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Originally Posted by footer
i know you mentioned replacing some lights, the spark plug, and now chain?
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My taillight and license plate light bulbs seem to have issues and are constantly going out--the filament gets broken. I can narrow it down to one part of my commute. I work at a state prison; once I get to the frontage road leading to my work, a 1/3 mile stretch of road, it is a poorly maintained, bumpy road. Once I enter the prison complex, I have a mile or so from the front gate to the unit I work--all bumpy. I have to repeat this going home. I think the rear light assembly does not isolate the bumps, something I might be able to 'fix' with the license plate holder/assembly at least by using rubber washers to hold it on. Still not sure on the taillight assembly, however.
Spark plug stock should be fine. However, at least with my old bike, I would have randomly fouled plugs which made the bike seem like it had run out of gas once they were too fouled. So far, on the new bike (and I have NOT touched the carb), the plug is very clean. I simply changed the stock plug to an NGK since they are cheap and psychologically, I figure, are 'better' than the stock plug.
Chain--this is an area where I have changed my advice to you--don't touch the stock sprocket! Especially based on what you said about your riding. And how you probably want to upgrade bikes down the line; I commute on mine and have to maintain 55 to 60 mph for about 6 to 8 miles straight depending on route I take. I did ride the first two weeks or so with the stock sprocket, but felt I could no longer stand the vibrations at that speed, just like my old bike.
A little background, then, about my '09 bike--I found a place that made custom sprockets, Rebel Gears. I had them make a 40 tooth rear sprocket since I figured the aftermarket 48 tooth sprocket which was/is commercially available was not going to make too much difference, so went all out with the 40 tooth.
The problem with the sprocket--it was kind of narrow, and made of lightweight alloy. It ended up chewing through a few chains. It was made for racing, not commuting; it wasn't the sprockets fault. This time, I did my 'homework' and tracked down a 'proper' replacement sprocket (one commercially available vs. custom made) and it was slightly wider and made of steel. It has shown an improvement over the stock 56 on the few mile sections of my commute where I am running at high speeds.
You should not play with sprockets at this point--keep the stock one. Later on, maybe you want to do some minor touring, then worry about it; for now, the stock one will get you around town and on the short sections of 55 mph highway.
Hope that helps. Your first concern is to get the bike assembled correctly, and then started, and then ride it to break it in. Then, much later, worry about plugs, chains and sprockets...