Templar X first mod 14T Sprocket

[rider1010]

Originally Posted by Thumper

I haven't really decided when or whether to gear it up. The original 13T x 49T is really low geared (0.265!), but it is a true enduro bike.

This OEM gearing gives you a crawling 1st for tight situations, and brings 2nd and even 3rd gear into useful range for trail riding.

Dropping to 42T brings it into lower gear end of dual purpose range with a ratio of 0.31 That is more than a 16% change! No more super-crawling 1st gear, but you stand a chance in traffic. Still it is lower geared than most of the standard Chinese dual sports.

My Storm came with OEM gearing of 17T/42T =0.3696 final drive ratio
I made a modest reduction for better off-road performance:
New gearing is 12T/35T =0.3429 final drive ratio

This brings it more into perspective for me. The 42T rear sprocket you installed is still lower geared than my Storm. Based on this, I think the 42T rear sprocket would be a usable upgrade for my Temp X. Thanks for the part number!

I am definitely not going to go 14T on the front. There is plenty of room for dropping on the rear, and I am not going to grind the engine case. No need to go 14T for my purposes. It is a dirt bike, and I ride it off road!

BTW, the JTF287 has a spline recess measurement of 18mm (post #9 above). The JT287 will be loose on this shaft. Still no ideal front sprocket replacement that I've seen. Not even a OEM 13T. But it is probably available on Alibaba/AliExpress.

Thumper how fast does the Templar X go with the new 6 speed? wandering if should just keep stock sprockets.

[tknj99]

I did the same with the Titan. Increased from stock 13/42 to 14/42 and it gained a good 5mph.. now have the Templar on order and if needed will do the same to 14T as I'd like to cruise comfortable at 70mph

[Fast_Freddy]

I'm itching to click the "buy it now" button for a 42T rear sprocket for my templar. Any reason not to? I like the stock gearing for tight trails but it's terrible for asphalt use. I want to be able to cruise along comfortably at 55mph and still tackle the trails. Any suggestions welcome.

[Thumper]

Every time I take my original Temp X (5 speed) into the trails, like I did yesterday, I am happy with the stock rear sprocket. In fact, yesterday I was thinking 51T rear sprocket would be better. It would make 2nd gear more useful.

Your choice. You can always reinstall the 49T sprocket. It is a choice. I am happy to tool along at 50mph (or less) getting to and from my trails. If I had more hours on the engine, I'd bring it up to 60mph, or higher. I just don't care about road use. Dual sport is full of compromise, but the Templar is equipped for minimum off road compromise..

If you have to go faster, go for it. You will discover the level of off road compromise when you get there. At that point, you will know what the compromise does to the off road capability of this bike (which was designed for off road use). It is nice to have lights, turn signals and a license plate though

[Fast_Freddy]

Originally Posted by Thumper

Every time I take my original Temp X (5 speed) into the trails, like I did yesterday, I am happy with the stock rear sprocket. In fact, yesterday I was thinking 51T rear sprocket would be better. It would make 2nd gear more useful.

Your choice. You can always reinstall the 49T sprocket. It is a choice. I am happy to tool along at 50mph (or less) getting to and from my trails. If I had more hours on the engine, I'd bring it up to 60mph, or higher. I just don't care about road use. Dual sport is full of compromise, but the Templar is equipped for minimum off road compromise..

If you have to go faster, go for it. You will discover the level of off road compromise when you get there. At that point, you will know what the compromise does to the off road capability of this bike (which was designed for off road use). It is nice to have lights, turn signals and a license plate though

I can't decide which sprocket to get. I'm happy with the 49T off road but very unhappy with it on road. How do you like your 14/49? I can get a 46T really cheap which is close to your gearing.

[tknj99]

Originally Posted by Fast_Freddy

I'm itching to click the "buy it now" button for a 42T rear sprocket for my templar. Any reason not to? I like the stock gearing for tight trails but it's terrible for asphalt use. I want to be able to cruise along comfortably at 55mph and still tackle the trails. Any suggestions welcome.

Imo 13/42 is the best compromise for on/off road with the Templar X.. it allows you to get atleast 60-65 mph gps verified without limiting too much offroad.. the other option would be to just change the front to the 14T and keep rear at stock 49T, it may not get as much top-end but would be an easier swap-out if you wanted to get back to stock gearing for a technical trail

[Fast_Freddy]

Originally Posted by tknj99

Imo 13/42 is the best compromise for on/off road with the Templar X.. it allows you to get atleast 60-65 mph gps verified without limiting too much offroad.. the other option would be to just change the front to the 14T and keep rear at stock 49T, it may not get as much top-end but would be an easier swap-out if you wanted to get back to stock gearing for a technical trail

Originally I wanted to change out the front sprocket since it's so much easier and faster but changed my mind after learning that even a 14T required clearancing the cover. How much material needs to be removed for a 14T? I suspect that I may well end up changing to a 14T.

I ended up buying a 46T for only $17. If it's not enough I can always get a 14T front for roughly the same ratio as 13/42. I'm sure that 46T won't be too much change. Thanks for the advice.

[tknj99]

I think one thing that needs to be said (and im sure has been already) with the sprocket changes to get more top end such as the 14T front or 42T rear is that even though it does increase top end, it definitely does not transform the bike into a highway capable cruiser... even with my setup, a 5-mile jaunt on a 55mph highway is a chore having to sit at 7-8k rpm and pegged full throttle on inclines and then still get passed by big-rigs lol.. so with that in mind, the trick is to be able to get to the gravel roads or trails without much 55+mph road riding, otherwise it gets to be a tiresome day very fast.. i would definitely not plan any kind of long trip with this bike where i'd need to be stuck on highways thats for sure.. but take those 35-45mph roads all day long.. To be able to comfortably ride 55+ mph roads where everyone is driving 65+ you need a bike that can top out at 80+ mph so that the rpms arent pegged at max.

With regard to the 14T front, im not sure on the TempX but on my former Titan, it was very easy to file it down to be clear of the chain, i just used a metal file and it prob took 10 minutes until it was clear, very easy as the metal was pretty soft and easy to file down

[Thumper]

Originally Posted by Fast_Freddy

I can't decide which sprocket to get. I'm happy with the 49T off road but very unhappy with it on road. How do you like your 14/49? I can get a 46T really cheap which is close to your gearing.

Yes. I do have 14T/49T on the 5 speed. I had to grind out the shroud to install the 14T. And it is SLOW on the highway! The 13T would probably be better for my riding preferences.

I totally understand the frustration of dealing with low gearing on the road. Having that extra gear (6th) can help extend the range a little, but sprocket choice will still establish the range you get. The present counterbalanced 6 speed Temp X might be a better choice for those that really want to go 65 on the road. I left the 13T sprocket on my 6 speed and dropped the rear to 39T. It is much faster on the highway, 70mph easy. And there is more rpms there. I think it will make it to 80mph once broken in, but that is kind of risky on a dirt bike with knobbies! This 13/39 setup is not a good choice for off roadability. It is too extreme. Something in the range of 42-46T will definitely tilt the compromise in favor of more usable road worthiness. A 44T with the original 13T front sprocket might be OK for you.

On the chain, I am sticking with a modestly priced non-o-ring chain from now on. I ride in the mud periodically, and I know I will be going through chains no matter what I do!

[Fast_Freddy]

Originally Posted by tknj99

I think one thing that needs to be said (and im sure has been already) with the sprocket changes to get more top end such as the 14T front or 42T rear is that even though it does increase top end, it definitely does not transform the bike into a highway capable cruiser... even with my setup, a 5-mile jaunt on a 55mph highway is a chore having to sit at 7-8k rpm and pegged full throttle on inclines and then still get passed by big-rigs lol.. so with that in mind, the trick is to be able to get to the gravel roads or trails without much 55+mph road riding, otherwise it gets to be a tiresome day very fast.. i would definitely not plan any kind of long trip with this bike where i'd need to be stuck on highways thats for sure.. but take those 35-45mph roads all day long.. To be able to comfortably ride 55+ mph roads where everyone is driving 65+ you need a bike that can top out at 80+ mph so that the rpms arent pegged at max.

With regard to the 14T front, im not sure on the TempX but on my former Titan, it was very easy to file it down to be clear of the chain, i just used a metal file and it prob took 10 minutes until it was clear, very easy as the metal was pretty soft and easy to file down

I agree completely and believe that these bikes have no place on the highway regardless of gearing. I will need to travel on 45mph roads to get anywhere so I want to cruise comfortably at 45 with the ability to hit 65 if needed. Hopefully the 46T will do that. I used to ride my Frontera 250 on the road a lot and that was a true enduro but had more road friendly gearing than my Templar. The Taco topped out at ~70mph.

[GypsyR]

I haven't had my Templar 6 speed actually on a road yet but you guys are giving me the urge to go ahead and order a 42 tooth rear. I would like it to not be embarrassing at 55mph and maybe hit 65 if needed. But all that will wait a bit until some rubber actually meets the road. I had the idea of using it as a light commuter now and then.

[Fast_Freddy]

Originally Posted by Thumper

Yes. I do have 14T/49T on the 5 speed. I had to grind out the shroud to install the 14T. And it is SLOW on the highway! The 13T would probably be better for my riding preferences.

I totally understand the frustration of dealing with low gearing on the road. Having that extra gear (6th) can help extend the range a little, but sprocket choice will still establish the range you get. The present counterbalanced 6 speed Temp X might be a better choice for those that really want to go 65 on the road. I left the 13T sprocket on my 6 speed and dropped the rear to 39T. It is much faster on the highway, 70mph easy. And there is more rpms there. I think it will make it to 80mph once broken in, but that is kind of risky on a dirt bike with knobbies! This 13/39 setup is not a good choice for off roadability. It is too extreme. Something in the range of 42-46T will definitely tilt the compromise in favor of more usable road worthiness. A 44T with the original 13T front sprocket might be OK for you.

On the chain, I am sticking with a modestly priced non-o-ring chain from now on. I ride in the mud periodically, and I know I will be going through chains no matter what I do!

I have a plan now. Not sure how well it'll work but I believe it's worth a try. Since 14/49 isn't very road friendly and 13/42 isn't very trail friendly, I install a 46T and buy a 14T that I can swap in or out depending on where I'm riding. That'll give me a choice of 3.54 or 3.29 vs the oem 3.77.

Next problem is stiffer fork springs or at least another inch of preload. Thanks man.

[severely]

I purchased a new rear wheel for my Titan. One has a knobby and stock gearing and the other has a 40T rear sprocket and a Shinko 705 for road use. About a 20 minute changeover.

[Fast_Freddy]

Originally Posted by severely

I purchased a new rear wheel for my Titan. One has a knobby and stock gearing and the other has a 40T rear sprocket and a Shinko 705 for road use. About a 20 minute changeover.

Great idea. Where did you get the wheel from and how much was it?

[GypsyR]

You guys are killing me. I keep having to buy more stuff for this bike I haven't really even ridden yet. I was just looking at that big chonky rear tire and thinking it's kind of a shame and waste to be running that on asphalt. And...post #28.