520 CONVERSION, couple ???'s

Has anyone done a 520 chain conversion on a 2nd gen? What did you think after?

Also when doing an f2 wheel swap, do you need to change gearing?

Will a f2 front sprocket fit on a 2nd gen VFR?

 

Can't speak to a 2nd gen but I did my 6th and love it. Smoother, easier power delivery, free's up a couple HP, etc. etc.

 

I wouldn't.....chain won't last as long as stock 530 and rear alloy sprockets will wear 3 or 4X faster than steel.

520s are best for 600s or race bikes where chains are replaced often.

 

I went -1 on the front and +2 on the back - it's great on the track and you can finally use 6th gear, but way too revvy for the street. I am going back to stock on the front and leaving the +2 on the rear. Also introduces a net 15-20% speedo error (reads faster than actual) so something to think about.

As far as the 520, cant see any more wear than normal even with alum sprockets even when pounding on the bike on the track, but would go with a 520 conversion in steel if possible for peace of mind.

 

All respect Squirrel. By enlarge you're absolutely right, however, VFR HP output is about identical to a 600, making a long term transition to 520 doable. So Chain life remains about the same if you purchase a strong chain. I use the D.I.D ERV3 with 8700lbs of tensile strength which is on par with the OEM 530 set-up. Aluminum sprockets are what they are, so you give up some longevity to gain some perfomance. But if you use the right aluminum you can get some good miles out of them. Vortex makes a PTFE hardcoated F5 aluminum sprocket, which I use, that will get roughly 10,000-12,000 miles. No, that's not the roughly 17,000 miles that OEM provides, but for $70 every couple of years for the F5, plus less strain on the drive system, the extra couple of ponies, it's completely worth doing in my opinion. I hav'nt figured out how to link old threads as yet, but if you look at the thread "chain question" Stosh has provided a photo of the F5 with 8,000 miles on it: not as much wear as you might think. Plus in the photo you can see that it's 8,000 miles on an RC-51, more juice than a VFR