Some of the most critical elements of a motorcycle drive train are chains and sprockets, and their maintenance is a vital aspect of healthy riding. For a very important job, they are used to deliver power from the gearbox to the rear wheel. A defective chain set can cripple your motorcycle, or the condition can even get unsafe occasionally. That implies that we have to take special care of this part, and we need to know about chain maintenance for that. So, here are some ways to maintain your Drive chain of a motorcycle.

Before going for its maintenance, we first need to know about the motorcycle chainset. Most of Nepal's motorcycles have a non-sealed style chain, while some of the luxury models have an O-ring type chain. Compared to the latter, the former one requires a lot of care, and the cause is the O-ring style chain's self-lubricating and cleaning technique. If your motorcycle has a non-sealed form of a chain, for washing, lubricating and wearing, you need to keep a closer eye on it. An O-ring style chain, though, comes with a little o-ring between the chain's rollers and attachment plates, which prevents the grease from locked for a longer period and keeps dirt out.

Inspection

We should inspect and adjust the normal chainset after every run of around 700kms. Place the bike on the main stand such that the rear wheel is free and you can rotate the wheel to check the whole chain. By touching it, you can verify the dryness of the chain and visually check the dirt and dust on it. You will determine, based on the amount of wear and tear, how long the device can continue to operate, or how long it has to be modified immediately.

Cleaning

Grease on the chain meets dirt and creates the matter of a gunk form, which appears to build up around the chain and increase its wear. So finally, We need to get this gunk regularly separated from the chain. To clean the non-sealed style chain, we should use a very hard or a wire brush with mild soap, while an o-ring type chain should be washed with a very soft brush. A Quick Solution Grunge brush is indeed a good option for the fast resolution of the target. If you're using soap water to clean the chainset, after cleaning, you need to dry the chain properly with a cloth or blower.

Lubing

We need to lubricate the chain with fresh grease after washing to making sure the lube goes well inside any pin and roller. When turning the rear wheel forward, you should apply grease on the inner side of the chain, which will ensure the proper lubing of the system. After that, using a towel, you can remove excess lube from it so it won't absorb any dust and dirt. You should also use a chain lubricating spray for the job if you want to make the operation smoother. After cleaning and lubricating your motorcycle's chainset, you can feel the smoothness of the power transmission.

Replacing

Even after cleaning and lubing. If your chain is still not functioning properly then, there is no other option than to replace the old motorcycle chain with a new one. Excessive tension or low tension may damage your new chain-set, so it should be balanced properly. After getting it replaced, take a test ride first and ensure that the tension in the chain is proper and power delivery is happening smoothly.

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A motorcycle suspension configuration comprises primarily two front telescopic tubes and a twin or single shock absorber swing arm mounted at the rear. Nowadays, owing to its improved performance and sporty looking characteristics, a mono-shock or single shock absorber on the rear is favored in most motorcycles. The motorcycle suspension system mainly has two goals: to control stability and maintain balance during braking and, secondly, to provide support during bumps and uneven surfaces to the rider and pillion.

1. Front Suspension:

Conventional Telescopic Forks:

The most prevalent type of front suspension is telescopic forks. The setup is very basic and takes the form of long hydraulic tubes fitted internally with a coil. In a T-clamp, the top of these forks is attached to the motorcycle's frame whereas the other end is fitted to the axle of the front wheel. In the event of road flaws, the lower part of fork bodies slip up and down the fork tubes and thus absorb the vibrations. In order to ensure the texture of operation, the interior is filled with oil and is sealed inside with an oil seal.

 

Upside Down Forks (USD):

Inverted or upside-down forks are nothing like inverted-set traditional telescopic forks. In these, although the tubes are at the bottom, the slider bodies are at the top section. These are mostly used in high-end motorcycles now for a few days, as they lower the overall unsprung weight of the motorcycle alongside growing torsional rigidity, resulting in better handling.

 

Important Terminologies:

Preload Adjustment:

This relates to the system used for changing the original suspension angle for the weight of the motorcycle and the rider acting on it.

Fork Damping:

Because of the impact of reducing, minimizing, or stopping the oscillations, it is an influence between forks.

Brake Dive:

The additional pressure on the front wheel forces the front end of the bike to go lower as the brakes are applied, resulting in fork contraction. This drop-in fork length is known as the Brake Plunge.

 

2. Rear Suspension:

Previously, the rear suspension was not used in motorcycles and only front forks ensured the consistency of the ride. However, manufactures have been implementing rear suspension with the advent of technologies and are still in use today. The key elements of the rear suspension system are the swingarm and coil springs.

 

Swingarm:

A motorcycle swingarm can be considered to be a quadrilateral section of a motorcycle in which the shorter side is attached to the chassis of the motorcycle and the rear wheel axle around which the wheel spins is bolted on the other side. The swingarm is only available on one side on certain bikes and is considered a single-sided swingarm. Although it brings the convenience of separating the rear wheel without much effort, it raises the rear suspension's unsprung weight. That's why there is no traditional use of a single-sided swingarm. Two kinds of suspension are essentially used for a swingarm:

 

Twin shock absorbers:

It refers to two shock absorbers at the backside of a motorcycle, as the name implies. Firstly used in the 1970s and 80s off-road bikes, these offered an advantage of improved rear wheel movement because of which they were highly adopted.

 

Mono Shock Absorbers:

As time progressed, for several reasons, manufacturers decided to introduce mono-shock absorbers in their motorcycles. It was discovered after studies that mono shocks provided a lot better performance than traditional twin shock absorbers. A single shock absorber is attached to the motorcycle's frame from the swingarm in this configuration. It is not directly attached to the swingarm, but instead uses a connection that helps to provide the rear with an increasing degree of damping. In comparison, mono shocks more easily extract torque from the swingarm, have improved handling and reliability, and are simpler to modify than twin shock absorbers when only one unit is used.

How does Motorcycle Handling Impact Suspension Squat?

If a motorcycle were to squat down in the rear while you started to drive from a corner, you would attempt to steer into the turn and the bike would drift to the outside, taking the weight off the front, which would not steer as well as before. At the conclusion of the session, when you got into the pits, you can ask the crew chief for a solution.

In a correctly built motorcycle, the force that opposes squat comes specifically from the drive chain, which is not parallel to the central plane of the swingarm but at an angle to it. And an anti-squat force defines the tangent of that angle. When you learn that there is an adjustable swingarm pivot height for a certain sports bike, the feature is targeted at this problem.

You change the angle between the chain when it is close and the swingarm itself by changing the height of the pivot and therefore the drop angle of the swingarm, thus altering this anti-squat effect. You will propel out of the corner without squatting and pressing until the force is able to fully balance the weight change induced by acceleration.

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ABS in motorcycle is basically, an anti-lock braking system that provides you with sensors that continuously monitor wheel rotation speed to decide whether a wheel is about to lock up. A series of hydraulic valves alter the braking pressure after detecting a potential lock-up, stopping the wheels from locking up, enabling the wheels to roll, applying and releasing high-frequency brakes. This thwarts the lack of momentum and steering power, allowing the rider more control. ABS brakes can feel like the brake pedal abruptly drop while ABS is functioning well, followed by a fast pulsing feeling. During the time that ABS is triggered, there could be grinding or buzzing noise emanating from the car. As ABS activates, it can also feel like the brake pedal is pulling out.

How does Motorcycle ABS work?

ABS acts to stop the wheel, or wheels, of a motorcycle from locking during braking. As well as sensors to assess whether a wheel is about to lock, ABS uses speed sensors on both wheels to reliably determine wheel speed.

To keep the wheel from locking, ABS changes the brake pressure accordingly and assists in retaining the motorcycle's stability. ABS has been shown to decrease braking distance in many situations. It has been found that motorcycles with ABS technology are involved in fewer road accidents.

ABS in motorcycles can help a rider to reduce speed or to stop his or her motorcycle in an emergency situation. Speed sensors on the motorcycle's wheels monitor the speed of rotation, so the wheels do not lock during braking.

If the wheels are about to lock due to hard braking or slippery road conditions, the ABS hydraulic unit momentarily reduces the brake pressure applied by the rider, so that the wheels continue to rotate. This helps the rider to control the motorcycle and slow down safely.

Motorcycle ABS works by constantly measuring wheel speed, however, it only intervenes to adjust brake pressure if it detects that a wheel is about to stop rotating. A rider shouldn’t notice this at all during normal, non-emergency braking but can be confident that in an emergency they can apply full brake force without the wheels locking up.
 

Why You Must Have Motorcycle ABS?

You can install motorcycle ABS in your motorcycle and it's simple. If you're serious about installing ABS on your motorcycle, consider your technical skills, and choice for riding first. If you are a beginner, when you are learning how to brake, ABS is outstanding protection.

ABS will usually have shorter managed stopping distance in braking cases where the wheels on a non-ABS fitted vehicle will lock up. ABS braking distance can be longer on certain surfaces, such as asphalt or a skim of snow, but drivers regain the ABS benefit.

The research was commissioned by the Commonwealth and Victorian Governments on the advantages of Anti-Lock Braking Systems (ABS) on on-road motorcycles and published in 2015. It was noticed in the study that:

ABS could reduce 31 percent of death rate and serious injuries from motorcycle accidents. ABS is the standard for just about 20% of new motorcycles. This innovation has the capacity to save 22% of lives from now until 2025 at the current pace of sales of ABS motorcycles. If ABS were made mandatory on all new motorcycles from 2018, this number could grow to 35% of lives saved. So it is definitely worth getting ABS on a motorcycle. A few countries are already in the process of mandating the two-wheeler ABS functionality, and we believe it should also be done in Nepal.

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The motorcycle world is full of mystery and many questions. What is the best mileage a bike can give or insightful questions about slipper clutch, gears parts, and many more? Let’s talk about this popular question “Why don’t all bikes have Abs?”. the answer isn’t as simple as you think.

An anti-lock braking system or ABS is a safety anti-skid braking system used on aircraft and on land vehicles, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, and buses.

Purpose

The expected function of a bike, and where it is going to be ridden, also factors into the decision to equip it with ABS. Not all riding surfaces are alike, and in some of them, ABS can be more of a hindrance than a support. Other regions encourage manufacturers to determine what models receive ABS, beyond the EU guidelines. In these areas, the intended intent, market segment, and price point of a motorcycle all determine the inclusion of ABS.

Cost, Looks, and Weight

Cost is another explanation of why ABS is not as popular as it should be. Now, this is less of a consideration than when it was first implemented, but ABS also suggests a rise in prices. Thanks to the numerous ABS structures, it also adds extra weight, and it inevitably clutters the looks of bikes. Although that last part does not seem significant, a broad number of buyers of motorcycles disagree. For starters, cruiser owners appear to have a very deep admiration for design over technology.

 

When Abs is unnecessary?

You know how much you love the chance to freestyle if you're a dirt biker, taking your bike through its strong paces and executing movements that are unique to your physicality and style of riding. Having ABS installed could seriously curtail your performance when you’re tearing it up on the dirt. Without ABS, you’re able to exact more control over your bike and adapt to the surface conditions, braking or skidding when you want to, not when the braking system kicks in.

When Abs is necessary

When you have to brake hard and unexpectedly, because ABS prevents the wheels from locking, you might be checking for ABS on your cruiser or commuter bike. Typically, stop-and-go traffic means you're constantly and quite unexpectedly using the brakes. For instance, when a speeding commuter swerves into your lane in front of you without warning, you can be cruising along between clumps of traffic. Without any warning, you can even come across a full traffic standstill.

Conclusion

Abs is a huge improvement in the safety of the rider since it locks tires and prevents many dangerous accidents. But in the dirt bike, you want to move freely unlike city bikes that need to stop and start quite unexpectedly.

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