Motorcycle

OK...this is my first post. I would like to offer something interesting, informative or useful with each future entry, or maybe just stimulate your imagination and comments.

Drawing on many years of riding, repairing and retailing motorcycles and running The Bike Yard motorcycle shop in Toronto, I should not run out of topics on my end for a while. My first entries might come from our website bikeyard.com Tech Tips, which we are regularly adding to, or maybe interesting excerpts from The Motorcycle Handbook which we publish. Or maybe I will reprint an interesting email or recount an incident from a day in the shop.

Who knows where we will end up, but I hope you will check out my blog once in a while to find out. Please send any comments, motorcycle questions or ideas along.

John

Here is a Tech Tip:

PREPARING YOUR BIKE AFTER WINTER STORAGE

If you took all the right steps to winterize your bike before storage, getting it back into service in the Spring should be a breeze! Here then is a basic procedure to follow:

1. Wash the bike and clean the brake discs with brake cleaner or alcohol.

2. Check for signs of rodents nesting in the bike and remove the critters if necessary. The airbox is a favourite nesting place for mice, and tiny spiders can get into the handlebar switches and disable the switches with their webs. Really!

3. Check the battery electrolyte level and do a final recharge. Install the battery, connecting the ground cable last.

4. Check and adjust the tire air pressure. (Fork air too if applicable).

5. Put the bike on the centerstand if you have one and turn the fuel petcock to "on", then wait a bit for the carb float bowls to refill with fuel. Note: If you didn’t empty the float bowls before storage then the old gas in the bowls may make it difficult to start the bike. In this case you need to drain the float bowls and then let them refill with fresh gas from the tank.

6. Make sure the plug wires are attached and that the kill switch is in the right position, then start the bike. Note: If you had put oil in the cylinders before storage the bike may smoke for a few minutes after starting. The bike may resist starting initially either because the float bowls haven’t completely filled, or oil or raw gas in the cylinder may have fouled the plugs. As well, old gas or gas with stabilizer is less volatile and harder to ignite. It should start after a few tries, but if it doesn’t, make sure the battery still has a good charge, and install new spark plugs and it should fire up.

7. If oil was put in the cylinders before storage, you will need to install fresh plugs anyway after the motor has been turned over (either by the starter or by running).

8. Check the front and rear brakes for a spongy feeling in the lever or pedal and make sure they release properly. Check the forks and front brakes for the presence of leaking fork oil. Then perform a thorough pre-ride inspection of the whole bike and correct any problems before riding.

If you found this tip helpful please forward it to a friend. See you again soon!