5-7 mm between swingarm down pointing arrow and upwards pushed top of the chain feels incredibly tight. Factory specs of other motorcycles ask for 20-30 mm chain slack but in the case of husq the slack is about 10mm when tightened following owners manual. I am afraid of adding stress on front sprocket while doing it as factory suggested.
I agree. That’s one of the tighter specs I have seen but that’s what the factory calls for. I’m not a master technician or anything like that so I just go with what the factory suggests. However, if you feel you will be better off with a looser spec, can’t really steer you otherwise. Totally understandable position.
You can do it that way and you are right the manual does specify that. I’ve always just taken the weight off the stand and measured it on the ground. Either way, the final measurement is what’s crucial. Thanks.
@gtoramirez you should take the final measurement on the ground. I always take the weight off the stand to make sure it’s not too tight. If you measure it on the side stand some of the weight is distributed there, making it harder to tell if there’s too much tension on that chain. However, these bikes have a really tight chain tension spec from the factory. Possibly could be part of the reason why these bikes have issues with the chain stretching.
Hi there, just clicked on the video to leave a comment but when you measure the 5-7mm do you do it from the lip of the swingarm or the slightly higher spot behind the lip?
It’s supposed to be from the lowest point. However, as referenced in the video that spec is pretty tight. I would caution to leave the chain a little looser than factory spec. That tight chain spec might be one reason why these bikes suffer from chain issues so commonly.
Literally the best tutorial video for Vit 401 chain maintenance. Thank you.
I really appreciate the positive feedback. I am trying my best. Thank you very much for watching and glad you found it helpful.
Great video! I had to watch several videos to tension my chain, your video would have saved me last year. Oh well, it’s here for the newbies.
Right on glad it was helpful. Thanks for watching.
5-7 mm between swingarm down pointing arrow and upwards pushed top of the chain feels incredibly tight. Factory specs of other motorcycles ask for 20-30 mm chain slack but in the case of husq the slack is about 10mm when tightened following owners manual. I am afraid of adding stress on front sprocket while doing it as factory suggested.
I agree. That’s one of the tighter specs I have seen but that’s what the factory calls for. I’m not a master technician or anything like that so I just go with what the factory suggests. However, if you feel you will be better off with a looser spec, can’t really steer you otherwise. Totally understandable position.
per manual chain tension is checked with bike raised in the air
You can do it that way and you are right the manual does specify that. I’ve always just taken the weight off the stand and measured it on the ground. Either way, the final measurement is what’s crucial. Thanks.
Dang, specd to high tension with bike lifted? Hmmm.
@gtoramirez you should take the final measurement on the ground. I always take the weight off the stand to make sure it’s not too tight. If you measure it on the side stand some of the weight is distributed there, making it harder to tell if there’s too much tension on that chain.
However, these bikes have a really tight chain tension spec from the factory. Possibly could be part of the reason why these bikes have issues with the chain stretching.
Hi there, just clicked on the video to leave a comment but when you measure the 5-7mm do you do it from the lip of the swingarm or the slightly higher spot behind the lip?
It’s supposed to be from the lowest point. However, as referenced in the video that spec is pretty tight. I would caution to leave the chain a little looser than factory spec. That tight chain spec might be one reason why these bikes suffer from chain issues so commonly.