Gearing for DRZ400s

gearing

I've read this article:
http://www.4strokes.com/tech/suzuki/drz400su.asp

which talks about dropping the gearing:


"The DRZ400S comes with a 15 tooth sprocket in the front, and a 44 tooth in the rear. The DRZ400E comes with a 14 in the front, 47 in the rear. The front sprocket on the S has a rubber bushing around it, this is to keep noise down, and does not reduce vibration to the transmission. Feel free to put on different front sprockets, you do not need the rubber bushing. I spend most of my time off road so I use the 14/47 combo. I can still do 70mph on the road no problem. This cheap mod will make a big difference."


Can anyone tell us exactly what we should expect out of the low end on the bike once we make this change?

Made the switch

I went out and spent $17 on a new front sprocket with 14 teeth today and installed it - so I am running the stock 44 teeth on the back and 14 on the front. I would have to say that it was a move worth making, especially for it being so cheap. You don't need to go out and buy a new chain or anything, if your bike is new anyway. The bike is much more responsive and doesn't feel like it will stall in low gears. I was still able to get it up over 70 mph, and there was throttle left to spare. This is how I would have imagined the bike would feel if I had never ridden a stock drz400s.

Anyway, hope this helps you...

Btw, you'll need to get yourself a 30mm socket if you plan to make this change.

Changed again

When I put knobbies on, I figured for $15 (Primary Drive), I'd try 14/48. Even better than 14/44. I paid $32 for both sprockets. Major improvement at minor cost. At about 1/3 throttle, I still go 65 in the top gear.