KC I know you are an amazing MB builder I envy your builds big time, but you are a rare and very experienced expert. Yes, your 100 percent right on the money with the rag joint sprocket set up working perfect for you and many guys that have installed many of them or even a newbie or two who got lucky or had really good mechanical skills. Heck, I don't know what I'm doing with them at all as I've personally never installed one, but I watched and pitched in with other guys that took advice from experts like you and struggled for numerous eves to install true, drive, adjust and true, drive, adjust and true... fiddle, fiddle night after night working on chains, rag joint chain rag joint over and over sometimes into the wee hours of the morning. They were true and torqued up tight as heck but only after a few days of riding they were back at it. Wow were they ever determined to get rid of the always just slight wobble and chain issues, after all... experts told them how easy it was and I think they felt kinda dumb and yet challenged. I told them give up already and get a clam shell... There are Just so many factors to get it right. I would imaging you can do blind folded and fast. In all due respect I think your forgetting that some, if not most people doing their first builds have a difficult and frustrating time getting that sprocket dialed in all directions. Part of the problem is the terrible and inconsistent rubber donuts that vary in thickness so compression is very inconsistent that changes under pressure and movement, and yep warped sprockets, soft sprockets that bend or get out of true during the violence of bump starting. I suspect if the rubber was perfect in thickness and better quality or a bit harder the pulling and movement would be far less and would install faster. When it un-trues though, it causes unexpected problems for the many non expert builders. I know a guy who can paint signs by hand fast and perfect every time but it isn't the brush he's using! Its his 20years of experience, and it seems simple and easy to him but not others. Yes the dangers of CNC sprockets bolts coming off has caused on guy or 2 to damage his spokes but they forgot the needed Blue locktite and the bolts or forgot to check them for tightness periodically. The CNC adapters and sprockets go on fast and darn straight for anyone and even have slight left and right adjustments for perfect chain alignment and they get the newbie on the road quicker as they never wobble or go on off-centered. A person just has to figure what your time is worth or just either get really good at installing the rag joints or just never give up on trueing them. its why ill stick to just getting a modern precision computer made clam shell sprocket adapters. Now available for just 40 bucks. I will continue to recommend them to new guys until something better comes along. One can now choose many hours of cumulated work for many 1st time builders to get the rag joints centered and trued in all directions and likely more than once, or just get a CNC clam shell right away that's pretty close to perfect in minutes. Its a lot of directions the rag joints can go on a X, Y, Z, axis. and with a CNC adapter you only have to worry about Z. The CNC sprocket and the clam shell and innovations like this are something a new builder should be reminded of and take advantage of if they can afford it in my opinion. My son could of been seriously injured at least 3 times because of a rag joint problems and his stubborn belief it should be easy to install and be perfect. He now has a CNC clam shell finally and realized how dangerous it is to have a chain de-rail and lock up your bike instantly. Last time he also had to walk 1 mile holding his rear tire off the ground after truing his sprocket for the 6th time with his chain locked up so he couldn't pedal hm either. Sometimes the best advice comes from a newbie.
