Cassette life

Per everyone's experience, how many chains does a cassette typically lasts for?  I just changed to my third chain at 6000km, with each previous chain wearing to 0.5.  I am getting delayed shifts that I didn't experience with the previous chain.  With so few km is it possible that cassette wear is the cause?

Depends very heavily on riding conditions and on terrain.  In the sense that some people, for instance those who commute on their gravel bike tend to stay on the same 2-3 rings of the cassette (assuming they don't live in the mountains) which obviously will wear those out while sparing the others.

 

I ride about 13k kms (about 8.5 k miles I guess) a year and typically go through 3 chains (but I keep 'm waxed) every 18 months and one cassette every two years.  But although I ride every day regardless of the weather, 90% of that distance is commuting over decent roads.

 

That said, even if the cassette is still fine, it's not uncommon to experience some slippage right after putting on a new chain.  Usually goes away after a couple of 100 km.

 

If you go through 3 chains in 6k km, you myust be riding some seriously rough stuff.

If you don't wax, you might consider switching to it as there less maintenance and significantly longer life for cassettes and chains. People report getting 10K miles or more from a chain/cassette and while I have never tracked mine, that seems realistic.  There is a bit of a learning curve but once you get the hang of it, it really isn't much. I would suggest buying a new waxed chain from Silca etc as getting the chain truly lube free is tough and vital. In the short run it may seem expensive but again, long-term it works out. My drivetrains have never performed better nor been as quiet which is a nice plus..

Zero Friction Cycling publishes studies on wear rates for chains/cassettes etc. including a nifty table showing how much it actually costs to use different lubricants (in terms of life/duty cycle of wear parts etc.):

https://zerofrictioncycling.com.au/lubetesting/website-charts-revamp-2-1-march-1/

 

I agree that waxing extends life of drivetrain parts, which is a primary reason I switched to that method. (Also the clean factor.)

I agree that getting a pre-waxed chain is easiest.  I strip off everything in an ultrasonic cleaner with a special type of industrial solvent that you're unlikely to be able to purchase as a private person.  Then I dry the clean chain under reduced pressure in a special cabinet but obviously I'm lucky to have access to that gear at work.  

 

Trouble is that if you want the wax to work well, all oil and packaging grease should be removed.

That's my point; given how long a waxed chain will last, simply buying a waxed one makes the most sense. Buying all the stuff related to cleaning doesn't make sense as you won't need it again for a long time. I'm sure there are those who will argue, but for the vast majority, I think my thinking applies. Factor in some environmental awareness of the harsh stuff required to truly remove the petro on a chain and it just becomes an obvious answer.

Thanks both. 

I do use wax on the chains.  This is a habit for many years now, thanks to this forum.

Xenophon: It's two chains for 6000km rather than three; I'm starting the third now so probably 9000km once the third chain is finished.  I do ride a mix of gravel and road on most rides, and I'm 230#.

I'll look forward to better shifting soon.  It's been a couple hundred km already, but it's a steel cassette so perhaps it just takes a bit fore them to 'wear together.'  I'll press on with this cassette for now and expect that it will last for the remainder of this chain.  Better, I suspect to replace a cassette when changing a chain, rather than midway through.

Thanks again.