Chain Tension

[bman40]

Hi - I have spent the weekend going over the 89 GS500E I picked up on Friday - getting a sense of what  I need to work on .

Quick question on chain tension:

the first photo shows the 'sag' in the chain.



the second photo shows how much play it has.



From my time ridign bicycles, I tended to NOT have so much play in the chain.

Should it be shortened?

Thanks

Barry Richmond BC

[rangerbrown]

if the ajustment is all the way tite then the chain needs to be replaced. you should only have 1" of play max.

[RVertigo]

It's something like 0.8" - 1.2" of tension. 

Break out the measuring tape...  Check the tension in a few places around the chain.

[scratch]

Warning: the first photo is with the bike on the centerstand!  Incorrect way to measure slack!

First - put the bike on the sidestand
push up on the chain and measure slack
move bike forward (or backwards)
measure slack again
repeat a few more times so that you are measuring different points of the chain.

If any are within spec, leave it alone.