Camchain Replacement - Should I?

[Guest]

Ok, so reading through the manual and it says to replace the camchain during a full rebuild.

Sounds good, but it's over $90 US which means the stealers here will probably be $150+ going by normal inflation type rates.

So, should I replace it? Is there any way to know if it's still good or not?

Alternatively, I can get an aftermarket one for about $83 plus postage here but not sure if that's a good idea or not.

Any thoughts?

 

[tkent02]

Measure it. They last a long time.

 

[Guest]

Makes sense, but I don't know what any measurements should be as I can't see anything in the manual.

I looked in with all the torque and bearing clearances etc. but it doesn't say anything about camchain measurements.

Any ideas?

 

[Nessism]

It should say in the factory manual Pete. If you don't have one, you might want to download one for a different GS since the chain elongation spec should be the same.

 

[Suzuki_Don]

Pete the camchain specs are as follows:

Camchain 20 pitch length = 157.80mm 0r 6.213in.

This is the limit, if it is longer than this measurement then THROW IT.

If shorter it is OK to use again.

BTW cam chains are not that expensive. I bought one from Z1, it was a Tsubaki (not sure of the spelling) racing, heavy duty chain for about $60 bucks I think. Took about 10 days to arrive.

Found this on their web site for you. Even cheaper than I thought.

Cam Chain - EK 219H 120 link KL12-8097
- - - - - - - -
Cam Chain - EK 219H 120 link - Fits Suzuki GS400B/XB/C/XC GS425N/EN/LN GS450ET/EX/EZ/ED/GAZ/GAD/GAF/LT/LX/LZ/LD/LF/LG/LH/LJ/ST/SX/TX/TZ/TXZ/TXD GS500EK/EL/EM/EN/EP-EY/K1 GS650GX/GZ/GD/GLX/GLZ/GLD/MD XN85D GS700EF/ESF GS750B/C/EC/N/EN/ED/ESD/LN GS850 GS1000 GS1100 GS1150

Fits Yamaha XJ650G/H/J/K/LH/LJ/LK/RJ XJ700N/NC/S/SC XJ750J/K/RH/RJ/RK
$32.09

 

[Guest]

Cheers Ed and Don!

Ed, no factory manual I'm afraid, only Clymer and another dodgy brand. I no longer trust the dodgy brand and Clymer doesn't have the spec's.

Don, did that come from your 550 factory manual? I thought it looked like a lot of them were the same so that was my next question, so thanks heaps for passing on the info.

I haven't looked anywhere at the moment beyond Alpha Sports and BK Performance here in Brissie, so good to know there is a well priced alternative if I need it.

I'll try to get some time aside one night this week to measure it.

 

[Suzuki_Don]

Yes Pete it was from my 550 factory manual. You will find Z1's postage is quite reasonable compared to other US dealers.

 

[Guest]

Cheers again Don.

I got a set of case cover allen bolts from them and I was pretty impressed with the postage price and it was less than two weeks to get it to me which was even better as I lack patience.

 

[Steve]

Ed, no factory manual I'm afraid, only Clymer and another dodgy brand. I no longer trust the dodgy brand and Clymer doesn't have the spec's. ...

Not sure what your "dodgy" brand is, but you can get a copy of the Haynes manual on BassCliff's site.
........................................................................................... ....../|\
............................................ .................................. (click the link) |

.

 

[Guest]

That's the dodgy brand Steve, will keep it as a reference for procedures in case something in the Clymer doesn't make sense, but that's it.

I will never use any measurement from it since they listed the torque spec as twice what it should be and I stripped a thread in the crank case as a result.

 

[Guest]

Pete the camchain specs are as follows:

Camchain 20 pitch length = 157.80mm 0r 6.213in.

Ok, went down for a measure tonight but now I'm completely confused again.

The chain is much much longer than 157.80mm, so I thought 20 pitch length would mean the length of 20 links, but no that's way out too, more like 250mm or something.

What am I missing here? Surely there's something stupidly obvious that I'm missing to measure the chain...



Couple of pic's of my cam chain in case it helps any.

 

[Guest]

Rightio, I swear I really like to shoot my mouth (fingers in this case) off before thinking it through properly and making a fool outta myself...

So, while looking through the forum I had another thought... there are outside links and inside links on a chain, so I just effectively counted about 40 links instead of 20.

So, went down and counted inside and outside links as 20 and funnily enough i get a measurement of between 155 - 156mm in length, which sounds like it would be quite serviceable.

I brightened up my pic a little and put some arrows on where I measured to make sure what I measured is right, and that I didn't just happen to measure something incorrectly that gives me a good number...

 

[KC1908]

Pete,
I replace the camchain everytime. The DID racing ones are only $45 US and $15 postage. Bought one the other week off an ebay store Townline sales and sevice. With our dollar on parity parts are cheap on US ebay. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/e...0391584273&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK:MEWNX:IT

Cheaper then buying them in Oz

Ken

 

[tkent02]

I didn't realize you had the engine apart that far. In that case I'd replace it too. I wouldn't tear an engine all the way down to just replace the chain if it was within limits, but if it's already apart that's a different story.

 

[Guest]

Cheers guys!

TKent, sorry, forgot to mention it was completely dismantled...

Ken, thanks for the heads up and the link.

I just ordered one, less than $63 including postage in Aus dollars is $20 cheaper than the cheapest aftermarket one here, and I don't even know what brand that is.

DID is a brand I know is good

 

[Guest]

Ok, got the cam chain yesterday and all good.

One further quick question... there's some sort of grease or oil on it obviously to preserve it before use.

Is this just for storage meaning I need to clean it off before installation or can I just whack it on like that? There's no directions in the box regarding that and a Google search doesn't reveal anything either...

 

[Suzuki_Don]

Hi Pete,

Have a look at this old thread of mine. ENJOY.

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=151639&highlight=cam+chain+grease

Thanks

 

[Guest]

Pete,
I replace the camchain everytime. The DID racing ones are only $45 US and $15 postage. Bought one the other week off an ebay store Townline sales and sevice. With our dollar on parity parts are cheap on US ebay. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290391584273&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWNX%3AIT

Cheaper then buying them in Oz

Ken

Hi Ken!

How does that DID chain compare to the Tsubaki HD cam chain (part number BF05MU-120)? i.e.: better quality, equal to or less than? The prices are similar ... is the quality similar?

Thanks!

Normand

 

[Guest]

Hi Pete,

Have a look at this old thread of mine. ENJOY.

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=151639&highlight=cam+chain+grease

Thanks

Cheers Don, so a bit of a wipe with a rag will suffice, easy as

Also, you just showed me why my searches have been failing miserably... I need to use a + sign between my words to narrow them down

 

[KC1908]

Hi Ken!

How does that DID chain compare to the Tsubaki HD cam chain (part number BF05MU-120)? i.e.: better quality, equal to or less than? The prices are similar ... is the quality similar?

Thanks!

Normand

Hi Normand, hope the rebuild is going well. I only ever use the Tsubaki or DID. They were all you could get here years ago so I have stuck with them for thirty years. They are similar in price when I have shopped around and I can honestly say I have never had a camchain issue using either brand in the thirty something years I have been racing or riding.

Ended up getting three of Greg's top end oiler kits after you told me about this site. Summer here in Australia and good riding weather as usual. Recently flew to Sydney and picked up another GS1150 and rode it the 1000km home. Didn't miss a beat. Hope the family is well.

Ken