The General Motorbikers Discussion Thread

For the first time ever, I cleaned and re-lubricated my motorcyclechain.
I bought a nice alu stand for the backwheel, lifted it up(which was quite exiting, because I feared it could fall over or roll forwards), undid the chain protection thing, started the engine to spin the wheel, sprayed the cleaner on it and ... got really really really dirty :lol:. And not just me.
After cleaning everything I figuered it is better to spin the wheel by hand while cleaning the chain.
How do you clean the chain on your bikes? Any tricks or something like this?
 
Alright, I sold that monster of a GSXR1000. I felt that I should probably take a step down in an attempt to hold onto my license, which I kinda need, as I now live in the boondocks and hate driving my Civic every day. Anyways, picked up this:

So an R6 is going to help you keep your licence?

Good luck!

Nice bike, BTW. Wish I had the mula for a decent ride.

Brian: sorry can't help you.

SMN: Yeah I'd clean a section then rotate to clean the next section, repeat till done. It's slow but avoids mess. But now living in Tokyo I don't think it's worth the bother doing maintenance myself. I was going over it today cos it's overdue, but I'd have to buy some tools, oil pan, stuff to solidify the old oil etc - and do it on the street. :?


Did buy some rain gear today. Went there with the intention of buying the cheapest gear available and walked out with an RS Taichi set. :| The jacket is decent but the pants look/feel cheap and just have an elastic waist.

rs-taichi_rsr0308900
 
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For the first time ever, I cleaned and re-lubricated my motorcyclechain.
I bought a nice alu stand for the backwheel, lifted it up(which was quite exiting, because I feared it could fall over or roll forwards), undid the chain protection thing, started the engine to spin the wheel, sprayed the cleaner on it and ... got really really really dirty :lol:. And not just me.
After cleaning everything I figuered it is better to spin the wheel by hand while cleaning the chain.
How do you clean the chain on your bikes? Any tricks or something like this?

My last few bikes have been shaft drive, so no chain oiling here. That's a dirty, messy, nasty job I hate doing.

However, I've had chain drive bikes before and am looking at getting a Honda 919 - in which case I would also buy one of these: http://www.scottoiler.com/
 
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started the engine to spin the wheel, sprayed the cleaner on it and ... got really really really dirty :lol:. And not just me.
After cleaning everything I figuered it is better to spin the wheel by hand while cleaning the chain.

Never ever work or get near the chain while the engine is turning the wheel.
It hurt enough when my hand got between sprocket and chain while cleaning per hand. The engine would likely have cut it right off.

Anyway I don't know if they sell it outside of germany but there is the "Kettenmax". http://www.kettenmaxusa.net/ It's basically a set of brushes that scrub the chain while you turn the wheel.
 
Quick question: how come carbed bikes (or at least the ones I know off) have manual choke? I mean, how hard can it be to make an automatic system?




PS:
Triumph's bikes are beautiful <3 That'll be all.
 
Quick question: how come carbed bikes (or at least the ones I know off) have manual choke? I mean, how hard can it be to make an automatic system?

I've never had to use the choke for any of my bikes (except perhaps the cb350/4 - it had a somewhat complicated starting procedure). I think it only really comes in handy for minus temperatures. But yeah, it's a bit weird.
 
On the CBF500 I rode in driving school I never had to use it either, until I had a lesson on a particularily cold morning, with a different instructor at that. So when he said something about taking out the choke after some time I was completely baffled. :lol:

But my F650 needs a bit of choke every time or it won't start.
 
My YBR125 simply wouldn't start from cold without the choke, no matter what the weather. It was amazing how quick I got used to shoving my hand into the engine to move the fiddly lever.
 
^ Very nice!

I still have not broken in my pucks yet, but for riding on public roads that's a bit silly. Maybe once I get out on the track... maybe.

For the first time ever, I cleaned and re-lubricated my motorcyclechain.
I bought a nice alu stand for the backwheel, lifted it up(which was quite exiting, because I feared it could fall over or roll forwards), undid the chain protection thing, started the engine to spin the wheel, sprayed the cleaner on it and ... got really really really dirty :lol:. And not just me.
After cleaning everything I figuered it is better to spin the wheel by hand while cleaning the chain.
How do you clean the chain on your bikes? Any tricks or something like this?

You're doing it wrong.

Put the bike on the center stand if it has one or use a pit stand, put the bike in neutral and just spin the wheel on the bike to expose the next bit of chain.

I hose off the chain when I wash the bike and use a chain brush to clean out the road grime and dirt along with a bit of chain cleaner.

https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blind_io/2009/06/22/PARTS3049_005.jpg

Then I use a spray-on chain lube. For a while I was using gear oil, as was recommended by my Honda dealer, but I found that it went on too thick and would spray out over the rim when I was at speed and actually collect more grime. I just switched to a specialized spray-lube (not WD-40!) that doesn't have that problem and is made to work with the o-rings on the chain.
 
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How's your CB coming along, anyway? Did you ever create a thread for it?

No, haven't started a thread yet and not coming along to fast. I had a hard time getting going on it cause it was so cold for so long and I just can't get motivated to work in my garage when it is below freezing.

Now with the Baby coming along I have been spending more time converting the smallest bedroom that attaches to our master suite from the office I was putting there to a nursery.

The last time I had a whole day to work on the bike was Memorial day and I determined that the motor will most likely need a complete rebuild. I am trying to keep an eye out for a used complete motor now but baby stuff just takes precedence.
 
Quick question: how come carbed bikes (or at least the ones I know off) have manual choke? I mean, how hard can it be to make an automatic system?

Nobody has invented a reliable automatic mechanical choke and electric chokes require more power than it takes to run the entire rest of the bike (sans light).
 
I saw a BSA Goldstar in Clubman trim today (in Texas no less!).

I want a BSA Goldstar.

That is all.
 
Didn't you know? We have a *lot* of weird stuff here that just didn't survive elsewhere. Not least of which is the Deloreans in Houston. We're making those again.

We also have Royal Enfield Bullets running around - both original and Indian. There's a dealer for them in Dallas. There's also a Ural dealer here.
 
Considering buying a Scorpion Street Extreme can for my FS .. It's alright listening to Youtube videos all day long, but has anyone ever heard.owned one of these things?
 
Nobody has invented a reliable automatic mechanical choke and electric chokes require more power than it takes to run the entire rest of the bike (sans light).

Oh well. At least BMW was nice enough to put it up on the handlebar on the F650, so I don't have to bend over backwards to adjust it on the go.




Anyway, question time continues!
What's the best (easiest/cheapest) way to get rid off light scratches? The whole plastic cover around the tank of the F650 is covered in these tiny scratches that are only really visible close up. I must admit, I really don't have a clue about all this paint'n'polish stuff. :(


Also, the saddle (which I believe is leather) looks like this:

Any idea what that is, and more importantly, how to cure it? :blink:
 
You saddle is vinyl, not leather. Leather isn't weatherproof enough for a bike saddle (ask me how I know...). Unfortunately, no good way to fix that, though you can hide it with vinyl paint or replace the seat cover but it will just look like that again.

As for the tiny scratches on the tank, you could try some Meguiars ScratchX, but I wouldn't expect much - it's plastic. And it will probably get scratched up again in use. Again - you could hide it with paint or just replace the part.
 
Thanks again Spectre. :)
I think I'll just leave it as is for now then. I might look into fixing/replacing that stuff some time in the future, but for now I feel I've already spent enough money on it. /el cheapo
 
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