Small, quiet spaceship's gearwheels (9)

I believe the answer is:

sprockets

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'gearwheels' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this defines the answer.

'small quiet spaceship's' is the wordplay.
'small' becomes 's' (abbreviation - e.g. clothes size).
'quiet' becomes 'p' (music symbol for 'piano', ie soft or quiet).
'spaceship's' becomes 'rockets' (I can't justify this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
's'+'p'+'rockets'='SPROCKETS'

Can you help me to learn more?

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.