Chain came off...

Motorcycling
1

As I was riding in this morning I was filtering between some cars so I had to do almost 90 degrees turns and accelerate hard… suddenly I felt the bike wasn’t going anywhere and I realised my chain came off.

The biker behind me stopped to see if I was OK and said “you’ll have to undo your nuts and push the wheel back put the chain up and tighten it”

I though this is going to be fun not to mention 3 hours late for work probably:)… pondering myself like that I tried to put it on but couldn’t, so I though hold on as a child my bike chain used to come of sometimes and I used to put it back on by catching a part of the chain then rolling the wheel to snap it in. Did exactly this and popped right in, rode the bike in slower without any sudden throttle action.

The question I ask you guys is WTF? is this possible? Should I just let it be and thank God or do I need it checked up? I though it could have happened to either the suddent throttle action, lack of lubrication on the chain or the most plausible as I did the turn I could have touched the pavement with the chain and that pushed it off?

The chain doesn’t look too tight or too lose, could take some photos or make a quick film if needed. Maybeclean it and lube it as it seems quite mucky.

2

The chain must be too slack (or sprockets very very worn). Def get it checked out…you really dont want it dropping off at any sort of speed. Never had a chain just drop off but had one snap on a ZZR1100 on a French motorway…luckily it didnt get jammed anywhere . Took a while to trust the new chain;)

3

thats what I was going to say… when you get home pull the wheel back slightly

4

you ARE LUCKY.

that happened to me once at about 60mph and it wrapped round the swing arm and locked my rear wheel!

chain is far too slack. that should never actually happen. :w00t:

5

I just realised the chain came off on the inside… so maybe the pavement corner did knock it out? If the chain was warm enough… I will check it when I get home none the less.

6

check your sprockets. I was a little surprised when I changed mine and saw the difference in teeth size

7

Also worth checking for play in the rear wheel bearings.

If they are a bit sloppy, touching a kerb will put the wheel slightly out of alignment for the moment and could make the chain run off.

(I’ve had this happen with a push bike, so it might be possible on a motorcycle where things happen just a tad faster.)

8

this reminds me of a friend of mine, years back, he used to ride a streetfightered slabside with all “unnecessary” bits and panels removed.
he’s been giving her girlfriend a ride when a chain snapped, coiled round, up and back and whipped the girl on her back… :pinch: :w00t:

9
10

WTF… that’s terrible. Did she at least wear protective gear? otherwise I don’t wanna imagine what happened, with the gear at least soem bruises.

Had an upset stomach yesterday so on my way to work I couldn’t really make it, turned around about 10 minutes in:) so in the afternoon feeling better I decided to check it out. The chain was indeed quite loose but I also saw where the pavement hit the rear sprochet, it was slight but enough to pull the chain off. I done the best I could do, no idea how much slck is too much or too litle, checked my GSX and done it about the same, so it moves up about 1 or 2 fingers worth, bike felt different today, seemed to pull better but maybe a little rough… could the chain be tight? The starting problem could also be that the wheel moved forward as oldguy mentioned … will keep an eye on it see what happens.

Should probably take a photo so you get an idea.

11

This is sounding like a realy shot chain set. Time for a “small” investment I think.

12

You really, really need to get a manual to check this - you sure as hell shouldn’t be adjusting your chain with no idea of how much slack there should be. All kinds of problems otherwise…

13

This happend to me once. I’d been on a ride out on Sunday, noticed the chain had a massive sag in it when I got home and though “I should really adjust that” then on the way to work it bounced off on a speed bump. I’m 99% sure it’s because there is too much slack in the chain so you need to get handy with a torque wrench. If you lubricate, inspect and adjust the chain regularly this shouldn’t happen.

14

All OK now, seems to have no problems, bike pulling nicely, slack was done by the eye and compared to other bike. To be honest I did look at the manual but hell if I can work it out from their photos.

I would say the chain had already been slightly loose and the pavement flicked it off. I will most likely need to change the chain and sprokets, maybe even get a smaller one for the front to pull better in 1st gear?

15

another reason is wheel could be adjusted slightly wonky.

16

I am thinking it could be because I didn’t tighten it hard enough… did my best but I am probably too weak:D bloody hard doing it with frozen fingers too…

I checked it again at eth weekend seemed to be more loose, adjusted it again but it might be time for a new set. Might wait a few more months and see.

17

You should check your chain for wear weekly, along with the sprockets- front & rear. As a GUIDE- 25mm play might be considered OK- but it depends on the bike. Measuring the play is carried out a number of times- to ensure there are no tight spots. Checking the free play of your chain is vitally important. Too tight and you can damage your drive shaft part of your engine- too loose and …well you have experienced the less painfull option. …when you change the chain- change the sprockets- front & rear- its good practice…good luck!