Noisy sprockets

mustol

I've got a 2011 Wilier La Triestina with Campag Mirage 10 speed shifters, Veloce 10 speed rear derailleur and Veloce 13-29 (13,14,15,16,17,19,21,23,26,29) cassette (I had this fitted when I bought the bike to replace the 12-25 Miche cassette). Within a few rides I noticed some noise coming from the sprockets. Basically, it is quiet on the 4 largest sprockets and on the smallest sprocket, but there is varying amount of noise from sprockets 5-9 (not the end of the world but irritating). I have checked the indexing and the changes are quick and smooth all the way up and down the cassette. If I adjust further in any direction, the gear changing suffers. I've done <1,000 miles on this bike and clean/lubricate the Campag chain regularly (after each ride if it was wet). Could it be spacing, would trying a different chain be worthwhile? Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

smidsy

If the shifts are fine throughout the range and the chain runs nice and smooth on all sprockets then it is unlikely to be tension/spacing.

Just to make sure - you are aware that the spacing on Campag is not all the same through the cassette - you have to have the spacers in a specific order.

mustol

smidsy wrote:

If the shifts are fine throughout the range and the chain runs nice and smooth on all sprockets then it is unlikely to be tension/spacing.

Just to make sure - you are aware that the spacing on Campag is not all the same through the cassette - you have to have the spacers in a specific order.

I suppose it's possible that my LBS could have fitted them in the wrong order - how can I find out what the correct spacing is? I've tried doing a quick search but can't seem to find out.

smidsy

http://branfordbike.com/page.cfm?pageID=60
scroll to the bottom

Also, from another forum

In the Campy 10-spd drivetrain, the space required between most cogs is 2.4mm. For the space between the 6th and 7th cog (starting from the hardest/smallest cog, furthest to the outside) is 2.55mm. (On recent Veloce cassettes, this ring is a different color from the black 2.4 mm spacers--kinda "orangy"). And the spacing between the 9th and 10th (largest cogs, whatever your configuration) is something like 1.9mm. The fold-out Campy "sprockets" sheet that came with your cassette should spell this out.

mustol

I'll check the size of the spacers, but don't see how they could be causing the problem (I managed to find the tech doc on the campag website). As mentioned above, the noise in on sprockets (1 being the smallest) 2-6. The spacers are all the same between sprockets 2,3,4,5. Even if the spacers between 5-6 and 6-7 are the wrong way around, sprockets 2-5 will still be in exactly the same place - I can see that it could cause a problem on sprocket 6, but not on 2-5 (unless the cassette was supplied with the wrong spacers of course). I'll have a closer look (when it stops raining!) and report back.

smidsy

smidsy wrote:

If the shifts are fine throughout the range and the chain runs nice and smooth on all sprockets then it is unlikely to be tension/spacing.

As I said above, just wanted you to know

mustol

smidsy wrote:

smidsy wrote:

If the shifts are fine throughout the range and the chain runs nice and smooth on all sprockets then it is unlikely to be tension/spacing.

As I said above, just wanted you to know

Thanks for the advice - if it's not the spacing/indexing - any other avenues that I should explore? There's nothing else I can think of, apart from a problem with the quality of the sprockets themselves. If not, I'll put up with the noise until I have to replace the chain (and cassette?) and see if things improve.

smidsy

Hard to diagnose on here. Is it just that the chain runs rougher on those cogs or something else.

Sometimes you can think you have the tension right and it works on some and not others - fine tune with the barrel adjuster (if it has one). If that does not remedy then could be worn cassette - do you use the noisy ones the most?

mustol

No, it's not just the most used sprockets that make the most noise as sprocket 7 gets as much use as any and that's quiet - also, I noticed the noise soon after I got the bike, so I'm sure it can't be a worn cassette. I spent ages trying to get the indexing correct, using both the adjuster on the rear derailleur and the barrel adjuster on the down tube - adjusting in either direction seems to mess up the changing. I think I'm going to just accept the noise for a while (mind you it's usually so windy that I can't hear much anyway!).

keef66

Is it at all possible that the mech hanger is bent? LBS should be able to check it accurately.

mustol

keef66 wrote:

Is it at all possible that the mech hanger is bent? LBS should be able to check it accurately.

Thanks for the suggestion - it certainly doesn't look it, also if it was bent, wouldn't it be noisy when on the smallest sprocket? The chain line looks fine. When I'm next in my LBS I'll have a word and see what they come up with and maybe arrange to leave it with them for a few days.

JamesB

Check position of where rear inner cable is clamped in rear mech; should be outside teh bolt and tab; if it is inside tab then get rough change in larger sprockets, OK in lower
Chorus mech has a small slot on plate clamp area showing where the cable should run, Veloce doesn`t.

see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umKMVjLhmE4

mustol

JamesB wrote:

Check position of where rear inner cable is clamped in rear mech; should be outside teh bolt and tab; if it is inside tab then get rough change in larger sprockets, OK in lower
Chorus mech has a small slot on plate clamp area showing where the cable should run, Veloce doesn`t.

see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umKMVjLhmE4

Again thanks for advice, but the 4 largest sprockets are the quietest, along with the smallest sprocket - in the 13-29 cassette, it's the 14,15,16,17,19 sprockets that are the noisy ones.

g00se

Hi,

What sort of noise is it? Is it rubbing or more like another sprocket is snatching at the chain, ready to shift?

Could it be rubbing on the front mech rather than the rear?

How many miles had you done before the cassette was changed and was the chain changed at the same time?

Cheers

mustol

g00se wrote:

Hi,

What sort of noise is it? Is it rubbing or more like another sprocket is snatching at the chain, ready to shift?

Could it be rubbing on the front mech rather than the rear?

How many miles had you done before the cassette was changed and was the chain changed at the same time?

Cheers

It's a 'chattery' noise coming from the rear sprockets - nothing to do with front derailleur. New bike, new cassette, new chain!

g00se

Just some odd things - put the chain on the largest front chainring (assuming it's not a triple), and the rear on the 4th smallest sprocket. If you line yourself up at the back looking down the chain, it should ideally all line up. That is, the largest chainring should be in the same plane as the 4th smallest sprocket and the chain should be perfectly straight with no kink between them. Also, the jockey cage should be perfectly in line so the top and bottom runs of the chain should appear parallel. Also, when looking at the chain running over the teeth of that sprocket - it should be sitting perfectly over them with a similar gap between the chain outer plates and the 3rd and 5th sprocket sides.

This is the optimal gear selection for setting up indexing too - with no deviation of the chainline. If the chain is not dead centre over the 4th sprocket teeth, it'll be worth adjusting the rear gear cable tension to centre it - which is Campag's recommended way to index the rear mech. Actually, it's lining up the centreline of the 4th sprocket (5th on 11-speed) and the centreline of the top pulley with no chain fitted.

eccles

Is the rear end of the bike making a noise all the time? If yes then it could be that the cassette lock ring isn't done up as tight as it should be causing the cassette to rattle on the freehub body.

mustol

g00se wrote:

Just some odd things - put the chain on the largest front chainring (assuming it's not a triple), and the rear on the 4th smallest sprocket. If you line yourself up at the back looking down the chain, it should ideally all line up. That is, the largest chainring should be in the same plane as the 4th smallest sprocket and the chain should be perfectly straight with no kink between them. Also, the jockey cage should be perfectly in line so the top and bottom runs of the chain should appear parallel. Also, when looking at the chain running over the teeth of that sprocket - it should be sitting perfectly over them with a similar gap between the chain outer plates and the 3rd and 5th sprocket sides.

This is the optimal gear selection for setting up indexing too - with no deviation of the chainline. If the chain is not dead centre over the 4th sprocket teeth, it'll be worth adjusting the rear gear cable tension to centre it - which is Campag's recommended way to index the rear mech. Actually, it's lining up the centreline of the 4th sprocket (5th on 11-speed) and the centreline of the top pulley with no chain fitted.

The chainline looked fine, but the chain was sitting closer to the 3rd sprocket than the 5th, so I adjusted the tension until it was right in the middle. I went out for a ride yesterday and it's definitely quieter when on the 4th sprocket than it was before, but still some noise on some other sprockets, particularly 2 and 3. I think it's good enough as it certainly didn't irritate me as much, and it's good to know the best way to index a Campy rear mech - so thanks for the advice

eccles wrote:

Is the rear end of the bike making a noise all the time? If yes then it could be that the cassette lock ring isn't done up as tight as it should be causing the cassette to rattle on the freehub body.

Thanks, but the cassette is tight - one of the first things I checked.