I bought a 91 F2 for a really good price to replace the 96 I sold. The chain is binding a bit and I'm thinking the guy may have the spacer on the rear wheel wrong. Regardless of the sprockets installed, a chain is a chain, right? I know the lengths are different, but the chain is the same.

Any thoughts?

 

eh, kinda, really depends on what your doing. I mean if you're just cruising around having fun not doing anything stressful on the bike then well a chain is a chain..(if its binding i'd prolly just replace it anyways because if that chain snaps it could fly off and destroy your leg, fly off and kill someone, or not fly off get stuck lock your rear wheel and then you die) now if your doing crazy **** on the bike like hard downshifts or wheelie time then you put a lot more stress on that 40 dolla chain you bought off ebay and its more likely to bend and break which is where you buy a hd chain

 

520 chains require 520 sprockets. 530 chains require 530 sprockets. 525 chains.... you get the idea. they dont interchange.

some are better than others. choose based on demands.the better, stronger ones tend to last longer.

 

I need to look at things to see what he's running. I know it's binding, which means no riding until I change sprockets. I was hoping I could ride it until the sprockets get here, but safety is more important than riding.

 

chains are a chains until they break... hopefully you are not powering through a corner when the chain takes out the case and spits oil all over your rear tire...


binding means there is a chain & sprocket mismatch or your chain is beat.

 

At least it's winter.

 

Until we get that one crazy nice day thats like 60, i can't wait to pull my baby out again lol

 

Get a good 530 and don't spare the $'s. You get what you pay for if you do your homework and shop around.
A quarter tonne bike needs sturdy links to drive it. A chain is a chain, but a **** chain is a **** chain. Big difference.
Check adjustment once every 500-700 miles. 1/8th of a turn on the adjuster nuts at the right time can make all the difference. Lube regularly.

 

Is is pretty easy to take the chain off? I want to give my chain a thorough cleaning and lube it up pretty good before spring hits. And how tight/loose should I have the chain after it's on the bike? It seems pretty loose to me, although I'm use to pedal bike chains...lol

Thanks,
Ryan

 

Rear hub spacers are identical left to right on our bikes, so they shouldn't be installed wrong if they are indeed the correct parts for the bike.

As for binding - you didn't mention if you checked the alignment - you should be able to look down the chain - they make tools for this, but you should be able to eyeball any significant bending in the chain.



If it is only binding at a certain point on the chain, then you may have a stiff link or 2. Pull the chain off and check each pivot point to see if any are rough or frozen up. Or you may have a bent sprocket - pull the chain off and spin the rear wheel - hold your fingernail a few MM away from the sprocket out near the teeth and see if it wanders toward or away from your nail significantly. If so - replace the sprocket. Check for bent or missing teeth on both sprockets too.

The chain won't come off in one piece without you removing your swingarm as well. Your call if that'sts what you want to do.

if your chain has a clip-style master link, then you can take it apart there. Never reuse a master link, install a new one.

Otherwise, if you have a riveted style master link, then you have to grind that link pins off, then again, install a new master link.

If all you want to do is clean the chain - take the chain off the rear sprocket, and let it hang down into a pan/bucket of kerosene for a few hours, then rotate the chain around so that the section that wasn't in the bucket gets to soak too. Kerosene is your friend here, don't use other products, as they can cause the rubber o-rings to swell and lose their shape.

Also - as mentioned, if you're replacing the chain, replace sprockets as well - worn parts just don't play well together.

Good chains are more expensive, but you have to remember that even our old bikes are higher HP machines than a lot of the mid-range 600cc bikes of yesterday and today. A 600cc cruiser, for example may only be rated at 60hp, where our bikes were rated at 100hp, and even today in decent tune are putting down 85+ hp @ the rear wheel on dyno runs.