grrrrr darn bike is messed yp now

i sometimes get upset i have no car and cant drive.do to a mistake i made.but i always thought at least i have my bike its to big .but at least it was rideable .well first i get flat tire .tube are pretty expensive well i was lucky i patched it and it held so far but i notice it was noisy and skiped in and out a gear .so i start adjusting the cable i put front sprocet and rear sporocets in middle gears and adjust to it was corect but it still was messed up so i wipe off sprokets and there all messed up i wasnt sure what they was supsed to look like but i know they dont suposed to look like they do.i think front is the worst but back look bad to.it has me angry i needed it friday for a appt.sorry for venting but man it is way to far to walk specaily cause iu think it will be like 95 friday with 90 %hiumidty /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif

hey raggie, they might not be messed up. Years ago they came up with something called hyperglide (I think) that basically has several short teeth per gear to help the chain jump onto the ring easier. Take a look at http://www.sheldonbrown.com/k7.html#hyperglide for some pictures.

oops double post

hiya patrick i think it aint the same cause it dont feel smooth even though i adjusted it.this picc didnt come out cause it was hard cause its behind water bottle cage

Oh, Boy.

The middle chainring is trashed.

You could still ride the inner or outer chainring, but try not to "cross-chain", because it stresses the drivetrain severely.

"Cross-chaining" is running the chain "Big chainring to big sprocket" or "little chainring to little sprocket.

I don't have any spare chainrings, or I would send you one (if it was the correct size/bolt pattern). They are generally not terribly expensive, however, and are pretty easy to replace.

Bob

Dude you need a new middle sprocket because when the chain's out of line in back and tugs to the side on that front one I bet it'll hop right off.

I've only got a few gears. For the front I've only got an XTR set and the whole set will only fit onto an XTR set, but it looks to me that the middle sprocket might work for you (comes off in the usual way.

Are those sprockets on that thar fancy 7000-series aluminum bike of yours (Trek 5200?) able to be separated from one another?

Either way, if you think it might work let me know and I'll ship you the middle chainring in, I dunno, a CD mailer or somehow.

If you want it. No guarantees that it'll work, of course, but hey it's free.

Those funny looking teeth are normal Raggie. If you're having a problem with "skipping", the first thing to look for is a stiff link(s) in the chain.

Shift the bike into it's highest gear (biggest chainring on front, smallest gear in back) and spin the crank backwards. Watch for a "hiccup" in the way the chain rides through the rear derailleur. If you find a stiffie, lube it up and flex that area of the chain vertically and laterally (important) to try and loosen it up.

Another possibility is that the chain is just worn out (stretched). This is usually indicated by the bike skipping in the highest gear(s). With the chain on the largest chainring, see how far you can pull it off the teeth. A little bit is normal, but if you're seeing a sizeable gap, it's time for a new chain and freewheel/cassette. Always replace the chain and rear cluster at the same time. If you don't you will prematurely wear out the new part.

Peter

That middle ring "looks" bad, but it's not. At least not as far as I can tell by the picture. The teeth are cut that way to facilitate better chain handling.

Peter

thank you for the advice everyone.i never took a sproket off before but i usaly can figure stuff out if i look at it how ever i dont have lot a tools also the rear derailer looks bent or something im thinking a just trashing the bike it is to big for me any ways im not sure of the model of the bike but its made by gt.here are more pics do they look ok.later ill take pic of derailer but i dont know what angel u need to see?

i think the m9iddle is bad ill try to get better pic

Hey Raggie, I may have spoken too soon. Maybe that ring is messed up, but it's hard to say for sure. Look at the rest of the teeth on that ring and see if any of the others look the same or similar. Usually if it's cut that way on purpose you will see similar profiles at three or four equidistant intervals. I know it looks funny, but Shimano (and others) put some pretty strange looking tooth profiles on these things on purpose.

FWIW- since the rings are steel, they are most likely riveted to the crank and are not replaceable individually.

Peter

ty for reply peter nah thast one looks diff then others and sadly i think my rear dearier is messed up to

yeah, i hate messing with the gears and such.
i have been riding a single speed for a year now and won't go back!
nice and quiet, low maintenance, no out of adjustments...
raggie, life is better on one gear! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Raggie those are good pics. Unfortunately the XTR chainring I have certainly won't fit onto that, and my whole set won't fit onto your cranks. Bummer. I'm sorry I can't help that way.

You could at least try using a file or whatever to get rid of that hanging piece of steel that's torn down & inward on the middle chainring. That'll cause all sorts of havoc with shifting.

If you want to fix it I bet it wouldn't be much if you took it to a bike shop for them to do (and just as Pedalinbob's saying I bet you could do it yourself). Deore DX etc is hard to find parts in stock on the shelves but even if it's not the shop could probably order you a new middle ring for not much.

That's all under the presumption that you want to fix it. You did say the bike's too big for you. It's a good-looking frame, though, so don't lowball the price if you decide to sell it.

Happy riding...