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Tips/Tricks to adjust the chain?

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flzrider

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
I have adjusted my chain a couple time and it seems like I either overtighten it or its too loose. I was wondering what methods you guys use to adjust your chain correctly. For example....

1. Do you sit on the bike and have someone adjust it or do you calculate it while off the bike?

2. Does sitting on the bike cause the chain to get tighter or just the opposite?

3. What methods are the best to measure the up and down play and how far along the chain should this be done?

4. Does your chain hit the bottom of the swingarm when you move it upward at any point (including the black rubber chain guide/slide)?

:confused
 
#2 ·
1. Off the bike
2. Tighter
3. Tape measure and the specs and manner suggested in the f*cking manual
4. Not that I've seen with a stock chain and sprockets.

hth,
 
#5 ·
1. Off the bike on a rearstand

2. Tighter

3. Like it says in the manual, measure the vertical play ffrom the center of the chain links (I use the rivets as a measuring point). Measure the play from the center of the chain between the front and rear sprocket.

4. If you adjust your chain to spec it will not hit the chain guard on the bottom of the swingarm. I don't know why people think that adjusting the chain so that it will touch the chain guard is a good rule of thumb. That kind of slack is way out of spec.

When you tighten the axle bolt, your chain will get tighter. If you look at the axle block on the right side of the bike as you tighten the axle bolt on the left side, you'll notice that the block twists and it doesn't line up perfectly with the adjustment marks on the swingarm. You have to account for this before you start tightening the axle nut or you will overtighten the chain and/or misalign the axle.
 
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#8 · (Edited)
Tasman said:
A funny thing is that when you tight the nut to the specific torque the chain gets tighten also.
Click to expand...


Easy way to fix that.

Adjust your chain with it up on the rearstand. 1-1.5 inches of slack. Once everything is squared away with the adjusters do the following:


1. Wedge a large screwdriver in between the chain and sprocket and turn the rear wheel forward a little to pull it in there good and tight, this will effectively pull the wheel and axle up tight against the adjusters.

2. This is actually done beforehand but flip your rear axle around so that the nut is on the disc brake side. Now when you tighten the nut you will be pushing the wheel and axle up against the adjusters, not pulling it away and tightening up the chain in the process as you be doing if the nut was still on the sprocket side.

Rkhard said:
i dont think i ever saw a resolve in the post concerning what if we reversed the axle bolt the other way around like the busa does, or will this have negative effects on the handling of the bike??
Click to expand...
Flipping the axle around has no effect on the way the bike handles......why would it? :wtf


Combining these both together works like a charm and you won't keep pulling slack out of the chain everytime you tighten the axle nut.

;)
 
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#10 ·
SManZ said:
I don't know why people think that adjusting the chain so that it will touch the chain guard is a good rule of thumb. That kind of slack is way out of spec.
Click to expand...
Had you read my entire post rather than just consuming what you wanted to consume to make yourself sound more intelligent in your post...you may have noticed that I said that once you tighten the axle nut, it put just about the right amount of tension on it...meaning it doesn't slap the bottom of the swing arm anymore. :cheers
 
Discussion starter · #11 ·
Ohhh, so thats why the chain is always tighter after torquing down the axle nut.

So if i stick a screw driver in the chain/sprocket, do i have to hold the wheel up against it while i torque down the axle nut?
 
#12 ·
Duff8402 said:
Had you read my entire post rather than just consuming what you wanted to consume to make yourself sound more intelligent in your post...you may have noticed that I said that once you tighten the axle nut, it put just about the right amount of tension on it...meaning it doesn't slap the bottom of the swing arm anymore. :cheers
Click to expand...
I always do it this way. I also do the fishing line trick to align the front and rear (I don't trust those notches on the swing arm for some weird reason...). I just get it set to where the left side of the rear tire is a little further forward than the right, and the chain can hit the swing arm. Then after I tighten the axle nut, it ends up straight with just about the right tension on the chain.

I have done it enough times now that I just know how far "wrong" to have it to make it right after I tighten...
 
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#14 ·
It's called "pulling strings". The technique of running a string from the rear tire to a point forward on the frame, measuring the deflection side-2-side and adjusting the axle slider markings and axle accordingly.

Currently there's a big debate over whether aligning the rear tire to the frame (pulling strings) or to the front sprocket(using a tooling) is better.
 
#15 ·
My mechanic's got a handy little tool he uses. You slide one bar into the frame where the swingarm bolts up, and the other end you slide through the axle, then connect the two with an adjustable length bar. Guaranteed perfect alignment unless your frame is seriously fooked up.
 
#16 ·
i just bought the gilles adjusters. i don't have to worry about all that shiet. plus with the pit bull stand adjusters, i don't have to worry about snapping the studs for the original spools, and serves as a back up in case of a bin during a race. set it and forget it. (well, not really forget it, but a heck of less hassle having to make sure the rear well doesn't pull back off the adjusters).
 
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