How often should I change my chain / sprockets

[JHGlee]

I'm still fairly new to this biking lark so please forgive the daft questions.... But how often should I replace my chain / sprockets?

I know the signs of wear to look for on both the chain and the sprockets, but someone told me that I should change it every two years regardless.  Does this should correct...?

In an extreme example........if I had a bike that I did just 500 miles per year..... Was regularly cleaned and maintained... Would the chain and or sprockets need replacing after a period of time? If so is two years correct?

I'm sure this is a 'how longs a piece of string question' but what sort of life expectancy (in miles) should I get out of the chain / sprockets on my vstrom?  

Intrigued....!

 

[iansoady]

When they need it.....

Seriously, chains and sprockets (provided they're of good quality / X ring) will last a long time an often will need little adjustment. As an example, I sold my Triumph Tiger 955i with over 18,000 miles on the clock after 8 years (yes I know, should get out more....) on the original chain, and with no signs of wear. I only needed to adjust it once in that time. Well to be honest I'm not even sure if it needed it then.

Having said that, I'm probably rather gentler on my bikes than some people.

[frez]

A chain and sprockets can last anywhere from 1000 to 30000 miles depending on how it is looked after. Keep it well adjusted, cleaned, oiled and rust free and it will last a long time. Neglect it and it will last no time at all.

If you don't want to spend the time on it, get a chain oiler, this will not only oil it, but if turned up a bit will kind of self clean it by flinging off oil and dirt. You will still need to adjust it from time to time, clean it occasionally and fill the oiler resevoir, but it is more of a fit and forget solution than the alternative.

[MartinW]

+1 for an automatic oiler.

I did 18000 miles in 8 years before I replaced the chain.

[iansoady]

I don't see the need for an oiler with X ring chains. An occasional squirt with Wurth dry wax seems OK for mine, and keeps the bike much cleaner.

[Juvecu]

Another one for using a good chain oiler, PD Oiler being my preferred. I've tried everything else when I was doing ~3500 miles a month, even a solid carbon wax block, and a chain oiler works best (providing it's set up properly.) 15-20k miles easy out of a chain, I wouldn't consider changing it after a time limit of 2 (or whatever) years unless it needed changing.

[Kells]

Just change mine, 3yrs old 18000 miles, it had two tight spots and when I had a closer look two o rings were split.

Cleaned regularly with kerosine and oiled every week. Depends on use, done a few 400miles aday in rain touring so 18000 seems good to me. If you only use bike at weekends and keep oiled the as others say 30k is possible.

[patropsley]

22k all year riding for my wee and to be honest it had loads of life left but I was itching to use my riveting set ! I use  tutor oiler the automatic version which h I have found fab for the last three years. I always give it a full clean and lube when I clean the bike as well.
Pat

[Jacko]

I had 25k on my zx6 chain when I sold it, still had loads left in in, stretch limit wasn't even close for a 525, it was about 4mm off still. Rear sprocket was good too. I clean and lube my chains a lot though.

Don't change after 2 years regardless, that's just wasteful.

[JHGlee]

Thanks gents, as always some great advice. Co-incidentally I had a dealer fitted scottoiler added to my multistrada (purchased a few weeks ago)... On the first trip out the bike somehow sheared off the feed tube (I think it came loose and got caught in the chain). On my way to Silverstone this weekend it emptied the whole contents over my back wheel.... This time my error.  I hate the bloody thing so I'm removing it.... Free to a good home (to any of the above who responded to my post). First reply wins.

[frez]

Chain oilers are not for everyone. If you are using the bike frequently, especially in wet, salty winter conditions, they are great as they save you time faffing in the cold. If most of your riding is infrequent and mostly dry, you have the luxury of doing the job manually from time to time.

[Juvecu]

Some people rave about Scotoilers, but they are still affected by temperature and require the vacuum feed to be connected. The thing that makes the PD Oiler better, in my mind, is that it uses a positive displacement pump, it pumps a set amount of oil every time no matter which oil you use or what temperature the oil is at. The other great thing about the PD Oiler is the controller, it has a knob with some numbers and you set it and leave it. In the winter you can set it a bit higher as more oil will get washed away by the rain. Another benefit here is that you can ask, on a forum like this, where people set it so you have a good starting point, most people use roughly the same settings in summer and winter. On top of that the customer service is excellent

If you dislike Scotoilers, then the good news is that there's something better that works and, IIRC, is cheaper too.

Edit: I think we also get forum discount on the PD Oiler Mini.

[frez]

Quite right about the Scottoilers. I've had a couple of them in the past and they all eventually gave problems. I put a PDOiler on my wee, and as Juv points out, its a much better system, and it hasn't given any issues in 3 years.

[Oop North John]

Another one who used to use Scotoilers, and is now happy that there are alternatives.

[JHGlee]

I think for the time being I'm going to stick with the manual method of cleaning / oiling my chain.  Frez as soon as I get the thing removed ill PM you for your address details.... Might be a couple of weeks.

You'll need to buy another clear plastic tube as I ripped mine off the bike and its now in a bin just outside Silverstone..... Along with a neck warmer I used to wipe all of the oil off my rear tyre and wheel... The strange thing was,  there wasn't a drop of oil on the chain!  Clearly not fitted correctly by the dealer and not set correctly by me.... But there is not way I'm having it on the bike after that incident, thought I was riding on ice!!

Thanks all.

PS. I love my new multistrada but definately won't get rid of the Vstrom... It's a great all round / all year bike. And fantastic value when compared to the MS.