Any ideas about my bike jerking?

[CDNRatMan]

  LOL asking me Oh great one who taught me....lol....but yes you are correct the stock set up is 17/40 and most people went to 18/38.........
Did you replace the rubber dampeners yet......that will also make a huge difference in your takeoff and respond to the throttle different.

[greenbarn]

I realize this is late to reply on this, but I see it's been idle for a while.

Lucinda, most of the 800 owners, I think, Have changed their gear ratios to 18/38 (I think that's what it is-- how about it Ratman??)
Much better upper-end engine speed, with no loss of torque at low-end.

Hope if you've had your surgery, that everything went well and you are healing up well.

[Lucinda]

I also found this chain kit and have heard of this brand name before.  Would this be the best choice?

http://m.ebay.com/itm/JT-O-Ring-Chain-17-40-Sprocket-Kit-for-Kawasaki-VN800-Drifter-2000-2006-/391510648029?hash=item5b27da64dd%3Ag%3AFrgAAOSwdzVXjazk&_trkparms=pageci%253A5f2c06b2-7663-11e7-b7d4-74dbd1807765%257Cparentrq%253A9bae60c815d0ac8075e2e110fff0d2c2%257Ciid%253A4

[Lucinda]

Ok it looks like this guy's is selling a quantity of 2 at a time and I read your post about installing so I will have to order 2 because I need 4 total?

Sounds confusing,  but you know what I mean right? Lol

[Lucinda]

Awesome! THANK YOU! Going to send this off to Mark. 

[CDNRatMan]

  For the dampers yes that is what you need and they need to be a tight fit I did a write up on changing them

http://www.vulcandrifterriders.com/forum/index.php?topic=45451.msg101949#msg101949

[Lucinda]

Hi guys,
Didn't forget about this, just ran into some health issues. So I am having a salivary tumor removed from my neck on August 10th and I will be out of commission for 3 to 4 weeks! Sick about that....

So my friend Mark who says you guys are AWESOME with your advise is going to replace the chain , check the dampers or replace, (tried looking for that on ebay, will include picture) check all that you guys suggested and fix my bike. He did say I need rear brakes too.

So I just have a couple of questions before I order the chain kit. I only found 2 on ebay.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/00-06-Kawasaki-Vulcan-800-VN800E-Drifter-O-Ring-Chain-and-Sprocket-Kit-Nickel/131574935215?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2000-2006-KAWASAKI-VN800E-VULCAN-DRIFTER-O-RING-CHAIN-SPROCKET-17-40-530-112L/142400661046?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

I know that both will fit , one says nickel? Which would you recommend?

I need rear brakes and I read somewhere on here to get the sintered Type?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1999-2006-Kawasaki-Vulcan-800-VN800E-Drifter-Sintered-HH-Rear-Brake-Pads/182450354342?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

That seems a little to cheap for Brakes?

Then, is this what I need for dampers?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kawasaki-OEM-Part-92160-1697-Rear-Hub-Shock-Damper/262847217424?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

Hope these links work. Lol

Thank you again!

[Tumminelli]

Just my 2 cents. My 800 was doing something like that and it turned out the battery cable had come loose. Tightened it up, ran perfect again.

[Lucinda]

Thank you again for the great advise. I am going to pass this along to my friend and check out all of your suggestions. I will let you guys know the outcome as soon as we find out what the issue is.

Can't thank you enough!

[Tfrank59]

Maybe he should also check the clutch cable adjustment.  If the oil you're using says that it's compatible with wet clutches then that's probably not the issue, especially if you've been using this oil and there wasn't a problem previously

[CDNRatMan]

  You are correct about the chain size. The stock sprocket setup is , 17/40, a lot of the 800 people have changed their sprockets to a 1/38 setup to get rid of the feeling of hunting for that sixth gear. I have done it and it is a huge improvement on the highway riding of the bike.
Your friend is correct about checking the sprockets before replacing the chain, if it is kinked or tight in one spot, then you change it and a good time to check the sprockets for wear also, and if need be to replace them.
If he does have to remove the rear wheel to replace the sprocket at that time have him check the rear dampers for play, there should be no play in the hub. For the cost might be good to replace the dampers.

[Lucinda]

Thank you guys for your advise so far. So glad this place is here! Passing along the info to my friend.

He said he didn't think it was a fuel/carb issue as he couldn't even get it to cough all the way through the power range. (Have no idea what I'm saying or about to say lol)

He said he would like to check out the idea of the "tight spot" in the chain. Explaining it to me he said it's a link that won't flex around the sprockets correctly. He said he needs to take it off to see if it's stiff. He needs to look at the sprockets before we replace the chain as there is really no way to resurrect a stiff chain.

He wanted me to ask you guys what the stock sprocket tooth count is as he doesn't want to change the drive ratio.
I sent him a picture of a bike master chain/sprocket kit and it had numbers 17-39??? I know nothing!!!  I did read on here however that the chain size is 530 and it has 112 links lol.

And about the oil. I have always used the amsoil synthetic for wet clutches and never had issues before. Maybe next oil change I could try the kawasaki oil?
Thank you guys!

[CDNRatMan]

  An here was me thinking that my idea was to far in left field. Never did find out what the PO used in the bike, and I too took the advice of someone here and switched to Amsoil. The bike was really loud on shifting and shifted really hard. Once I switched over to Kawasaki synthetic it made a world of difference. Really glad I listened to the local Mechanic about using Kawasaki oil.
And yes I know people on here use other oils but it seems certain ones work better than others, and not all work for one but for another.

[Troll]

I've been thinking about this. I would make sure the clutch free play is correct. Changing the oil to a synthetic from conventional may cause an improperly adjusted clutch to slip.  Does the synthetic oil he put in meet the JASO spec for wet clutches, or is it just a car oil...VERY IMPORTANT!!!!!

[CDNRatMan]

 I was going to suggest along the same lines, but not knowing what Chemtool gas treatment is I was going to say, Seafoam and 3 glugs in your tank and take it for a run, then see how it rides. What fuel are you using? Jerking sensation might be a tight spot in the chain?

[geewago]

Your friend put the proper air pressure in, then took it for a test ride and wasn't able to notice any problem.  But you still feel like something isn't right.  So I'd suggest that you pour about 3 cans of B12 Chemtool gas treatment in it and then go out and ride it for a 100 miles wide open .  After you get back from that ride give us another report.

[Lucinda]

OK I am going to try to give all, the details I can. Lol I have a 2005 drifter 800.  My bike was running perfect as far as I thought. A bunch of us went for a ride and when we parked one of my friends who is very good with bikes noticed a slight smell of antifreeze. He usually changes my oil so I had already had plans to have that done so he said he would check it out when he changed my oil.

So he changed the oil. I used what you guys suggest. Amsoil 10w40 . He checked the coolant and it was low so fill it up and checked for leaks, didn't find any. .We also lubed the chain with Bel-Ray super clean chain lube. I put a cardboard box under bike each time I put away for the night to check for leaks, all seemed good.

Then road my bike and I thought it's either a really windy day or something is wrong. I was feeling a Jerking and bouncy feeling through every shift and even when held at a steady speed 60-65. It felt like it was hesitating. Everything I looked up was bad gas, chain issue. So I took it back to my friend. My tire pressure was so low on both tires that I'm lucky something serious didn't happen! OMG .He drove it and didn't seem to notice what felt and said it wasn't starving for gas so he didn't think it was a gas issue.

So when I left I noticed a huge improvement with him putting air in the tires. I don't really feel it bouncing as much but I know my bike and I just feel that something is just not right because I still feel somewhat of a Jerking sensation while riding. Any ideas? Suggestions? Any info would be appreciated.   I have 2 long days of work coming up so i may not be able to answer right away, so please dont think im ignoring anyone! Lucinda