Ducati Monster Forum

Just wondering the benefits/drawbacks of the 14 tooth sprocket. I imagine lowend is better but how about topend? Any real noticable differences? Thanks for any insight!

You lose a couple MPH off the top of each gear, collected it probably makes a loss of 5-10 off the tippy top.  But even on a 620 it's still quite capable of breaking an US speed limits

Low end will be improved noticably.
 I went up 3 in the rear and down 1 in front, now she comes off the line like a rocket.
Top end is still over 105mph. Plenty fast enough for me.

It's a really cheap mod every Monster should have. 

Wouldn't they come this way from factory if it wasn't for some European noise rating?

This s a cool site that pretty much has all the gearing info you'd want.
http://www.gearingcommander.com/ (http://www.gearingcommander.com/)

yep, did it on my S2R 800, huge improvement off the line, specially with 2 up

I just added the 14t sprocket this past weekend.  I had about 13k miles before that without.  The 14t sprocket makes my bike run in higher rpms in general, it seems -- which makes the lower gears like 1st and 2nd run much smoother.  I noticed less chugging.  My top end was taken away slightly but I spend most of my time between 0-65mph rather than 90-120mph.  That's why the 14t sprocket was a good mod for me.  I haven't noticed much difference in gas mileage yet.

Just installed mine last weekend.  I noticed that pretty much all of the lugging is gone and everything feels much more smooth.  Really makes the thing a lot more fun.

I do notice shifting a bit more, but the shift points seem more natural. 

A whole new bike really.

+1 to what everyone said.

The 14t all but eliminates the lugging at low speed. When I did mine, I went up 2 in the back too. But the 900's were geared pretty tall to begin with.
I used the opportunity for a new chain as well. It makes 6th gear a lot more useable, and I didn't notice any significant top speed loss, but then again I'm not looking for my top speed anyway.

I'll take torque over top-speed any day...The 14T was a no-brainer for me in that regard.....I almost feel like I could go up one in the back but I'm happy for now...  :)

That site is cool - and the best part is I had no idea my 620 would do 205 mph!
140 be damned!  ;:|

On most of my bikes, it does not feel like I lost any top speed at all--I just get up to top speed a lot faster...: )
With a taller geared bike, it takes so long to get up there you run out of safe space to do it in most cases...

I think aerodynamic drag is such a bigger factor in top speed any way.

-M

Jim (the Gearing Guru) used to say that in some situations shorter gearing could slightly increase top speed.  If, for example, a bike couldn't max out in top gear because of wind resistance.  Shorter gearing might help that bike get on top of the power curve in order to eke out a couple more miles-per.

This is not a problem with the 620, as it is proven to top 140mph bone stock.

I'm thinking about doing this mod, but how hard will it be to install with my limited wrenching experience?
Is there a guide anywhere?  I don't mind experimenting, but don't want to screw anything up.

Hardest part is getting the chain tension right after.  Thats it.

I think my M620 went from an indicated 125 MPH top end to an indicated 118 MPH. Not a big deal.
The low end is better.
Riding slow in traffic is better.
Gas mileage went from 50ish MPG to 45 MPG
Steady on cruising on the Interstate puts the motor at about 6200 RPM at 80 MPH, which is a bit buzzy. I try not to do too much highway time on the Monster now.

http://ducatimonsterworldwide.org/index.php?topic=510.0

That's for the S2R800 so the chain tensioning part is probably specific to the single-sided swingarm, but the concepts should be relevant.

 Speaking of which, has anyone seen Randall here yet?

Actually, I believe it depends on the bike. The DS motors have a big single nut that almost absolutely requires an impact wrench (or really big breaker bar).
The other motors have two allen head bolts that are easily removed.

i find that i hardly ever use 6th gear anyway (not too much opportunity for going those speeds these days), so the 14t was a good bargain for me wt:

I find that I don't have a 6th gear, but that's not important.  Sounds like this is the perfect mod to cure my hiccuping at low speeds.

I hardly notice the diff,it's great in the city though.Plus how fast can you go in the twisties  :)

Yeah, Highway riding...  co::

I did 3up in rear on my M900 only downside was the track, ended up between gears at a couple of tracks like VIR, therefore I kept my S2R1000 stock and use it for the track. With the mod to the M900 I find it way more fun in all the twisty stuff I have found in VA, WV, OH, TN, NC, GA.

Is there a definitive thread somewhere that talks about the best way to go for gearing down a monster?  I hear a lot of different methods people use like -1 front, -1+2, -1+3, etc, and it seems like swapping out the chain is sometimes needed, sometimes not.  I tried searching but I can't find the "best" resource that has all that info.

== another plug for a wiki!! == :)

The reason most do a 14T front is they do it early with a new chain and don't wnat to replace the chain, if you did 3up in rear you would need a new chain. I believe most would agree that when you are ready for chain/sprocket replacement, do the rear. There was a thread in another forum that had a link but I cannot find it right now.

Interesting... I am thinking of replacing my chain anyway because the prev owner lived near the ocean and salt got it a little corroded, plus he never rode it so it sat dry for a long time.  And, let's be honest, a gold or black one would look great on my all black M1000S   wt:  is it recommended to do both 14t in front AND 3up in rear, or would just the 3up in rear be best?

Believe the M1000 is same as an M900 gearing wise, going up 3 in the rear for me was perfect, since I don't use it on the track anymore, I wanted 4th-6th gears to be useable in the twistys. With the ecu, airbox, and termis I move the torque curve down to around 4K RPM, but with stock gearing 5th/6th was almost useless on the back roads.

Cost is definitely a major factor. I found it good to go 14t first to see if I liked the feel (I was skeptical).  I have now found that I like it and it only cost me $25 to learn this.  Maybe i'll go back up to 15 and +3 rear when I get a new chain/front sprocket/rear sprocket. 

The real advantage to going with a bigger sprocket in the rear is that there is less of a chance of the chain damaging the swing arm from chain rub, and there is arguably less horsepower loss in the drive train. 

Anything else?

that died with TOB.  co::

I concur with Martin wholeheartedly.  I didn't notice any loss on my S4RS either.  It's just plain more fun to ride in all gears.

For what is worth: this is the best mod- I've made. After I purchased my Honda, the S2R 800 was on its way to the garage queen but upgrading the to a 14T sprocket put the a noticeable kick in the front end which has made the bike a blast again.

Rob

I Europe, at least, it seems that the 15 tooth sprocket helped to get Monsters get through tough emission and noise regulations, presumably lowering the engine speed at given road speeds.
What ever the reason, fitting a 14 tooth to my '02 750ie transformed the bike, particularly around town. Fitting was simply a matter of loosening the chain right back, removing the cover and the two bolts that hold the retaining plate. Reversing the process with the new sprocket. No need to remove a link from the chain. Then check chain tension and wheel alignment. Bingo.

Best mod yet =14T!! I'm running 14t/38 stock rear on a M750. I almost feel like I could go to 40 or 41 in the back and still be good on the freeway.  I often run in 4th awhile and then go "Oh, I still got another gear I can go to and then brings the revs down"!  Anyone else run something like 14/41?

You sure that wasnt kmh, as is set by default? Changed to mph it says 137 mph

I'm also interested in doing the 14t mod. does anyone have a handy instruction? I don't have any tools (yet) so if I have to take into a shop what's a good price? In that note, is it okay to take my duc into a "regular" bike shop (the closest shop to me is a Honda garage) to do quick work like changing out the spocket? or should I always go to an authorizued shop?

Not that many care, but doesn't this affect the speedo and the mileage?  I though I had read that going down 1 in the front sprocket makes the speedo more optimistic, meaning it will say you are traveling at 65mph when in reality you are going 60mph...or something like that.

Also, a smaller sprocket means more revolutions which means an increased in recorded miles? no?

All and all it sounds like a good mod.

The speedometer/odometer readings are based on the back wheel's rotation.  Theoretically the only thing that would throw it off is changing tire/wheel combination and it affecting the radius.  It seems to be somewhat universally accepted that the speedometer inaccuracy increases as the speed gets higher.  I am not sure if anyone has actually calculated the % off they are at different speeds to see if it is just equally bad at all speeds, or if it gets more than proportionally worse at higher speeds. 

(EDIT:  The below is assuming that the innacuracy % is changing with a greater speed.  If it is proportional at all speeds then this doesnt apply.)

I have 2 guesses. 

1)  There is an inherent problem with the accuracy of the speedometer and as speeds increase, the inaccuracy increases proportionally to the speed.
2)  As speed increases, the centrifugal force stretches the tire, thus increasing the circumference, thus as speeds increase the wheel would rotate fewer times than expected (if calculating rotations from a lower speed/smaller circumference)

Anyone have an answer? 

after 10,000 miles with a 14t... this mod is clearly the best performance improvement you can make for the money... hands down.

+1 great for city riding as well. :)

I was thinking of doing this at my 7500 mile service. Is it a bad idea to add a new front sprocket to an existing chain? I thought i read somewhere before that is best to do this with new parts.

Generally speaking, yes- depends on the wear of the chain and rear sprocket.  I did mine at the same time I converted to a 520 pitch chain (and related rear sprocket).  There are full kits out there that make the change le$$ painful to your wallet.

I presume this will throw off the speedo though.  Is there a quick fix on that end?

The answer to that question is 5 posts up.

Oops.  That one looked long, so I skimmed/skipped it.  Dumb me. [roll]

w00t!

Maybe we need steeper hills to roll down to achieve the 205?

My bike is geared too high from the factory.  With the 14th tooth I still can cruise on the highway with the bike barely turning over.

Where can I order a 14T front sprocket online for a S2R 1000? Thanks.

Stock setup on the M800 is 15/42, I switched to 14/42 and love it.  I won't be cruising at 90 mph, but doubtful that would happen anyway.  Looks like you could go up a few teeth in back if you want.  Except... is the M750 a 5-speed?  M800 is a 6-speed trans.

This would be a good mod to start out on with your M800 (BTW, good choice  [thumbsup]).  It's pretty straightforward, and you'll learn how to adjust chain tension in the process - a mandatory DIY skill.  Tool needs are minimal you may be able to borrow what you need, except maybe the rear axle nut socket, but I bought mine at Ace for about $10.  For directions, buy LT Snyder's book available here:  http://www.desmotimes.com/ (http://www.desmotimes.com/) or here:  http://www.ca-cycleworks.com/shop/catalog/index.html (http://www.ca-cycleworks.com/shop/catalog/index.html).  CA Cycleworks also sells the 14-tooth sprockets.  I got the cheaper one and it's worked out fine.  Good luck!

I installed the 14-tooth sprocket at about 7500 miles, and I'm just now replacing the chain at 12,600.  So I don't think it did much harm.  BTW, I didn't replace either sprocket with the new chain - they both look like new.  I must be a wimpy rider  [roll]

14th? Just do it man. That should be THE first mod everyone should do from day one. [thumbsup]

just noticing the other day, at 80mph i was @5300 rpm on the highway. that was sixth gear. just so you have an idea.

the ron [evil]

Thanks for making that reference point!  Which Monster do you have?  [beer]

i have a 2006 s2r eighthundred

i like it ;D

the ron [evil]

my 620 only went 120 stock i'm only 160lbs. it had a lot of rpm left so 14 tooth  I went 125 at 9500 rpm next i went one smaller on the rear to remove a link and shorten the wheelbase i get good second gear wheelies if i bang 2nd at 5000 rpm   

right on par with my 800. 

Hey Guys,

Just wondering if anyone here has done the 14t mod on their 695? Have you guys added anything to the rear sprocket or just kept it the same?

This is looking like a perfect mod for my situation - I ride the monster daily and in shithouse traffic!

THanks,

Ray

Wow. Old thread   [laugh]

I slapped one on my '07 M695. Had to adjust the chain a tiny bit. No change to the rear. Works great -less stumbling at low RPM's and better around town. I don't do highway miles, so can't attest to some of the complaints at high speeds.

It's a cheap mod and easy to revers if you don't like it. Give it a go and see what you think.  [Dolph]

I switched to the 14T early in my M620 ownership and loved it.
Kinda matched the speedo and tach for figuring what the hell gear am I in. Plus as noted the slow in-town stuff was easier.

Fast forward a few years, for a trip last summer featuring a few long slab sessions, at went back to a 15T and honestly
don't hate it. i think the lil' Monster already geared kinda short, and my fueling has always been spot on.

One thing to note - I had added a case saver (engine guard) when installing the 14T. No probs.
The guard interfered with the chain a teensy bit when I went back to the 15T,
which is not good for the chain. Another plus for the 14T. i was able to contour the guard so there's no interference.