530 Chain link when gearing
 

I am looking to buy a JT 16 sprocket and a JT 43 sprocket. I am also buying an X-Drive 530 chain, The stock chain is 102 links. Since Im adding 2 teeth to the rear do I add 2 links?


Im looking at the Factory Spec chain .... F-530X-R

The JT Sprockets.... JTR302.43 and JTF333.16

The stock chain length will work although it will pull the wheel all the way forward in the adjuster. Many chains come in a std 110 length in which case cut it to 104 to give yourself some slack.

Yeah but if im getting a new one, should I just order a 103 or 104?

The two choices you have would be 102 which will give you a shorter wheel base than stock or 104 which will give you a longer wheel base than stock.

Either will work, it just depends on how you ride and what you are trying to do with the bike. ;)

104 it is, Thanks guys!

FWIW I ran 16/43 an noticed/preferred the slightly faster turn in and shorter wheelbase from a 102 link chain. I'm at 16/42 now.

Hope that doesn't make your decision harder!

Well they didnt have it in the 104 link on ebay, but I could manual make it 104 for about $15 more on their website. The website kept crashing. So I ended up with to 102, So I hope this all works

It should. It's what I'd recommend if someone would ask me point blank, especially b/c this bike is relatively stable anyway, so a shorter wheelbase, steeper head angle and less trail seem to benefit.

Renthal Chain and Sprockets

16/43 gearing with 102 link 520 chain here

I ran a 102 link chain when I was running 16\43 with no problems. ;)

Well... everything has been in for about a week yet. I havent putten them on yet, we had a warm spell yesterday and I went out and rode it. At a quick glance, I relize that Ive never taken off a front cog cover with a hydrolic clutch. When I google the cover, it looks like there is a gasket between the slave cylender and the cover.


I have had tons of bikes.... my superhawk seems like the kickstand makes the bike almost at 90 deg. Its never fell over but I pull it up on a 1/2" board (rear wheel) in the garage just to feel a little more confortable. Is this normal for the superhawk, I know its got the stock suspension, but I dont know how much the rear shock has been messed with, its looks like its somewhere in the middle.

just put an elastic band to hold the clutch to the bar so you won't have to bleed the system.

I don't think you should need to replace the gasket.

Has the shock been shimmed? Is there washers under where the shock mounts to the frame?

Mine sits high with the Ohlins shock, but my stock shock parts bike sits much lower.

This is with the rear tire up on a board and the bars turned in

Attachment 23942

Stock stand?
Attachment 23943

Upper shock mount
Attachment 23944

Coil adjustment
Attachment 23945

Lower shock mount/ triangle thingy
Attachment 23946

The trick here is to tie the lever back like has been stated and then only remove the two(2) long outer bolts on the slave cyl. and leave the short inner bolt in place. this will allow you to remove the sprocket cover with the slave still in place.


Sounds like it is stock suspension and ride height.
So yes it is normal until you get the suspension sorted and there is nothing wrong with the 1\2" board if it make you feel safer.

Without the board... If I turn the handle bars the other way, the bike will fall over.... Maybe stock, but doesn't seem right to me, I've had this bike since 04 but its a 98

Here I was thinking your bike was leaning over too far, and its not leaning at all.

I've usually got to put a 1/2"+ shim under the kickstand because mine tilts too far over.

I'm thinking maybe the bracket that holds the kickstand to the frame is maybe bent or was stamped wrong. Not sure how that's possible but about the only thing I can think of, can't imangine any parts that would have been swapped out and I'm pretty sure my bike has never been wrecked, I've had it since it had 3500 miles on it. They guy I got it from bought it new and had a bike shop polish the frame, install exhaust, re-jet.

My rear tire is a 190/50/17 which isn't stock.

You can choose not to believe me, no worries but as one of the few people here that actually has owened a new VTR I will stand by "that is how they come" ;)

Fix the spring rates and add a 3-5mm ride height spacer and she will sit just fine on the side stand.

+1 to 8541Hawk, as usual, except for the "qwened" part which I don't understand.

Not to sound like an idiot..... thinking 5mm is like 1/4", and my spring adjuster looks like each notch is 1/8"-1/4" ....so can't I just turn my preload thing on my shock up to add static sag or is the shock fully extended while I'm not on it and the preload only changes sag with a rider on it? Or does that jack my trig up?


"Qwned a new one" is where you could afford to pay full retail for a Honda 10+ years ago

You don't want to be changing vehicle geometry with spring tension... that's poor practice, and make the already super stiff rear shock even more like riding one of those chopper rigid tails.

Believe it or not, hacking a couple of large washers up so you can slip them in between the shock mount and the frame is a much more "pro" solution, and easier to fine tune ride height.

Never said I could spell...lol it was supposed to be owned (which pwnd me....lol)

I understand the theroy... add spacing for height but I dont see where the shock is vertical but the mount bolts run sideways.

Look at the u-bracket that the top of the shock is bolted to. It has a bolt that passes through to the underside of the frame (part 3 in the link). You put a spacer in between the u-bracket and the frame, but un-doing the nut (part 16) and sliding the spacer onto the u-bracket bolt. This is why you need to cut a washer or something so it can slide over, as detaching the whole assembly requires a lot more work. Does that help?

Ronayers.com Microfiche Honda>Motorcycle>1998>VTR1000F>REAR SHOCK ABSORBER

So you don't even touch the shock bolt, you're just lengthening the mount a bit.

Gotcha, I didnt realize the U-bracket went straight up, I thought it attached right behind it like "L".

Do they make actual spacers or just grab 2-3 3/8" flat washers from Lowes ?

Well... I started switching out the sprockets and chain today, in about 10 mins I had the rear tire, the rear sprocket switched out and the front cover all pulled and the rear wheel back on it. Much easier than I was thinking. I borrowed my buddies chain break, he swore up and down not to use a clip type master link because they fail all the time. So I googled it, seems like mixed reviews between clip vs rivet master links. Is this from improper installation?

I also seen safety wire over the clip, someone say they used rtv, and another guy say he uses the the chain break backwards to tighten the clip.... Any words of wisdom?

Always use a staked master link, no if's and's or but's.

Well today I switched out the chain, the new chain was very tight. The adjusters on both sides was less than 2 full turns. I also put 3 washers in between the shock mount and the frame as spacers..... It was tight but I pulled the mount out by just taking the top shock bolt and the bracket bolt. 3 washers suprizenly raised my bike a few inches... I will probably take one back out.

When I put it back together, I had no clutch.... Not a big deal, I started to bleed the slave and it was a cruel reminder that my bike was 15 years old. The brake fluid that came out looked like muddy, rusy, gummy dark brown water. I cleaned and flushed it all out... Looks good but I know I'm going to have to flush the brakes soon.

As for the test ride..... 16/43 seems to be a great choice! I was worried that 1st might end up being too short, it's not! The bike handling of the bike seemed to be a lot tighter but when in a parking lots speeds I felt like I was going to fall over When I got back I also noticed the chain had loosened up just a tad or that its looser because the wheel is on the ground.

None the less, I thank everyone for thier input....... They superhawk is very happy