Chain (or belt) & sprocket wear influences

'Same tooth - same link' chain rotations
Besides obvious factors for chain wear like not enough maintenance (i.e. greasing it) and misalignment of sprockets and chain, the chain will simply wear out more when it is used more. Especially if the same tooth hits the same link all the time the chain wears out faster than when that tooth hits another link instead. Whether or not this will happen depends on the combination of teeth and chain links. Three type of combinations are possible:

1) Worst:  every chain rotation, the sprockets (front or rear or both) are at the same position
2) Better:  it takes more than one chain rotation for it to hit the same tooth with the same link
3) Optimal: it takes the maximum number of chain rotations for it to hit the same tooth with the same link

Table "Same tooth - Same Link" shows what type of combinations you have or are about to get. This by showing the actual number of chain rotations and marking them red for 'Worst', not marked for 'Better' and marked green for 'Optimal'.

Number of contacts
Another factor that influences the chain wear is of course the number of contacts a tooth has with links and the other way around for the chain, the number of contacts a link has with teeth. The more hits, the faster the wear ! So obviously, the more you use your bike, the more the final drive will wear out. Changing the final drive does not make you use your bike more or less, it just changes the use of the final drive when driving the same distance as before.

That is also why changing the rear sprocket, say bigger, wears out the front more when driving the same distance .....
Therefore the table "Tooth-Links contacts & Link-Teeth contacts" shows the number of contacts between teeth and links, for every driven mile or kilometer.

Next: Optimal teeth-links combination

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