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Looking at a KZ440. It's belt drive. I have read the pro's and cons. Thoughts?
Chain vs belt drive
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Depends on what you want the bike for. Once I finally came to terms with the fact that mine could not be made into what I wanted it to be, I am actually quite happy with it as a daily ride to work and back.
In general a belt drive is a little quieter and no chain to oil. My Sportster was belt drive and still had no problem roasting the tire, so no power loss
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You figure there is no power loss to a belt, try pushing your bike for a distance and then pull the belt and see how much easier it pushes. :/ although I suppose you won't be able to do a true comparison until you have a chain drive version of the same bike to compare it against, I suspect the belt is going to have a lot more rolling resistance. Not to many race bikes are running toothy belts and I suspect there is a reason for that. Pretty sure lower vibration is one of the big motivations for belt instead of chain too.
Brad, how does that compare with the pros and cons that you have read?
Brad, how does that compare with the pros and cons that you have read?
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Pretty consistent. Most say they are just as powerful- very little loss of torque compared to a chain. Aesthetically not sure how I feel about it. Planning to turn into a Street Tracker. No racing in my future. I like the look of the big tires. My first go at this so any advice is welcome.
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Understand. Mostly I was wondering if guys find the belt less aesthetically pleasing.
Fall 7 Rise 8
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Oops, just though of something else, not all chains are created equal, plain roller chain is sometimes called race chain, maintenance free or o-ring sealed chain is known to have a greater rolling resistance by comparison, as well as greater weight, which is less critical but still part of the big picture.
Big fat front tire will induce a lot more head-shake, extra weight is the contributing factor.
You need a dyno and a lot of testing to really know what does what, no idea if anybody has gone to the bother and published the results or not.
Big fat front tire will induce a lot more head-shake, extra weight is the contributing factor.
You need a dyno and a lot of testing to really know what does what, no idea if anybody has gone to the bother and published the results or not.
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Sorry, does not compute.
Performance and complexity aside; aesthetically, chain and belt final drives are both arguably ugly, they are higher maintenance and manufacturer cost economical alternative to a really nice shaft drive system. If we were talking valve train and primary drive systems, gears blow chains and belts away because they simply don't stretch or break due to normal wear.
btw: speaking of chains, do you know how many chains there are inside your KZ440 motor? Pretty sure you have 4 separate and relatively high maintenance chains buried inside your engine casings. One for the electric start, one for the valve drive, a double wide one for the primary drive, plus another one for the 2 counter-balance weights.
probably why Geeto isn't touching this thread with a 10 foot chain
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I agree.
Hey Brads Cafe.......ever considered a Savage 650? With RYCA doo daaads?
I believe it has the longer stroke of the older generation DR650s......which means nice torque
Belt drive pulleys are larger than chain sprockets - mainly because you can't have as sharp a curve on a belt (with the front sprocket) than you can with a chain.
Plus they are wider than a chain.
Hence they look big and goofy.
From what I understand it's pretty easy to convert to chain drive on the old KZ440's as the chain drive variants of the bike were pretty much the same.
If it was me, I'd go for a chain over a belt. Regardless of looks, chains have come a long way in the past 20 years or so and last a lot longer than they used to. And they are still pretty cheap.
Plus they are wider than a chain.
Hence they look big and goofy.
From what I understand it's pretty easy to convert to chain drive on the old KZ440's as the chain drive variants of the bike were pretty much the same.
If it was me, I'd go for a chain over a belt. Regardless of looks, chains have come a long way in the past 20 years or so and last a lot longer than they used to. And they are still pretty cheap.
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A street tracker with a belt drive would be cool and different. I've enjoyed all of my kz400s and 440s.
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Function over aesthetics every time. As long as you don't take the bike off road, a belt is fine. If you think you even MIGHT take it off road, go with a chain, better that than to be out in the middle of BFE with a trashed belt from some rock jumping up in there
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I have a friend with a Yamaha Stratoliner, all he did was go down a dirt road and a rock got into the belt drive and chewed the belt up good. But then he is the first person I have actually known that had this happen, but I have HEARD of many people having this issue.
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