Clunking from rear wheel

Hi, the chain was looking a bit messy so gave it a very through clean with solvent, lubricated and tightened up the tension over the weekend. Went out for a ride, and when I got back as I pushed it into the garage I could hear a "clunking" coming from the rear wheel. I put it on the stand, tiurned the wheel by hand and the "clunks" happen about every 15 deg of turn. I slackened off the chain a lot and the clunking died down. Has anyone had this before, or know what it might be? Is it simply I had the tension too tight (It was no less than 20mm) or might there be a problem with the rear wheel bearing that has shown up now I've redone the chain (and possibly washed some grease out with chain solvent??). Any help appreciated.

 

With the chain properly tensioned bike in gear, engine off, grab the rear sprocket by hand & try to rotate forward or backward. You could also hold the rear brake & try to rotate the sprocket as well. Any excessive movement would point to the rubber dampeners (cush drive) inside the rear hub. If the cush drive is really worn with the bike on the stand & in neutral rotate the rear wheel. You can get as much as 10-15 degrees rotation from the wheel before the sprocket moves. Once the play is taken up you'll hear a distinct clunk. Loosen the chain a bit & check for any links that might be binding. With the bike on the stand grab the rear wheel with your hands & check for any excessive movement. Wobbling would indicate hub bearings. Worn hub bearings would make more of a grinding or roaring sound when riding. Typically getting louder & higher in pitch with higher speeds.

My Suzuki was doing the same thing, ended up being the chain.

 

So how many miles on that chain ??

 

Chain locking up in spots due to age or bad choice of cleaning product?

 

Do you have an allergy to chain lube? It is a common condition and nothing to be ashamed of.

 

I had a similar symptom with mine a couple years back. Close inspection of the chain revealed a link that was tight. The new chain and sprockets solve the problem for me. I hope your issue is as simple as mine was. Like Toe said, lack of lube on the chain I believe is something most of us are guilty of from time to time. Don't lube a dirty chain unless you have no other options. Clean it first if it is all grunged up. Not saying you may need to do this every time you lube, but to do so, is not a bad thing.

 

tried to move the sproket and it appears pretty tightly fixed to the wheel - no significant play. Had a look at the chain links and they seem ok too. Not much movement in the wheel either on the hub. I've just got the bike, so don't konw how old the chain is, but the the VFR has done 14k miles, so might still be on the original chain. One thing I did see is water/fluid dripping out still from where you tighten the chain, I probably got some water and solvent in that housing from some over enthusiastic hosing to get the muck off.

 

The rear hub is pretty well sealed up. Trapped water was probably coming from the area where the swing arm pinches the hub. When it comes to washing let the solvent of your choice do the work. Use a little elbow grease with a bristle brush or an old paint brush to break up the muck. Then rinse not blast with water.

Did you work the chain links by hand? I've seen chain links move freely in one direction then bind when moving back in the other direction. Something to look for is brownish residue coming out from between the plates. That would be rust coming from the rollers & or pins. I would suspect the original grease inside the chain rollers/ pins has long since dried up.

 

I also think you have bad links in the chain. Try working the chain links one at the time in all directions, chances are you'll find a few bad links. I just went through that recently.

 

If your going to take the chain off anyway, check the bearing runout on the rear hub. I think your chain is the culprit but while you can get to it may as well check it. Use the fsm to give procedures and values for tolerances. Though the hub is well sealed, 1500psi water will get in if its blasted in there. Most likely you have water in between the hub and swing arm, so be careful with the spray.

Check to see if the noise is still there with the chain off, if it is take the wheel off, if it still is then take the brake off and if still is there then your pulling the hub. If it was the cush drive then you could have seen the wheel turn well before the chain moves. You have to rock the wheel back and forth to see it.

Happy hunting!

 

Been out in the garage again today (it's a public holiday in the UK!) I check the chain really carefully as suggested, and found a couple of stiff links. Tried to free them off but not happening. Re-lubed and retensioned the chain (a bit slacker this time). It is better now - the bad clunking has gone away. Thanks guys!

For checking the chain tension, when I push up on the lower part of the chain at mid-point - it hits the rubber strip under the swingarm before it seems to get to full deflection upwards, but if I tension it so it doesn't - the chain seems way too tight. Is this normal? I've been using the top position (pushed against the rubber strip) as the top point to measure from.

 

Binding links, time for a new chain & sprockets.

 

Yep - what he said^^.

Although when you sit on it, it will actually tighten some due to the suspension compressing.

But based on what you described, time for new.