manual camchain tensioner fitment guide

[nick crisp]

So, asked my mechanic for his take on the subject. We spoke about road bikes, I didn't ask him about race bikes, as it doesn't apply to what we want to know. He thinks that generally speaking there is no need to swap to a manual tensioner. He said there is no reason why you shouldn't fit a manual if you want to, as long as you adjust it when necessary. He knows of no problems or failures with manual tensioners generally. He said it is very rare for most bikes to have auto tensioner failures, but it can happen - you're likely just unlucky if it does. He said it is highly likely to end up being catastrophic if one does fail. He said certain Hondas are the most likely candidates for failure, usually certain models of CBR600. He said if you are riding along and your cam chain starts to get noisy, stop the bike and DO NOT restart it until the problem is fixed, as it is then usually on the restarting that the chain will jump a sprocket. He has seen examples of this with customers he has had.