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[ST] RE: Chain Life and the Protechtor (Sp?)



> Date: Wed, 24 Oct 2001 12:39:02 -0500
> From: "Alex Ozzard-Low" <alexol@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> ...
> I'm still trying to find the Protechtor (sp?) which was made in the UK
> - it was/is a total-enclosure type chain guard.  One of my brothers
> friends (now
> long out of contact) got over 30k miles out of one of the big Kawasakis
> using the thing.  It only weighed about 2-3 pounds, and although it wasn't
> stunningly attractive it did keep the back end of the bike clean and
> obviously worked wonders for chain life.  Anyone know anywhere to
> get these
> things?

Alex,

A cautionary tale.

In days of yore (1981) when I had a CB750, and O-ring chains were a bit of a
novelty, I used to boil the chain in a pan of graphite grease ("Lynklyfe")
on the stove top (a quicker road to divorce I've yet to find (BTW, I turned
off that road before I reached the end)). This stuff had a fairly high
'fling index', so I decided 'enough' and bought a fibreglass full enclosure
(though not a sealed bath a la MZ), which seemed to work fine.

Before returning to biking in '94, I was in the Isle of Man and had a long
chat with Charlie Smart of Triumph about my paranoid dislike of chain drive.
We discussed full enclosure/bath and he suggested that they (Triumph) had
looked into this, but there was a significant problem. Given that the new
company's first forays were into the European market, and the German market
in particular (where there are long stretches of Autobahn with no speed
limit), the bikes had to be able to withstand cruising speeds of ca. 200 kph
(120 mph). At this speed, a rear chain is absorbing 5 kW of transmission
energy. This manifests itself as heat. The heat can just about be dissipated
if the chain is left open to the air. If it were enclosed, the heat would
not be able to dissipate, and anneal (soften) the chain.

Whilst I realise that (legal) cruising speeds in the US are a little lower
than this, you'd be well to consider the issue.

[Nice to get back into nihilism now that Winter's approaching.]

Regards,
- --
BRG
email: keith@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
'00 Sprint ST BRG 'Wolfram'


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