how do you guys make parts last so long?

In the past 10-12k im getting ready to mount my 4th rear tire, my 3rd front tire, and my 2nd chain.

Which leads me to my next question..........how often do you have to adjust your chain? I have to do mine pretty much every time i ride

 

I was going to say... Because i make sweet luv to each part before using.

Tires should last aout 5k unless you are picking the wrong tire for your ride style.
I ride a 6th gen and I do everything from commute to carving curves. I use the Bridgetone BT-016 hyper sport tire and get about 5k a set. I wonder if you have a suspension issue or are purchasing wrong tire. Onsidering your mileage.

I lube my chain every 500 miles or so. I use a o or x ring chain. I use bel-ray super clean chain lube. I got 16k out of stock and am at 10k on new chain anspd srocket set.

Look at chain adjusting as setting propper slack not tension. If you are over tightening your chain you will wear the shit out of it. Hurky jerky is when you need to adjust.
I guess every few thousand miles I adjust but I check more often.

Tires need to be run at recommeded tire preassures to last the full life. Check your manual and or frame and make sure for daily drivng to run at recommended preassure. Drop a couple pounds for a weekend mtn trip if you want.

 

thanks guys, the chain info should help. I think i prob am overtightening it. Ive been using Metzler sport techs but was thinking about trying some bridgestone BT021's with the dual compound. I dont have an issue wearing out the middle of my tires though so i havent switched yet. My tire wear seems normal i guess, considering the type of tire it is and my location

 

The metz wear fast. Try the BT016 for similar characteristics. Do the Bridgestone BT023 instead of the 21. It is better and is the follow on to the BT021.

 

Todays "sport touring" tires have exceptional grip. I have 3400 miles on my dunlop sportmax roadsmart tires and they are at slightly better than half tread depth with no squaring off. My bike is my daily mount in the summer months, i commute, scratch, and sport tour with them and I find they have really good grip. I have all but removed the chicken strips from the tires. They also have really good wet grip. Lots of guys on here really like the michelin pilot road 2's with the dual compound rubber.

 

I set my chain to just touch the swingarm with the bike unloaded. You can also sit on it and see if it is tight or not. I go several thousand miles with very minor adjustments. I've found that guys who overtighten their chains also have to adjust them a lot. I rode my stock CBR1100XX chain 23,000mi. (probably pushed it a little much).

Since the bulk of my miles is unfortunately straight, I use touring tires. They have been getting 8-k so far.

 

Cool, ill give that a try.

Your avatar looks like my neck of the woods. :smile: I dread moving back to Mn this summer. Im going to miss it down here..........




I initially thought my hub was coming loose, allowing the chain to relax, but now im thinking i have been over-tightening it

 

I am in White House, which is just north of Nashville. Great roads in this area, eh?

 

I very rarely have to adjust my chain but I lube the hell oot of it , every ride. Like new at 18k.

 

Yea, im still wondering how im going to adjust it while sitting on it. Thats going to prove to be tricky

 

I had an issue like this one on a prev. bike. I know i had the tension set right, (some one else sitting on the bike) and tires were wearing out fast. I always thought it was the swing arm bushings which really needed replaced. Grab ahold of the rear tire (with the bike properly supported) and wiggle it side to side. Should be tight. Considering your bikes age thats probably not an issue yet, but whats the price for a 30 sec. check?

 

So, i have put around 2500 miles on my current metzler M3's and new chain.

My front tire is toast on the sides and new in the middle LOL, rear seems to have a lot of life remaining on the sides and a little in the middle so ill go ahead and get another m3 front, then i think ill try the pilot road 2's or M5 interacts. Or maybe even the BT021's

Using IA-Mike's chain adjusting technique, its still spot on so that seems to be the hot ticket.

 

A trick I learned long ago on dirt bikes - they go through extreme changes in chain tension since they have so much rear suspension travel:
Next time you have the countershaft cover off loop a tie down strap over the back of the bike across the seat; hook the ends to a couple of solid objects on the ground - you may need a buddy to help keep the bike upright. Pull the bike down with the tie down until the centers of the countershaft, the swingarm, and the rear sproket are all in an exact straight line. This is the maximum tension position for the chain. Adjust the chain so it has a little play in the middle - you should be able to feel when it is not under any undue strain. Now release the tie down and note how loose the chain is now - THIS is your target when you tension the chain. You may be a bit surprized at how much free play the chain will have, but I have found this to be very convincing!
-VFRGeek

 

hahahahahahahahaha. out of all the threads ive seen....hell...EVER, this is the greatest question ive ever seen start a thread.

the short answer....we dont! nobody makes their parts last a long time. you mount up, ride the SHIT out of your bike, rail it through the twisties, rack up tons of mileage commuting back and forth to work every day, and then cross your fingers, hoping that nothing on the bike shits the bed. tires, HAH! yea, good luck with that. tires area always a compromise between longevity (found with harder rubber compounds), and stickiness (found with softer compounds...handles better, but doesnt last for shit). im not gonna start a tire thread here tho, cause thats opening Pandora's fly if ever you tried.

the bottom line, motorcycling is an expensive hobby, and these are performance machines. you do your best to pamper it and maintain it while its in the garage, and then you have as much fun with it as you can when its not in the garage. sure, sometimes parts are a PITA to find, but thats why you have resources like vfrworld at your disposal.

when it comes to tires, expect to replace 1 front tire for every 2 back tires you replace. as far as the chain is concerened, i cant give you any better answers than you already have in this thread.

now take the best advice any rider can get. worry less, ride more, and just have fun with it (especially being up there in TN, you have too many awesome roads to be sitting at home on the computer!)