. If only silver outer plates it is the x8.93.

The chain itself is excellent. Rides smooth, looks good. Seems durable. That said, the included quick link was defective. The quick links are supposed to snap together hard, with an audible click. The pair included with this chain are loose and sloppy - they just slide right in to their "locked" position with no effort. As a consequence, they slide apart with no effort, and are not secure at all. For anyone with any experience with quick links, this pair acts like a pair that has been reused 100 times. Not a big deal for someone who has spare quick links (I didn't for this size chain), but beware of this potential issue as you may need to return this or buy appropriate quick links separately. Although it is a good idea to keep spares of these anyway.

Installed a new Efneo front gear system on a recumbent trike, and while the KMC X72 chain still had life even after 3,000 miles I decided to upgrade to the X8.99 chain with the newer drive. Took 3 packages of chain for the trike, and had help with a friend. All seemed to go well. Took for a short spin from his garage to the car, and then at home I rode maybe 40 yards. Next day went out to lubricate with Bioshield T9 lubricant and found a bad link. This was a new chain. So, I removed the bad link, and used a section of chain that was left over to replace the shortened one with the bad link. Got that all done, took the trike fro another 40 yard jog, was dark so waited to go the next day for a 10 miler. Next day was wiping down the chain and noticed once section of chain was leaning slightly to one side. Was only a small section, maybe three feet. But I went for a ride. Got caught in a rain on the way home, so sat under the cover of trees and was back pedaling - chain popped off. (?!) Was dark, but adjusted the headlamps and seen one section of chain was leaning, where the majority of the chain was laying flat. As long as I was not back pedaling was okay. Got home, rode slower. Parked the trike and checked the next day. Did not have enough extra chain, so ordered another set from Amazon. Now am fine. Chain running flat over the crank & sprocket. first time having a bed chain, and looked it over and indeed there was a section where the chain drifted to one side. Checked my chains again to be sure there were no twists, and everything was good. So sending this on section back to Amazon with a big (??). Hopefully this chain will do good, as I occasionally do get caught in the rain, and I ride almost over any terrain. X8.99 was recommended from the recumbent trike forums I frequent. Update: Chain has been skipping a lot lately. Sent the recumbent trike in to the mehcanic to see what is going on here. Should of went with the OEM cheaper version in hindsight.

This is a noticeably high performance chain. I'm extremely pleased and I highly recommend it. I have a 2016 Giant Defy road bike. According to their website, the stock chain is a KMC Z7. I found this chain with the same specs, but it has a beveled design to it. Also, it says that this chain is stretch proof, which is the reason why I was replacing the chain. I also replaced my cassette, because after 3000 miles of riding, undoubtedly about a third of that with a stretched chain, the teeth of the cassette were also worn. I went with the same cassette as my stock cassette, the SRAM PG850 8 Speed Cassette, also available here on Amazon for a good price. Shifts with this chain are immediate, precise, and smooth as butter. Up and down the cassette, one or two gears away, the response is immediate and smooth. Shifts with the stock chain was pretty good, but this is a whole new ball game. It's terrific! And it's actually $1 less than the KMC Z7 as of this writing for a better chain! If your specs can use this chain, get it!

This was an easy replacement for my existing Shimano chain for my 8 speed bicycle (Gary Fisher Zebrano). The appearance of this chain is impressive. The build quality is exceptional. This is a very quiet chain and it navigates the various gears on my bicycle with ease. Since I purchased this chain it has doubled in price (I can see why). I've only put a few hundred miles on it so far, I'm curious to see how well it wears. So far so good. The chain cleans up easily and like I previously stated, it is impressive in appearance. The missing link was an easy install. I installed it without removing any links and thought I would need to remove one but a couple twists of my rear derailleur's barrel adjuster did the trick. If they do or even if they don't drop back down in price, I'm going to buy a few more to keep on hand. This so far appears to be a great looking chain that is very well made and easy to install.

After 13000 km (8000 miles) using this chain on an inside trainer the chain is only stretched by 0.45%. Yes, indoor conditions are ideal (no sand, no rain) but I average 150 watts and as a sprinter often go up to 1000 watts so I feel like the chain still gets a workout. This is my second 8 speed KMC X8 chain (see picture of old vs new, only 1/2 link stretch over 110 links). Shifting is excellent with this chain. I will definitively buy again and would give 6 starts if I could. Ohter info: I like to change chain when I get to 0.5% stretch to save my cassette. I can start to feel grinding at high power around 0.5%. I also mainly lubricated this chain with a general purpouse chain spray from WD-40. I will continue with this combination.

Item received as described. Very happy with it. Good quality and looks great. Packaged very securely. Would recommend and buy again.

Excelente producto, buen material, buen resultado.

Good quality

Prompt delivery. Item received as described.