ZX9R Cam chain

**crash harry** · 27th October 2005, 18:22

Hi all,
Have to do a cam chain on the 9R. It's a B2 model, and they have a hi-vo type chain drive. Now it appears that the hi-vo chain cannot be split (no joiner link) and there is a guide around the bottem sprocket so that you can't get the chain off without removing the engine and splitting the bottom crank-case off.

Brilliant.

Has anyone done one of these before? Specifically, does anyone know if it will cause any grief if I machine the guide off? It's cast into the lower crank-case. It certainly isn't needed for guiding the chain or anything like that, but I wonder if it serves some purpose to do with lubricating the chain?

I'm thinking of machining it off and then fabricating a bolt-on one to take it's place...

Oh - and it's too late to just forget the whole thing... I already cut the other chain off because I was told that we could get an after-market chain with a joiner link - only when it turned up it was a regular chain no a hi-vo.

**T.W.R** · 27th October 2005, 18:53

Hey there crash harry, yep you can split the hyvo-chain as per normal type chain

, use a small gauge splitter. I'm currently doing a similar job with my ZXR but my problem is finding a D.I.D camchain rivet tool ( as i'm damned if i'll pay $270 for a new 1) to put the new chain in.

To guide the new chain in its just a matter of connecting it to the old chain & feeding it through the bottom end. fortunately in my case i've removed the head & block which makes access easier.

Don't attempt cracking the cases otherwise your going to be in for excess expense with bearing inserts, seals etc as well as any other unexpected suprises.

unless you want to do a complete bare cases rebuild.

Don't machine the guide off because its there for a reason, mainly torque loading of the chain ( as per final drive chains, they never travel in a clean line from sprocket to sprocket)

**crash harry** · 29th October 2005, 08:56

Hi TWR,

(see the attached picture for what I'm talking about...)

I'm not meaning to remove the runner (part A) i'm talking about the bit marked in red.

As it is, it doesn't seem to have ever contacted the chain as it's cast in alloy and it would show some marks if the chain had ever run against it. It's actually quite far back from the chain, but I figure it could have some function to do with oiling.

Anyway, as you say the chain can be split I think that's the better option.

It's no bother to feed the new chain through either cos I've got the bottom cover off and it's quite easy to get to.

**T.W.R** · 29th October 2005, 10:03

that casting is just part of the bottom casing, the front (exhaust side) is the locator for the foot of the front chain guide. because of the location & casting process the lug is scalloped out for the crankshaft so the piece your seeing is the excess remnants of the original casting, if you measured the circumfrence of the scallop you'll notice its the same as the bearing housings along the casing.

**crash harry** · 29th October 2005, 13:12

fair enough.

I've got the new chain now, and I've doe a few experiments splitting the old one. Looks easy enough, although riveting it back together is going to be interesting...

**T.W.R** · 29th October 2005, 13:50

your at the same stage i'm at C.H,
theres a few possible ways to do it, but when a chain is whirling around at high rpm I don't trust anything than the job being done properly. you need the proper rivet tool its a cast clamp with a wind-up rivet stamp does both pins at once ( even compression) the D.I.D tool is $ 270. I'm waiting till i get my headwork done then i'm tracking one down ( about 1mth time)

**greenman** · 29th October 2005, 14:24

Man, you're doing it all wrong!
You don't break the chain and rejoin it.
You slacken off the tensioner, remove the cams and crank sprocket, remove the old chain. Then carefully lower the new chain down the camchain tunnel, loop it over the crank sprocket, refit the sprocket to the crank, drop the cams back in, then set the timing of the cams and you're close to done.
Do you have a manual?

**nudemetalz** · 29th October 2005, 14:35

Originally Posted by greenman

Man, you're doing it all wrong!
You don't break the chain and rejoin it.
You slacken off the tensioner, remove the cams and crank sprocket, remove the old chain. Then carefully lower the new chain down the camchain tunnel, loop it over the crank sprocket, refit the sprocket to the crank, drop the cams back in, then set the timing of the cams and you're close to done.
Do you have a manual?

That's exactly how I just did my NZ250 one. No need to break it if you can get it over (under) the bottom sprocket. With the tensioner loose you should have sufficient slack to be able to pop the sprockets back onto the camshafts if they are loose in the head too. Bugger splitting the chain.
I'd like to think when I'm doing 11,000rpm, the camchain hasn't got a weak link.......

**crash harry** · 29th October 2005, 15:15

Originally Posted by greenman

Man, you're doing it all wrong!
You don't break the chain and rejoin it.
You slacken off the tensioner, remove the cams and crank sprocket, remove the old chain. Then carefully lower the new chain down the camchain tunnel, loop it over the crank sprocket, refit the sprocket to the crank, drop the cams back in, then set the timing of the cams and you're close to done.
Do you have a manual?

I'm not quite the noob you think I am...
I agree with you in general, but if you have a quiet look at the diagram I posted earlier (from the workshop manual I might add) you'll notice that the part marked in red doesn't allow for that. You can't get the chain off the bottom sprocket. No can do. It can't move away from the sprocket far enough to disengage the teeth, so you can't get it out.

FWIW here's what the manual says about it:

Split the crankcase (see crankshaft/transmission chapter)
Remove the camchain from the crankshaft sprocket

Now in the crankshaft/transmission chapter under "splitting the crankcase" the first step is "remove engine from bike"

All for a F**king camchain!!

Originally Posted by nudemetalz

That's exactly how I just did my NZ250 one. No need to break it if you can get it over (under) the bottom sprocket. With the tensioner loose you should have sufficient slack to be able to pop the sprockets back onto the camshafts if they are loose in the head too. Bugger splitting the chain.
I'd like to think when I'm doing 11,000rpm, the camchain hasn't got a weak link.......

Well that's nice for you, but unfortunately someone didn't think much about changing camchains when they designed this engine. Pretty ridiculous really.

**T.W.R** · 29th October 2005, 15:18

What your suggesting is for camshaft end with open acces & nudemetalz mmm the NZ is a single not a 4 cylinder ! the ZX9R is similar to a ZZR but design changes created the problem. and the approach has to be taken as per ZXR design which is centre tunnel camchain hence having to split the chain, what do you think shops do for it? total rebuild for just a replacement camchain mmm yeah rite!

**T.W.R** · 29th October 2005, 15:39

veiw one D.I.D 82RH2015-138 replacement camchain & joiner link ( oh thats rite its just a fuckin ornament mmm?)

**nudemetalz** · 30th October 2005, 10:06

Originally Posted by T.W.R

What your suggesting is for camshaft end with open acces & nudemetalz mmm the NZ is a single not a 4 cylinder ! the ZX9R is similar to a ZZR but design changes created the problem. and the approach has to be taken as per ZXR design which is centre tunnel camchain hence having to split the chain, what do you think shops do for it? total rebuild for just a replacement camchain mmm yeah rite!

I realise this, I did say IF you can get under the sprocket but apologies as I was thinking this was a LHS cam-chain design like a GPz9, not central chain design.

**nudemetalz** · 30th October 2005, 10:10

Originally Posted by T.W.R

veiw one D.I.D 82RH2015-138 replacement camchain & joiner link ( oh thats rite its just a fuckin ornament mmm?)

The only joiner I've ever used in a cam-chain was my old CB-50 !!!

Are they really a good alternative to a soft link or rivetted on joiner on a big-bore engine?
I ask this question because I'm genuinely interested and they take a lot of the hardwork out of replacing chains.

**crash harry** · 30th October 2005, 10:53

Originally Posted by nudemetalz

I realise this, I did say IF you can get under the sprocket but apologies as I was thinking this was a LHS cam-chain design like a GPz9, not central chain design.

Actually it IS a LHS cam-chain design, but they've helpfully designed it in such a way as to eliminate the benifits of such...

And the factory chain is endless. But my experiments with the old chain indicate that the pins can be pushed out without too much force. Now I jsut need to get my hands on a chain splitter and some means of rivetting the damned thing back together.