SESKStuff Everyone Should Know
SESK: Stuff Everyone Should Know · sesk.info/bike-chain-straight-line

For best results, how should your bike chain line up when you pick gears?

In a generally straight line.

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  1. Biggest front ring with biggest rear cog
  2. Angled as far as it will go
  3. In a generally straight line ✔

Why: The League says the chain works best in a generally straight line. If it is not, you will usually hear it.

Huh, didn't know that: Riding big ring to biggest cog, or small to smallest, bends the chain at a sharp angle; riders call it cross-chaining.

The dad joke
Why did the chain go to the extreme? It wanted to cross over.
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References

Answer: In a generally straight line. The League says the chain works best in a generally straight line. If it is not, you will usually hear it.

  1. League of American Bicyclists: Starting, Stopping, and Shifting bikeleague.org/videos/starting-stopping-and-shifting
    For best results, the chain needs to be in a generally straight line.
    Checked 2026-10-12.

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