broke - so im doing it myself

[stu9000]

Need to change front and rear sprocket.
Do they seize?
Whats the best way of stopping the bike rolling?

Need a new chain.
Best place to buy?
Should I specify number of links?
Ive heard you can get the chain off without breaking it by removing the
front sprocket?
Should I do this or should I invest in a chain breaker?

Getting some vibration and if the new chain does not fix it
maybe a bearing has gone somewhere. 30k miles done.
Is this likely?
Are wheel and sprocket bearings easy to replace?

Pads, oil and brake fluid have been regularly sorted.
Shes not been looked at by a pro except for MOT for 10k.
Is this an issue?

The Haynes Manual says I should "check and adjust the valve
clearances". I paid no attention to this on my old bike (ZZR600) and after 3 winters a reliable work lost power and got finnicky. So, although Ive no
complaints with the VTR, could I be storing up problems.

Cam chains were replaced by previous owner at 10k miles.

I know I should just have it serviced but my brother took his cbr in and
they charged him £700 and, really, are we sure the works been done?

Im not planning on selling for at least a couple of years
so is not having a regularly stamped servicec book going to be a big issue. I doubt it myself.

Always a pleasure folks.
Stu

[orangestorm]

Hi Stu.. My Storm bought new in '01 has never seen a workshop (I'm always skint ex wives cost money) I've always changed oil,filters,pads, adjusted chain myself and it's never missed a beat so don't worry they're fairly bullet proof..

[Stormin Ben]

Need to change front and rear sprocket.
Do they seize?
Whats the best way of stopping the bike rolling?

Front: If you can't get it off,take it to a friendly tyre fitting bay (preferably with the correct socket) and they'll loosen it using the air gun.
Rear: shouldn't be a problem

Need a new chain.
Best place to buy?
Should I specify number of links?
Ive heard you can get the chain off without breaking it by removing the
front sprocket?
Should I do this or should I invest in a chain breaker?

Paddockstand.co.uk are very reasonable. Steve frequents this list so send him a PM
Depends if you're altering the gearing. One off the front or 2 up on the rear should fit with a standard chain. Three up on the rear needs a 104 link instead
Yep. Remove rear wheel, front sprocket cover and lower mounting bolt from the left hand footpeg and it comes off inyour hand
Then take the new one to your local bike shop and ask them nicely if they can rivet the chain for you FOC. When you get the look from them, tell them its for a Firestorm and therefore CAN be refitted complete!!

Getting some vibration and if the new chain does not fix it
maybe a bearing has gone somewhere. 30k miles done.
Is this likely?
Are wheel and sprocket bearings easy to replace?

Quite likely. I've done 40k miles and have replaced both front and rear bearings now. Should be able to tell by either grasping the topand bottomof the wheel and trying to move it left/right or by removing the wheel and spinning the bearing using your finger. If its not completely smooth or you feel/hear graunching get them changed ASAP
Yes, fairly easy to do -post again if they are knackered and we can give you tips etc

Pads, oil and brake fluid have been regularly sorted.
Shes not been looked at by a pro except for MOT for 10k.
Is this an issue?

The Haynes Manual says I should "check and adjust the valve
clearances". I paid no attention to this on my old bike (ZZR600) and after 3 winters a reliable work lost power and got finnicky. So, although Ive no
complaints with the VTR, could I be storing up problems.

Took mine to Roger to setup the fuelling and got him to do the valves while it was there.
The compression test was really crap and a couple of valves needed replacing and the rest neede reseating properly
Afterwards it felt like a different bike so I'd say yes, get them at least checked

I know I should just have it serviced

Why? When you lookat the Haynes manual there's not really very much that you can't do yourself quite easily

Im not planning on selling for at least a couple of years
so is not having a regularly stamped servicec book going to be a big issue. I doubt it myself.

Keep receipts for all the parts you buy eg oil, filters, pads etc and staple them into the logbook

Hope this helps a fellow tightwad to save some money
Ben

[Squiffythewombat]

Ben you dont actually have to remove either the back wheel or front sprocket to take the chain off (at least i didnt).

Just loosen off the adjusters completely and get the rear wheel as forward as possible. Remove sprocket cover, peg bolts and clutch thingy wotsit and then wiggle the chain upwards and slightly outwards and it just slips off.

Just my 2pence, might help slightly!

Also i can REALLY reccomend paddockstand.co.uk, quick service and cheap prices! However as far as i know the site currantly offline, however you can just ring or email as per usal. If you cant find him on here let me know and ill MSN him for you!

[feef]

got some Stealth tri-metal sprockets from "Supersprox" to fit to the thundeace this weekend..

everyone's doing the same jobs as me at the moment

a

[Stormin Ben]

Ben you dont actually have to remove either the back wheel or front sprocket to take the chain off (at least i didnt).

Agreed
But you can't change the rear sprocket without taking the wheel off
And while its off, what better time to remove the chain?
Also it takes a lot less time to remove the wheel than to slacken off the chain adjusters and then set them right again afterwards

<smart>

[stu9000]

Honda should pay all members of this site for its online help service.
Thanks a lot.
All I need now is a spare weekend

[Pete.L]

Ben you dont actually have to remove either the back wheel or front sprocket to take the chain off (at least i didnt).

Agreed
But you can't change the rear sprocket without taking the wheel off
And while its off, what better time to remove the chain?
Also it takes a lot less time to remove the wheel than to slacken off the chain adjusters and then set them right again afterwards

<smart>

smart
More like smart butt
Well done Ben
Pete.l

[Stormin Ben]

Damn computers!!
I typed that as { smart butt mode disengaged } but with <> instead of {}

Bloomin forum sub-codes eh?
Hey ho

[Squiffythewombat]

Ben you dont actually have to remove either the back wheel or front sprocket to take the chain off (at least i didnt).

Agreed
But you can't change the rear sprocket without taking the wheel off
And while its off, what better time to remove the chain?
Also it takes a lot less time to remove the wheel than to slacken off the chain adjusters and then set them right again afterwards

<smart>

LOL OWNED!

I was going to remove the whole rear wheel but then it occured to me that i would have to string the subframe up off the beams etc which basically was too much effort!

I find the chain adjusters are a pain in the butt, but i have seen some nice annodised milled replacement blocks!