I am usually seeing everyone go -1/+2, but who knows? I dont want to be pulling wheelies all day, but wouldn't mind a more aggressive acceleration at the cost of high end, how do you finalize a decision? does the front sprocket have a different characteristic than the rear? any light shed would be great. gracias.

 

i had a zx6 for my first bike, i went -1/+2 and broke 3 chains. all D.I.D. chains. its a pretty heavy bike and changing the gearing can stress the drivetrain. It did make it a lot quicker off the line. just my 2 cents.

 

Going down one tooth in the front is almost equal to going up three teeth in the rear. Most people go with -1 / +2 because that allows you to keep the stock chain. Any larger difference requires removing or adding links, something most of us don't enjoy dealing with on a usual basis.

 

does DID make a quality chain? if not...who does?

 

DID makes great chains.

i usually go either -1 in the front OR +2/+3 in the back. doing both is a significant change and you will be shifting like no tommorow. my old bike i went +3 in the rear, and getting on the freeway was annoying, gotta go thru gears like mad.

 

Generally speaking, going -1 in the front as going +3 in the back. On my bike, it's a 15/45 sprocket so it's really just a quesiton of doing some math.

If you are worried about going to far, just change the back. +2 would probably give a noticeable increase in acceleration without making you tap dance on the shifter.

 

Changing your gearing will also affect your speedometer.

Going -1 in the front, assuming a 15/43 gearing:

14/43 -> 3.0171 final gear ratio
15/43 -> 2.8667 (stock)

difference in speedometer reading - 5.25%

Or +2 in the rear...

15/45 -> 3.0000
15/43 -> 2.8667 (stock)

difference - 4.65%

For comparison, +3 in the rear:

15/46 -> 3.0667
15/43 -> 2.8667 (stock)

difference - 6.98%

Of course, the percentages assume that your speedo is 100% accurate to begin with. Realistically it's not.

For my F3, at -1/+2...

14/45 -> 3.2149
15/43 -> 2.8667 (stock)

difference - 12.15% (!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

 

my friend who recently swapped out his front sprocket, told me -1 would be equal to going +6 in the rear only! any light to this? the front sprocket can be had for pretty cheap so I may start out w/ that, then if needed, add the rear at a later time, i dont want to be pulling wheelies all over the place, i wouldn't mind if i could (if i tried) but i would a stronger acceleration... marmalade, do you feel like you have to pound throw the gears while on the highway?

also: how was your crusing speed on the highway affecting?

 

Like I said, the speedo went up at least 12%. So when I was moving at 100mph, it was ~88mph. Kinda distracting when you think all the cars next to you are driving 100 too...the RPMs are much higher, too. Increased noise + decreased fuel efficiency.

-1 is NOT +6. Tell your friend to do some math.

And you won't be pulling wheelies with just -1. 600s generally can't power wheelie.

 

Currently my F3 has a +3 on the rear, i just ordered new sprockets and chain and went with a +4 and the new front sprocket will still be a stock size 15. I'm not wanting to wheelie, just looking for a little more acceleration.

 

-1 front = +3 rear (not exactly, but close)

one thing to consider is going down in the front will make the radius very small and will cause increased wear on the chain. 14 tooth is prolly as low as i would go, but your best bet is keep 15 tooth up front and go +2/+3 in rear

also you really want to change everything out as a set, the whole drive system is designed to wear as one system. if you put a new front and a new chain on, the worn rear will kill the chain quick, you will only get like 1/2 the life from the chain.

also, go steel sprockets, aluminum ones wear quick in my experience

 

lets take the 15/43 example. Fairly the same with other bikes
2.867 FD

with -1/0------14/43
3.071 FD (1.071% up)

with 0/+2------15/45
3 FD ( 1.046% up)

with 0/+3-------15/46
3.067 FD (1.069% up)

with 0/+4-------15/47
3.13 FD (1.092% up)

 

i think i am just going to try goin -1 in the front and seeing how i like it, its like $20 and i'll get a taste of how it affects everything, if i hate it, swap it out, and if i need more, add +2 in the back and get a new chain. thanks for eveyrones help and i'll let you know how it rides...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by marmaladeboy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

And you won't be pulling wheelies with just -1. 600s generally can't power wheelie.</TD></TR></TABLE>

wanna bet ? hahahah LOL....

I did -1 on front and +3 in rear, I used the 520 chain with RRP sprockets. The difference is very siginificant, wheelies is definitely easier, but regardless, it is still a very controable power...just becasue you punch it at first, it won't come up high just like that. Your front will raise up slightly during 1st and 2nd even through 3rd in my case, but nothing unusual or uncontrolable.

My speedo is about 10 mph off and cruising about 9-10K at 8- ish...my top speed as high as I have gone through it was 169 mph.

stan

 

RedStarGsr - Todd at Calsportbike sells ready to use chains and sprockets combos. I dont see one for your bike but call him and see what he can do for you. I would just go straight for the -1 +2

http://www.calsportbike.com/cg...unt=1

 

I'd go down one tooth in the rear; it's simpler, nearly as effective and doesn't change chain length and / or limit rear shock travel in addition to altering rear ride height.

 

when do you need to get a different chain? the front is only $20 so im not worried about tearing it up w/ my old chain but what size differences do you need to use a different chain?

 

hey what would happen if i went two down in the front... i think i miscounted my front sprocket teeth..eek... i got a 14 and i think the stock size is 16 but it looked like 15..will i need a new chain

 

You will probably need to remove a few of your chain links. Granted, you'll probably need a new chain, too.