Chain Selection, Don't Cheap Out like I Did!

[Old Guy Too Many Bikes]

Just got done putting my left over YX140 motor in a basket case C105 I bought cheap. I made every effort to save money on this build and it ended up being kinda a frankenbike. Yes, I used the old chain that came on the bike. The bike was running great and very fast, and yesterday I was hauling flat out down the street and as I shifted from 2nd to 3rd, BLAM!. It threw the chain and took out the stator plate. It'll cost me about a week and $80 to fix. Had I been a little less cheap and replaced the chain from the get go I would have avoided this mess.

 

[fatcaaat]

You got off lucky. I had a cheap chain laying around I put on my poor mans nice 157cc when I was just going through intial tuning. When it threw the chain, it got wrapped up in the rear sprocket area, seized the rear tire and ate up the nice aluminum hub and gouged the rims. I was doing about 55 when hit happened and I gassed it hard to go up a hill. Lucky for me it was straight up the hill for about 500 yards because I skid the back tire about 50 yards when it happened. Had I been going around a turn it would have been a different outcome.

Edit: I had a cheap, used chain laying around. My guess is that it had 3000 miles on it on an 95cc configured machine.

 

[Old Guy Too Many Bikes]

Yeah, I guess as bad as things go sometimes, it could always be worse.

 

[Gordy]

You got off lucky. I had a cheap chain laying around I put on my poor mans nice 157cc when I was just going through intial tuning. When it threw the chain, it got wrapped up in the rear sprocket area, seized the rear tire and ate up the nice aluminum hub and gouged the rims. I was doing about 55 when hit happened and I gassed it hard to go up a hill. Lucky for me it was straight up the hill for about 500 yards because I skid the back tire about 50 yards when it happened. Had I been going around a turn it would have been a different outcome.

Rear wheel lockups are scary

 

[kirrbby]

I'm always tempted, and often DO use questionable chains. I hate buying them...after buying only 15 or 25 for these bikes.
I will buy new for road bikes tho...always. But might still be tempted to run a flimsy one for that first ride.
It could happen to anyone imo.

 

[Old Guy Too Many Bikes]

It kinda got me rethinking about the chain on my "CL250". I left the 32 tooth sprocket on the rear wheel and installed an 18 tooth up front, all with a brand new #428 chain. However, the CM250 came with a #520 chain. I figured it would be all right since Honda used a #428 on its Twinstar 200. I'd switch over, but I'd need a 28 tooth rear sprocket to keep the gearing the same, but no one makes one in a #520.

 

[fatcaaat]

I have a converted dual sport CRF150 with a 230f engine in it. Original chain is 520 and I converted to 428 since I wanted to get to a taller ratio. I've done a few thousand miles without any issue and used the best chain I could find.

 

[JHminitrails]

Just got done putting my left over YX140 motor in a basket case C105 I bought cheap. I made every effort to save money on this build and it ended up being kinda a frankenbike. Yes, I used the old chain that came on the bike. The bike was running great and very fast, and yesterday I was hauling flat out down the street and as I shifted from 2nd to 3rd, BLAM!. It threw the chain and took out the stator plate. It'll cost me about a week and $80 to fix. Had I been a little less cheap and replaced the chain from the get go I would have avoided this mess.

Did the master link fail, and what type was it....clip link or rivet link? Or was it a main chain link that failed? If you're using a clip link master link it's always good practice to clean all the oil and grease off the link, then cover the whole clip with some good silicone. Loctite 5910 is a very strong sealant/silicone. This is just a good safety measure to prevent the clip from vibrating off. Personally I would never use a clip link on any chain larger than 520, and WILL not use one on any street bike of any kind. Any chain I've replaced on street legal bikes get a proper rivet link installed with the riveting tool. There's a reason almost all new road legal bikes come with endless chains, it's a major liability for manufacturers.

 

[Old Guy Too Many Bikes]

It did not break at the master link. But the chain was old and I should have known better. I thought manufacturers stopped using master links to save a buck.

 

[dirtbkr188]

This is what I use, seems to work for me...

 

[Old Guy Too Many Bikes]

I've been using Form-a-gasket since the 70's as a sealant when assembling VW case halves, but never for that. I suppose it would help keep dust and dirt out, but since it never really hardens, it wouldn't prevent a worn clip from coming off, and a new clip shouldn't be coming off in the first place. I think the most important steps you can take to prevent failures is use a new, quality chain to start with, keep it well lubricated, and keep it adjusted. Too tight is worse than too loose, and check tension when sitting on the bke, not unladen.

 

[OLD CT]

Too tight prematurely stretches the chain and too loose can make it come off and lockup the rear wheel and more famously bust a hole in the flywheel cover. That tit inside doesn't like to be played with. So too loose is actually worse.

 

[Old Guy Too Many Bikes]

I guess there's too tight, too loose, and waay too loose. Too tight is also hard on the sprocket teeth, the countershaft spline, and the countershaft bearing. A little loose will result in slop in the drive train that can be felt in on to off throttle transitions but not dangerous, waay too loose may cause the chain to come off. All too often I see guys on fancy ass sportbikes with a loose chain sloppin' and and slappin'.