Emergency Guide: issue 48 [Spring Tensioner]

[CrazyDan]

Gotta quit smoking, it's too expensive - 75 bucks a carton now.

Good thing I smoke pipe tobacco, it hasn't really raised in price for over a decade.

 

[gary55]

Gotta quit smoking, it's too expensive - 75 bucks a carton now.

What does the price of cigarettes have to do with road side tensioner repair? If your gona insist everyone address your specific topic without stray,,, well then. However since you have opened the door to open forum I agree tobacco is way to expensive. They could make it cheaper, but then we would just smoke more, die sooner, and how would that help their profit margin. I wonder if the tensioner manufacturers have caught on to such an ingenious marketing ploy. I already know I'm a as***le, and you need not wait till you are bleeding to point it out. Hope your repairs go well, and your beers are always cold.

 

[DuctTapedGoat]

Good thing I smoke pipe tobacco, it hasn't really raised in price for over a decade.

I might have to use my cigarette making machine which I keep in storage. I can make a carton in about an hour.

 

[DuctTapedGoat]

What does the price of cigarettes have to do with road side tensioner repair? If your gona insist everyone address your specific topic without stray,,, well then. However since you have opened the door to open forum I agree tobacco is way to expensive. They could make it cheaper, but then we would just smoke more, die sooner, and how would that help their profit margin. I wonder if the tensioner manufacturers have caught on to such an ingenious marketing ploy. I already know I'm a as***le, and you need not wait till you are bleeding to point it out. Hope your repairs go well, and your beers are always cold.

Tobacco has to do with my mood, why I may be more cranky this past two weeks than usual. 5 cigarettes a day sucks, I miss burning a pack up.

The tensioner design that is currently common aftermarket certainly is lacking in hardiness. The aluminum is so soft it is easily bent and slowly filed into an irrepairable state. I have seen some steel ones, however I don't know what the difference in crank clearance is. I know the Kip style tensioner fits just barely with my shaved crank. Certainly however, the hinge bolts aren't good, the spring is no good, the spring location is no good, and the clearance issue is no good. I would really rather just see a replacement clutch arm/drive sprocket/3bolt cover that has built in tensioning.

 

[gary55]

Ya if I cut back to 5 a day I would be pulling my hair out to. Here is the tensioner setup I use on my right side drive. The chain is to long for a spring tensioner alone, so the stock tensioner gives it a midway bearing point and helps with chain to sprocket alignment. plus the stock tensioner doesn't have much force on it at all so it stays tight. I really need to organize this shed.

 

[DuctTapedGoat]

Alright, got the old one removed. You can see the hinge was aeten away by the threads on the bolt as it back and forthed.

We upgraded the hinge to a correct double lock nut shoulder bolt and washer, as well got a shoulder bolt for the roller.

On the way I lost a bolt from my sprocket, so I replaced all 3. This repair died on the way, the chain was hitting maximum random tension and clicking the frame! 70 miles, 10 a day minimum.

I kept the seatpost spring for some extra up power and tried to ghost sprocket the aluminum 10t, which fell out in 1 pedalstart. Also you can see I don't use the stock anchoring for the spring, I put it on the top right of the 3 case cover bolts.

 

[Frankenstein]

View attachment 76335 View attachment 76336

Alright, got the old one removed. You can see the hinge was aeten away by the threads on the bolt as it back and forthed.

We upgraded the hinge to a correct double lock nut shoulder bolt and washer, as well got a shoulder bolt for the roller.

On the way I lost a bolt from my sprocket, so I replaced all 3. This repair died on the way, the chain was hitting maximum random tension and clicking the frame! 70 miles, 10 a day minimum.

I kept the seatpost spring for some extra up power and tried to ghost sprocket the aluminum 10t, which fell out in 1 pedalstart. Also you can see I don't use the stock anchoring for the spring, I put it on the top right of the 3 case cover bolts.

You're a bit too much of an as***le for no really good reason, tone it down a little, this is just motorized bikes not a biker gang chat room...

In that last photo is that what I think I see? The chains look like they are touching, even if they aren't and just almost touching then you have too much slack in the chain, a lot of problems you are experiencing are probably just that, the reason you needed so much tension is probably one of the major reasons the sprocket got eaten, and that things are breaking, your hinge travels too far under too much stress.

If you remove a link or 2 and live with the back wheel being slightly harder to pull off you could probably alleviate some problems. Also the slap from the chain could be so great it's pushing the tensioner until it can't go further, and putting excessive pressure on the tension wheel, eating it faster and causing hinges to fail.

With all that slack when you come off the gas but don't clutch immediately the chain gets pulled tight on the underside, so starting the engine and just the act of slowing down is probably working with the way too slacked chain to rip the s**t out of your tentioner.

My 2 centaroonies.

 

[Frankenstein]

 

[5-7HEAVEN]

I think he wants someone to recognize how he's fixing his ride on the road with hose clamps like Mcgiver or some sh*t. whoopdee.

I agree. This guy has tunnel vision, totally focusing on the SPRING TENSIONER and nothing else. Bandaid fixes might last until you reach home, or 700 miles.

Why do you need so much tension on your SPRING TENSIONER?

Open your mind! Look at the big picture, not just the SPRING TENSIONER. You have been offered a lot of good advice. At least take them into consideration.

Here's my 2 cents: shorten your chain. I'm presuming you're smart enough to shorten the chain so tight, that when you install it, you have to make it crawl up the wheel sprocket COUNTER-CLOCKWISE to install the tight chain. Make a better McGuyver fix. Don't drill into your frame.
Keep it simple, stupid(KISS). Some builders don't even use tensionsers.

I USED to use a chain tensioner/grooved skateboard wheel. After so many subtle changes in sprocket/chain relationships, my tensioner is no longer necessary.

Here's another suggestion you might consider "off topic" from your SPRING TENSIONER issue:

Reposition your engine mounting(maybe higher) to get a better alignment with your wheel sprocket.

And don't get bent outa shape with our suggestions. We're not there to see your bike's problem in person.

 

[Baconator101]

He's making a log on how to fix his bike on the fly. Yet it has no use for anybody else, no one rides with a chain like that... Maybe one day some one will come along with the same unorthodox chain length/slack. Maybe.