Shifting problems

[Sullybiker]

Originally Posted by RogerWFarrier

You should also check to see if the chain slack measurement is with or without weight on the bike. I know that the TT says 15 mm on the bike but in the manual it says that it's 15 mm weighted.

A lot of makers suggest this. Of course it's really hard to measure, after a while you can tell what's right just by feel. On my Kawi I knew if I could touch the swingarm with the lower run of the chain it needed adjusting.

The stock chain on the TT250 isn't too bad for a non O-ring job, but I replaced it at 1000 miles as it was getting a lot of play on the rear sprocket even when adjusted - a sure sign it's almost shot.

[BlackBike]

Originally Posted by Sullybiker

A lot of makers suggest this. Of course it's really hard to measure, after a while you can tell what's right just by feel. On my Kawi I knew if I could touch the swingarm with the lower run of the chain it needed adjusting.

The stock chain on the TT250 isn't too bad for a non O-ring job, but I replaced it at 1000 miles as it was getting a lot of play on the rear sprocket even when adjusted - a sure sign it's almost shot.

I Got a heavy duty JT chain. How many MILES can I expect to get from this chain? 10k?

I have 9ver 5000MILES now. I use it more like a street bike that an enduro.

[Ariel Red Hunter]

Originally Posted by BlackBike

I Got a heavy duty JT chain. How many MILES can I expect to get from this chain? 10k?

I have 9ver 5000MILES now. I use it more like a street bike that an enduro.

I don't want to shock you, but I've never worn out a motor-cycle drive chain. All of the chains I used were either Duckworth (USA), Renold (English) or Regina (Italy). I don't know the name of the chain that I had on my two Hondas, or one Yamaha. None were o-ring chains. I only rode two of those bikes a lot of miles. The Ariel Red Hunter 350, and the Indian 80 cubic inch Bonneville Chief. And that Indian had a rigid rear wheel, but the saddle took care of that. What did I do right? Well, I had an infamous concoction that I cooked my chains in. And I cooked them in a double boiler IN THE BACKYARD. If I had cooked them in the house, I would have been killed. Not divorced, killed. My wife was an old school Catholic, and she took that no divorce deal very seriously. Anyway, here is the magic elixer for drive chains. I've even used it on primary chains on racing Nortons and AJS 7R's. Parrifine wax (Gulf Wax for sealing glass jars with food in them, eg home canning) mixed with a double handful of graphite, and in winter, some chassis grease. I cleaned the chains in kerosene just as clean as possible first, of course....ARH

[Rail32]

Originally Posted by Ariel Red Hunter

I don't want to shock you, but I've never worn out a motor-cycle drive chain. All of the chains I used were either Duckworth (USA), Renold (English) or Regina (Italy). I don't know the name of the chain that I had on my two Hondas, or one Yamaha. None were o-ring chains. I only rode two of those bikes a lot of miles. The Ariel Red Hunter 350, and the Indian 80 cubic inch Bonneville Chief. And that Indian had a rigid rear wheel, but the saddle took care of that. What did I do right? Well, I had an infamous concoction that I cooked my chains in. And I cooked them in a double boiler IN THE BACKYARD. If I had cooked them in the house, I would have been killed. Not divorced, killed. My wife was an old school Catholic, and she took that no divorce deal very seriously. Anyway, here is the magic elixer for drive chains. I've even used it on primary chains on racing Nortons and AJS 7R's. Parrifine wax (Gulf Wax for sealing glass jars with food in them, eg home canning) mixed with a double handful of graphite, and in winter, some chassis grease. I cleaned the chains in kerosene just as clean as possible first, of course....ARH

Really ? That's very intersting .
Chains are really all about maintenance , you take it to the next level by coating them prior . I love it .

[Hawk'em]

Hey guys i have a shift shaft leak on my Hawk but plenty of oil still in the bike. I'm having problems down shifting. It will shift up all the way through with 0 problems. Has anyone else had this issue or can anyone point me in the right direction here on what to do or what the problem is?

[Megadan]

Originally Posted by Hawk'em

Hey guys i have a shift shaft leak on my Hawk but plenty of oil still in the bike. I'm having problems down shifting. It will shift up all the way through with 0 problems. Has anyone else had this issue or can anyone point me in the right direction here on what to do or what the problem is?

No issues up shift, but issues down shift, is generally a good indicator of the clutch dragging a little and the clutch needs some adjusting to get full disengagement. These bikes tend to suffer from a decent amount of clutch fade once the engine gets hot, so what might seem fine cold, is not fine once warmed up, and will either need re-adjusting at the lever once you get up to temp, and/or the clutch adjusted to what almost seems like it is nearly too tight when cold.

[Hawk'em]

Thanks I'll try that this evening after work

[Hillbilly-06]

I have a similar problem once in a while, when the bike gets warmed up good, and while just easy riding and tooling around the block for a bit. I will attempt to ease up to a stop sign and coast in, and at the last few yards shift down to second gear until I'm ready to make my turn. Then I go down to first as I am just stopped. But once in a while I get to the stop sign on top of the hill and it won't down shift at all. Like stuck in 3rd or 4th gear. At that point If I stop and just kill it, I can push off the hill and restart in 4th gear, but after that it starts working again. My bike only has about 160 miles on it, so it's probably not near broken in, but I never considered "clutch drag" or adjusting it until I read this post. Since it only happens once in a while, and only when its warmed up good, should I give the clutch on mine a look see? Or any other suggestions???