I finally got myself another SR cassette for my spare wheelset, and therefore pulled my ~3000 miles old SR cogs from my main wheelset (new cogs -> main wheelset, old cogs -> spare wheelset).

After cleaning the old cogs, I was quite shocked about the amount of wear, both with the steel cogs (11-15) as well as with the titanium cogs. For the record, this wheelset has only been ridden in good weather, the chain was cleaned and lubed after every ride, and I don't consider myself an aggressive shifter.

Please check the pics below - for comparison, each pic shows both the new and old cog next to each other.

My question: is this normal wear? How much life you believe these cogs have left?

Thanks for any insight

A quick update:

I had my first ride today with the new cassette, and shifting is like night and day. Much crisper, faster and accurate. This alone makes me believe the old cogs are kid of shot, which really bothers me as they are really not that old (2 cassettes per season would be rather excessive @ ~$350 a pop, no?).

Is this normal for Campagnolo?

Sorry if this is a stupid question, this has been my first year on a road bike and I am not that familiar with road component mileages.

how many miles did you get out of it?

the smaller cogs have alot more force applied to them which explains their accelerated wear. Alot depends on your style too (masher vs. high cadence spinner)

I've got about 2K on a chorus cassette without much issue, maybe you should stick with the heavier versions?

I got ~3k miles / ~4.5k km out of the SR cassette. Sounds normal? I guess I am more a masher than a spinner.

Well, Campagnolo Super Record is not the lowest cost equipment choice. If you like it and are willing to pay up, great. If you want to save money, there are other choices within the Campagnolo lineup, not to mention more economical brands. The Super Record cassette stands out within the Camagnolo lineup as costing the most while lasting the least.

You didn't tell us how many times you replaced your chain during the 3000 mile interval. If none, then it's likely that the wear is too substantial and your old cassette will not mesh with a new chain (have you tried the old cassette with a new chain?).

If you are running SR cassettes you will want to replace your chain every 1000-1200 miles if you want it to wear less. If you are simply training, consider an all steel Chorus cassette.

EM3

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My 2011 Cervelo R5

The amount of wear you have on the 11 tooth is absurd. Were you crosschaining in that gear? Seems like even being more of a masher, that 50 or 53/11 would be hard to push that often. If you are: spin more and your knees would be happier.

Like others have hinted at: you have very expensive stuff, so it'd be worthwhile checking your chain frequently. Once the chain wears too much, it will really start deforming the cassette.

Also: if you're putting 6k miles on the bike per year, you should consider a less expensive cassette--more consumable and durable, and possibly less expensive chains as well, since campy doesn't really have a reputation for putting out crap chains.

First of all, thanks for the answers, this is very helpful!

To conclude, it seems that you all suggest that this level of wear is rather normal.

Regarding my old chain - I checked the chain wear regularly, taking into account the peculiarities of Campy chains in this regard, and all was good (last time it measured ~132.4mm). I did not excessively cross-chain, and literally never drove the 11 cog on the small chain ring.

I have not tried to run the old cassette with the new chain yet - the former is now mounted on the spare wheels, which are only used in the winter or when I have to change the tubulars on the main wheelset.

Anyway, I guess I better stock some extra SR cassettes whenever they are on sale somewhere - I hear you socratease, but these SR cogs are just such a piece of art, guess I am hooked now...

The difference between the Super Record, Record and Chorus cassettes is all in the clusters. The first 5 steel cogs are exactly the same part number on all three. The Chorus has two steel clusters, the record one steel and one Ti. SR is two Ti clusters.

So in your case you have a lot of wear on your steel cogs and you will get the same wear on a Chorus cassette because the cogs are the same.

If you change your chain more often you might get the better part of a season out of your cassette. But it looks to me like you got the full life out of that cassette.

+1.

Depending on use and conditions, changing your cassette around 3000 miles might be considered normal, but the wear on the small cogs is pretty substantial. Given the pictures, I'd probably run a Chorus cassette and save the SR cassette (and a mated chain) for race days and/or special days. That's what I do. There's a hit to the weight, to be sure, but that is fine for training, given the cost of a Chorus cassette is but a fraction that of SR, provided you shop around (well, even if you don't).

Also, I agree with others too - that cassette has run it's course. It would shift awful with a new chain. Probably shifts subpar now. Consider it spent.

I also use the KMC chain, cheaper and easier to work with than the Campy Chain.

BTW is there any benefit to flipping your chain over periodically, seems like all the wear is on one side, would flipping it give you a "new" chain????

if all your wear is on those bottom 4-5 cogs, you might be able to buy just those steel cogs, and not have to pay for all that high dollar titanium goodness if it's not as worn?

I agree with changing your chain more often. 3000 miles and your wear measurement being only 132.4mm does not sound right. At that wear rate you would get 5-6000 miles before a chain is worn according to campag. I have found most chains last around 1500 miles of normal road condition before they need changing to preserve the cassette. Leave them for 3000 miles and you normally have a shagged cassette and chain. Unless of course the campy 11 speed chain wears at a slower rate than the SR cassette which is daft.

You may want to try the Miche Supertype 11 speed cassette. Individaul sprockets are availble for these. Custom cassettes can be done from Miche too.

I do 5-6K miles a year and for this reason I am sticking to 10 speed Veloce as it does not cost too much to run.

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www.thecycleclinic.co.uk

Seems like I underestimated the longevity of the record 11 chains. I took this "Tour Magazine" test as a point of reference, and extrapolated from there, thinking I could extend the lifetime by a little extra lubin' and cleanin'. Guess that was a little optimistic. Lesson learned. Thanks for the good advice!


(Full test here: http://www.tour-magazin.de/services/qtr/epaper_4_2011/#/44)

There's almost no wear on the 11T sprocket. Look closely at the picture (mentally rotate one of the sprockets by 180°) and you'll see that both new and old have that reduced tooth. In fact, all of the sprockets have at least one tooth like that. They all line up on an assembled cassette to aid shifting.

Edman,

I think people realize that. They're looking at the wear on the other teeth.