A centerstand is a good idea and makes lubing easier, but you're going to want to check the chain slack with the bike on the sidestand. The chain gets tighter as the suspension is loaded and the procedure from the manual indicates that the slack should be checked with the bike on the sidestand. Last month my buddy adjusted his Nighthawk's chain with the bike on the centerstand, he commented that his chain sounded noisier. The bike was on the sidestand when I checked it and the chain tension was tighter than a banjo string.
For proper slack, just move the chain up and down at the midpoint between the sprockets. Honda says 3/4" to 1 1/4" of play is good. I would highly recommend the looser end of the spec. Tight chains tend to wear much faster. Every tiime you go over a bump, the suspension compresses and the chain tightens up. If you're already at 3/4" standing still, that's going to put a lot of stress on the chain. My last chain I kept at the loose end of the spec and only had to adjust it 3 times in 24K miles. Now for the possible bad news. My last chain still had plenty of life left on the wear indicator when I had to replace it. The goofball that installed my last tire didn't put the wheel back on straight and the cocked angle ended up damaging some of the O-rings after a few thousand miles. Even after I figured it out and readjusted it, it was too late. The symptom was a lot like yours. At first I had a mild clunking that I only felt when taking off from a stop. Eventually it got worse and began doing it at highway speed. No amount of lubing or adjustment would make it go away, so I had to spring for a new chain and sprockets. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Nighthawk Motorcycle Lovers!" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/nighthawk_lovers?hl=en.
