Hello, i changed my 6th gen chain just to be sure, the sprockets were in great shape i just installed them in reverse. new chain fitted like it was new.
now i gave my old chain to a fella in need. this chain fits very lose on the 3 o'clock of the rear sprocket and it makes a lot of noise while moving.
is the chain stretched real bad (it was not like this on my bike) or his sprocket is really worn?
You should not mix chain & sprockets from different use points. So if he is on his original sprockets & your old chain thers no way they will match so they will be noisey & they will wear quicker. The chain does have a link length wear limit, look it up, but its probably the mis-matched sprockets & chain that is the main cause.
Ditto, on the comments of the first post.
Also, if the chain is severely worn or some call it, 'stretched,' the bike will feel like it's 'surging.'
If you had such a condition, put your bike on it's center stand and spin the rear wheel. When you
do this you will see that there are some sections of the chain that allow the wheel to turn easier and
some harder. If this phenomena is not readily apparent your chain isn't severely worn.
Its never a good idea to pair worn sprocket or chains when replacing a part to new. Here is a sprocket Calculator link if you are thinking of playing with ratios
The old chain is probably stretched and the other dude's sprockets are worn! Together, they are not long for this world, but if the alternative is not riding, then maybe it's worth the risk of the chain breaking?
I would not have expected that the sprockets would fit "backwards" (I assume you mean both were flipped over). I thought they were offset by about 2mm? (Never measured them myself, though.) The general advice is to replace sprockets and chain together, but I can see why you thought they might be fine if being pulled in the opposite direction. You might be right...but I don't think I would take the chance, given that new steel sprockets aren't very expensive. Good luck!
Ciao,