The Hodaka Club Forum

Ok I need some advice/help. I am getting to the point that i need to pull the engine off the frame, and I am a bit lost. I need to get the chain off the front sprocket, but I am not sure how to do that exactly. I have watched some videos(none for an RT). I really would like to avoid using a chain breaker. I saw one video where the sprocket was removed and the chain was pulled from the engine that way. That would bee my preferred method but I have no clue how to do that exactly. Any pointers?

Greetings

There should be a master link in the chain. It's the one that has an extra piece on the side. Just remove the clip and the link should slide out making it easy to remove the chain. I usually use a flat bladed screwdriver to push/tap on the open end of the clip to pop it off. It's also a good idea to use a new master link when putting it back together. If you are planning to install a new chain, a new master link will be included.

Hope that helps

Tom

To remove the chain from the front sprocket if there is no master link in the chain (check for one) you will have to remove the shifter side case. Next loosen the rear axle and chain adjusters. Bump the rear wheel forward and you probably will have slack to get the chain over the front sprocket. If not you will have enough slack to derail the rear. That should give you enough slack to get it off the front. There will be a control rod coming from the center of the sprocket which you can just push in while rotating the sprocket. Good luck!

Max

I see that Tom has you on the right path, It should have a master link.

Thanks guys.

You may have all the information you need, but just in case:

1. Click on the "Return to Strictly Hodaka" menu choice above . . . then click on "Shop by Schematic" . . . pick a model and click on it . . . find the parts illutstration page with the chain on it . . . and you'll be able to find a master link in the diagram.
2. Now that you have some idea of what a master link looks like
3. Do a Google search for "motorcycle master link" - lots of information will be presented to choose from. You ought to be able to find something showing removing a master link (and chain).

the odds are 99 to 1 (more like 100 to 0) that your chain has a master link. Life will be easier when you find it.

Ed

I'm a little bored this morning so I shot a couple of shots to show my method of removing the master link clip and reinstalling it. Tom mentioned a flat blade screwdriver which also works well but this is the way I always did it. There's more than one way to skin a cat.

Max

Wow thanks again guys, The chain is caked in grease and dirt, hopefully I can find the master link.

Hey, is this a cat skinning party? Cool!

Another method would be to just remove the front sprocket. Bend up the tabs on the lock washer, use an impact air gun to remove the nut (so yo don't have to hold the sprocket). Creating chain slack by sliding the rear wheel forward will help, but I bet you could do it without even loosening the rear wheel. Disclaimer: I've never tried to get a chain off by removing the front sprocket.

If the chain is that gunky, you can find a replacement cheeeeeep ($12 or so?) - and if that's the case, just break it off - it's faster and easier than all of the above.

Laurie

Hey Laurie, Eweleen and Max have missed you on the Forum (and your adventures). Good to hear from you--maybe we just needed a cat skinning to make it happen!

Us

Laurie where have you been, the fan club has been missing you!========Clarence

Not sure what a cat skinning is. But if it is ripping the bike down to bare metal and rebuilding it from the ground up...then yeah. This bike is just coated in grease. Good thing bad thing...there is very little rust, but degreasing is going to take a bit.

What she is saying is there is more than one way to skin a cat.....

Actually, if you run the rear axle as far forward as it will go, you can probably just lift the chain off either sprocket. Just another way to...wait for it...skin a cat.

Ah ok...I've never heard it put that way. I did manage to find the master link, the chain is now sitting in a degreaser bath...as is most of the bike...it's like it was half dipped in cosmoline.

The last stages of abuse when previous owners ride a motorcycle to its death is to never clean anything. Things that leak are never fixed and lubricants are never added unless something has seized or quit working. The last three restorations I've done fit into that type. You will probably find that the "stuff" has turned into a product that is chemical resistant and has the characteristics of concrete. It is a strange bond of dirt and/or mud, lubricants, tar and other mysterious things such as grass, bugs and even battery products. I think everybody who has attempted a vintage restoration has encountered this substance. It seems the only way to remove it is scraping, grinding and blasting. A bench grinder with a coarse wire brush works well.

I know I seem to be raving on, but I'm just trying to get you prepared. I find it useful to attack a few parts at a time, cleaning/polishing and painting to a final product. That way you can see progress, otherwise it can seem overwhelming.

I'm cheering from the sidelines!

Max

During a couple of old tractor restos I found that a spray bottle with some kerosene in it and keep the grungy areas real wet seamed to work the best for those really dirty areas , softens the crud up makes it easier to scrap off

Or diesel fuel.

Right on kerosene will also work on old oils that seem baked on.-----------Clarence

Some of that crud is solvent and chemical resistant. I have soaked smaller parts in lacquer thinner or mineral spirits for weeks in closed containers with no appreciable results. All of the things mentioned certainly help but there just doesn't seem to be any magic solution that removes this stuff. In the end it seems the tools of the trade are wire brushes, scrapers, knives and an ice pick followed by all of the mentioned cleaners and solvents. Fun huh?

Max

So far I have been having good luck with simple green and a brush. It is cutting through the grease really well, and my son can help.

Take a load of garden zuchini down and trade it for sand blasting. ------Clarence

In our small town we always lock our vehicles when running an errand, if you don't your car will be full of zucchini when you return.

Max

OK-- that's the only zucchini joke I have.

Is the zucchini thing a metaphor, or are we being literal this time...you guys confuse me sometimes...

But I do have another question, what is the best way to handle refinishing the fenders? one is plastic and faded and one is metal and chipped, how hard is it to match the color of the two?

Zucchini is a bumper crop of the home gardner and one vine can produce pounds per day. They are always trying to give you some so we hide during zucchini season. One can only eat so many zucchinis. (It's a seasonal joke). Literal I guess!

On the fender question, I've had some good results with Krylon Fusion paint for plastic but colors are limited. Maybe you can wetsand and polish the plastic parts and Paul probably has some matching paint for the metal.

Max

Ah ok here it is chicken eggs. Don't get me wrong I love eggs...but what can you do with 5 dozen, really big omelets?