[ZR-7S] New drive chain maintenance?

[NJD]

ZR-7S; D.I.D 525 108 link (vx)-x-ring.

Recently had a new chain fitted -- of which is the first new chain I've had during my ownership of bikes -- and was wondering for how long I should keep an eye on the tension levels before it stops stretching and I can just crack on with riding.

Chain was shop fitted and they said pop back in 100 miles if I was unsure but I've covered about 80 miles and felt a slight drop in power, and smoothness of the ride, and an occasional noise that had me torn between something stuck in the rear mudguard (like rubbing) and the chain bouncing of the swingarm rubber; checked the tension today and took it half a turn tighter from 35 mm to 30 mm (1.40-1.20 inches, aprox) as was too loose for my liking, even considering my weight and luggage load.

Set the tension on the centre stand, without load, though and so despite manuals advice, and methods, I'll fine tune as I go along -- should be fine, though. Chain looseness doesn't seem uniform, yet.

Overall just want to ensure I'm not playing too much attention to it.

Many thanks in advance.
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[MCN]

Use chain lube and the chain and sprocket will not wear as much. This reduces chain adjustment frequency.
Ensure you adjust both sides evenly or you can upset the tracking of the bike.
There are usually small lines cut into the adjuster plate to make this step more precise.

It is not a bad idea to find a way to check the tracking yourself.
All you need a long piece of string and a ruler.

You can find alignment procedure if you search google or search on here.

Lube the chain every tankful of petrol or try to do that.

Or bite the bullet and fit a Scotoiler.
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Disclaimer: The comments above may be predicted text and not necessarily the opinion of MCN.

[NJD]

[P.]

I've not looked at mine in over a year and 2000 miles and I ride like a cunt. I'd not worry.

[Kawasaki Jimbo]

Isn't "chain stretch" just the 'ovalling' of the rollers which only occurs with prolonged wear? If so, you're not going to see it at 100 miles. I haven't noticed any difference in chain adjustment intervals between a new chain and an old one.

[MCN]

[Kawasaki Jimbo]

[NJD]

[Teflon-Mike]

New chain, or new chain and sprocksts?

O~ring chains tend not to stretch an awul lot through wear; and when they do start to go, they can go like a rubber band, as the seals have gone, either from wear in the pins and rollers, or old age and the seals perishing...

The 'main' wear on an o~ring C&S in on the spockets, that are softer metal than the hardened steel of the rollers, and particularly rear wheel sprocket, usually 3x or so the diameter of the front, and made of softer alloy, where smaller front usually made of steel.

Imagine trying to cut a piece of wood with a saw; you can pull the saw back and forth like fury, or you can put all your weight on the saw, but it's mostly the number of strokes you do with the saw that do the cutting; leave the saw still, you can lean as hard as you like on it, it aint gonna cut.

Apply to chain and sprockets. The wear happens then when the chain roller gets picked up on the sprocket tooth. At that point, you get metal on metal rubbing between the chain roller and sprocket tooth. As the chain comes over the sprocket, there's no reletive motion between the roller and tooth, that's all on the chain pin, sat in its factory O~ring sealed bit of grease. So, the wear is between roller and tooth, and the rate of wear most effected by how many times the sprocket picks up a roller.

Front sprocket, what 18T? Back sprocket, what 4oT? The gearbox sprocket is going to pick up chain around 3x as many times as the wheel sprocket, it should wear faster.. but usually harder steel, it probably lasts as long or longer than the rear wheel sprocket, that is usually softer alloy, picking up chain rollers 1/3 as often, but with less pressure as the chain spread over more teeth.

Chain is 1oo odd links long; a little under half of it is on the sprockets at any one time; it might take three wheel revolutiions to see the same chain roller picked up on the first tooth of the wheel sprocket, but that tooth has probably picked up three or four other rollers in wheel revs in between.

So, the wear between the roller and the sprocket teeth, will tend to the higher on the sprocket rather than the chain; especially if the chain is under cleaned, and over oiled, so that the lube picks up grit and acts as a grinding past between the two each time.

Look how sprockets hook with age... mow you DO get accelerated early miles bed in wear. IF you have a new chain on old sprockets.. old sprockets are hooked by wear to a slightly longer effective 'pitch' than when new. New sprockets are a slightly tighter effective pitch than old.

One reason to swap C&S as a set, because when first fitted, there will be a short period of accelerated 'bed in' wear, as the new chain and sprockets wear away high~spots and make the nominal level to run on, or where, old chain on new sprockets or new chain on old sprockets try and wear to the same effective pitch as each other.

So there IS a period of accelerated 'bed~in' wear when C&S or CorS is swapped. How much will vary, on miles and type of miles, and your lube regime.

C&S should typically last about 3x the back tyre life, so maybe 1oK miles if you get 3~4K out of a tyre. 1oo~2oo miles is about 1~2% of expected chain life, that's where you'd expect to see 'bed in' wear... maybe a bit less if you have laggered up with old engine oil, and been hammering the thing between bends on a dusty country lane; more if you have been a bit more concertative with chain wax and gone down the motorway at a nice steady 65.

After that, wear should slow down to normal levels... which maybe every 5oo miles or so 'give or take'... an awful lot.

On which sort of basis, if over lubed, and hard ridden, bed in wear might be negligible and almost un~noticeable in grander scheme... of properly cleaned and lubed and treated gently, bed in wear may again be so slight in the grander scheme as to be almost unnoticeable... and on a bike with a mix of use and attension, variation from bed in wear completely lost in the difference in wear rate created by different use and different care.

SO... all rather accademic... really.... good chain care is worth while disciplne, and bed in checks more so, as much to go over touched mechanics and make sore things have been properly tightened etc, as much as adjust out any bed in wear.... but then you are constantly chasing touched mechanics,..... touching to check!

Apply common sense.

If you have never had a C&S swapped in your biking career... you either do so few miles and or ride so lightly that chain wear is not a huge or common occurance.. its probably NOT worth all that much fretting about.
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