my 1992 250 is making strange noises

[bilbowood]

I just bought a 1992 Suzuki bandit. Bike in general the bike seemed to be in good condition, but I bought it with a known problem. When reved in neutral the bike sound fine, goes up and down with no I'll noise. But when the bike is ridden there is an occasional noise from the bike, especially when engine braking is applied. It doesn't affect the performace and the bike goes well. Previous owner believed it was a bearing in the clutch. I took it to a local shop where the owner agreed the engine sounded fine. He took the bike tyre off and discovered the rear bearings were rusted and he believed that to be the problem so I gave him the go ahead to change them. Problem is it didn't fix the problem.

OK, So i have just been to the bike shop (initially with the intention of taking it home) and had a good chat with the owner. He had my bike up on a stand and had the chain and smaller sprocket at the engine end(sorry for sounding clueless) off. He started the bike up and went through all the gears whilst giving it a good rev. There was no noise. Both sprockets have good teeth. I asked about the cam timing chain and he said it aint that because the noise is completely different. He said the engine sounds a little harsh at idle and when revved, but nothing out of the ordinary for a 16 year old bike. He showed me the replaced rear bearing and it was rusty and made a noise, but he said after replacing them, the noise was still there.

Next he put the chain back on and on the stand he turned it over. Now for me i was watching closely, but i can't tell you what a healthy chain turns like. Some of the links seemed to be a little rigid and some of the teeth didnt slip into the gaps, but i am guessing thats because the sprocket was on on loosely (from a complete novice i would expect the larger sprocket to be damaged if they didnt sit properly). He mentioned the clutch bearing, but he also mentioned could be a noise from the engine itself. But the noise as i said before is unrelated to the revving of the engine.

He thinks it could be the chain, but he is going to call a suzuki specialist tomorrow. He also said if the noise occurred in neutral he would know the problem straight away. Up till now it has only cost me 10,000 yen for the new bearings. I also think he has done everything right and is simply eliminating one possibility after another and admits he is not sure (hence calling the specialist).

Finally he said the rear suspension has long since seen its best days, but it would cost 60,000 yen to replace and simply worth putting up with.

So my questions are: Any idea of the problem?; if he comes back with no answer from the dealer and suggests changing the chain at 12,000-15,000 yen would you do it? If no and walk away what do you recommend?

Cheers

[bandit250]

Is the noise a kind of whine?

[bilbowood]

It's difficult to describe but it's a kind of whiney grating noise

[pmackie]

Well...if the rear wheel bearings were rusted, you needed to change them anyway, as they would not have lasted long.

From your description, it sounds like your chain and sprockets could be worn as well. Ask the shop for their opinion if you can't measure for yourself.  Just like tires and brakes, the chain and sprockets need to be changed once they are worn and can cause funny noises.

I'd also be suspicious about the state of the front wheel bearings, since the rears were in bad shape.

[Red01]

I'd also be suspicious about the state of the front wheel bearings, since the rears were in bad shape.

As well as the steering head and swingarm bearings - though neither of these is very likely a source of your noise, it sounds like this bike may have spent a lot of time in the weather or otherwise neglected.

[bilbowood]

It was the chain, sorted.