Our Five Favorite Chain Guides

Let's dive in to our Five Favorite mountain bike chain guides! There are of course a lot of popular options out there along with some different thoughts behind if you should even mount a chain guide on your mountain bike. Will you be able to keep your chain on solely with a narrow wide chain ring? Is it worth the weight penalty? If you are looking for the best chain retention possible, it's always a good idea to mount up a chain guide, and that's why we want to show you guys our favorites from OneUp Components, e*Thirteen, and MRP. If your top pick didn't make it in to our top five, check out our full selection of chain guides.

OneUp Components Bash Guide V2

OneUp Components is small cycling components built around a passion for mountain biking based in Squamish British Columbia. OneUp now has a full range a products and their chain guides have become some of the most popular among enduro world series racers. The OneUp Components Bash Guide V2 chain guide features a minimalistic top slider and a bash guard for chain ring protection. The upper slider and bash guard are made from reinforced nylon and the back plate is cut from 8mm thick 7075-T6 aluminum using a ISCG 05 bolt pattern. The OneUp Bash Guide includes 3 different sizes of bash plate for compatibility with chainrings from 28-36T.  

OneUp Components Chain Guide V2

The OneUp Components Chain Guide V2 takes minimalistic to a whole new level. In some cases, running a chain guide isn't 100% necessary but is there instead as an extra security blanket. The Version 2 OneUp chain guide uses a two bolt light weight design utilizing only a top slider. Even though this is the smallest and most minimalistic approach to keeping your chain on the chainring, the OneUp chain guide certainly doesn't lack in performance. This guide is simple, easy to install, and only weighs 40 grams. 

e*Thirteen TRS+  Chain Guide with Compact Slider

When it comes to chain guides, e*Thirteen has always been at the top of the list. e*Thirteen guides follow the same nomenclature as the rest of the e*Thirteen product lineup. Their LG1 groupset is aimed towards downhill riding and the TRS groupset is tailored more towards trail/enduro bikes. The e*Thirteen TRS+ chain guide is one of our favorites because it offers excellent chain retention, can withstand the abuse seen on enduro bikes, all while remaining lightweight. The TRS+ guide uses an aluminum backplate with a ISCG 05 bolt patter. One other feature we love about e*Thirteen chain guides is that each of the top sliders and the bash guards are cross compatible. For example, if you have an LG1r chain guide, the the top slider and bash guide will also fit on to the TRS+ guide here. 

MRP AMg V2 Alloy Chain Guide

MRP Components was born from the trails of Colorado, and just like e*Thirteen, MRP is originally known for their chain guides but now has a full range of products including suspension and chainrings. The MRP AMg V2 Alloy chain guide uses the same co-molded "TR" upper guide that you will see on their 1X guide but also features an integrated bash guard. The AMg V2 guide is designed for the trail/enduro market and is perfect for your every day bike. This guide is also uniquely available in both ISCG 05 and ISCG Old mounting patterns. 

MRP 1X CS Chain Guide

The MRP 1X CS chain guide is a light weight and minimalistic chain guide that features a composite backplate and an upper guide only design. The composite backplate balances stiffness, durability, and performance all in one. This style of chain guide is perfect for your cross country or trail mountain bike if you are looking for an option with out a bash guard. MRP's co-molded upper guide uses a rubber interior to cut down on noise and all in all is a drag free system.  MRP's 1X guide is also offered with either an aluminum or carbon backplate option as well.