Stock Boom Vader Chain Good or Bad?

I bought a Grom Clone motorcycle, a Boom Vader (BD125-10), and started doing upgrades to get it faster and more reliable. We can talk about aftermarket performance upgrades all day, but one thing we should address with these Grom Clones is reliability. We should ask one of those questions: Is the stock Boom Vader chain good or bad?

I discussed about TaoTao TBR7 motorcycle’s suspected stock chain failures here: Time To Upgrade My TBR7’s Stock Chain?

Why Grom-Clone Reliability Over Performance?

I often lean towards doing performance upgrades, but I ran into some problems with another Chonda, my TaoTao TBR7, as I kept pushing the motorcycle faster and faster. My TBR7 motorcycle hates prolonged higher speeds, and my goal was to do so many upgrades to highway speeds.  

When I started riding on the highway, the TBR7 did well, speed-wise. Its lightweight didn’t have me liking being behind big trucks, but the TBR7 could hold her own to get me places on the level ground and mild upgrades.  

However, heat transfer was a problem. When the bike moved, and the air was moving across her engine fins, it was OK, but there was heat build-up.

When I got off the highway and came to a stop, the heat continued, but the cooling stopped. The motorcycle smelled horrible, like overheated oil, and the heat was very noticeable on my legs.  The bike had the classic Air-Cooled Engine Overheating Symptoms.

I was now pushing my TBR7 bike, I later did upgrades to help( wrapped the motorcycle exhaust, added an engine oil cooler, etc.), but I learned I have to balance performance upgrades with reliability upgrades with these Chonda’s.

I feel the Grom Clones are no different. They might clone the Honda Grom motorcycle in design, but they don’t seem to match the materials and craftsmanship.  

Grom Clones Are Not Honda Groms.

Remember this.

Have There Been Grom Clone Stock Chain Accidents?

Yes, take this with a grain of salt. If you look at the photos in Chinese motorcycle forums and FB groups, you would believe every stock Grom Clone chain, including the Boom Vader’s chain, was a ticking time bomb.

I don’t subscribe to this idea.

My Boom Vader’s quality is much better( Boom Vader (Chinese Grom Clone) Review (First Ride) ) out of the box than my TaoTao TBR7’s quality ( TaoTao TBR7 Review & Specs ). However, I did buy the Boom Vader, versus the real Honda Grom, to tinker and do cheap upgrades. 

Changing from the stock chain to an aftermarket chain is tinkering, and surprise, it’s a cheap upgrade. But is it necessary?

Will The Stock Boom Vader Chain Fail?

Fail is a harsh word; it will likely wear out prematurely, in such a rapid fashion that you will not find out till it breaks. This is the impression I get from other Grom Clone owners. Many give verbal advice to change the chain, while others show us what happens when the chain fails.

A chain failure at regular speeds appears to have the ends of the chain whip and flail, destroying the front sprocket cover and gear position indicator and leaving the rider stranded on the side of the road.

My thoughts:

The Stock Chain Will Wear Out, But I Sped It Up.

I can’t speak for others, but I believe the stock chain works well on a stock Boom Vader. These Grom Clones are built to a certain level of performance, and that’s that.  

However, we see they were built to a low bar and have so much money left over buying a Grom Clone instead of a Real Grom; we want to do upgrades.

We all love speed and decorations; we focus on upgrading the carburetor, exhaust, and front sprocket. When asked what to upgrade, these upgrades seem to be the first words spoken by any Grom Clone owner. Just check the YT videos; you’ll see.

However, a chain is only as strong as the weakest link. And these stock chain links were designed for a stock motorcycle. All this is my opinion, but hear me out.

We push and push these motorcycles, understanding we don’t like the stock performance or look. However, do we keep a part of the drive train that often wears out the fastest? The chain.

Not A Grom Clone Motorcycle Bashing Session.

My intention was not to beat on the Boom Vader, Grom Clone, or even bash the stock chain, and I just wanted to address the issues I am creating by doing upgrades to my Boom Vader.

I changed the front sprocket the other day ( Boom Vader Front Sprocket Upgrade ). In hindsight, I should have changed out the stock chain. I am increasing demand for the motorcycle, so why not take the time to change out the motorcycle chain?

I Ordered Another Boom Vader Motorcycle Chain. FAQ: Boom Vader 125cc Chain Size.

It’s cheap, and it’s name brand, and it’s listed as a heavy-duty chain. When riding on the back-country roads and knowing it’s a long walk home, I want a heavy-duty motorcycle chain to get me home.

Author’s Notice: This page contains affiliate links, for which I may earn a commission by their use. Also, as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases.

I ordered the JT Chain (428 Series) Black Steel 132 Link Heavy Duty Non-O-Ring Chain with Connecting Link chain. JT is the same brand I’ve used for motorcycle sprocket upgrades in the past, and I feel they make a quality product.  

I went with a non-o-ring version to minimize energy loss while transferring power from the engine to the back wheel. Which, in my mind, means higher speeds and faster accelerations. Well, at least in my mind. 😀

Click for Current Motorcycle Chain Prices.

So… Is The Stock Boom Vader Chain Good or Bad?

The Boom Vader stock chain works as-is. I’m sure, as with any motorcycle chain, frequent inspection and maintenance, the chain will show signs of wear before it catastrophically fails. But let’s face it, we don’t keep our motorcycles as-is ( My Boom Vader Gen 2 Will Stay Stock, For Now, Except? ), so why not change the chain?

If you spend time and money to change a sprocket, you should spend money to change the stock chain.

Good or Bad, we should be treating our Grom Clones well. We ask so much from a “Chinese Knock-off” motorcycle; we can treat them much better. We knew when buying them that we were not getting Honda to build reliability, so we should be the new chain of reliability in the care of our Grom Clones.

My Boom Vader (BD125-10) is fantastic, not because of its slow speed, questionable build practices, or broken parts out of the box ( Boom Vader / Grom Clone Assembly Problems & Concerns ), but because it’s a blank slate for me to do upgrades; one of those upgrades is a new chain.

In my humble opinion, like this post, change your motorcycle’s stock chain!

Click To See My Recommended

Boom Vader Gen 2 Upgrades

This chain is the motorcycle chain I ordered from Amazon, and I will do a follow-up on its installation and my final thoughts. I am confident this will work well for my Boom Vader.