Chain help wanted

[donkason]

ah ok. I think I get everything, except the last bit about the axle nut and deflection since I can't see what your referring to and I'm not familiar with what all the parts are called, I don't know what's what just from reading this.

The other thing I'm ignorant about is the purpose for certain amount of slack in the chain, like the guy in the vid said some people may want a little more, some a little less. How can you tell when your riding if it's snug or loose, does it change how your bike handles on the road?

By deflection I mean slack in the chain up and down. I use a ruler and press it against the bottom of the swingarm and measure how much the chain moves up and down, like he did in the video. I always go on the looser side.

The axle nut is the big nut on the back of the swingarm. When you loosen that it allows the axle to move back and forth and tighten or loosen the chain.

Don't worry about preference on slack now. It doesn't have any real effect on the bike you will need to worry about as long as it's within spec. If it is too loose it will have some "chain slap" when you apply the throttle as the acceleration takes up the excess slack. This makes initial application of the throttle jerky. If it is too tight it can prematurely wear out your counter shaft, the little bar that sticks out of your motor that the front sprocket sits on.