how to tell if i have worn gears/chain?
 

hi, the bikes a '72 Schwinn continental 10 speed, it's got a sun tour derailleur. the pedals feel like they jump forward a bit when i use the highest rear gear. a few pics

sorry if i didnt post all the info ya need im a bit of a newb

chain seems a bit short.

then again, you are cross chained there so that might be causing the chain to skip on the next cog, which is why you feel the pedals slip.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/gears.html

it slips even when it's not cross chained. any idea if i could do something to fix it? like tighten/loosen cables? it only slips in the highest rear gear btw. thanks for the help. p.s. im broke lol

Sounds to me more like things are out of adjustment. Here's an excellent opportunity to learn a bike skill.

http://sheldonbrown.com/derailer-adjustment.html

Make sure the chain is lubricated. Good luck.

First. The pic shows cross chaining. That is use of little chainring+little cog combination. It is best to avoid the two extreme combos of big chainring+big rear cog and little chainring+little cog because of the combination of slack or tight chain tension and extreme angle of deflection.

Second. If your gears slip in other combinations, it may be time to have the deraileur cables either tightened or replaced. As this is a vintaged bike that looks like it has been around a while, you may benefit from cable replacement. They will replace the cables and adjust so that your shifts are clean and effortless.

By the way, you can only shift cleanly if you "light pedal" during the actual shift. In other words, ease up on the pedal pressure once you have shifted until the chain has complteted its shift. Then resume normal pedal pressure. Make sure to allow additional time for shifting the front chainring. You are moving more chain during the shift and it takes a half-second longer for that to happen. Read the road ahead and plan your shifts in advance to be in the right gear at the right time and you should be fine.

The picture also shows that the derailleur hanger is bent. The jockey wheels of the derailleur should be in the same plane as the sprockets. You can use brute force to bend the hanger back. Slip an adjustable wrench over the hanger. Then slip another adjustable wrench to bend the first wrench. I think you have to bend the bottom edge out (away from the wheel) and also clockwise (i.e. the front of the derailleur is pointing to the left).