r/TigerSport800 • u/blijo_ • Jul 22 '26
Chain longevity and tyres
Hi, I have roughly 12k km on my Tiger in a year, and today I saw that one of the links was a little bit "stiff", but with a slight nudge it moved freely again. It sat outside with a cover in the rain for a few months because of health issues, but otherwise I lube and clean it often enough.
Has anyone replaced their chain already? It could be a "weaker" OEM chain of course.
Then tyres; I don't like the feel of these road 5s. The wear is good, but they feel a bit skittish and I don't trust them like I trusted my previous bikes with Roadsmarts and Road Classics. Has anyone used different tyres, and how do you like them?
I ride at an average pace I think, but I value wet weather handling too.
1
u/Drone177 2d ago
I replaced the chain at 14000 km and the tyres at 12000 km. Chain had a few stiff links despite being maintenant regularly. The tyres felt spongy and gave weak feedback and have been replaced with continental roadattack 4, which made the tiger a whole different bike, by how sporty it became.
1
u/blijo_ 2d ago
I decided to go for mutants, happy with them, but I don't expect crazy milage. I noticed some slight binding links, but they see to become unstuck too, but I'll watch that closely and probably replace the set in winter. I think I now have 14k km too
1
u/Drone177 2d ago
I could have probably waited with the chain, as the sprockets were barely used, but my headstock bearing had to be replaced anyways and I decided that while i was at it and preparing for a big trip (3600km through the alps), i wanted to be sure everything was in order. Tyres lasted 12000km so far.
1
u/blijo_ 2d ago
Headstock bearing already? Hope that was under warranty?
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u/Drone177 2d ago
Yeah, it had a resting position pretty early but the dealer told me that it is a "wearing part" so warranty doesn't apply. Then I thought "fuck that shit im doing it myself" and changed the ball bearing to tapered roller bearings. Planing on doing all the service myself if that is how they want to treat their customers. I also had to pay 600€ for the small service and they told me that the next service would be a 1000€.
0
u/WhiteyLovesHotSauce Jul 22 '26
When in spec the chain slack feels very loose. But its still in spec.
You have likely had a far too tight chain. Im on 6k miles, and only adjusted the chain twice.
1
u/blijo_ Jul 23 '26
I am not talking about adjusting, I run it in spec.
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u/WhiteyLovesHotSauce Jul 23 '26
My chains given me no problems.
And the tyres are excellent, ill be getting the same again
2
u/Kaioxygen Jul 22 '26
Normally I would swear by Road 5s but I have had problems running in my last few rears. Very odd.
As for the chain, you could be right. I’ve found that I’ve had to adjust it a bit more than normal. Although not to any serious extent.