[Captnorm30]

So while oiling my chain today, I noticed the rear sprocket has some play in it, meaning I can tilt it ever so slightly from side to side. The four bolts holding the sprocket in place are good and tight, it seems to be the bit that the bolts are threaded into that is loose. Is that normal or am I in danger of imminent catastrophic failure? Any advice would be appreciated!

This is on a '92 cb250

 

[Captnorm30]

So this is a diagram of my rear wheel assembly.

As it seems to depict in the picture, my sprocket bolts directly onto the wheel itself (the four larger areas are where the bolt studs sit, the sprocket fits over those). As I said, the hardware is tight, It almost seems like the bolt studs are loose in the wheel, if that makes sense. They move with the sprocket.

 

[longdistancerider]

If items 2 and 17 in this fiche 1992 Honda CB250 AC REAR WHEEL (1) | PartsFish.com are in place and 17 is fully inserted into the hub of the wheel then I'd say the play is probably normal. Those 2 parts are what actually holds the sprocket on the wheel, the nuts hold the drive pins that do the actual work.

 

[Captnorm30]

Right, per the diagram and illustrations, everything seems to be in place. i pulled the wheel to check more thoroughly, and it seems the only thing that was movable were the bolt studs that sit in the wheel itself. Perhaps it is normal, it just seemed odd. i would imagine play like that would cause early chain and sprocket wear? I wonder what the advantage would be of that design?

 

[Alan F.]

I'm gonna say it's normal enough. The 4 studs that bolt to your sprocket aren't threaded into the sprocket carrier like some bikes have, these just slide into steel lined rubber bushings, they're just there to transmit torque from the sprocket to the hub. What really keeps the sprocket on the hub is a big washer and a big snap ring. I freaked out a year or two ago (before I knew all this) when I was running my CM400 in gear on the center stand, I could see the sprocket carrier wiggle and wag when I'd rev it up and let it settle down. I later read on the SOHC/4 forums from one of the old timers there that knew mostly everything on two wheels (lots of know how there too) that it was pretty normal, scary if you don't expect it, but normal enough not to worry about as long as the sprocket spins true without wobble or hop when you spin the wheel.


Wow I guess you got your answer while I was typing my reply, good group we have here.

 

[longdistancerider]

Right, per the diagram and illustrations, everything seems to be in place. i pulled the wheel to check more thoroughly, and it seems the only thing that was movable were the bolt studs that sit in the wheel itself. Perhaps it is normal, it just seemed odd. i would imagine play like that would cause early chain and sprocket wear? I wonder what the advantage would be of that design?

The front sprocket is a loose fit also, this allows the chain and sprockets to self align as they rotate to minimize wear. Imagine trying to get a perfect chain alignment when you have a wheel that gets removed and the chain needing adjustment periodically.

 

[Captnorm30]

Oh ok, thats very relieving lol. The sprocket doesn't wiggle on its own, even when spinning. its only when i apply pressure by hand that it moves, even then ever so slightly. I read other posts where a wobbly sprocket is no good, so i was concerned. Just chalk it up to an interesting design on Honda's part. Thanks!

 

[Captnorm30]

Oh ok, that makes sense. Thanks for the info!