Wasted $80 on a 'pro' chain checker that's just a plastic caliper

I bought this Park Tool CC-4 chain checker off Amazon, got all excited to finally measure my chain wear accurately, and then I realized it's just a glorified plastic ruler with markings. Turns out a simple 12-inch metal ruler costs $5 and does the exact same thing, the CC-4 just flexes and gives false readings after a few uses. Has anyone else gotten burned by overpriced tools that don't do anything special?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_amy3d agoMost Upvoted

and honestly I had the exact same wake up call with their chain checker. I bought the CC-4 a couple years ago thinking I was doing the smart thing and then I dropped it once and the plastic cracked right where the measurement marks are. It was useless after that. Meanwhile I've got a $4 steel ruler from Michaels that I've dropped on concrete a dozen times and it's still dead straight. Park Tool really is coasting on that old reputation because their basic stuff is straight up worse than hardware store alternatives these days. It's frustrating because you trust the name and pay extra thinking you're getting quality but really you're just paying for the branding on a piece of plastic. Makes you wonder what else in their lineup is just rebranded junk.

clairen853d ago

Yeah Park Tool used to be good but now they just slap their name on junk like that and charge triple.

the_sam3d ago

Yeah that part about Park Tool just slapping their name on junk really hits home now. I used to be the guy defending them, talking about how their stuff was worth the premium and all that. But then I grabbed one of their chain checkers a few months ago and yeah, it's basically a plastic ruler that bends if you look at it wrong. A cheap metal ruler from the hardware store is way more accurate and doesn't flex. Kinda made me realize they're coasting on their old reputation for some of these tools now. Funny how you can defend a brand for years until you actually buy the thing yourself.