Chain breaking.

ShadeTheChangingMan

ShadeTheChangingMan

Post missing.

Plipton

Plipton

Shade,

It depends how worn the chain is. If you put 1 new link into a part-worn chain you will most likely end up with a tight spot.

If I were you I'd clean it in situ and only break it to replace it with a new one.
Spyder

Spyder

Nothing to be ashamed of (never having taken a chain off), it just means you need to ride more...but I wouldn't buy the KTM tool. If you buy the KTM Chain Tool (57929020000 - $57.00+-) you will only be able to break the chain. Then when assembling the chain you would either need to use the quick-links, which IMHO suck and are prone to failure, or buy a riveting tool (59029020000 - $164.00+-) to put the chain back together. If you plan on owning a motorcycle for long (a real bike, not a belt drive Hardley) it is in your own best interest to buy a good chain tool that can break and Rivet the chain together:

For about $100.00 USD you can break and rivet your chain back together properly. I have this exact tool, and it has broken and riveted about 30 chains of various sizes and works like a charm.

I am sure there will be a flamewar over the use of the quicklinks, but after having seen two of them fail, and the crashes that followed, I for one will never use one, again. There is a reason the factory rivets the chain when they deliver a new bike.
ShadeTheChangingMan

ShadeTheChangingMan

hmm, sound advice guys. the tight spot thing makes sense Plipton.....my chain hasnt need any adjustment since i bought it with 2k on it and now it's on 13k. weird huh?? it's just not sagging!!

I thought the KTM tool was a breaker and rivetter? but I'm open to buying proper tools, it makes all the diff!

Main reason for his was wanting to clean more thoroughly and easily, i did it on the bike before and it was a bit of a pita...but not impossible, maybe i'll stick with that again this time...
Dr F

Dr F

I'm with plipton, leave it on to clean it. To remove a chain, I just grind off the top of the rivets on one link. I would never re-use a chain link. When replacing, I use the trusty two-hammer, ball pein riveting method, I've never owned a riveting tool but if your not sure about riveting a link then it's best to have one.
Andy

Andy

I rarely go on a ride that some other rider will compliment me on my bike

having the cleanest chain they have ever seen, I put mine up on my old bent

up suzuki stand, take a woolie white shop towel that is already slightly soiled

then put ATF and double pump honda auto diff fluid on it (my special blend)

and proceed to spin the tyre to and fro round and round, sprocket too until clean as a

diamond in a goats arse, DONE,, takes me 15 min's once a week, I never lube

it otherwise, makes too big of a mess on pipe and wheel, no mess no fuss &

complements abound.
doctypo

doctypo

Like joe i wipe of regular with wd40 or same and lightly oil so not to go everywhere, i would never remove a chain just to clean, i once saw a guy on a track day run his bike in gear on paddock stand and oil his chain, this was lunch time, when he came in after sesion f!!!kin oil everywhere, i thought what a plonker.
Turtle

Turtle

Post missing.

ShadeTheChangingMan

ShadeTheChangingMan

Post missing.

Plipton

Plipton

OK, let me set this straight, I work on auto's all day every day, where

there is spinning stuff that will cut any part off or rip it off instantly, when

I was a young lad I was a turret lathe machinist, so I am very careful not

to pinch anything, or get the rag caught between the chain and teeth,

I fully agree that the chain lube products out there are just that.....dirt

magnets and moister trappers, I think a clean and lightly lubed chain is a

happy chain, the trick here is to lightly lube the chain without all the mess

that excess fluid makes, and those brush cleaners will eventually damage

the o-rings that you want to maintain, what I meant to say earlier

was that I could rarely go on a ride that some other rider would tell me

how clean my chain was, it looks like a mirror. the other trick is to keep

the chain clean, so it takes some maintenance to keep it like that, but

I would never trade for a shaft, they suck, WD 40 is a penetrant and not

real good as a lubricant, I would not use it as my lubricant, but these

chain lube company's are getting paid just to ruin our stuff and constantly

clean the crap up, it is ridiculous. I am set in my ways, no grime no rust.