I'll take a cheap chain checker over eyeballing chain stretch any day
Had a bike come in last week with a drivetrain that sounded like gravel in a blender, and the owner swore the chain was fine because it "looked new." Dropped a $12 Park Tool CC-3.2 on it and it read 0.75 percent wear, so the cassette and ring were already toast at 4,000 miles. Eyeballing a chain tells you nothing once it's dirty, and I've watched too many riders kill $200 of parts trying to save a $30 chain. Anyone here still pulling a chain to measure it the old way, or has everyone caved and bought the checker?