I don't think anyone makes a rivet link for the heavy duty cam chains.
Tsubaki does but it is not sold in the U.S. I got mine from B.C. Express in the UK. It is the same chain as the Camella heavy duty endless chain, but it is sold under another name.
Despite "strong" recommendations against I have installed rivet links in both of my big bores. The first time it was because I did not yet feel confident enough to open the crankcase, and the second time because I had buttoned up the entire engine before realizing that I needed a different type of chain to run my M3 tensioner.
My thinking is this: all the chain links are riveted, or put together, at the factory using very precise tolerances. The single rivet installed by hand by the end user has a much higher probability of error resulting in chain failure. I found that while installing my first rivet link that it was possible to mushroom the pin too much causing the link to bind a bit which, of course, is a bad thing. There is also the probability of not expanding the pin enough which would cause the side plate to come loose and come off entirely in some instances, also very bad.
Are their reasons other than the ones I've covered as to why a rivet link chain is not recommended for the 750's?
Thanks, I always figured that somebody somewhere had riveted a CB750 camchain. Guess it was you!
I wonder if not selling it (the HD rivet link) in the US is a liability issue?
My CB77 305 Superhawk came with a clip type link. The chain is identical pitch and length of a CB750 chain. I wonder if anyone is running around with a clip link in their CB750? At the end of the production run for 305s there was a service bulletin telling dealers to stop using the clip links in favor of a rivet link. However, it was not a recall. Les Barker in Wash St got me a clip link out of old stock I guess as I don't think Honda sells them anymore.
Those two missteps you mention, pushing the side plate too tight or not mushrooming the pin enough, are the only things I can think of. Takes some repetition, skill or both to get it "just right".
I don't know if there is any data indicating that chains are more prone to breaking at the masterlink than at any other point.
We used to backstop the link on a CB450 chain with a heavy chisel, then peen the pins over in a crosshatch pattern with a fine sharp chisel and hammer. Too cheap to buy a tool. Worked fine. On a 450, one must cut the chain to get the motor apart.
