My stock chain went 19,000+ miles. Replacing with the stock again.
sometimes?.....how many miles a rider gets out of such things as brake pads, tires and chains often times depends on....
"how hard they ride"
and/or?....
"how abusive their riding may be to the bike"
and i'm here ta tell ya...it's not always a "poor maint." nor does it reflect upon "part quality" by judging a "service life" based on abusive..hard..riding....sorta thing.
i've been through about 5-6 chains in the past 5-6 years..chains on my old '00 ZRX...chains on my '01 Yami FZ1 and now?....chains on my Hayabusa annnnd...throughout those years I've used the following chain lubes..starting from 6 years back?...i used "chain wax".....exclusively....and after almost evry ride or every other ride?...back then?..i'd completely wipe the "chain wax" off and give it a good cleaning with WD-40 and then reapply the chain wax as instructed..on a warmed up chain.....then sit...and it still flug off on long, hot, hard rides...not that it mattered as I cleaned my ZRX..(and it's chain)....so often....and after about 2 years?...i got sick of cleaning the chain wax off my undertail and everything else...after that?...I had a small bout with PJ1 chain lube...just wanted to try something different to change up from chain wax...and i used the PJ1 chain lube exactly one time...they say?....it doesn't fling off..."they"...lied...and led to a chain lube nightmare of a clean-up...so badly?..i was left wondering if any of the PJ1 stayed on the damn chain...i threw the remainder of the can away as...well?..i had no enemies at the time.
and then went to Honda Pro red can chain lube...and it was okay...didn't get the bike and chain all gummy like chain wax did and didn't fling off near as badly as the PJ1 shid...and then?..over on the FZ1OA..one of the members there...(a well respected and knowledgable experienced one that's also been riding and racing all his 40+ year old life)..set out to prove that
"using WD-40 exclusively" was in fact the the best way of maintaining ones chain (note: provided it was applied with liberal and frequent applications?) and was in fact a great chain lube for the everyday rider as...because it has no stickyness to it?...like the others that promise not to fling off but still do?...the WD-40 demonstrated far less propensity to collect and gather "road grime" on your chain...also?...clean-up was a breeze...waaay easier for the rider to maintain...collected far less chain wearing road grime...
"displaces water"... annnnd?...you can readily and easily find WD-40 just about anywheres including your local convienence store where they even sell the small 4-6oz cans of WD-40 that tuck away nicely under your seat...which is handy for those longer 500+ miles a day trips.
The general membership (including myself) challenged him with...
"yeah but...what affect will it have on the rubber seals on the many brands of o-ring/x-ring chains?"
he claimed that the x & o-ring seales that the latest chains utilize are made of a special rubber called vertrim (and another i can't recall the name of) and he collected some o-rings?...and conducted a test......soaking them all in a bowl of wd-40...for months...and week by week he'd visually inspect them and take precision measurements (to check for any "saturation or gas-off for swelling and shinkage")....annnnd..there was none...absolutely myth busting and shid about WD-40 destroying chains...and since?...i've used WD-40 "exclusively" on my last three chains...with no ill affects..dead easy clean up...annnnd?...here's the rub...
all 6 of these chains lasted me almost exactly 10,000 miles on average...with me killing a chain on the busa with an all time low of "Toast in 9,700 miles"...while others have usually lasted me 10-11K miles....with the chain lasting the longest (almost 13,000 miles) was on my '01 FZ1...which also happens to be the one of three i owned that had
"The Least Low-End Torque"...and that my good folk sorta speaks volumes and tell tales there...eh?...doncha think?
Now..just to make sure my bigg azz head don't swell to much?....
"and i'm jealouse because....i bet bostrom and capriossi and doug chandler can toast "a well maintained chain" in about 1,000 miles!"
oh and whilst we're on the subject?...i gotta say that of'em all?...i hafta say that the Honda Pro red can stuff was my fav of ligit chain lubes...but because i'm an adventurous "try-it-all" kinda guy?..when i picked up that new D.I.D. ZVMX2 chain a couple weeks back?...I also bought a can of....
"SILKOLENE SEMI-SYNTH"
just to try it out...seems pretty good so far...no special proceedures for application (like the chain wax had)..just spray it on...and so far?...it's not collecting to much grime and seems to be staying on the chain pretty good...kinda prcey though...$7.99 a can at the local stealership.
well?...have i bored ya too death about chains and lubes yet?
Thanks fer reading and....L8R, Bill.
