Chain and Sprockets

There are two ways of doing this. the easy way and the hard way.

Read the disclaimer

The easy way.

Buy a chain (108 links) with a joining link and the sprockets and take to your friendly motorcycle mechanic and ask him to to fit them. Your mechanic undoubtedly has a professional riveting tool and will break the old chain, replace the sprockets, replace and rivet the new chain and charge you for about 1 hour's labour, if that.

The hard way

Buy a Triumph endless chain (108 links) and sprockets and output shaft sprocket washer. Buy the tools necessary to remove the rear wheel, the swinging arm, the front (output drive) nut. remove wheel, remove swinging arm, remove chain and sprockets, replace the latter, and then replace the swinging arm and the rear wheel. Spend roughly a whole afternoon doing this and a not inconsiderable amount of cash on the tools to do the job.

Why do it the hard way?

Because you have a "chain fixation"?

According to DID (the Triumph OEM chain is a DID X-ring chain - no longer the Regina) the difference in strength between a factory made endless chain and a professionally riveted chain is 5% i.e. the riveted chain has 95% of the strength of a factory made endless chain. So no cause to get excited there then.

At then end of the day it comes down to economics, If you buy the tools necessary to do the job are you going to use them again and save yourself some money over and above the cost of getting a riveted chain fitted by a mechanic, or perhaps you may buy yourself a DID professional chain riveter/breaker.

The cost from you "friendly" local dealer is as follows:-

Total cost for tools for the job (inc VAT) amount in Pounds Sterling - assuming
you already have the necessary torque wrenches and excluding the cost
of the sprockets and chain.

T1180181  Washer, sprocket         £ 3.31
T3880290  Clamping ring wrench     £16.62
T3880295  Lock ring wrench         £23.32
T3880046  Socket, 46mm 1/2" drive  £33.20
Draper    Socket, 36mm 1/2" drive  £17.00
TOTAL                              £93.45

Tips for this job are:-

Get the Workshop Manual as this gives all the correct torque settings and the correct procedure for doing the job - this page is not about to tell you how to do it merely to mention a couple of useful points that are omitted from the manuals. A Haynes manual is useful but I found it harder to follow as you have to jump about from one section to another. It has a 3 spanner rating in Haynes.
Rear wheel removal.
You only have to remove the two bottom bolts on the drop/drag link to be able to displace the swinging arm enough to fit a new chain. One is the drag link bolt and the other is the RSU bolt.
You will need a TorX and hex wrench set capable of being used with your 1/2" drive socket set, standard metric socket set wrenches including the two sockets mentioned above, torque wrenches with range from 15Nm to 146Nm, some grease and assistant - Oh, and, of course, the chain and sprockets and a new front sprocket washer.

Back to Servicing

Send mail to with questions or comments about this web site.