Chain letters
You’ll recall that in the workshop I had spent a seemingly never ending time tapping the edges of the primary cover to persuade it off with glancing blows from a nylon hammer.
It finally bent to my will and came away. The main reason it’s so awkward to come off is that it has housed in it some needle roller outrigger bearings for the end of the crankshaft and the clutch-shaft. When removing covers of this nature that always hold some oil unable to escape through the drain plug, I use oil spill mats that stop the bike bench turning into an oily skating rink, plastering my tools in slippery engine blood.
Once removed it is clear that the primary drive chain does need to be replaced. Laverda states that they should be changed regularly, every 15,000 miles. Knowing which chain to use though is something of a nest
