ROLLER CHAIN
Roller chain or bush roller chain is the type of chain drive most commonly used for transmission of mechanical power on many kinds of domestic, industrial and agricultural machinery, including conveyors, wire- and tube-drawing machines, printing presses, cars, motorcycles, and bicycles. It consists of a series of short cylindrical rollers held together by side links. It is driven by a toothed wheel called a sprocket. It is a simple, reliable, and efficient means of power transmission.
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CHAIN STANDARDS
Standards organizations (such as ANSI and ISO) maintain standards for design, dimensions, and interchangeability of transmission chains. For example, the following Table shows data from ANSI standard B29.1-2011 (Precision Power Transmission Roller Chains, Attachments, and Sprockets) developed by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). See the references[8][9][10] for additional information.
ASME/ANSI B29.1-2011 Roller Chain Standard SizesSizePitchMaximum Roller DiameterMinimum Ultimate Tensile StrengthMeasuring Load25
| ASME/ANSI B29.1-2011 Roller Chain Standard Sizes |
| Size |
Pitch |
Maximum Roller Diameter |
Minimum Ultimate Tensile Strength |
Measuring Load |
| 25 |
0.250 in (6.35 mm) |
0.130 in (3.30 mm) |
780 lb (350 kg) |
18 lb (8.2 kg) |
| 35 |
0.375 in (9.53 mm) |
0.200 in (5.08 mm) |
1,760 lb (800 kg) |
18 lb (8.2 kg) |
| 41 |
0.500 in (12.70 mm) |
0.306 in (7.77 mm) |
1,500 lb (680 kg) |
18 lb (8.2 kg) |
| 40 |
0.500 in (12.70 mm) |
0.312 in (7.92 mm) |
3,125 lb (1,417 kg) |
31 lb (14 kg) |
| 50 |
0.625 in (15.88 mm) |
0.400 in (10.16 mm) |
4,880 lb (2,210 kg) |
49 lb (22 kg) |
| 60 |
0.750 in (19.05 mm) |
0.469 in (11.91 mm) |
7,030 lb (3,190 kg) |
70 lb (32 kg) |
| 80 |
1.000 in (25.40 mm) |
0.625 in (15.88 mm) |
12,500 lb (5,700 kg) |
125 lb (57 kg) |
| 100 |
1.250 in (31.75 mm) |
0.750 in (19.05 mm) |
19,531 lb (8,859 kg) |
195 lb (88 kg) |
| 120 |
1.500 in (38.10 mm) |
0.875 in (22.23 mm) |
28,125 lb (12,757 kg) |
281 lb (127 kg) |
| 140 |
1.750 in (44.45 mm) |
1.000 in (25.40 mm) |
38,280 lb (17,360 kg) |
383 lb (174 kg) |
| 160 |
2.000 in (50.80 mm) |
1.125 in (28.58 mm) |
50,000 lb (23,000 kg) |
500 lb (230 kg) |
| 180 |
2.250 in (57.15 mm) |
1.460 in (37.08 mm) |
63,280 lb (28,700 kg) |
633 lb (287 kg) |
| 200 |
2.500 in (63.50 mm) |
1.562 in (39.67 mm) |
78,175 lb (35,460 kg) |
781 lb (354 kg) |
| 240 |
3.000 in (76.20 mm) |
1.875 in (47.63 mm) |
112,500 lb (51,000 kg) |
1,000 lb (450 kg |
For mnemonic purposes, below is another presentation of key dimensions from the same standard, expressed in fractions of an inch (which was part of the thinking behind the choice of preferred numbers in the ANSI standard):
| Pitch (inches) |
Pitch expressed
in eighths |
ANSI standard
chain number |
Width (inches) |
| 1⁄4 |
2⁄8 |
25 |
1⁄8 |
| 3⁄8 |
3⁄8 |
35 |
3⁄16 |
| 1⁄2 |
4⁄8 |
41 |
1⁄4 |
| 1⁄2 |
4⁄8 |
40 |
5⁄16 |
| 5⁄8 |
5⁄8 |
50 |
3⁄8 |
| 3⁄4 |
6⁄8 |
60 |
1⁄2 |
| 1 |
8⁄8 |
80 |
5⁄8 |
Notes:
1. The pitch is the distance between roller centers. The width is the distance between the link plates (i.e. slightly more than the roller width to allow for clearance).
2. The right-hand digit of the standard denotes 0 = normal chain, 1 = lightweight chain, 5 = rollerless bushing chain.
3. The left-hand digit denotes the number of eighths of an inch that make up the pitch.
4. An "H" following the standard number denotes heavyweight chain. A hyphenated number following the standard number denotes double-strand (2), triple-strand (3), and so on. Thus 60H-3 denotes number 60 heavyweight triple-strand chain.
A typical bicycle chain (for derailleur gears) uses narrow 1⁄2-inch-pitch chain. The width of the chain is variable, and does not affect the load capacity. The more sprockets at the rear wheel (historically 3-6, nowadays 7-12 sprockets), the narrower the chain. Chains are sold according to the number of speeds they are designed to work with, for example, "10 speed chain". Hub gear or single speed bicycles use 1/2" x 1/8" chains, where 1/8" refers to the maximum thickness of a sprocket that can be used with the chain.
Typically chains with parallel shaped links have an even number of links, with each narrow link followed by a broad one. Chains built up with a uniform type of link, narrow at one and broad at the other end, can be made with an odd number of links, which can be an advantage to adapt to a special chainwheel-distance; on the other side such a chain tends to be not so strong.
Roller chains made using ISO standard are sometimes called as isochains.
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