Index
- Introduction
- Products
- Contents
- Initial information and preparation
- Mounting
- Dismounting
- Maintenance
- Troubleshooting
- Common errors
1. Introduction
If you were looking for the easiest snow chains to fit on a car with limited space in the wheel arch, or on crossovers and small SUVs, you could not have made a better choice.
Identical fitting system; different application:
König Reflex Edge chains are designed to significantly simplify the installation process on cars with very narrow wheel arches.
König Reflex Cross chains with an increased tread are designed to significantly simplify the installation process on Crossover and small SUV vehicles.
This in-depth article aims to provide you with more information and assistance regarding the use of König Reflex Edge and Reflex Cross chains.
2. Products
The products covered by these insights are König Reflex Edge and König Reflex Cross.
| König Reflex Edge | König Reflex Cross |
3. Contents
- 1 pair of chains
- 1 nylon bag including
- 1 set of rim protection buttons
- 1 set of repair links
- 1 set of disposable gloves
4. Initial information and preparation
We recommend that you familiarise yourself with the product by taking it out of the packaging before actual use.
Mounting conditions:
When carrying out the fitting test, make sure that the ground or at least the tyre is in a condition at least similar to that of use. We recommend that you do not carry out the fitting test on a dry surface as the tyre compound and the chain could create friction that would limit chain positioning and could lead to the erroneous belief that the chain is too small. For this reason, we recommend you carry out the test with a wet tyre.
The chains of the Reflex family are supplied with the level 1 Wheel-Shield alloy wheel protection system. The chain does not have any elements that cross the rim, it does not have the typical side chains but a rigid arch covered with soft-touch plastic; inside the chain kit you will find the bag with the additional rim protection kit to be applied to the outer side hooks.
If, when installing your König Reflex chain, you notice that the black coloured outer arch is in the vicinity of the alloy rim, we recommend that you install rim protection buttons.
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Each button consists of a male and a female, which are paired by pressing with the fingers until they click. Please install a rim protection button on each side hook. Once installed, the metal surface of the hook will be covered and spaced from the rim profile.
When you have completed the operation, you can proceed with a fitting test.
5. Mounting
When installing your König Reflex chains, make sure that the red slider on the Reflex Box is in the down position. If not, simply move the slider to that position to release the tension.
Hold the two ends of the outer rigid arch, making sure that you hold the chain on the correct side: the outer arch is black and is marked by the presence of the Reflex Box, the tensioning device, with the König logo and the red tensioning slider.
Unfold the two ends to maximum extension. It is not necessary to open hard, just make sure you have spread the arch as far as possible: the opening of the outer arch will cause the red micro-cable to come out of the two lower ends.
At this point, you must perform the same operation on the inner arch: the inner arch is red. Once the inner arch is spread out, you will see the red micro-cable coming out of the two ends and you will have obtained the necessary extension to be able to fit the chain onto the wheel.
After dividing the inner arch, take the joint of the inner by-pass (A) (band connecting the two arches) as a visual reference: now concentrate on positioning it at 12 o'clock inside the wheel.
When this has found its place, while still holding the arch wide apart, pass the two ends (B) to the sides of the tyre, into the wheel arch, to position them on the inside shoulder of the tyre.
Caution: the two ends (B) must be positioned on the inside shoulder and not on the tyre tread.
If it seems to you that the two ends cannot reach that far, make sure that the micro-cable is not stuck at the front, to the point that the arch cannot be extended.
The arch of the König Reflex chains is symmetrical between the left and right sides, so it is important that this is positioned correctly during fitting. In fact, if this is held at an angle to the right or left, one end of the arch will easily reach the inside while the other will touch the ground. To check the centring of the bow, you can take the outer bar as a reference. The arc is centred when the by-pass band is at 12 o'clock.
Once the ends are in place, check that they are actually in the correct position: you should not see them on the tread but ideally in the centre of the shoulder. They are coloured red for visibility during fitting.
Now look at the chain from the outer side and check that the outer arc is centred on the wheel and ideally follows the profile of the rim.
The chain is ready to be tensioned and you only need one click to activate automatic tensioning: move the red slider on the Reflex Box to the top position. This is marked with the padlock, printed directly on the outer shell.
You can now move the vehicle at low speed and the chain will tension on the first wheel revolution and continue to tension progressively as you drive.
Caution: When fitting your König Reflex chains, we recommend that, once tensioning is activated, you move the vehicle to release the accumulated tension. In fact, the slider once moved to the high position activates the internal spiral spring, which is subjected to maximum tension stress for the entire time between tensioning and release (vehicle movement). Remember therefore that if you have tensioned the König Reflex chain and have not moved the vehicle, the chain remains under tension. We will return to this concept shortly, in the section on disassembly.
6. Dismounting
Caution: After mounting and tensioning the chain by moving the slider to the upper position, do not start the dismounting procedure before moving the vehicle.
To remove your König Reflex chains after installing them on the wheel, we recommend that you stop the vehicle when the by-pass band (A) is in a position between 11:00 and 1:00.
Right-handers will be facilitated with the by-pass band positioned at 11:00, left-handers will be facilitated with the same band positioned at 1:00.
Move the red slider of the Reflex Box to the lower position to release the voltage.
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Now grasp both ends of the outer arch and pull them apart as far as you can. To facilitate the disassembly procedure, we recommend that you hold the red micro-cable and pull it towards you to offer even more ease in the subsequent operations.
Now hold either end of the red rear arch, which is located on the inside shoulder of the tyre.
Caution: only pull on one end and not both. In fact, if you pull them both at the same time, the chain will not have the necessary flexibility to free the tyre.
Pull the end outwards and pull the chain off the wheel; during the operation, you will see the micro-cable come off the ends of the rear arch and allow the chain the necessary clearance to be removed.
Once the chain has been removed, place it on the ground. You will not be able to remove the chain completely because part of it will be under the tyre.
Now move the vehicle as far as necessary to remove the chain, taking care not to crush the Reflex Box under the wheel.
7. Maintenance
Once the chains have been used, please wash the König Reflex chains with lukewarm water to remove dirt and any debris or chemicals left on the chain before finally putting them back in the packaging.
Chain washing will also allow you to check the wear condition of the components and be sure that the chain will be ready for the next use.
Remember to let them dry completely, if necessary removing any residual water and moisture present with a cloth.
Once dry, the chains can be placed back in the packaging, ready to be used.
We invite you, after washing, to pull the red micro-cable completely out of the rigid arch: with the chain unlocked, simply spread out the two ends of the outer arch and then those of the inner arch
Once removed, you can lubricate it with a silicone spray (not oil-based). Please carry out the following procedure:
- Divide the two ends of the outer arch
- Divide the two ends of the inner arch
Repeat this operation 4 or 5 times to completely lubricate the micro-cable.
We recommend that you only lubricate the micro-cable and not the other chain components.
The tensioning of the König Reflex is based on the sliding of the micro-cable whose passages are in some cases restricted. Therefore, to keep your chains in tip-top shape, don't forget to wash them after each use.
8. Troubleshooting
Chain locked before use
When you pick up the König Reflex and grip the two ends of the outer arc, you cannot spread them apart.
The chain could simply be locked in the drive position (red slider in the high-lock position=tensioning on). Just check the position of the red slider, which should be at the bottom.
Please move the tensioning slider of the Reflex Box to the lower position.
Once this is done, you will be able to spread the outer arch to full extension.
*If, on the other hand, you are unable to spread the inner arc, check that you have spread the ends of the outer arc first and that the cable has come out at both ends.
Tyre compatibility problems
Consider that tyres are subject to dimensional tolerances that can affect the fit of the chain.
Chain that looks too small
A König Reflex that is too narrow negatively influences the installation process: at best it makes it difficult, but could make it impossible. It all depends on how small the chain is in relation to the tyre.
A small König Reflex prevents the two ends of the red inner arc from fitting snugly onto the tyre's inner shoulder.
As a first step, make sure you spread the outer arc to its maximum extension and do the same later with the inner arc.
Check that the red micro-cable has not become entangled in the links or other chain components (e.g. side hook protection button).
If you are unable to position the two ends in any way after positioning the inner by-pass joint, it may be that your König Reflex is too narrow for your wheel.
In this case, please contact our Customer Service.
Chain that looks too big
If your König Reflex chain is too large, you will tend to have a very generous fit, which will make installation very easy. You will be able to easily position the ends behind the wheel but, once installed, the chain will not tension properly. You can tell this from most rhomboid assemblies that remain very loose even when the chain is fully tensioned (after moving the vehicle).
If you use the chain under these conditions, it may be subject to abnormal dynamic uplift, which could create interference with wheel arch components.
In this case, please contact our Customer Service to help you choose the most suitable size.
Chain blocked after leaving vehicle parked in the snow
You have left your car parked with the König Reflex mounted, once you have arrived at your destination. After a few hours you prepare to remove the chains and although you have moved the red slider on the Reflex Box, you cannot because the tensioning is blocked.
It happens that snow is deposited in the vicinity of the by-pass or the micro-cable passage holes, preventing the normal flow of the cable.
In this case, you only need to drive a stretch of road at low speed to break through the snow and ice that has formed.
Reflex Box blocked
The Reflex Box has residual ice which prevents the red slider from sliding.
Remove residual ice while avoiding hitting the Reflex Box to ensure that it is not damaged.
Dismounting problems
1. During dismounting, after gripping one of the two ends of the inner arch, you do not have enough strength to spread it apart and pull the chain off the wheel.
In this case, check that you have spread the two ends of the outer arch and pulled the red micro-cable out by hand towards you.
2. You are about to dismount the König Reflex by simultaneously gripping both ends of the inner arch.
If you try to remove the chain by pulling it from both ends of the inner arch, it may not have the necessary play to allow removal from the wheel.
To disassemble the chain correctly, after spreading the ends of the outer arch and pulling out the micro-cable, hold only one of the ends of the inner rigid arch and, by pulling it, the chain will have sufficient play to be released from the wheel.
9. Common Errors
In this session, we will point out some of the most frequently encountered installation errors by customers.
Ends not positioned correctly on the tyre's inner shoulder
When fitting, it is essential to position the two ends of the chain on the inside shoulder of the tyre. In fact, during tensioning, the two ends will tend to come closer together. This means that if the ends are on the tread, during tensioning, the micro-cable could get caught inside one of the tyre's drainage channels.
The result is that the arch is not closed behind the tyre but on the tyre tread, making the fitment incorrect.
Test carried out on a dry tyre
The fitting test should be carried out on the tyre in conditions similar to those in actual use. It is in fact inadvisable to carry out the fitting test on a dry tyre, as this could lead to an incorrect assessment of the chain fit. In fact, the dry tyre surface tends to create more friction, which could cause the chain to require more travel to find its ideal position.
For this reason, we ask you to make any kind of assessment regarding chain size after having carried out a test on at least a wet tyre.
Reflex Box slider not actuated
Sometimes it happens that, in the heat of the moment, you forget to operate the red slider on the Reflex Box. If you forget to do so, the chain is only presented on the wheel, but is not tensioned above it, so it cannot stay in place.