Chain Maintenance

[OB_Falconer]

Have mercy on my poor, innocent soul, but my last two bikes (taking me back to the early 80's, when I owned an RD 350, long before anyone even _thought_ about O-ring chains) were shaft drive.

How often should I be lubing the chain? After every ride? Every N# of miles? Every so many days? The manual is very vague about this.

And what do you use? Suzuki has an aerosol can of goo which I've bought, but I imagine that folks have their own opinion about what's right.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[Guest]

All I use on mine is WD40. All I've used on all my bikes. Had a 95 GSXR1100 with 16,000 miles on the original chain and sprockets, Looked like they would go another 10,000 easy. Traded the Gixer on my Abuser. Have 8,000 miles on my R1 chain and sprockets still look like new. Only thing with WD40, if you ever get the chain wet ie ride in the rain you need to wipe the chain clean and recoat again, otherwise rust starts to set in.
Jim

 

[OB_hiabuser]

to_quick. i agree with you. wd-40 is the best for o ring chains. i have been using this exclusively for years. i called rk, tsubaki, and afam. all said same thing. wd-40. of course you need to lube it more often, but it works best. is water repellant and does not attract road grit which can harm o rings. keep at it.
mike

 

[OB_Hyper]

You guys are right about the WD40 for the chain lube. At this time I'm using up the rest of my 0-ring chain lube and have been using WD40 to clean the rear wheel of thrown spots of chain lube, works great and gives the wheel a brand new look.

 

[OB_MagicBus]

Back in the 80's, My GS1100E would eat a
chain every 6-8K miles. I tried every brand
of chain lube and every brand of chain without improvement. I called Tsubaki and
they said that chain lube attracts dirt and
that together they form a paste very similiar to valve grinding compound. That paste then
literally grinds away at the chain and sprockets. Don't use chain lube, he said!
Hose the chain down with WD-40 and wipe off
excess with a rag and that's all you need.
I've been doing it ever since. My last bike,
a ZX10, had 26K miles on the OEM sprockets and chain in good condition when I sold it.
IMHO WD-40 is the way to go!

 

[OB_Fitch]

I just dribble some good old fashioned 90w on my chain then wipe the chain with a rag, it seems to do well.

 

[OB_gsx1300rguy]

What gives? My last bike I bought a replacement chain and sprocket kit(AFAM) and the said wd-40 on the chain would kill it?

 

[OB_VegasDude]

Ducmanic is right wd-40 is good for cleaning or dispelling water after washing or rain, But for lubing the chain........your asking for trouble................

 

[OB_ducmanic]

WD-40? This must be some kind of joke!
PJ-1 is the only chain lube i ever use. If the chain gets "gritty" i clean it off with WD-40 and re lube it with PJ-1. The way we
stage/ride our bikes here, (LA) the chains would not last two weeks with WD-40. I tried it on on of my bikes untill the chain kinked up after stretching its self apart and messing up the expensive Italian swing arm.


Long live the Hedge Abuser.
ducmanic

 

[OB_KawAbuser]

Dribble......
Now don't that sound like Fitch
Someone who took $500 for a copy of your ZX12 movie should be able to buy chain lube

 

[OB_smashbike]

Chain-wax is the only solution. That, and regular kerosene baths and your chain will last. But, with this much power, it seems that the chain stretches every time I ride, so who really cares.

 

[Guest]

I wouldn't call 16,000 miles with just WD-40 trouble. Wd-40 is all I use for cleaning and lube. Been used on 4 bikes and none of them have been babied. Use what ever you feel works but don't knock something you haven't tried!!!

 

[OB_DC]

I'd be interested to know how many miles you go between a fresh spraying of WD40 on your chain? Me I use Castrol Wax usually. I did try some Yoshimoto stuff which is super sticky and clings really well. It even colours up silver, which is cute. Trouble is, you end up with similar coatings all over the internals!

 

[OB_hiabuser]

dc, i usually spray the wd-40 before every ride. takes two minutes and my chains have lasted me for 20 k + miles every time. and i drag race frequently. now, i've had people use nothing but wd-40 and only lube it once in a rare while and destroy a chain, but if it's done frequently, it'll last as long or longer than any other method i've ever used. and the chain looks cleaner all the time. have fun. wooo hooo
mike