Chain Adjustment Problem?

bassmechanicsz · July 21, 2008, 06:05:18 PM

I was doing a chain adjustment on my bike yesterday since i have just bought it and the chain was a little loose. When i went to adjust the chain i noticed that the piece on the one side was bent and it was actually partially inside the frame and bent up pretty good. Should i try to find a replacement for this part or will it be fine after i took it off completely and straightened it some, was much worse.

beRto · July 21, 2008, 07:05:56 PM

Quote from: bassmechanicsz on July 21, 2008, 06:05:18 PM
I was doing a chain adjustment on my bike yesterday since i have just bought it and the chain was a little loose. When i went to adjust the chain i noticed that the piece on the one side was bent and it was actually partially inside the frame and bent up pretty good. Should i try to find a replacement for this part or will it be fine after i took it off completely and straightened it some, was much worse.

I think it should be OK, but there are a few threads about this; search for bent adjuster plate.

There shouldn't be any stress on that plate. If it bent, it means your axle was not tightened to spec... buy a torque wrench!

bassmechanicsz · July 21, 2008, 07:34:18 PM

I did buy a torque wrench to make sure i can tighten everything to the proper spec and the bike is new to me so i guess the kid before me that had the bike didn't know what he was doing. Thanks

wildbill · July 21, 2008, 07:40:23 PM

Yeah its no biggie really. It doesn't actually hold any load, just lets you adjust where you want the wheel till you tighten the axel bolts down. once you do that you could take that plate off if you want lol.

GI_JO_NATHAN · July 21, 2008, 08:10:03 PM

Just take the plate off and beat it flat, then put it back on. I wouldn't recommend running with out it.

shaun · July 21, 2008, 10:28:38 PM

the tq on the axel is about 22ft/lbs. the average person with a 8" wrench can put about 20 or so.

bassmechanicsz · July 22, 2008, 08:06:17 AM

According to the wiki site isn't the torque for the rear axel 36-58ft/lbs.?

beRto · July 22, 2008, 08:32:54 AM

Quote from: bassmechanicsz on July 22, 2008, 08:06:17 AM
According to the wiki site isn't the torque for the rear axel 36-58ft/lbs.?

Yes. Assuming you have a US model (cotter pin), the rear axle torque should be 50 Nm - 80 Nm (36 ft.lb - 58 ft.lb).

As always, exercise caution when using the wiki torques (they can be edited by anyone after all); I'd certainly recommend purchasing a shop manual to double check. Haynes, Clymer, and Suzuki all give the complete torque specs for the bike.

ohgood · July 22, 2008, 12:02:04 PM

I'll bet your wheel alignment is off, given the condition of the adjusters.

+1 on the comments about proper torque of the axle.

sveach · July 23, 2008, 10:13:13 AM

I had this happen to mine yesterday actuallly. I tightened my chain on Sunday, at a friends place. Apparently I didn't get the axle tightened enough.

Just take it all the way off and beat it back into shape. Put it back on, and tighten the nut down. Make sure you keep it lined up straight when you put it on.

ohgood · July 23, 2008, 12:37:12 PM

Quote from: sveach on July 23, 2008, 10:13:13 AM
I had this happen to mine yesterday actuallly. I tightened my chain on Sunday, at a friends place. Apparently I didn't get the axle tightened enough.

Just take it all the way off and beat it back into shape. Put it back on, and tighten the nut down. Make sure you keep it lined up straight when you put it on.

Just to clarify things:

After you beat the plate kinda flat again, slip it onto the adjuster screw. The only tightening you should do (assuming the axle is torqued properly) is to keep the adjuster plate from rattling. The adjuster plates shouldn't have any tension on the axle after the wheel is aligned, chain adjusted, and axle torqued.

FFR- it's allot easier if you back off the chain tension a little, align the wheels really close, then gradually pull the chain into proper tension with the adjusters moving one adjuster 1/4 turn at a time, then the other until the chain tension is reached. Check the wheel alignment again after you torque the axle nut. It may bump rearward a little when you snug it. You can feel a difference between a poorly fitted rear wheel and a properly aligned rear in the twisties

A little anti-seize on the adjusters (take the nuts off for this) will mean adjusting the chain tension and wheel alignment goes very very smoothly.

If you're uncertain about wheel alignment in the least, google 'string method alignment' and you'll find a slew of videos and tutorials from competent motorbike mechanics.

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Chain Adjustment Problem?