Chain Cleaning
Discussion
Sorry to bring this topic up again, but..........
my chain is in a right state, and desperately needs all the crap cleaned off it.
I've heard people mention parafin, is this right and/or is there a product that you would recommend ?
X ring chain, that get Wurth dry chain lube put on it every 350ish miles.
Also once cleaned, do I need to do anything more than just a very good application of lube ?
piling on chain lube is just going to bury the dirt (and salt) in. Salt will corrode and wear the chain.
So you must clean a chain on a regular basis, get out the grit filled old chainlube, and re-apply it.
You can use all sorts of stuff, but the spray from your local dealer of "chain cleaner" for fiver will last several years.
Had a one to one with a oil manfacturer, who basically spelt it out that you really arent going to damage your chain with all sorts of product, even a power washer unless you sit there on full squirt at a single link.. regardless of O/X links.
clean the chain when you feel it needs it, it its winter riding, then maybe weekly, if its dry summers, twice a year, just look at it and judge for yourself.
Lube when warm (after a ride) preferably, but cold if you have just cleaned it.
every 500 miles is fine, but again, consider what you have ridden in.
Rememeber, a chain breaking will flick off the cog, and slap the back of your leg. this will remove flesh to the bone. It might also get in the wheels and lock the bike up solid. --- Look after your chain.
So you must clean a chain on a regular basis, get out the grit filled old chainlube, and re-apply it.
You can use all sorts of stuff, but the spray from your local dealer of "chain cleaner" for fiver will last several years.
Had a one to one with a oil manfacturer, who basically spelt it out that you really arent going to damage your chain with all sorts of product, even a power washer unless you sit there on full squirt at a single link.. regardless of O/X links.
clean the chain when you feel it needs it, it its winter riding, then maybe weekly, if its dry summers, twice a year, just look at it and judge for yourself.
Lube when warm (after a ride) preferably, but cold if you have just cleaned it.
every 500 miles is fine, but again, consider what you have ridden in.
Rememeber, a chain breaking will flick off the cog, and slap the back of your leg. this will remove flesh to the bone. It might also get in the wheels and lock the bike up solid. --- Look after your chain.
s2ooz said:
Rememeber, a chain breaking will flick off the cog, and slap the back of your leg. this will remove flesh to the bone. It might also get in the wheels and lock the bike up solid. --- Look after your chain.
OK now you have me worried, is it easy to change a chain I have had my bike 2 years and not touched the chain, it has a scotoiler fitted and has been tensioned by the dealer when they changed the tyres, but thats as far as it has gone.
I think i need to get it changed
Bikes need more TLC than a car, a lot more. you should be checking your chain weekly. Sit on it and lean over and check the tension (or use a friend)
It should have manafacturers recommended slack. (a few fingers movement)
When mine comes back from the dealer its always solid tight once im sat on it. so dont trust the dealers settings.
get it on a stand and manually rotate the rear, NO ENGINE RUNNING! look for tight spots.
chains stretch, so you need to know how to adjust it, and adjust it!
road salt etc can seize the adjusters, so undo them and retighten (clean etc) regulary anyway. certainly more than relying on every 6000 at the dealers.
while your turning the wheel, check the tyre for punctures/nails. A blow out on a 60mph, knee downer can also get messy!!
With a scott oiler, I would expect it to be in pretty good nick, due to the style of oil they use, it will clean off some crap, but clean it manually anyway.
Chains arent an exact science, so can last anything from 4000-20,000 miles !!
Im on my third chain after 20,000, mostly due to trackdays followed by week long rides across europe with decent care. Ive learned a lot too, so my third chain is in much better condition.
You can change a chain yourself, if you are happy hammering new rivets, or take it to a dealer, its not much more expensive. change the sprockets at the same too, as they wear together and a new chain will be reduced quickly by old sprockets.
chains come in around £100 for a sports bike and sprockets are £20 each.
---- these checks will take 2 mins after a long rideout, just do it. and every so often check brake pads, check bolts are torqued up tight, (like the brake calipers and rear wheel!) check for oil leaks etc etc etc. it really doesnt take much time, and getting your hands dirty in the garage can be quite a relief from yet more eastenders or tesco shopping.
Bikers dont have the luxury of breaking down and calling the AA, it can easily lead to a painful "off", so dont let it happen, and waste 10 minutes after a rideout, giving it a once over.
>> Edited by s2ooz on Monday 10th April 16:09
It should have manafacturers recommended slack. (a few fingers movement)
When mine comes back from the dealer its always solid tight once im sat on it. so dont trust the dealers settings.
get it on a stand and manually rotate the rear, NO ENGINE RUNNING! look for tight spots.
chains stretch, so you need to know how to adjust it, and adjust it!
road salt etc can seize the adjusters, so undo them and retighten (clean etc) regulary anyway. certainly more than relying on every 6000 at the dealers.
while your turning the wheel, check the tyre for punctures/nails. A blow out on a 60mph, knee downer can also get messy!!
With a scott oiler, I would expect it to be in pretty good nick, due to the style of oil they use, it will clean off some crap, but clean it manually anyway.
Chains arent an exact science, so can last anything from 4000-20,000 miles !!
Im on my third chain after 20,000, mostly due to trackdays followed by week long rides across europe with decent care. Ive learned a lot too, so my third chain is in much better condition.
You can change a chain yourself, if you are happy hammering new rivets, or take it to a dealer, its not much more expensive. change the sprockets at the same too, as they wear together and a new chain will be reduced quickly by old sprockets.
chains come in around £100 for a sports bike and sprockets are £20 each.
---- these checks will take 2 mins after a long rideout, just do it. and every so often check brake pads, check bolts are torqued up tight, (like the brake calipers and rear wheel!) check for oil leaks etc etc etc. it really doesnt take much time, and getting your hands dirty in the garage can be quite a relief from yet more eastenders or tesco shopping.
Bikers dont have the luxury of breaking down and calling the AA, it can easily lead to a painful "off", so dont let it happen, and waste 10 minutes after a rideout, giving it a once over.
>> Edited by s2ooz on Monday 10th April 16:09
s2ooz said:
Rememeber, a chain breaking will flick off the cog, and slap the back of your leg. this will remove flesh to the bone. It might also get in the wheels and lock the bike up solid. --- Look after your chain.
I have heard of Ducati chains breaking and piling up round the front sprocket, breaking the back of the crankcase - which is a very expensive repair, in fact I believe Ducati actually make a steel guard that fits to the crankcase due to this having happened a few times.
I had a chain break once on a KTM motocrosser, luckily it just came off with no damage but leaving me stranded several miles from home, I think it was too tight and it broke as it tightened when the rear compressed fully - Since then my motto has been 'A loose chain is a happy chain'......
s2ooz said:
chains come in around £100 for a sports bike and sprockets are £20 each.
Never bought a Ducati rear sprocket have you?......
>> Edited by catso on Monday 10th April 16:25
'A loose chain is a happy chain'......
Careful with this, an excessively loose chain can jump the sprocket and potentially lock the rear wheel.
On most bikes, the gearbox sprocket and the swing arm pivot are not concentric, this means that as the suspension is compressed and the gearbox sprocket, swing arm pivot and rear axle all come into a line, the chain will be at it's tightest. With the bike on it's side stand (or to an even greater degree on a centre stand) The suspension extends and the chain gets slacker. Effectively the front and rear sprockets move closer together.
Ideally, the chain will be "just off tight" with everything in line. The manufacturer's recommended amount of slack in the handbook is intended to make this adjustment more simple. It would be a bit of a pain to strap the rear suspension down until everything was in line and then adjust the chain each time, so the manufacturer works it out for us and we just have to set a predetermined amount of slack in the chain with the bike on it's stand.
So too tight and the chain may break, it will certainly wear out faster and give the bearings in the gearbox output shaft a very hard time (and they have a hard enough life with the drive sprocket flapping about on the end of the shaft anyway) It can also cause rear wheel slides, because the suspension locks when the chain goes tight.
Too loose and the chain may jump the sprocket, chew up who knows what on the bike and maybe lock the back wheel.
Get it right and the bike will shift gears more smoothly and just generally be nicer to ride!
As has already been pointed out on this thread, check the tension all round the chain, they don't wear evenly and look for any tight links. Keep it clean and well lubricated, I use Paraffin and car gearbox oil, applied with an old paint brush.
I tend to be a bit of a ludite with things like this. No doubt some of the potions in spray cans work better, paraffin and hypoid oil work well enough.
One final point when adjusting the chain, make sure the back wheel is aligned properly, sometimes the index marks on the swing arm can be a bit out.
s2ooz said:
Rememeber, a chain breaking will flick off the cog, and slap the back of your leg. this will remove flesh to the bone. It might also get in the wheels and lock the bike up solid. --- Look after your chain.
Exactly what happened to my KTM, it was before i bought it so dont know what injurys there were, it did however make a mess of the swing arm and put a nasty crack on the engine behind the front sprocket
Good wise words, look after your chain.
>> Edited by grant.d on Monday 10th April 21:06
A broken chain can also smash the crankcase, so they need to be well looked after.
I use ordinary engine oil to lube my chain. Normally every 300 miles or so, but especially after riding in the rain. That's when I tend to clean the chain (with paraffin and old brush) but I'm a bit lazy on cleaning.
I used to use spray-on chain lube but the stickier the lube, the more it acts as grinding paste. Oil spins off taking the grit with it, so it makes a mess of the wheel and swingarm, but that's easily cleaned.
Using oil seems to make the chain last, I got 24,000 miles out of the last chain on my GSX750F and now the 1200 Bandit is up to the same mileage on the original chain. Its a bit worn and I've already got a new chain and sprocket set, so if I get time over Easter its on with the new kit.
I use ordinary engine oil to lube my chain. Normally every 300 miles or so, but especially after riding in the rain. That's when I tend to clean the chain (with paraffin and old brush) but I'm a bit lazy on cleaning.
I used to use spray-on chain lube but the stickier the lube, the more it acts as grinding paste. Oil spins off taking the grit with it, so it makes a mess of the wheel and swingarm, but that's easily cleaned.
Using oil seems to make the chain last, I got 24,000 miles out of the last chain on my GSX750F and now the 1200 Bandit is up to the same mileage on the original chain. Its a bit worn and I've already got a new chain and sprocket set, so if I get time over Easter its on with the new kit.
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