My chain & sprockets are about 34500km (a bit over 21000 miles) old, and WAY overdue to be replaced. Instead of going through the dealer I ordered new (incredibly hard) sprockets to be laser cut, and am going with an 18T front (of course) and a colour-matched green rear. They're slightly wider than standard and use a 530 chain instead of the standard 525.
Just for laughs I decided to ring the dealer and get a comparison price. He offered (and recommended!) aftermarket parts which actually would cost me slightly less than the custom made ones, and of course the original parts would have cost me 4 times the price of the custom ones. The parts guy & I were both stunned at the price of an OEM chain (AU$440!!) and
he suggested they should come with a bikini-clad girl to fit them for you at that price. Of course I had to ask if she was a Triumph branded bikini-babe and if I'd have to wait for her to be shipped in from England.
He
did however recommend going for the OEM front sprocket because it has a rubber bush in it that reduces the chain noise to a great degree, and told me a horror story of a guy who bought the aftermarket one, then brought his bike back the next day convinced by the noises that the crackcase was stripping itself. A change of front sprocket apparently cured it's ills.
So who here has an aftermarket front sprocket without the bush? (Anyone with an 18T does for a start.) Does it produce a significant increase in the noise levels? Any info is appreciated...
Matt
