Sprocket(s) Swap: 17/42 to 16/44 !si!

Just swapped out the Freeway Flyer gearing the P.O. had on my 2000.   Much more usable for me...I just took a spin through the Eastern Oregon coulee country, riding one of my backroad loops from the Columbia Gorge along the east slope to Maupin (in the Deschutes 'gorge') and back around through Fulton Canyon...some small back canyon roads I've found over the years.  With the new lower gearing I actually used 6th sometimes.  I got the sprockets from Sprocket Center.  The rear didn't have the recesses for the washers that the previous one has, which didn't bother me.  With the hub apart (I got a new eccentric from a lister...thank you) I found my drive cushions all brittle and seperated...so those are on order.   I didn't get my new tire balanced very well either...at about 110mph it starts to vibrate a bit...My car-wheel bubble balancer didn't work quite right with the VFR rear wheel...I shall have to make an adapter of some sort for that.   I also noticed that though I was careful to adjust the chain tension with the online workshop manual recommendation exactly, and to check it in a bunch of rotations of the wheel...when I stopped on the road to recheck everything, the chain seemed a little too tight with the bike on it's sidestand...

  I still haven't touched anything down cornering (scraped one boot edge only)...even though the route I just did today (150 miles) has plenty of <"15mph" corners.  I have about 5/8" of chicken-strips still on my new Shinko Stealth rear , but the bike is beginning to become more familiar and I'm working into it, with care....A 500lb strange bike with a 'new to me' type of tire and <40f pavement temps are not a combo to toss blithely into corners with long volcanic rock covered dropoffs and no shoulders or guard rails.

  I do love the wide smooth power band and the sound of the V4 Two Brothers high pipe at 11,000 rpm! (or at idle, too)
  A fresh load of brake fluid and a clutch bleed was good for my gear changes and having shorter gears makes it more fun to ride, while still putting me at around 6000 at 80mph.  My speedo is about the same amount off...reads 15mph too fast in 5th or 6th according to my bicycle GPS that I took along to see.
  Good bike, this vfr...
  Don Hanson

Welcome to the addiction...

The bike should feel great with that gearing in the twisties! :tour:

If your numbers are right, you were at 2.47:1 and moved to 2.75:1

That's a drop of 11.3%, which is pretty substantial.

I tried going -1 on the front sprocket once (only about 6% drop), and found myself reaching for seventh gear all the time. I switched back.

But hey, if it's working out for you.......

Yeah, it is a significant and very noticeable change.  It was over-geared before and now it is geared a little lower than stock...I never figured the % of change, thanks.  I'll keep the other gearing around and use it if I ever go touring on the motorcycle, though I probably won't do too much of that other than real 'sporty tours'.....

  My 'problem' is I am pretty well-traveled already, all over the Western US, where we live.  Been most everywhere over the years, multiple times...Oh I'm sure there are places we've missed...but reading all the 'touring and ride reports' here, I've been there...... for the most part,  at some time in my long life.  We used to spend a month each spring touring and camping with our bicycles in various vehicles...looking for mountains and interesting roads to 'train' on for bike racing....Bicycle roads and motorcycle roads have the same requirements...though I must say, it is much easier riding the VFR than it is my Colnago...
  It has a 53-11 gearing.....Grin///
  Don Hanson