The thing to remember is that O-Chain doesn’t solve the issue either. As far as I understand it, O-Chain just puts small rubber springs into the chainring. These will take the edge off pedal kickback, but won’t eliminate it. Think of it as a drivetrain “damper”. I would imagine O-Chain might be effective for flat pedal riders who find themselves blowing off the pedals due to the effects of pedal kickback.
Low engagement freehub bodies don’t really solve the issue 100% either, they just make it less likely to occur. In a world of options, the low engagement freehub body is the low hanging fruit of solutions.
High pivot bikes in which the drive length of chain actually shortens under suspension compression are a scenario where there is theoretically no chance of pedal kickback. Ever. Norco Range comes to mind.
March 14, 2023, 7:29 a.m. - Ryan Walters
The thing to remember is that O-Chain doesn’t solve the issue either. As far as I understand it, O-Chain just puts small rubber springs into the chainring. These will take the edge off pedal kickback, but won’t eliminate it. Think of it as a drivetrain “damper”. I would imagine O-Chain might be effective for flat pedal riders who find themselves blowing off the pedals due to the effects of pedal kickback. Low engagement freehub bodies don’t really solve the issue 100% either, they just make it less likely to occur. In a world of options, the low engagement freehub body is the low hanging fruit of solutions. High pivot bikes in which the drive length of chain actually shortens under suspension compression are a scenario where there is theoretically no chance of pedal kickback. Ever. Norco Range comes to mind.