First timer chain & sprocket swap

so in anticipation of Reg's SLO III this weekend and all the additional miles i'll be putting on my bike, i thought it best to swap out the chain. and while i'm in there, i might as well do the sprockets as well.
surprisingly, the amount of tools required were minimal. there's pretty much only 1 specialized tool and it's the chain breaker/riveting tool. and that only cost abut $40.
thank you soundmaster31 for your "review" of a suitable and capable chain breaker listed on ebay HERE

to start things off, i've never done this before. but i do consider myself a fairly mechanically inclined individual. i've done all the mods on my bike: helibars, sliders (not a fun mod), PCIII, throttlemeister etc...but naturally i'm a little concerned i'll F it up and have to get my bike towed to a mechanic in utter disgrace and watch him laugh at my inability. but at the same time i'm confident that if he can do it, why can't i? what gives him the right to charge me $85/hour for something i can (easily?) do myself?

so off comes what i perceive to be everything that's obstructing my view of the chain and sprockets. BAM, hurdle #1, the damn chain guard is not easily removed. sure there's 2 allen screws in the front and 2 plastic phillips screws in the back, but they're not easily accessible. so i concluded you don't really need to remove the back screws. it's plastic. it bends. problem solved.
moving along i decided it's probably much easier to loosen the front sprocket bolt while the chain is still on. actually i can't really see a way to do it otherwise because that sum-bitch is torqued down with about 40 lbf-ft. so remember kids, remove front sprocket center bolt while old chain is still in tact! i need to access/see the front sprocket. 4 or 5 8mm bolts later, there she is, and ugh, is she ugly.
16,000 miles of crap buildup


after that, it's time to pass the point of no return. removing a pin from the old chain. choose a pin, any pin. doesn't really matter. i chose the flattest one i could find in an effort to not break the pin pushing tool. then just simply follow the directions on your chain breaking tool by aligning the tool's pin dead center with a chain pin and tighten that mofo down like so:

as you can see, i used an adjustable wrench and a ratchet. worked just fine. plenty of leverage.

at first you'll get

then after tightening down a bit

you get


i was so amazed at how easy it was. took such little force and effort.
remove the old chain and sprocket and that sadly displays



this is where your 1 hour chain swap turns into a 2 hour chain swap. no proud viffer would just overlook this buildup of crap and continue on with the install. so, a can of wd-40 and 2 filthy shop rags later, she looks something like

not perfect, but not bad
here's the pile of crap i dug out of there


i guess you could also loosen the 6 rear sprocket bolts with the old chain still on, but i just put the bike on its side stand and used a ratchet and hammer to easily remove those bolts.

once off

the factory sprockets weren't all that bad. a little wear, but not too bad for 16,000 milles

the front sprocket i left at factory 16 tooth. with the rear i went +2 to 45 tooth. they sent me a 112 link chain. i suppose i have the option of using the 112 or cutting it down and using the factory 110. i chose to try out the 112. and if there's excessive stretching, i left myself the option of cutting it down to 110. now using 112 completely makes the little chain adjustment gauge on the side of the chain guard useless, but you just need to remember where it started off and adjust your eye accordingly.

puttin' her back together is just a matter of pressing and riveting the new master link on using the same breaking/riveting tool and viola.
she's done

add "bling" sound here


i hope this thread encourages other do-it-yourselfers to, well, do it yourself.
this rather intimidating repair was actually quite simple and allows you access to areas of your bike normally not seen.
besides, do you honestly think your mechanic would clean all that crap out of your front sprocket? hell no!
enjoy

 

Having just changed my chain last week, I would like to chime in if I may.

What did your chain kit cost?

For everyone that has a device that will do so, just cut the freaking chain off. I used an air grinder. Start to finish, it took about 18 seconds to cut the chain. The only precaution I would add is to place a towel or even better, tin foil in between the sparks & your bike. Large bolt cutters work just as well from what people tell.

A torque wrench is your friend when performing this operation.

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

I like the bling-bling!!! :lol:

 

i got my kit online through Sprocket Center [LINK]
very friendly service
and received it in the mail 2 days later

sure you can use what ever you want to get the old chain off, but the problem is how do you plan to rivet the new one on? i just find it easier in an all-in-one tool.

 

lol @ BLING!!!!

 

A 7.5A dewalt angle grinder with a cut off wheel works really good too.

 

True dat, true dat. The kit I bought came with a new master link. I've also been led to believe you're never supposed to re-use a master link.

Any comments on the new gear ratio? That's the only reason I didn't get the kit you have. I wanted the stock ratio.

This is the kit I used. I got it from the local dealer I get all my parts from. They give me a Military & MSF discount. I have the Motion Pro chain tool kit. It's OK but certainly there are better products out there.

http://motionpro.com/motorcycle/partno/08-0058/
http://www.sprocketcenter.com/p/310545/rk-530xso-series-chain-sprocket-kit---honda-vfr.html

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

well, cruising home from work yesterday, there's a nice stretch of uphill road into west hollywood i usually like to go from 30 to 100 as fast as i can for no apparent reason just past a 4-way intersection. as usual i was in 2nd gear doing the speed limit, then i gunned it and to my surprise my front tire was way up in the air. something very new for this activity. then i remembered, oh yeah, +2 on the rear sprocket. so it certainly does give you a nice boost of power at slower speeds. i haven't taken it on the freeway just yet, so i don't know how it will affect my higher speed RPM's.
i'll certainly know come friday morning when i meet up with the SD crew on the PCH.

just when i was at the point where i could tell how fast i was going and what RPM's i was at just by the vibration, i had to go and switch it all up.

 

If you could, after a few fill ups, please post a before & after MPG analysis.

My sprockets looked just like yours did. The front was rusted in the same manner. I have no explanation for the rust. Cheap material used by the sprocket maker?

I had an equivalent amount of gunk in the countershaft cover. I was contemplating doing photos but I would have ruined my camera.

You probably did a much better job than I would have. :thumbsup:

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

beware the heavy wrist syndrome now...

YMMV now lol.

 

SInce you have a 5th Gen with the 45t rear, how much did it affect your MPG? I am consistently in the upper 40's & would like to keep it there. I also wouldn't mind a little boost to the fun.

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

First note: I'm huge 6'4" 345lbs so your mileage will very :thumbsup:

I was getting 40-45mpg average(mixed driving - but mostly rural and highway) with k&n air filter(came with my bike), stock exhaust, and running the 17/45 sprocket setup. I believe it was about 200rpm difference. It's all in the wrist and how you drive though... if you kick it into 6th gear as much as you can and granny shift on your commutes you won't notice much of a difference.


Now I have a PCIII USB and gave up miles per gallon for smiles per gallon. You can always zero the fuel map with your laptop on a touring trip(to save mpg) and load the custom map when you drop your gear off and hit the fun twisites. I've got all the way down to 30mpg using the pc3 and running very aggressively and of course barely made it to 4th gear much...so yeah. ymmv depending on your wrist.

 

What was the MPG difference before the PC & after the PC?

Apologizes to the OP for the threadjack.

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

It quite honestly really depends on how you have it mapped. The "stock exhaust / stock air filter" map available from the PC website won't get you anywhere near stock mileage. It's way too rich. I've got anywhere from 30-40ish mpg(depending on the ride) but I haven't been babying it all to see the max mileage I can get out of the custom map. I also have a Staintune exhaust now as well, but not sure how much that affects the mileage as it went on at the same time as the PCIII.

I'll try driving around babying it on some long trips when it gets warm enough out and I'll try running around with the zero map as well and compare some MPG numbers for y'all in separate thread. Give me a month or two though.

 

well, got it on the freeway today, and noticed about a +200 RPM difference. not too bad. although, on surface roads i noticed i wasn't shifting between 2nd & 3rd as much. very nice improvement. should come in nice and handy in the twisties.

 

i just put on my new stock front and rear sprockets on a 91 and have a question on adjusting the rear hub? I have moved it fully forward so when i put on my new chain ( i have to remove some links it is too big) should i leave it fully forward so i have some adjustment as it stretches? or move it back a bit? make the chain fit as it is or move the hub back a bit and make the chain fit?

 

It depends on what the stock size chain is and if you modified the sprockets. Someone else can chime in here...

 

Hey great job and really nice cleanup - I did my wheel and swingarm bearings last year and plan to do my chain and sprockets when it gets a little warmer - Your description and pics are a great help - Thanks!!!!

 

well i know it isn't a stock length chain put it on last nite and it is too long so i know i will have to remove some links....just curious if i leave the adjustment fully forward to allow for adjustments later on....

 

question about the chain it comes with some sort of grease on it do you clean that off and then lube it with chain lube/ gear oil?