Review on 🔗 11-speed Steel Connex Link by Mark Sutovsky

I love the concept and actual function of this link, but as other people have pointed out, it causes the chain to actually "skip" when you're on the 11 tooth of a Shimano 11 speed -Rear wheel cassette are. . That's the only reason I didn't give 5 stars. let me explain. I finally found out why he's missing! The "shoulder" of this link's sideplate sits just above the standard quick link. This extra width is needed to accommodate the wavy groove on the side plate of the link to engage the pin. The 11-tooth cog on a Shimano cassette does not have the same depth spacing on either side of the 'teeth' as the other cogs, as this cog also serves as the nut holding the entire cassette to the hub. So it actually has a high shoulder that other gears don't have. The extra height of the quick connect plate (when looking at the side of the link) increases at the gear arm 11t and does not mesh with the teeth 11t. all the way so that when it's energized it actually skips the gear tooth sooner. Think of a gear like a clock. The chain engages the cog at the bottom at 6 o'clock and disengages at the top at 12 o'clock as you pedal. Since this link does not fully engage the teeth to the same depth ONLY on the 11 tooth cog, it will slip off the cog when the link reaches about the 2 o'clock position when it is rounded on top if you STRONGLY into the pedaling . the tooth is early and it feels and sounds like a chain jump. and it's VERY disturbing. For me I didn't bother trying another brand's cassette to see if the linkage would work as it's a much cheaper option, SRAM or KCM packages (even Shimano) and quick links (even Shimano) to buy at the price of experimentation. So my bottom line is, for anyone considering this product, if you're not going to load the smallest 11t gear of a Shimano 11 speed cassette, go for it, you'll love it! If you do, you'll quickly see what I'm talking about and pick it up and put it in a dark corner of the trash can once you get back from your first ride. Take care 😷