Who has the sprockets?

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Bbqjoe

Bbqjoe

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It appears that most of the kart and bike sites carry the same rear sprockets, for about the same price.

Is there a Spacely Sprockets, or a Cogswell cogs out there that I'm missing?
Or are all the sprockets out there about the same?

Would hardening the steel make them stronger and last longer?
Or do we just accept the wear and replace?
 
itsid

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generally, the sprockets should be softer than the chain,
mainly because a snapping chain causes more damage than a worn out sprocket (especially to head and legs of a passenger ;))

Also, much easier to detect if a sprocket is worn than if your chain is..

So that being said:
proper hardening can increase sprocketlife (for an unhardened sprocket for sure)
improper hardening can render a sprocket useless though.
either by making it too brittle and it'll crack under load or by warping it due to improper heating or cooling.
I can't tell about your skills, but I think it's safe to say you should try to harden a worn out sprocket first (same make would be great) just to be safe ;)

'sid
 
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mckutzy

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Unless I get a hankering for aluminum sprockets(I haven't.), I don't go to a kart shop. I use all princess auto brand gearing, those are all from G&Gmfg.. If I need an odd size I get Martin sprocket, from a dealer.

Martin sells hard and soft tooth sprockets...
 
Bbqjoe

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I never heard of this, but I think I may give it a try.
When I replace components in the drive line, I almost always change everything.
Chain, drive and rear sprocket.
I'm contemplating the reversal of everything as soon as the rear sprocket begins to show wear.
As in flip the sprockets, and run the chain in the opposite direction.
 
Hellion

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Want to minimize wear on the chain and sprockets? Enclose the entire drive assembly in a sealed housing and and fill it half full of oil--basically an oil bath.

Exposure to the elements is the death knell for chain drives.

However, all too often people totally neglect their chain drive and are basically just biding their time until inevitable failure.

Seems most people spray them down with WD-40 as their lubricant of choice--but that's basically a solvent. :(

Some thoughts on the matter:
http://karting.4cycle.com/showthread.php?7505-chain-cleaning
http://gokartguru.com/go_kart_chains.php

"For chains, my proper maintenance procedure would be to cook the chain in a vat of oil to 400* for 30 minutes, then let cool. Replace with clean oil of you choice, and heat to 400* for 1/2 hour. You're set to go. That's my recipe, and I'm sticking to it. For most weekly racers, though, that's a huge bother."
Click to expand...

http://www.carlsonmotorsports.com/CRETechOct.html

I think the gist is, spray-on lubricants don't last, don't penetrate and get flung off the chain as soon as the pedal is floored. Best way to lubricate a chain is to "cook it" in a pot of oil over a medium/med-hi heat. Let it simmer a while (do this outside or in the garage you fool!). Let cool and let the excess drip off. This way, the steel gets "impregnated" with the oil inside and out, in all the crevices and inside the rollers where it will do the most good.

When it's dirty, caked in crud and dry: clean the chain by immersion in your solvent of choice (mineral spirits, etc.), let dry and repeat the above lubricating procedure.
 
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Bbqjoe

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Hellion said:
Best way to lubricate a chain is to "cook it" in a pot of oil over a medium/hi flame. Let cool and let the excess drip off. Then clean the chain by immersion in your solvent of choice (mineral spirits, etc.), let dry and repeat the above procedure.
Click to expand...

Sounds like a crock of horse pucky to me, pal.

I might buy Eddie Van or Steve Miller soaking their strings in BBQ sauce, but not this.
 
chancer

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I cook my chains in a pot of melted Candle wax.
DHC does and had suggested adding used Motor oil to the Wax. 50/50

I use straight wax cause we ride in alot of dusty hard packed dirt.
 
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Flyinhillbilly said:
Soaking the chain is a very real and very effective thing.

I wish someone would start making an o ring style #35 chain.
Click to expand...

Ok. I'll buy letting it sit in oil for awhile.
But cook, strip, and cook again?
It's not like the metal is gonna soak up the oil.

If ya really want to coat it with something, how about spray on teflon?
Or better yet, plastic-dip?
 
chancer

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I believe heating or (Boiling As DHC does) thins the oil and allows it to get into the rollers.
Cooking twice though??? I agree it is not a baked Potato
 
Bbqjoe

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chancer said:
I cook my chains in a pot of melted Candle wax.
DHC does and had suggested adding used Motor oil to the Wax. 50/50

I use straight wax cause we ride in alot of dusty hard packed dirt.
Click to expand...

On this note, you might as well try some homemade bullet lube recipes.
Many guys use beeswax, combined with stuff like alox, pastewax, and vaseline.

Alox is a lot like earwax, but it kinda dries.
 
Flyinhillbilly

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A lot of racers will disassemble the whole kart and clean and lube everything after every race but those guys are running at the top level for big money.
 
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