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[nigezero]

So, going to swap my front sprocket soon.

Amy pointers or videos anyone can point me too? Nothing in the Unofficial manual that I could see.

I'm assuming/ recalling that removing the main sprocket bolt will be the hardest bit.

How can I prevent the motor spinning while I undo? Is it LH thread ?

All advice welcome

[Electric Terry]

So I've done this many times, and even if you have all the tools required, it can be a difficult task.  Can I ask what you are changing the sprocket for?

On the drive belt side, the upper rear 5mm bolt takes EXTREME care to remove.  It is tapered to locate the motor.  I will bet money that even me saying this, that there is a chance you end up stripping the head and have to drill it out.  Make sure you have a machine shop close by just in case.

The other 7 bolts, 3 on the sprocket side and 4 on the rear brake side are the only thing simple and straight forward.  You will need a special 3" or longer 6mm allen head socket for sticking in the hole through the frame at the front of the motor.  Remove the rear brake pedal and assembly to get the heel guard out of the way of the top right rear motor bolt.  Be careful not to strip these bolts either.  They have locktite, use a torch.  And make sure your local hardware store has these replacement bolts handy in case you have to drill them out.   The rear brake pedal needs to move anyway to get the right swingarm bolt out.

Also the sprocket bolt itself, as well as removing and installing the new sprocket on the shaft can be very difficult.  I have done these things and done them wrong, and even working with some of the best out there have had trouble.  Locktite has been used on everything and you will need a torch to remove them.  Even so, you will need a strap wrench with an old belt as the strap to hold the sprocket and a high power impact wrench. 

Even with all that right, you have a chance of stripping or breaking the bolt.  The sprocket is pressed pretty tight.  Be very careful not to permanently damage the motor bearings by prying between the motor itself and the sprocket to try to remove it, and also by tapping with a hammer to try to fit the new one on.  You will be tempted to do both, but you need to find another way.  Hopefully you have a gear puller.

Basically, if you are doing this to try to get more acceleration by moving from a 28 tooth to a 25 tooth I would recommend trading in the DS on a 2015+ SR or 2016 DSR if you need the off road capabilities.  You will get much much more acceleration and not hurt your top end performance.

There are other things to watch for.  Mark your phase leads and pay special attention to the routing.  Don't overtighten the motor jacknuts and bolts until you have the swingarm back in place as it can pull the frame together slightly making it impossible to get the swingarm in place.  Make sure you unplug the 8 way motor encoder harness and it doesn't get yanked and pull a wire.  The top shock mounting bolt is a 15 and 17 mm and can be done with ratchet wrenches 1/32 of a turn at a time, or without ratchet wrenches if you are known to have extreme patience.  It can take a while.  The 2014 is a little easier and I think is dual 17 mm bolt and nut.  The swingarm bolts are 10mm allen head and can be extremely hard to relocate even when working with someone else, a rubber hammer and a flashlight.  Those who have replaced their own belt before can vouch for this.

Again, I doubt too many on this forum have done this, and those who did i'll bet agree with me that it makes more sense after they did it and perhaps had their bike out of commission to work through the things that didn't go right, and would agree to just upgrade to the SR or DSR first vs trying to change the front sprocket.

Also the 25 tooth sprocket will break belts easier as less teeth are engaged than the 28 tooth, which can make it more likely to sheer teeth in the event of a wheelspin, and it bends the belt at a sharper radius which can possibly fatigue the carbon strands more.  The SR actually uses a 30 tooth front sprocket which is even nicer to the belt than the 28 tooth.

I don't want to discourage you from doing this, just want you to think twice about it, and know what you're getting into.  I would seriously recommend the SR or DSR upgrade first.  If you still choose to do the sprocket change, please post how it goes along the way for others to read.  All I can say is "I told you so!"

[Fred]

That's some very detailed guidance. It's that sort of stuff that makes this forum invaluable.

[BrianTRice@gmail.com]

This is the sort of thing that builds the manual; I've queued it for editing later, thanks!

[KrazyEd]

The day I Purchased my 2012 XU I ordered a 28 tooth sprocket. Never got around to putting it on.
When I got my 2013 FX I ordered a 30 tooth. I removed the motor and took it to a local electric motor
shop. 15 minutes later, I was on my way with new sprocket installed. As far as I am concerned, a total
of an hour driving to and from the shop, then, waiting while they swapped sprockets ( called first to verify that they could do it as I waited ).
was definitely worth the extra riding time. Left the 30 on for about a week, then swapped out for the 28.

[Electric Terry]

The day I Purchased my 2012 XU I ordered a 28 tooth sprocket. Never got around to putting it on.
When I got my 2013 FX I ordered a 30 tooth. I removed the motor and took it to a local electric motor
shop. 15 minutes later, I was on my way with new sprocket installed. As far as I am concerned, a total
of an hour driving to and from the shop, then, waiting while they swapped sprockets ( called first to verify that they could do it as I waited ).
was definitely worth the extra riding time. Left the 30 on for about a week, then swapped out for the 28.

Good idea, if you take the motor out, let a local motor shop do the sprocket removal/install so the bearings aren't damaged and the sprocket doesn't come loose over time and destroy the shaft.  They should have all the tools and knowledge how to do this without causing damage to the motor in any way.

[Lecram]

This is how I blocked the sprocket. That worked great

[nigezero]

So I've done this many times, and even if you have all the tools required, it can be a difficult task.  Can I ask what you are changing the sprocket for?

On the drive belt side, the upper rear 5mm bolt takes EXTREME care to remove.  It is tapered to locate the motor.  I will bet money that even me saying this, that there is a chance you end up stripping the head and have to drill it out.  Make sure you have a machine shop close by just in case.

The other 7 bolts, 3 on the sprocket side and 4 on the rear brake side are the only thing simple and straight forward.  You will need a special 3" or longer 6mm allen head socket for sticking in the hole through the frame at the front of the motor.  Remove the rear brake pedal and assembly to get the heel guard out of the way of the top right rear motor bolt.  Be careful not to strip these bolts either.  They have locktite, use a torch.  And make sure your local hardware store has these replacement bolts handy in case you have to drill them out.   The rear brake pedal needs to move anyway to get the right swingarm bolt out.

Also the sprocket bolt itself, as well as removing and installing the new sprocket on the shaft can be very difficult.  I have done these things and done them wrong, and even working with some of the best out there have had trouble.  Locktite has been used on everything and you will need a torch to remove them.  Even so, you will need a strap wrench with an old belt as the strap to hold the sprocket and a high power impact wrench. 

Even with all that right, you have a chance of stripping or breaking the bolt.  The sprocket is pressed pretty tight.  Be very careful not to permanently damage the motor bearings by prying between the motor itself and the sprocket to try to remove it, and also by tapping with a hammer to try to fit the new one on.  You will be tempted to do both, but you need to find another way.  Hopefully you have a gear puller.

Basically, if you are doing this to try to get more acceleration by moving from a 28 tooth to a 25 tooth I would recommend trading in the DS on a 2015+ SR or 2016 DSR if you need the off road capabilities.  You will get much much more acceleration and not hurt your top end performance.

There are other things to watch for.  Mark your phase leads and pay special attention to the routing.  Don't overtighten the motor jacknuts and bolts until you have the swingarm back in place as it can pull the frame together slightly making it impossible to get the swingarm in place.  Make sure you unplug the 8 way motor encoder harness and it doesn't get yanked and pull a wire.  The top shock mounting bolt is a 15 and 17 mm and can be done with ratchet wrenches 1/32 of a turn at a time, or without ratchet wrenches if you are known to have extreme patience.  It can take a while.  The 2014 is a little easier and I think is dual 17 mm bolt and nut.  The swingarm bolts are 10mm allen head and can be extremely hard to relocate even when working with someone else, a rubber hammer and a flashlight.  Those who have replaced their own belt before can vouch for this.

Again, I doubt too many on this forum have done this, and those who did i'll bet agree with me that it makes more sense after they did it and perhaps had their bike out of commission to work through the things that didn't go right, and would agree to just upgrade to the SR or DSR first vs trying to change the front sprocket.

Also the 25 tooth sprocket will break belts easier as less teeth are engaged than the 28 tooth, which can make it more likely to sheer teeth in the event of a wheelspin, and it bends the belt at a sharper radius which can possibly fatigue the carbon strands more.  The SR actually uses a 30 tooth front sprocket which is even nicer to the belt than the 28 tooth.

I don't want to discourage you from doing this, just want you to think twice about it, and know what you're getting into.  I would seriously recommend the SR or DSR upgrade first.  If you still choose to do the sprocket change, please post how it goes along the way for others to read.  All I can say is "I told you so!"

Wow, thanks Terry. My eyes are wide open

I think I can manage the motor removal and wiring no probs but agree the sprocket bolt will be the challenge. I'm a former motorcycle mechanic so had my fair share of shit jobs like this before.

Im very happy with the 2014 and not ready to upgrade yet, but would like better pick up and don't mind restricting the top end to 135kmh for city riding and occasional weekend rides. Especially since the speed limit is 110kmh and I only have one point left!

The belt life is a concern though - I'd hoped for 50k off the original but if 20k is the norm then maybe I'll get 10k with the smaller sprocket, or a year ? That's worth it for SR like acceleration I reckon ?!

[Electric Terry]

Ok well if you have been a motorcycle mechanic before you will be fine I think because you are used to solving problems and knowing how to struggle with fasteners.  LeCram's idea above seems like it would work quite well to hold the sprocket.

The 25 tooth gear change will make it accelerate quicker but it won't quite be like the SR

the S has 68 lb ft of torque max, by gearing it 25 vs 28 it should give you a max of 68*28/25= 76 lb ft max
The SR has 106 so you are still quite far away from having the twisting power of the SR but 76 is better than 68.  But going up by 8 ft lbs is only 20% of the way closer still have another 30 lb ft to go.

If you are the type that likes faster, trading in the 2014 on a end of year 2016 deal on an SR I still think is the best way to go.  plus you will get 13.0 kWh vs 11.4 so you would get more range too.  Plus I've said over and over again on this forum, I want everyone to have a 2015 or newer as soon as they can because of the suspension, wheels (better bearings), brakes and part of that being the ABS which has definitely helped me a few times in sandy and wet roads going down hill in the twisties.  I want everyone with a 2014 or older to at least get a 2015 but the 2016 has more battery and a few refinements.  Basically it comes down to cost.  If you can afford it, go for the 2016.  But at least upgrade to the 2015 SR first before spending time and money on the 2014 S is what I would do.

Also If you don't need the top speed and want to spend the time still you could swap to a 28/132 gear from a 30/130 to make a 2015 or 2016 SR accelerate even quicker!!  Yes that's the way to go for sure!!! 

[nigezero]

Ok well if you have been a motorcycle mechanic before you will be fine I think because you are used to solving problems and knowing how to struggle with fasteners.  LeCram's idea above seems like it would work quite well to hold the sprocket.

The 25 tooth gear change will make it accelerate quicker but it won't quite be like the SR

the S has 68 lb ft of torque max, by gearing it 25 vs 28 it should give you a max of 68*28/25= 76 lb ft max
The SR has 106 so you are still quite far away from having the twisting power of the SR but 76 is better than 68.  But going up by 8 ft lbs is only 20% of the way closer still have another 30 lb ft to go.

If you are the type that likes faster, trading in the 2014 on a end of year 2016 deal on an SR I still think is the best way to go.  plus you will get 13.0 kWh vs 11.4 so you would get more range too.  Plus I've said over and over again on this forum, I want everyone to have a 2015 or newer as soon as they can because of the suspension, wheels (better bearings), brakes and part of that being the ABS which has definitely helped me a few times in sandy and wet roads going down hill in the twisties.  I want everyone with a 2014 or older to at least get a 2015 but the 2016 has more battery and a few refinements.  Basically it comes down to cost.  If you can afford it, go for the 2016.  But at least upgrade to the 2015 SR first before spending time and money on the 2014 S is what I would do.

Also If you don't need the top speed and want to spend the time still you could swap to a 28/132 gear from a 30/130 to make a 2015 or 2016 SR accelerate even quicker!!  Yes that's the way to go for sure!!! 

Great advice there as always thanks Terry. Trust me if I could upgrade I would but meantime 20% increase in torque for $100? Bargain !

[togo]

See also:



For motor sprocket removal without removing the motor.