14 Tooth Sprocket on Front

[Cyborg]

What are the advantages of a 14 tooth sprocket. I don't need the top end, as I rarely exceed 80mph, is the 14 toothed sprocket a good idea?

[russh]

Is the standard a 15?

I'm thinking of lowering the gearing on mine as a lot of my journeys are through heavy traffic and I find myself slipping the clutch a lot as first a is a bit to high.

Also it would be better for off road and to be able to get the front up maybe.

so me too

What are the advantages of a 14 tooth sprocket. I don't need the top end, as I rarely exceed 80mph, is the 14 toothed sprocket a good idea?

Russ

[Cyborg]

I only say 14 because I saw someone else refering to the change from 15 to 14.
According to the Haynes Manual standard on the 600 is 15 front/47 rear, as for the 650 it just says 3.200 to 1, no sprocket sizes are given.
So where does one get a 14 toothed sprocket for a Transalp?

[Mudwiz]

Depends on the model - I can't speak for the 600, but the 650 has a standard 15 with an easy option 16 for motorway miles.

I have a 14 front sprocket, and it allows a little lift on the front, but is much better off road. Max speed is just about 100, so I don't think top end is an issue anyway!

They don't make one as standard, I'll check, but I think you need to have a firm grind the collar of a different sprocket, and then fix it with circlips, not the screw in collar.

Mine has worked well for about 4000 miles, more than a TKC80!!

Heres the entry from the Wiki:

The standard 15 tooth front sprocket (296)can be changed for a 14 one, dispite the fact no one makes one! Have an engineering firm machine the raised section fron the outside of a 297 sprocket, and fit it with 2 circlips. This may sound insecure, but in 4000 miles and lots of off road there haven't been problems (yet!).

Retrieved from "http://wiki.xrv.org.uk/index.php/Transalp_650_Front_Sprocket"

[Lord Stig]

It's well worth trying. Working out road speed is fairly easy - if you have the wheel circumference there are online calculators that can do it. I agree that going for gearing that allows 110 mph is pretty irrelevant, although most here seem to want to do just that (albeit to give the engine a lazier RPM at cruising speeds). In reality having the engine spinning a bit fast takes some of the strain off it, so, so long as you don't do lots of motorway miles the bearings and clutch should have a little easier time of it. You'll also ned less throttle to maintain certain speeds, so it doesn't automatically follow that lowering the gearing will dent the MPG - especially if you have a lot of hill work to do, or if he find yourself routinely battling head winds.

One downside of 14 teeth is that the smaller sprocket will force the chain into a sharper bend, possibly limiting its life a little. Considering there is a limit to how large the rear can be, I would definitely drop a tooth on the front despite this (possible) drawback.

Stig