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Equipping the Bike - what's the best gear? Anything to do with the bikes equipment, saddlebags, etc. Questions on repairs and maintenance of the bike itself belong in the Brand Specific Tech Forums.
Photo by Andy Miller, UK, Taking a rest, Jokulsarlon, Iceland

I haven't been everywhere...
but it's on my list!


Photo by Andy Miller, UK,
Taking a rest,
Jokulsarlon, Iceland



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  #16  
Old 13 Jan 2004
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I tend to clean chains periodically by wiping a rag over the chain thats had a squirt of WD40 on it. Once clean, I wipe a dry rag over it & then lube with o'ring friendly lube. I also squirt lube on to an (old) toothbrush & brush it in to the o'rings to keep them them moist to prevent perishing.

Steve
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  #17  
Old 5 Feb 2004
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One way to help the master link clip stay on is to Epoxy it on. I've been told this works well but even so when I bought my 1100 it showed signs of epoxy on the chain but no master link. I wasn't too happy as I was told the bike had been safetied so my first ride was from 0 - 160 km/h right out of the parking lot.

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  #18  
Old 7 Feb 2004
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Hello. A little advice on masterlinks. First of all, carry lots! I like to use my leatherman toon to remove and install the clips, it also has a handy file to remove burrs fron the pins to aid removal. i haven't tried epoxy, but i wouldn't recomend it, adds problems to link removal. The most important thing to remember is placing the clip mouth in the right direction. This depends on what side of the wheel the chain is on. The open mouth of the clip must point away from the sprocket when the chain first engages the teeth on the bottom of the sprocket. If rocks, mud, sticks, etc...hit the chain, the clip can only tighten. In all my experience, i've never (oops, i said it now!) lost a masterlink. Does this make sense? I hope i've explained myself well enough. Good luck!
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  #19  
Old 12 Feb 2004
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I use something called the "Grunge Brush." It is a three-sided brush that you use for you chain that makes cleaning it a snap, as you can move it back and forth or hold it in place and spin the wheel if you have the bike elevated. It's just as easy to carry in your travel toolkit as an extra rag, and I think that it's worth it. I think that it's about $10 on Competition Accessories.

Also, I've heard that WD40 isn't good for o-ring chains, as it breaks down the sealed in lubricant. Fact or Fiction, I don't know, but that's what Honda says. They recommend using heavyweight oil, such as gearbox oil. What I do is take a clean chain and coat it with PJ-1. That seals the surfaces, so that dirt can't really infiltrate it. That makes cleaning it easier, prevents damage to the o-rings, and helps seal in the lubricant.
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  #20  
Old 1 Mar 2004
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Well... If this is not enaugh, Here,s my bit of info. (wich I missed above).

After doing 85.000 km the last 1,5 years I have noticed the folowing:

The sprockets wear dpwn sooner then my (DID X-ring) chains. It,s not the chain that ware,s down so fast, the sprockets hole (don,t know any other word for it) tends to get an other shape, wich will "hook" the chain when it rolls off... This give,s the chain a swepping motion wich in turn couses more ware (a chain-reaction )

My chain,s and sprockets last about 25.000 to 30.000 km (depending on the amount of dirt-roads)... but they never ever break.

I think normal oil is bad for the rubber rings. So I use gear-oil in my scott-oiler (wich is often empty).

I also think that is,t very important to keep the sprocket oiled (the cahin will take care of itself) to minimize the above mentioned wear. I noticed a big BIG decrease in the slapping motion after aplying some oil in the rollers of the chain. Not on all of them... just a few, they will deliver the oil to the sprockets.

Well... so far my aditional hints. I never heared of RVS-sprockets that won,t wear... I would love to have some.

Hope it helps.

Maarten

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  #21  
Old 2 Mar 2004
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Hello Marten. Believe it or not, the above mentioned sprockets do exist. They are made of stainless steel, which only gets harder the more you use it. Check it out!
www.sidewindersprockets.com
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  #22  
Old 15 Mar 2004
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Hi mr Ron,

Well... I checked it out and it (the site and the statements they made) reminded me of disneyworld.
But since I always am open for "improvements" I tried to order a set...

Ofcourse they were not available for my Africa Twin... I mean... who would want to make everlasting sprockets for a traveling-bike

I,ll keep on dreaming... and I,ll keep on realizing it,s a dream.

Maarten

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