j0hn

Is it safe to run the XT on a chain with a split link or should I still be looking to get that riveted?

You could try riding like this . But in all seriousness, I think the XT speed correlate with the weight here. BenjiMC - 60kg - 68mph (guessing) Me - 75kg - 60mph (fairly accurate) Grouch - 82kg - 55 mph Not enough data for this graph to be accurate but from what's available, you can see the line of best fit is pretty close to the data points. So, from a statistical point of view, I don't think there is anything wrong with your bike.

Sounds like a better purchase, I guess it's something to invest into the future. I'll be keep an eye out for cheap mig welders on sale.

Dude, 13 stone ≈ 82 KG. Not really surprised if you're only getting 55ish. From your picture and what you've said about your build/weight, you're probably a tall guy, so drag will play its part when riding in an upright posture.

Take into account your weight. I guess a part of making your bike go faster is losing some . I bet BenjiMC weighs 60 ±5 KG.

Yea, you're right. I used a socket big enough to sit on the outer race and tap'd that so there was no contact made on the seal.

68 on a straight? I need to try out the R rear sprocket on my X! Not sure if the actual sprocket would fit though. //Edit R Sprocket and chain kit ordered along with a brand new rear disk brake and brake pads, £150 all together.

That looks badass! Two on either side is going to look amazing lol. Is it still legal if you put them on a separate switch?

Ahh, gotcha! I was getting worried because it seemed like it was sealed for life and no idea how I would actually maintain it.

Another phrase I've heard that you can add to the list is "Organ Donor". I don't usually get any negative comments about riding but if I did, I would thrive on it. The fact that they are openly admitting that riding can be dangerous and they would rather sit in a cage to get from A to B is more than satisfying. My response will always be along the lines of having balls to live my life on the edge.

Wow, I'm surprised how hot some the chicks used to be back then.

Oh I didn't mean grease it now, I meant as maintenance for the future. Was referring what dt said earlier on in this thread.

I tried to make my own but it just wasn't bent enough to catch that small lip. It would catch just at the end of the lip but as soon as you strike the end with a hammer, it slides off. And yea, the axle bolt isn't on too tight, thanks for this tip! I'm glad I attempted to do this myself and I'll know how to approach it next time . You mentioned greasing and new seals as maintenance for the bearings. How do you go about doing that? Do you take out the black seal (picture above where JAPAN is printed), grease it and put a new seal on it? Would this new seal fit in without any issues? Grouch, I've got my fair share of tools in the house but nothing to tackle this job specifically. I was hesitant going to the garage for this because it doesn't usually pan out as you planned. It was a different dealer (closer to home) from my usual place and was glad the guy did it for free. I'm thinking of adding a bearing puller to the tool collection, doubt these will get used much but at least I've got it in-case I or someone else needs it. Anyone know if this set on Amazon is suitable for such jobs: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Silverline-783172-Puller-Bearing-Separator/dp/B000WTLOIG/ I think that set is exactly the same as this but less expensive, probably because it's not Silverline branded: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blue-Spot-Puller-Bearing-Pieces/dp/B005N78UN4/ Came across these too but they look a bit weird lol: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Silverline-MS23-Piece-Gear-Puller/dp/B000LFVPYE/

The mechanic took it inside to his workshop so I wasn't able to watch. I can only assume he used one of those heavy duty bearing puller tools because there was no way to push it through from the other end. Thanks for all the help guys, new bearings are in place!

Heating the hub didn't work. Took it to a motorcycle dealer and popped it out for me at no cost. I'm jealous that it took the guy less than a minute when I've spend almost half a day on the thing!

Yea, that's what I used before but wasn't sure how well that would equate in practice. Theoretically, according to Gearing Commander, I'll be losing around 3mph in 5th gear, which seems fine. Haven't got the race out yet, waiting on a friend to go pick up a heat gun.

I'm thinking of replacing the chain and sprockets on my XT 125 X and contemplating whether to go two teeth up on the rear sprocket. I found out that the R model has exactly the same front sprocket and chain length but 50 teeth instead of 48 for the rear. I know I am to expect a little loss in top end but most of my riding is done in city roads so I could do with more bottom end (acceleration). This probably isn't a fair assessment of speed because the R model has a bigger front wheel but just hoping to get a rough idea of its top speed on the road.

I've still to try the heat gun on the hub method, if that fails, I'll just take it somewhere and get a washer welded as dt suggested. Thanks!

Was doing about 50ish. I just heard a sound, didn't really feel the back end pulling side to side. Got worse as I was coming up to my house and started hearing screeching noises. Stopped at the side to check and lo and behold, the rear wheel was shaking side to side. Ended up pushing the bike for about half an hour to my house .

The problem is, I am unable to drive it out because there is nothing to catch at the back end of the bearing housing. Seems to have disintegrated while attempting to drive it out. What else could I do after warming up to get it out without damaging the hub? I greased up the spindle a few weeks ago but that was about it for the maintenance in that area. I'm not sure how else to grease the actual bearing, do you break the seal, grease it and reseal it? I wouldn't have thought it would be possible to reseal the bearing if the seal has been broken.

Riding on the motorway and my rear wheel bearing thought it was the perfect time to go. Guess it's time to replace them so I managed to get the one that didn't brake off first. Having issues with the one that did go, it's really stuck in there. Can't seem to get the bearing housing to catch when trying to push from the other side. As you can see from the picture below, the end with the stuck bearing is completely flat/worn away so I'm not able to drive it out. Looking at it through the other end (where the first bearing was and taken out first). Anyone got any ideas on how I could take this stuck bearing out? Thinking of maybe cutting/drilling two sides but I'm worried that it could damage the hub.

Ahh that sounds like a better approach to this dt502001, thanks. Going to do this now.

Congrats on getting it all sorted Grouch. Any idea what bearing type/model/number they replaced your bike with? I experienced a similar situation today on the motorway so looks like a bearing replace is in order. Going to attempt doing this myself but the Haynes manual says I need some kind of "Internal Expanding Puller" tool. I'm hoping it's a load of crap and I'll be able to pull out the bearings with a flat head screwdriver.

I should have probably mentioned that the chain was indeed adjusted. When I noticed the slackness, I was just going to adjust it but took the opportunity to wash it and take some pics first.

The little black box with the red button? That's the controls for the heated grips . I had a look at some pictures of the 2005 model and the standard controls seems to be the same.