Rimpact Chain Damper For E-Bike Review

October 8, 2026

Rimpact has released an eBike version of their Chain Damper, designed to mitigate the effects of chain vibration-induced feedback on Bosch or Avinox-equipped eMTBs. After months of abuse, it’s time to share our opinion of Rimpact’s latest bike performance enhancer. 

About The Rimpact Chain Damper for eBike

Rimpact kept it simple when designing an eBike-specific version of their chain damper, utilizing much of the same design of their well regarded active chain spider, but tailoring the design to the fitment of eMTB drive units. At launch, Rimpact is only offering a 34T version of the Chain Damper for eBike in Bosch and Avinox fitment, but they are taking requests for alternative systems, which will likely follow soon.

The Rimpact Chain Damper is designed to mitigate the effects of chain flail, capturing the energy of a flapping chain before it reaches the riders’ feet. It does this with a combination of springs and elastomers, which allows the outer chainring to rotate independently of the inner chainring, effectively isolating the crank from the chain energy. When the rider pedals, the crank pulls the inner chainring forwards until the springs compress and the elastomers are reached, which then transfers input to the drive unit.

Rimpact experimented with a stainless steel ring during the development of the Chain Damper for eBike, but have released with their alloy outer ring due to manufacturing challenges. This alloy outer ring is given a strong, thick, natural anodized finish to increase its lifespan, giving the gold colorway.

The unit is fully serviceable, and can be tuned to run with either the softer Trail springs (fitted as standard) or the stiffer DH springs for maximum performance under the hardest riding. Service intervals will be highly dependant on the riding conditions, with Rimpact recommending service is only carried out should there be notable noise or performance degradation.

THE DIRT

I spent time on the Rimpact Chain Damper for eBike fitted to two different Bosch CX Gen 5-equipped eMTBs: a Merida E180, and my Scott Patron long term test eBike. These two bikes have different trail characteristics and provided interesting variation in my overall feedback on the device.

On the Merida, a Linkage-driven single pivot bruiser with big travel, I found the DH springs to be highly effective, and the overall demeanour of the bike improved notably under the hardest of riding. I didn’t have a huge testing period with the device, but you wouldn’t need to convince me too hard to fit the Chain Damper for eBikes to this machine if it were permanently in my garage.

The Scott Patron produced a slightly less favorable overall impression, but I still enjoyed the performance of the device overall. However, it were the Trail springs that provided the best characteristics to boost the performance of the Patron. As a bike where I spent more of my time in the lower power modes than the full-boost riding of the Merida, the drawbacks of the DH springs to the pedaling characteristic were more pronounced. There was the more notable feeling of “pedaling in squares” and occasionally some confusion in the drive unit which would “lerch” as it felt the tension in the springs load up and release. If you were pedaling hard, it was not an issue, but for soft to mid-pedaling efforts it would present itself occasionally.

The improvements on the descents with the stiffer springs in the Scott Patron were reduced, too, likely due to reduced riding aggression on board Scott’s all-mountain eeb. With less energy being imparted to the chain, there was less need for the maximum effects of the DH spring-equipped Chain Damper.

With the Trail springs fitted, the Patron felt more planted and calmer. It felt to give an extra boost of suspension sensitivity or even suspension travel, allowing for more focus down the trail and less concern about what was under the tires. The pedaling characteristics were easier to manage, too, only requiring a relatively soft pedal to engage the elastomers, and producing no issues with motor surging in lesser power modes.

I spent more time riding the stainless steel prototype chainring than the alloy production model, but both proved to hold up amicably to the test of time. Following my test time on the Chain Damper for meat-powered MTBs, I have come to trust their strongly anodized alloy ring, so it wouldn’t be a concern for the long haul. The same goes for the sealing system, which does a solid job at keeping grease in and dirt and moisture out. And of course, Rimpact offers replacement parts for when the time comes to refresh the ring.

The Wolf’s Last Word

The Rimpact Chain Damper for eBikes is not a must-have item for every eMTB, however it can produce a notable improvement to the calmness of an eBike if the spring rate is matched to the bike and riding intentions. If you’re looking to improve the overall dialled feeling of your eBike and you can learn to live with the pedaling character, then the Rimpact Chain Damper is well worth considering.

Price: £199.99
Website: Rimpactmtb.com