adjusting chain off the stand

[David Beard]

The center point of the arc for the rear wheel is the swing arm 
bearings. The center point of the arc for the chain is the front 
sprocket. Thus the chain and the swing arm are on differing arcs. Your 
chain will get tighter/looser as the rear wheel moves up and down.

Dave B

John Soliday wrote:
> But the swingarm moves in a constant radius arc, relative to the front sprocket.  If (for some reason) the rear wheel moved straight vertically up and down you would have a different tension, but I think it's constant with normal bike swingarm geometries.  I've always adjusted my chain on the center stand, mainly so I could rotate the tire and see if there are any tight/loose spots on it.  But then maybe I'm missing something....
>
> Also the service manual describes adjusting the chain on the center stand.
>
> My $0.02 worth,
>
> John
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: gpzlist-bounces at micapeak.com [mailto:gpzlist-bounces at micapeak.com] On Behalf Of David Beard
> Sent: Friday, May 29, 2009 8:35 AM
> To: gpzlist at micapeak.com
> Subject: Re: adjusting chain off the stand
>
> Your swing arm moves up and down in an arc. This causes the chain to 
> tighten and loosen slightly as the swing arm moves up and down. If you 
> adjust the chain on the center stand, you are making the adjustment at 
> the end of the arc instead of the "center" and your chain may become too 
> tight when the rear shock is compressed when you hit a bump in the road.
>
>
> William K. Denton wrote:
>   
>>    I've always adjusted chains on the stand... pls explain, tks.
>>    Bill in Yardley, PA
>>    wkdenton at verizon.net
>>    May 29, 2009 09:23:16 AM, davidebeard at comcast.net wrote:
>>    Also, make sure you adjust the chain with the rear wheel on the ground,
>>    not on the centerstand.
>>
>>   
>>     
>
>
>