• Husqvarna Motorcycles Made In Sweden - About 1988 and older

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    As you all know, Coffee (Dean) passed away a couple of years ago. I am Dean's ex-wife's husband and happen to have spent my career in tech. Over the years, I occasionally helped Dean with various tech issues.

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WR430 chain tensioner

huskymack

huskymack

Husqvarna
AA Class
I have a 81 WR 430 which I have just about got mobile again after sitting for 17 plus years. The question is weather it is necessary to have the chain tensioner fitted. This bike has not had the chain tensioner since I have owned it and the bike is fitted with a 'o' ring chain.
 
There is a reason that the Husky crank cases have chain guard lugs missing - and this is probably it!

The Swedes put them on there for a good reason!

Andy.
 
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Husky put those tensioners on because their guide was/is a piece of junk.The shorter travel WRs dont need the tensioner, and the CR/XC could go without the tensioner with a modern type guide that actually does something other than hang off the bottom of the swing arm.
 
SO well you may say but all the current fast boys are going back to the old husky style guides as they are easily straightened after a descent whack. The current style are great untill you bend it then you are in an island paradise...phuket!!! as you cant easily fix a fancy alloy and teflon plate out bush... Even with a WR, the sprocket to swing arm pivot distance and geometry is so large that the chain at the mid travel point is tight and at either end too loose... so as seen above, a heap of slack chain can concievably double onto your front sprocket and disatair:eek: (that french for that island paradise..). id run the tensioner.
 
Gas Gas also used this style of guide on their enduro bikes until quite recently. The word is they only replaced it because it looks like a part from the 80's - nothing wrong with that though as they last a long time and are reliable****************************************

Andy.
 
The reason for the tensioner was really the poor quality non-Oring chains, in ISDT competition they could not afford to stop and adust the chain. The combination of poor guide and old style chains that required constant adjustment are the reason for the tensioner, it is unnecessary with a good chain, and totally redundant with a good guide. I've got tens of thousands of miles on Huskys with no tensioner, and no chain malfunctions. The tensioner surely wont hurt anything either, if someone wants to keep the tensioner thats fine, but you dont need it.
 
The chain makes sense as non "o" rings in a muddy event can stretch waaayyy past the full adjustment:eek:
 
Dont get me wrong, there is absolutely no harm in keeping the tensioner, if you have one and its in good condition there is nothing wrong with keeping it. They require a lot of maintenance though and regularly fall apart. When one of mine falls apart, I take it off and dont put one back on.
 
You guys have confirmed what I had already thought. The tensioner was fitted in the days before 'o' ring chains ( yes I can dimly remember those times) when a chain would stretch like an elastic band and require a number of adjustments per day. The tensioner would then take up this slack till time permitted to make the required adjustment. I think I will run without the tensioner and by the sounds of your advice I should not have any trouble.Thanks guys for your imput, much appreciated.
 
As correctly pointed out, the Husky countershaft is a bit farther forward of the swing arm pivot than some other bikes of the day, so you do have to watch the chain slack a little more closely, but once a good O-ring takes a "set" you should not have to adjust it much.

Here is a pic of my '82 430WR with no tensioner.

84C-4-19DD0825_zps40d049e9.jpg


The chain will be at its tightest when the suspension is partially collapsed, when the rear axle, swing arm pivot, and the countershaft are in a line like in this picture. When the suspension is fully extended, or when it is fully bottomed, that is when you will have chain slack. What I do is after a new chain gets broken in and takes a "set" I actually strap the bike down and pull the rear end down with ratchet straps so the axle/swing arm pivot/countershaft are in line and set the chain adjustment there. You want to have as little slack as possible, without it being too tight, if you set the chain adjustment when its at its tightest point, you will get minimum slack extended/collapsed.
 
I use those Gas Gas guides together with top quality heavy duty O/X ring chains adjusted for perfect tension when swingrarm is in level position. No rollers, tensioners, they have a habit of failing in the worst conditions and places.
 
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