The cam chain adjuster and cam chain stretch is a function of heat cycles as best we can tell.  If you go for long rides the cam chain lasts a long time.....if you only go on 5 mile trips each time you start the bike the chain stretches in fewer miles.  Maybe Sjkaskow will chime in....I know he went a very long time on the stock chain and he rode his bike just about every day.

Unless you hear a rattling noise down by your right foot.....inspect it at 10,000 miles and that will allow you to judge how fast your chain is stretching.  The Verslagen modification will prevent the tensioner from being able to overextend and fall apart....plus it allows you another hole to double the time between cam chain replacement.

The backfire that the Savage is prone to is not really a backfire through the engine....it is an afterfire that occurs in the exhaust system.  When the throttle is closed and the engine is compression braking (or between shifts)....the fuel jets are closed except for the small idle circuit.  The engine pulls a lot of air past the slide with the high vacuum but can get very little fuel....and the mixture is so lean the spark plug cannot ignite it.  The result is that the lean mixture goes into the hot exhaust system and is ignited there.  The other afterfire issue occurs when the ignition key is switched off and the engine is coming to a stop....and while the engine is coasting to a stop it still is pumping air and fuel through the engine....and it results in a "woof" on some bikes when they are shut off.

The cam chain stretch on this bike occurs when the very tall engine cycles between hot and cold.  The aluminum case, cylinder and head expand considerably and pull on the chain...and we believe the ratchet on the tensioner is too eager to move to another notch when the engine cools.  Each heat/cool cycle puts a similar amount of stress on the cam chain.....so a 5 mile trip has about the same effect as a 100 mile trip.

Don't get paranoid about the cam chain.  You only need to be aware that it is not a "set and forget" issue.....it should be checked at about 10,000 miles so you can establish what effect your riding style has on the stretch.  This is a reliable and easy to maintain bike with just a few quirks (cam chain, vacuum petcock).  We know of one bike with over 120,000 miles on it that is still ridden regularly (currently leading the group ride in Texas...Youzguyz), and several 50,000 mile bikes.

http://suzukisavage.com/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?num=1391195461

Thanks a lot. Very informative ! I'm really into preventative maintenance. Like I said ,I ride a lot and am always tuned into what an engine is saying to me. I guess that's makes me pretty anal. At least that's what my wife tells me.