KTM 690 & Honda CRF 300 Rally Builds

If you ride a small adventure bike hard on dirt, the chain and sprockets are the first things to wear out. The chain on this well-travelled Honda CRF300L Rally had stretched and the sprocket teeth were starting to hook, so it was booked in for a full chain-and-sprocket kit at a roadside workshop in Thailand — and a chance to shorten the gearing a touch for slow, technical off-road riding. Here is how the job went, step by step. What you need A new chain — we fitted a D.I.D 520VX3 X-ring Matching front and rear sprockets (here a 13-tooth front and 45-tooth rear, down/up from 14/42) A chain breaker and riveting tool, plus an angle grinder or chain cutter Chain lube, sockets, a torque wrench, gloves and a paddock stand Rolling in With the bike up on its side stand and the rear wheel free to spin, the first job is simply to size up what you are dealing with. The patient arrives — a well-travelled Honda CRF300L Rally is wheeled into a roadside workshop in Thailand. Up on the s...

Pulled the air filter on the Honda CRF 300L Rally to see how it was holding up after a stretch of dusty Thai backroads. Spoiler: it needed it. Bike up on the side stand, tools out. Honda CRF 300L Rally — the workhorse. 1/4" ratchet with a Phillips bit. That's basically all you need. Side panel screws come out first. Panel off. The airbox cover is sitting right there behind it. A few more screws around the airbox cover. Cover lifted away. Old filter element exposed. And there's the culprit. Yellow-brown, packed with Thai backroad dust. Definitely overdue. Empty airbox. Quick wipe with a clean rag while it's open — no point putting a fresh filter into a dusty housing. New filter, clean side. Wire mesh on top, pleated element underneath. Side-on view before it goes in. Pleats are crisp, no gaps. Drop it in. Pleats facing up, gasket lined up with the airbox lip. Seated. Push it gently — it should sit flush, not proud. Cover back on, both clips snapped home. Don't forge...