Well, I tried adjusting my chain for the 1st time yesterday because it felt way too loose to me. I read the Honda maintenance manual's instructions on chain thigtening and followed them as I understood them (I made the adjustment at the "tightest" spot in the chain too). Well, when I rode the bike to work today it just felt wierd. I felt a funny vibration in my left foot through the footpeg and I swear I heard the chain making a whirring noise. Well, tonight (paranoid that the chain is too tight) I loosened the chain tension some and I will take a test drive tomorrow. How can something so simple be such a pain in the butt? How critical is chain tension anyway? -David.
Tight links will cause the vibration in the footpeg and loud noise; means it is time to replace the chain. You can generally expect 12-17k miles out of a chain.
Being that you just now adjusted your chain, it might be time for a lube too? warranty.gif A dry chain will make noise. A properly adjusted chain on your bike will just barely touch the swingarm when pushed up. Keep in mind that if you adjusted your chain with the bike on the centerstand, you need to figure in a tad more slack, because the weight of the bike will tighten it back up a hair.
Best advice I can give you is take it to a friendly dealer or shop and have them do it once. Too tight is a problem that will cause premature wear or failure. I always re-test it after I snug the pinch bolt. More times than not it will tighten the chain a bit. By the third try I'm satisfied with the slack and will torque the bolt and take it for a ride. More important than constantly adjusting your chain to ruin is to lube it regularly. I can't explain it but the lube actually snugs up the chain a touch. Takes the whir noise out of the chain drive as well. Again, paying a proffesional to do it once will tell you what you are doing wrong. That is much cheaper than buying a new chain and sprokets while learning on your own. One final hint. It's a lot easier to do something right once you know how it's supposed to turn out. fing02.gif
Seem a bit mean spirited when there are shaft and belt driven bikes out there as well. The guy obviously is striving to take good care of his Bike and could use some honest advice. pissed.gif
And be thankful that you have a single sided swingarm - if you think adjusting a VFR chain is tough, don't ever buy a bike with a conventional swingarm fing02.gif
Once you have it right you'll be able to do it again with ease.
wade _s, Nov 1 2007, 08:17 PMWell, I tried adjusting my chain for the 1st time yesterday because it felt way too loose to me. I read the Honda maintenance manual's instructions on chain thigtening and followed them as I understood them (I made the adjustment at the "tightest" spot in the chain too). Well, when I rode the bike to work today it just felt wierd. I felt a funny vibration in my left foot through the footpeg and I swear I heard the chain making a whirring noise. Well, tonight (paranoid that the chain is too tight) I loosened the chain tension some and I will take a test drive tomorrow. How can something so simple be such a pain in the butt? How critical is chain tension anyway? -David.
It's important, not critical. Get close to the 1" up-down movement halfway between the sprockets, preferably at the tightest spot of the chain but again, not critical. If it's clunking, rattling, more than 15K miles or other such things, just replace it. The bike will ride, shift and sound much better.
Once adjusted put it up on the center stand and spin the rear tire. check the slack at different points along the way. If it gets tighter and loose then you have some links binding. If the chain has 10k + miles on it you may just want to replace it and keep the new one lubed every 500 miles or so.
heres my take...Loose is better than tight..err on the loose side.I always run mine a bit loose, have forever..Keep at it...Its no big deal to adjust a chain, single or regular, fact I find the reg easier to get spot on the first time over my vfr..due of course to the fact its hard to actually find the sweet spot to measure slack perfectly since you hit the swing arm first. I find the tight chain makes my bike buzz and vibrate, loose is happy.
But it should be a 5 minute job on the vfr once you get used to it, and 3 minutes of that is getting the kit out.. smile.gif
But either way , for all the time it takes, just keep fiddlin with it and u will get it licked....nothing wrong with stopping and fiddling if you think u can make it better.. smile.gif Get used it, its about the simplest part of maintenance there is and chains will be around for a long time..dont feel dumb stopping and adjusting it 5 times in a day till you are happy..u will get it.. smile.gif
Like the guys say.. if its shot, that another problem..easiest way to tell is just pull on a link about half way around the back of the rear sprocket..it should be fairly tight..if its 1/4" easy lift off the sprocket , and of course if you see the red death, its getting done. The kinky thing like they have said also makes your tightening job tough to do..If its getting shot and kinky, at least set the tension on the tightest spot.
anythings better than driving that red thing in the pic!!!
Thanks for all of the tips and support. I just got a little frustrated. I am a perfectionist (I actually used a ruler to try to measure the slack in my chain) and feel like I'm damaging the bike if I don't have things just right. I do keep the chain lubed well. There are some areas in the chain that are tighter than others. The bike only has 8500 miles on it and Im not sure how well the chain was taken care of before I got the bike. The chain says RK on many of the links, I wonder if this is the original chain? What kind of symptoms should I expect if the chain is too loose? -David.
wade _s, Nov 2 2007, 10:13 AMThanks for all of the tips and support. I just got a little frustrated. I am a perfectionist (I actually used a ruler to try to measure the slack in my chain) and feel like I'm damaging the bike if I don't have things just right. I do keep the chain lubed well. There are some areas in the chain that are tighter than others. The bike only has 8500 miles on it and Im not sure how well the chain was taken care of before I got the bike. The chain says RK on many of the links, I wonder if this is the original chain? What kind of symptoms should I expect if the chain is too loose? -David.
I do not believe that RK is OEM chain. Seems like it has been replaced before. This and the low miles would normally mean that the chain is fine and simply needs to be cleaned and lubed properly asuuming that you have the right slack. On the other hand, some of the links are binding, which could mean that the chain is toast. If the previous owner never lubed it, he could have destroyed it in 2-3K miles. I would clean and lube it well to see if the links would stop binding. If not, you will have to get a new one.
If the chain is too loose, it may feel a little jerky when you get on and off the gas and you might hear it hitting the swing arm, especially over choppy surfaces. A loose chain will cause the sprockets to wear out a little quicker, but a tight chain can hurt bearings, among other things. That's why most people prefer loose over tight. As one rider said on here, make sure you check it when you are off the center stand. One way to help with that is to have someone sit on the bike and check it again...the distance between the sprockets increases as the swingarm gets more parallel to the road. You'll get it.
wade _s, Nov 2 2007, 07:13 AMThanks for all of the tips and support. I just got a little frustrated. I am a perfectionist (I actually used a ruler to try to measure the slack in my chain) and feel like I'm damaging the bike if I don't have things just right. I do keep the chain lubed well. There are some areas in the chain that are tighter than others. The bike only has 8500 miles on it and Im not sure how well the chain was taken care of before I got the bike. The chain says RK on many of the links, I wonder if this is the original chain? What kind of symptoms should I expect if the chain is too loose? -David.
Given a choice, you definitely want a chain to be too loose vs too tight.
A chain that's too tight can cause a myriad of problems: � The chain could break - which could possibly cause rear wheel lock up and/or engine damage � The suspension binds up and can no longer work properly � Too much pressure on the front sprocket shaft and the seal breaks and oil leaks every. � Premature chain and sprocket wear � Increase friction raises chain temp and can cause early death of chain
Now, a chain that's loose does give some symptoms. The most noticeable is a choppy throttle. Basically, as you speed up and slow down, either the top or bottom of the chain is going to be taunt (depending on if the engine is driving the rear wheel, or the rear wheel is driving the engine). So, just be smooth with your throttle hand to alleviate this choppiness. Other than that, I can't think of anything else that would really be a symptom of a loose chain. You may hear the chain slap the underside of the swing arm a few times.
Of course, if the chain is too loose (which is bad), you can have problems. � Excessive rubbing on the swing arm and other parts (friction -> heat) � Chain can jump teeth on the sprocket. � Chain can just jump off the sprocket (bad). � Sprockets can wear out quickly
I was actually amazed at how easy it was to adjust my chain. I was even more amazed that Honda gave me the tool with the bike! Made the initial adjustment, rode it for a day, rechecked, adjusted one more time, done. 491.gif
Rk was the OEM chain in my 98 5th gen and it lasted 22K. I replaced it w/ a Tsubaki and I dont like it as much because the only lube that makes it happy is 90W gear lube. The gear lube is a great lube its just a lot more work. The original RK chain was happy w/ what ever I sprayed on it mostly Maxima chain wax. My next chain will probably be a DID.
I thought oem was RK but can't be sure. I did have an RK and although I tried to take good care of it, I was constantly adjusting it. It just seemed to stretch out alot. In hindsight, I think I was keeping it too tight which wore it out fast! Melvis pointed out on a ride he though it was too tight.
I got a new expensive DID chain, and I've been careful to leave it a bit looser, and I swear that thing is awesome. I haven't had to adjust it at all after putting it on. fing02.gif
wade _s, Nov 2 2007, 10:13 AMThanks for all of the tips and support. I just got a little frustrated. I am a perfectionist (I actually used a ruler to try to measure the slack in my chain) and feel like I'm damaging the bike if I don't have things just right. I do keep the chain lubed well. There are some areas in the chain that are tighter than others. The bike only has 8500 miles on it and Im not sure how well the chain was taken care of before I got the bike. The chain says RK on many of the links, I wonder if this is the original chain? What kind of symptoms should I expect if the chain is too loose? -David.
I understand the drive to perfectionism on this kind of stuff... But stop and think how many dimwits there are on this planet... If Honda (or any company) released this product (or any product) to be used by the public, you have to realize that it is going to take more than a minor mis-adjustment to cause problems. Dial down the OCD a little (I do not mean this as an insult - I have had to learn to relax a bit too!) and just use common sense. No need for a ruler; just adjust it so it barely touches the bottom of the swingarm.
Ditto on the too loose being too tight thing. Don't worry about the above listed "too loose" symptoms too much - it would need to be WAY loose to jump sprocket or teeth. Ditto on the lube making it quieter... In fact ditto on all the advice here.
The only thing I'd add is that, in my years of constant learning, I once rode a (too dry) chain & sprocket so far that it actually stretched and caused the (very worn and thin) sprocket teeth to break off! This was VERY noticeable on the way home as a lot of banging noises and vibes. You'll know someting is up if this happens - but keep an eye on your sprocket teeth and don't let it happen to you!
wade _s, Nov 2 2007, 10:13 AMThanks for all of the tips and support. I just got a little frustrated. I am a perfectionist (I actually used a ruler to try to measure the slack in my chain) and feel like I'm damaging the bike if I don't have things just right. I do keep the chain lubed well. There are some areas in the chain that are tighter than others. The bike only has 8500 miles on it and Im not sure how well the chain was taken care of before I got the bike. The chain says RK on many of the links, I wonder if this is the original chain? What kind of symptoms should I expect if the chain is too loose? -David.
I understand the drive to perfectionism on this kind of stuff... But stop and think how many dimwits there are on this planet... If Honda (or any company) released this product (or any product) to be used by the public, you have to realize that it is going to take more than a minor mis-adjustment to cause problems. Dial down the OCD a little (I do not mean this as an insult - I have had to learn to relax a bit too!) and just use common sense. No need for a ruler; just adjust it so it barely touches the bottom of the swingarm.
Ditto on the too loose being too tight thing. Don't worry about the above listed "too loose" symptoms too much - it would need to be WAY loose to jump sprocket or teeth. Ditto on the lube making it quieter... In fact ditto on all the advice here.
The only thing I'd add is that, in my years of constant learning, I once rode a (too dry) chain & sprocket so far that it actually stretched and caused the (very worn and thin) sprocket teeth to break off! This was VERY noticeable on the way home as a lot of banging noises and vibes. You'll know someting is up if this happens - but keep an eye on your sprocket teeth and don't let it happen to you!
Ride Safe, Todd
i'm sure the Cuban owner of this bike doesnot use a ruler either tongue.gif [image: Scannen0001.jpg]
I know this is going to be difficult, but put-the-ruler-away. A good friend of my suffers from the same affliction as you and helping him work on his bikes drives me NUTS!. On these bikes the rule of thumb I use is adjust the chain so that it will just touch the bottom of the swing arm when you force it upward at the middle of the run. This will leave it just a little loose, which 24k miles on this chain tells me is a good thing.
Rather than measure with a rule, if the book calls for X amount of slack at a given point on the swing arm. Take a block of starboard or hard wood cut to that length put between the chain and the arm and tighten. Slide the block out and you have it licked. If you have hard spots try soaking the chain and relube. As I have read most books say 90 weight oil but we all know how bad that slings.
Been lurking a while but haven't previously posted.
Have had new VFR since January. The 919 I had previously was fine when it came to adjusting the chain. The VFR gave me problems, and yes I use(d) a 6" steel rule... About when the adjustment was looking right the chain was hitting the swing arm. That worried me and I didn't want to over tighten the chain.
The comments here have been helpful though, so I'm going out now to adjust the chain without a ruler :-)
IF you're really paranoid, get someone to sit on the bike and measure the slack from there. Chain clearance from swingarm reduces with load. It may look alright on the mainstand but could be too tight when 2 up.
Another way is to pull the chain from the rear sprocket. If the chain is unable to clear any of the teeth it is ok. This is just to ensure a loose chain ain't too loose to get dislodged from the sprockets.
Just my 2 cents though.
End of thread · 27 posts recoveredWayback Machine snapshot 26 Jan 2008
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