KTM 790 Adventure R- New Front/Rear Sprocket & Chain Installation

[@NinkeWestra]

Why not just cut through the chain with the angle grinder?

[@aegismotoadventures1616]

Hey Ninke, I suppose one could do that, but it is, in my humble opinion, safer to just grind the pins. Let me explain. Cutting the link at a right angle risks tool kick or a blade breaking. Tool kick could cause one to grind something you didn't want to grind, and a grinding disk fragment flying at high speed is also bad. Grinding the pins off is easy and easy to control the grinder. This boils down to personal preference somewhat as well. Grind the least amount needed to complete the task, and firmly maintain control of the tool. Did I mention that grinders are notoriously dangerous. Take care, Mike

[@aegismotoadventures1616]

P.S. Always wear safety glasses.

[@aegismotoadventures1616]

P.S. Better yet, wear an approved face shield. A pretty face deserves to stay that way.

[@greatfallskam]

So how many thousand miles on the KTM 790 Adv. odometer? Did you compare the stock / old sprockets to new ones? How badly hooked or worn were ones you took off? By the way, I am adjusting my chain on my 2021 890 Adv. Dealer must have made it too tight last time. My understanding is the chain should be fairly slack . Between 2-5 mm. from middle of the swing arm. Pretty droopy. Is that the case? I just posted a video after adjusting my chain tension today. Thanks for all your great videos.

[@aegismotoadventures1616]

Hey voip kam, Thanks for stopping by. Currently there are 23,000 miles or 37,015 kilometers on the bike. The rear sprocket was showing significant wear, but could have have gone another 7,000 miles- probably. Because we have several big rides scheduled for this summer (2023), it made since to change it now while I had the time to work on it. The chain was showing wear, but again probably could have made it another 7,000 miles. The front sprocket looked new with almost no wear- crazy I know. Conventional wisdom on this repair is, if you replace any of these parts, replace all of them. The cost isn't too bad if you do the work yourself. If I was world traveling, I would have no problem replacing just a single worn part and hit the road. It really depends on your circumstances and part availability. You are correct on chain tension. The manual supplied with the motorcycle specifies a measurement. I would stick to this measurement, but slightly loose is better than too tight. The reason for this is because as the swing arm raises and lowers, it changes the geometry/distance from the front sprocket to the rear sprocket. One can check this for themselves by jacking up the rear of the bike and take measurements from center to center of the sprockets at various angles from the swing arm pivot point. A too tight chain will cause excessive wear at a minimum. At an extreme, it could cause a bent rear sprocket or tooth tear. Another issue that I'll mention, is one should ensure the sprockets align with each other. This alignment adjustment is made while mounting the rear wheel. Using a simple straight edge from sprocket to sprocket before putting the guards on, will confirm correct alignment. Thanks for such a great question. This will certainly help over viewers. Take care, Mike

[@greatfallskam]

@@aegismotoadventures1616 Totally understand. I ran into similar situation with my KTM 690 Enduro R. I probably could have gone longer before changing my chain and sprockets. Thanks for detail response to questions. Keep the posts coming. Kam

[@vivaldibro]

What rear sprocket do you have? Looks nice!

[@aegismotoadventures1616]

Hi vivalibro, I'm so sorry it took me so long to respond. We suffered an emergency with my mother which necessitated a next day flight out, but we're back and located the packing slip with the information you requested. Business: Rottweiler Performance Item #: 73303R-16 Description: Front Sprocket, 16 Tooth (Unlisted) Item #: 71304RX-45 Description: Rear Sprocket, 45 Tooth (Superlite RSX Steel) Hope this helps. Take care, Mike