Review: Shimano Saint SMCD-50 Chain Device

Pictures were floating around online of what appeared to be a chain device from Shimano from way back in April 2012 at Sea Otter. We were told that we wouldn't be seeing one of these hitting the shelves for a good while and after a full season of world cup downhill testing.

Nine Months later it finally hit the shelves of Madison, the UK Distributor for Shimano and we got a test model sent to us at MoreDirt.

It almost felt like Shimano have a strong foothold in nearly every piece of your drivetrain apart from any kind of formal chain retention device. Obviously they are home to the revolutionary clutch mechanism in their derailleurs but the current range never had a specific DH or Enduro chain device for the increasingly common 1X9/10 setups that we have seen appearing all over the trail centres.

First Impressions.

Shimano have gone for something a little different with their first dabble in the chain device market. The prototype that we had seen online looked pretty damn stylish and we are pleased to report that I don't think the finished product has changed much in appearance at all.

The guide fits 34, 36 and 38 tooth rings as standard with the sliding top portion that can be simply adjusted with one 4mm allen key and no fuss. The bottom portion of the guide has ditched the roller or jockey wheel and opted for the maintenance free and super quiet rubber slider.

The SMCD-50 uses a pretty cool and unique ¼ bash ring which if you think about it actually makes sense. This saves a whole load of weight and consequently the complete guide, bash and bolts come in with a weight of 149 grams which sheds about 35/50grams off the top of the range E thirteen equivalent which would cost a fair bit more.

Technically Speaking.

The lower portion of the Shimano Saint SMCD-50 isn’t just a standard fixed slider. This is wear the SMCD part of the name comes into play, Shimano’s Modular Chain Device’s bottom slider is mounted on a sprung loaded pivot to stop the backplate breaking or bending on impact.

The slider can be pushed up out the way by about 10/20mm onto the chain ring if it was to strike a rock that I’m certain would be the difference between ending your ride early with a considerably lighter wallet or carrying on your day with a lucky escape.

Shimano could of just used a Taco slider underneath that would of also stopped this same problem but that would of added weight to the scales and in the cold light of day not really distinguish their brand new unproven chain device from anything else out there on the market today. Innovation is a fantastic thing in the mountain bike industry as without it we would almost certainly see no technological improvements in the years to come. Luckily the innovation doesn’t just stop there…

The ¼ bashring from the outside doesn’t look like there’s much magic going on and I wouldn’t think any less of you for thinking that you now have ¾’s of my precious expensive chain ring exposed to damage all for the sake of about 100grams. Ask yourself these 2 questions?

Why do we need bash protection behind the crank arms? It’s actually physically impossible to hit that part of the chain ring as it’s already protected by the crank arm itself... Which part of the chain ring faces down nearly every time you undertake a feature that would expose your chain device or chain ring to damage?  I can guarantee nearly 99% of the time it will be the same foot that you lead with through a technical section and that is only time you ever put your chain ring in danger anyway.

The ¼ bash ring makes complete sense and it saves a whole lot of weight, which is probably why it tips the scales at a market beating 149grams.

The Ride.

Fitting the guide was a doddle with its ISCG tabs and took approximately 30 seconds to dial in after fitting. Since then I have never looked at it, thought about it or touched it and it’s still not dropped a single chain. That’s the kind of consistency and reliability that I love, it’s a genuine fit and forget product.

When pedaling the rubber dampeners and silencers on both the top and bottom portions of the guide do a cracking job of keeping the noise down and haven’t shown any signs of wear over the test period of the product and I don’t think they would for a considerable amount of miles yet either.

Its also turned quite a few heads when out on the trails, so if your that way inclined it’s a pretty cool bit of bling for your ride that comes in at an incredibly competitive £99 with the bashring or an astonishing £69 without.

Conclusion

It took a while before Shimano released their first foray into the chain device market but in a segment of the market that’s already saturated with so many great options it was important that their Saint SMCD-50 chain device was able to roll with the big dogs straight out of the gate.

It’s super lightweight, quiet, strong, stylish and most importantly will hold your chain in place through the bumpiest conditions and best of all it’s available for under 100 quid!

The big names of chain retention better buck their ideas up as Shimano’s Saint SMCD-50 is a genuine contender for the 1x10 enduro and downhill chain device market.

Shimano is distributed in the UK by the lovely people at Madison.