..and now,,, the end is near,,, it's time to face,,, the final curtain...
 

After many many wonderful miles, from the day I picked her up on the 1st June 2008, through European trips, Spanish trips, Portugal trips, countless UK trips, snow, hail, wind, rain and baking sunshine. Over the trails of the Lakes and many other forgotten rides.

The relationship has ended.

It's time to replace the Chain & Sprocket set.

Why ? because the front sprocket has turned it's last turn, it's lost it's bite - literally!

Last night on the way back from another endeavour into the mountains the bike started to make some horrible noises, grinding noises under power <from a standing start>, at first it was only in 2nd gear and my fears of a gearbox rebuild started to loom. Then in all gears from a start, but never when under power (overtaking etc) I was becoming perplexed so I stopped and took a look.

Chain was fine, could do with a little tension, rear sprocket had all it's teeth so I set off again, taking it easy. All was well.

Returned home, whipped the front sprocket cover off to discover ever one of the teeth are worn down to about 3-4mm in length, I've seen pastry cutters with a more aggressive edge.

The chain is fine, as is the rear sprocket, but I think I've pushed my luck as far as I dare, I'll take this warning from the bike and say goodbye to the C&S set that has served me so well for so long - it almost made 4 years....

Bit of a bu99er it's Easter weekend though - and I've no transport..... the Landy has three tyres on the wear indicators (that's a 700 mile motorway trip for you), the Tenere is toothless and the TTR needs RFL ! I guess it's my daughters Micra and a paper bag! :009:


:pics now:

I know... I'll get a photo up as soon as the camera has some battery life - another victim of overuse!

Getting your moneys worth!
 

Hehe.....you weren't a courier in a previous life were you?!:icon_joker:

Darren on Wednesday mine is for new cushdrive under warrenty , chain and sprockets , new front mudy . dont feal too bad ... mine is in use everyday all weathers and yes its a 11 model .

How many miles did you get from that sprocket? My last bike, WR250X, ended up with BADLY hooked teeth after 12k miles. I read somewhere that singles were heavy on sprockets, & wonder how long the XT will last, particularly when ridden 'spiritidly'.....
Also, there was someone on another forum who made alu sprocket covers with big holes in it, so you can see sprocket condition at a glance - is there such a thing for the XT????

30k from the chain and rear, 3k less from the front. I had brief time with a 14T before deciding it sucked. Then put the original back on

****** me

heres mine after 8k miles ....

http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/5954/img1909p.jpg
By minkyhead at 2011-05-14

I've got a 14 tooth I can post if you're in a fix? Let me know..

Mike

Toura**** do one.

A very kind offer, I've found the old one from the TTR at the back of the bench, a bit hooked but it'll do for a few days till I get one through the wonderful postal service...

But thanks very much for the offer.

So, the bike is now in a state of repair, or partial anyway!

The Tenere gets a lot of bad criticism with regard the quality of the parts, so just to redress the balance a little. These pictures are almost 4 years old, have covered 30K miles and haven't had an easy life. Yes, they have had the benefit of a Scottoiler from new, but other than a once a year clean (at service time) and the odd spray of chain grease now and then, the set has been pretty much left alone.

First of all, lets look at the chain:

http://www.smokingtailpipes.com/Gall...reCandS-01.JPG

It has been degreased, but that isn't bad at al fro a chain that has ridden 4 winters, suffered sand, cold, heat and torrential rain. The seals are in pretty good shape too:

http://www.smokingtailpipes.com/Gall...reCandS-02.JPG

And the pin isn't showing too much wear, apart from some darkening, there is no real surface wear. I soaked a section of chain overnight in 'Gunk' just to see if it effected the grease inside the chain, when I split it there was still grease inside...... so the myth about cleaning your chain with degreaser, in this experiment, has been busted somewhat.
The damage to the end is where I took it off with the chain tool:

http://www.smokingtailpipes.com/Gall...reCandS-03.JPG

Now, the front sprocket....... The one on the right is the one I've just removed, the other one is a new one. I think I've squeezed every mile out of this...

http://www.smokingtailpipes.com/Gall...reCandS-04.JPG

and here is the front and rear, again these have been on the bike since May 2008, and the rear isn't in too bad a shape:

http://www.smokingtailpipes.com/Gall...reCandS-06.JPG

and a close up on the rear:

http://www.smokingtailpipes.com/Gall...reCandS-05.JPG

All in all, in conclusion, the OE C&S is not a bad bit of kit, it has lasted well if you keep it lubricated.

The Scottoiler must take credit for this, at �70 it's 70% (ish) of a new C&S set, but extends the life incredibly.

So, will this replacement x-ring chain last any longer ? :Knitting_22PFUP:

When my set goes, I think I'll use a DID heavy duty O-ring chain and Chain Gang sprockets. I've had a Chain Gang rear sprocket on my work TTR250 for 3 chains and numerous front sprockets. Amazing.

I used 3 front sprockets in 13,000 miles but it did get a shed load of sh1t thrown at it. Now fitted with a new gold chain.

Wow, those pictures really are remarkable!!! 30k in that condition is awesome......
Any idea what brand sprocket/chain combo you'll go for? My previous bike got fitted up with a Renthal sprocket/Tsubaki gold X ring chain combo. I hardly did any miles on it so can't comment on longevity, but it seemed to have smoother running than OE (although a brand new chain will always feel better....). It did look nice however! Is there any difference in quality with say blue or red chains? Is colour simply for aesthetics???

Got a tusbaki c&s set in steel. No point in me getting alloy as there is so much grit and dirt/sand in the normal roads, never mind the trails. I'veused the same kit on the ttr and its fine, just not as pretty as renthal!

Those chain gang sprockets are tough as.

Yeah mate, they certainly are. Might be dearer than a lot of the others, and maybe heavier, but their service life is outstanding. Worth every cent imo. Probably outlast a Tenere engine! :italy::what:(Hope not...)

The only problem is they don't list anything for the XT660z, but if you cross reference with JT sprockets the rear for a 99-00 Yamaha XJ600 Diversion is the same and the front for a 95-99 Honda NX650 Dominator also the same. But I still would check with Chain Gang to be sure.