Topic: Would you use this sprocket?

[Tugboat]

I assume I could get the rust off with a wire wheel.. but would it be ok to use?

[nancy]

To get you home if you were stranded in the Gobi desert - yes. Otherwise...no. While it may clean up OK - it looks like the teeth are deformed - ie curved..which is the way front sprockets look when they are toast. Not the worst case of sprocket wear - and if fact would be usable..but would cause chain wear. These are cheap to buy new.
Regards
Mark

[seanbarney41]

that is full on toast

[trueblue]

Yep I have to agree it is clagged

[TwoTired]

After the apocalypse, yes.  ...With the matching chain, if it still had its rollers.  Not with a new chain, though.

[Gonzowerke]

+1

Look at your bottom photo, as it shows the shagged teeth best. In that photo, see how one side of the tooth has a shallower angle than the other? There's your sign. A good sprocket has the same angle on both sides. I have had ones that looked like ocean waves, they were so bad. As already stated, this sprocket would just accelerate the wear on the new chain, and you wouldn't want to run the old chain that was on this sprocket as it is most likely done too. When chains break, it is a real party-crasher! Either it whips of the sprocket and puts a hole in the case, thereby oiling your rear tire and tossing you down the road, or it wraps up in the rear wheel, locks it, and tosses you down the road. Or both!
I have heard of it just going bye-bye, doing no damage, but not on our bikes.

[trueblue]

My old one on my 650 jumped a couple of teeth one day under hard acceleration, the next day it had a new set of sprockets and chain on it, it warned me it wasn't happy and I'm just glad the warning wasn't a hole in the case and a spit down the road.

[754]

 It looks useable, not the best and not the worst..

[750K]

I'd wire wheel in up and see what it really looks like rust free, if there's lots of tooth wear you'll know right away.

[CycleRanger]

It looks usable, not the best and not the worst..

Usable, for a while, but replace it if it's within your budget.

[heffay]

the pictures don't show the angles very well.
first off, don't put it on newsprint, it makes it hard to see the sprocket.
secondly, don't use flash, it causes shadows that seem to add material to the sprocket.
use a clean sheet of paper or cardboard in good ambient light, not direct sunlight, etc. 

i agree with 754... it is certainly better than a lot of sprockets i've seen. 

a good test is to try to pull the chain away from the sprocket (when the chain/sprockets are properly adjusted on the bike), if it has a lot of movement and doesn't seem to fit snug within each tooth, get a new one.  A bit of play is ok, but it shouldn't be much.

[Jerry Rxman Griffin aka MuthaF'er]

Only if I had to. ie if it was the only option.

[crazypj]

Yep, I would make a great ninja 'star' with only a little work 

[tomkimberly]

Go ahead and use it, eveyone needs to learn that going the cheap route always costs more money than doing it right the first time.

Tom

[nancy]

Did u ever see John Cleese in the "Faulty Towers" series over there? One of his famous quips to the oft-beaten waiter - Manuel...who was holding a plate of salad with a bit of debris in it..was "throw it...away". That sprocket has no future...it is debris.

[heffay]

i don't advise using it though... why go to the effort of putting it back on the bike?

[754]

 Here is an easy check, clean it and put a nEW pce of chain over a few teeth, then check for radial movement.. ..that will give a better idea. Wear von a front sprocket, is much harder on chain than wear on the rear..