OriginalRocket
Member
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2012
- Messages
- 559
- Reaction score
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- Points
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- Location
- Mokena, Illinois, USA
Finally, finally done. Spent all went and some of April completing this project, mainly due to lack of time to work on the NC.
I parked the motorcycle with a bit over 16,500 miles in October 2016 with the idea of replacing drive components over the winter.
All parts were OEM original from the factory. I had the Metzeler Roadtec Z8 Interact tires for reference.
-Installed new Dunlop RoadSmart 3's front and rear, stock sizes.
-Installed JT sprockets front and rear, stock DCT tooth counts 16/39
-Installed new D.I.D. ZX2 112 link chain. (Gold color plated)
-Cleaned and flushed the front fork oil, replaced with Maxima 10wt fork oil
Here is some pictures:
Fork draining for a few days
Spring spacers and caps
How the motorcycle sat for 3 months
Drive spline shaft from the transmission. (after cleaning a bit)
Front drive sprocket New JT vs. Old Honda OEM None of the teeth lined up with the new one.
Rear sprocket Old Honda OEM vs. New JT. Seems this sprocket had no wear I could see, All the teeth lined up with the new JT sprocket.
Close up of the new D.I.D. VX2 X-ring chain on the new JT sprocket.
Rear assembly complete:
Ready to ride! (300 very aggressive miles already when this was taken)
A few thoughts:
Chain seemed tight. By tight I mean didn't feel right, it felt mechanical and made noise. I rode with the bike in S mode for the 300 miles. Being very aggressive on throttle, and turning lean angles. Finally after about 200 miles the chain felt right. No more mechanical noise, no more feeling "tight". It was such a weird feeling that after every ride I set the bike up on the center stand and spun everything looking for things rubbing and or not running freely. Never found anything. Now the chain and sprockets seem to have merged together. They are properly aligned and properly adjusted for chain slack and properly lubed. I was not part of the 2012 chain recall, but I wish I was. The stock OEM chain is absolute garbage from 5,000 miles on. I should have just changed it then but hind sight is 20/20. When I removed it at 16,500 miles every single link was kinked and very hard to turn.
Sprockets: Front needed to be changed. The rear probably could have gone again. But the price of the rear wasn't a big deal. I like how the rear is anodized black. Will help hid the lube and dirt. As I don't clean the sprockets and chain often.
Tires: AMAZING!!! Never had much confidence with the OEM Z8's But these Dunlop RoadSmart 3's straight out of the shipping package were sticky, no weird slippery release agent on these. I was leaning and grinding pegs on the first ride out. After 300 miles the front and rear mold injection leftovers seem to have worn away. I can't comment on lean effort as my OEM's had flattened out and were impossible to lean far over, plus I was afraid of where the traction limits were. If my 16,500 miles on the OEM's is any indication, I expect 20,000 miles on these tires. I am not an aggressive rider. I ride in D mode 99% of the time, and almost never 50% or more throttle. I just cruise. Most of the roads are well worn and smooth from the Chicago Metro/suburb traffic around me.
Fork Oil: Much needed. The new oil is so smooth. The old oil came out in globs. It was dirty gray in color, not the stock red. The Maxima 10wt is clear and very slippery. I used brake cleaner to flush out the old oil, then poured in a splash of Maxima and dumped that after a few pumps of the tubes. Now I'm on the hunt for some fork tube protectors. So far I found some easy on/off "Shock Soxs" They are billed as off road usage. Still looking for more options.
I parked the motorcycle with a bit over 16,500 miles in October 2016 with the idea of replacing drive components over the winter.
All parts were OEM original from the factory. I had the Metzeler Roadtec Z8 Interact tires for reference.
-Installed new Dunlop RoadSmart 3's front and rear, stock sizes.
-Installed JT sprockets front and rear, stock DCT tooth counts 16/39
-Installed new D.I.D. ZX2 112 link chain. (Gold color plated)
-Cleaned and flushed the front fork oil, replaced with Maxima 10wt fork oil
Here is some pictures:
Fork draining for a few days
Spring spacers and caps
How the motorcycle sat for 3 months
Drive spline shaft from the transmission. (after cleaning a bit)
Front drive sprocket New JT vs. Old Honda OEM None of the teeth lined up with the new one.
Rear sprocket Old Honda OEM vs. New JT. Seems this sprocket had no wear I could see, All the teeth lined up with the new JT sprocket.
Close up of the new D.I.D. VX2 X-ring chain on the new JT sprocket.
Rear assembly complete:
Ready to ride! (300 very aggressive miles already when this was taken)
A few thoughts:
Chain seemed tight. By tight I mean didn't feel right, it felt mechanical and made noise. I rode with the bike in S mode for the 300 miles. Being very aggressive on throttle, and turning lean angles. Finally after about 200 miles the chain felt right. No more mechanical noise, no more feeling "tight". It was such a weird feeling that after every ride I set the bike up on the center stand and spun everything looking for things rubbing and or not running freely. Never found anything. Now the chain and sprockets seem to have merged together. They are properly aligned and properly adjusted for chain slack and properly lubed. I was not part of the 2012 chain recall, but I wish I was. The stock OEM chain is absolute garbage from 5,000 miles on. I should have just changed it then but hind sight is 20/20. When I removed it at 16,500 miles every single link was kinked and very hard to turn.
Sprockets: Front needed to be changed. The rear probably could have gone again. But the price of the rear wasn't a big deal. I like how the rear is anodized black. Will help hid the lube and dirt. As I don't clean the sprockets and chain often.
Tires: AMAZING!!! Never had much confidence with the OEM Z8's But these Dunlop RoadSmart 3's straight out of the shipping package were sticky, no weird slippery release agent on these. I was leaning and grinding pegs on the first ride out. After 300 miles the front and rear mold injection leftovers seem to have worn away. I can't comment on lean effort as my OEM's had flattened out and were impossible to lean far over, plus I was afraid of where the traction limits were. If my 16,500 miles on the OEM's is any indication, I expect 20,000 miles on these tires. I am not an aggressive rider. I ride in D mode 99% of the time, and almost never 50% or more throttle. I just cruise. Most of the roads are well worn and smooth from the Chicago Metro/suburb traffic around me.
Fork Oil: Much needed. The new oil is so smooth. The old oil came out in globs. It was dirty gray in color, not the stock red. The Maxima 10wt is clear and very slippery. I used brake cleaner to flush out the old oil, then poured in a splash of Maxima and dumped that after a few pumps of the tubes. Now I'm on the hunt for some fork tube protectors. So far I found some easy on/off "Shock Soxs" They are billed as off road usage. Still looking for more options.