Topic: Scary! (Front sprocket came off - now fixed!)

[lucky]

No chain guard, but I may put it back on now!!!

Wrong. With the chain guard on the chain gets bunched up inside the chain guard case sometimes and that can break the case. The 78's had a thicker case in that area.
With the chain guard off the chain can have a place to escape.
It all depends how close the chain guard is to the chain.

Four things you were very lucky about.
#1 The master link was right there for you.
#2 You did not ask your girl friend to help you push the bike up a hill.
#3 The bike did not go down as a result of the sprocket getting loose.
#4 It was night so not many people saw you broke down.

[Tugboat]

Fun fact: right after it happened, while I was sitting there on the side of the road contemplating what to do next, a woman pulled up to the light at that intesection, rolled down her window and asked: "What year is that?"

Old, I said, glaring. Then she pulled away.

[lucky]

Hi gang.I have used clip links for 40 years and have never experienced a failure.The chains of today are so much better than years ago I doubt any machine would do one in!My DID gold chain requires the side plate to be pressed on before the clip is installed and I believe this is more than adequate.It pisses me off that a clip link is no longer available for this chain that I can find.

You do NOT have to buy a "O" ring chain!!!

Just buy a regular #530 chain But NOT O ring type.

[City Boy]

Well that's fine Lucky but how does that help me with the chain that I do have that I am quite happy with and will likely outlast me?

[rbmgf7]

That's funny. Same thing happened to me when I had my 77 KZ400. Either coincidence with operator error or maybe there's something up with the retention system (if i recall correctly, it's just two M6 bolts which hold a backout plate?)

[Danno]

I just pulled one of your D.I.D. master links apart broke the clip then the cap came off then the link started to pull apart when I got stopped

[grcamna2]

Tugboat,
      You sure got blessed on that mechanical "save" & kept it w/ the rubber side down; YEAH ! It seems to me with that type of lock nut & locking (single)tab washer,
that torquing it down real hard like you did with locktite was the best fix.

                                                                     keep them good wheels rolling !