Re: SprocketI just read all the replies in this thread, and my head hurts. Why is
that?
One guy somehow switched the topic to removing the clutch assembly and
changing gears in the transmission? How did that happen?
To the original poster....
You went from a 50T rear sprocket to a 45T. Three things will happen
that you will notice right away. Your cruising RPM will be lower. Let's
say that at 60 MPH your bike ran at 6000 RPM, with the first gearing.
After the change, at 60 MPH your engine RPM will be 5500. These numbers
may not even be close, but you get the idea, right?
The second thing you will notice right away is slower acceleration.
The third will be a higher top speed.
I commute 35 miles one way to work on a Suzuki DR200. Not much of a
street bike, not even much of a trail bike, but it's what I've got and
I'm using it. It came with a 14T front and 45T rear. When I cruised down
the road listening to the engine, a comfortable cruising speed was only
50 MPH. At 60 MPH the engine was working way too hard for my taste. So I
installed a 39T rear sprocket. Now it cruises nicely at 60 MPH. And can
even make 70 when needed. Top speed is actually unknown. The speedometer
only goes up to 85, but it would not do that with the original gearing.
So for street use, you did the right thing. For serious dirt and / or
trail riding, you may have made a mistake. I still ride my DR200 on
trails, I just use a lower gear in the transmission then I did before.
"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things; the decayed and
degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks nothing is
worth a war, is worse." --- John Stuart Mill: