What did you do to your bike today?

IC3 · 22 Sep 2015 at 21:03

Clov!s said:
Every week, do it after your ride when the chain is hot.

Kreeeee said:
Every week or tank of fuel (250KM), whichever comes first.

It's critical to clean it monthly too, not just lube it.

Ups, I didn't clean it or lube it in 2-3 months time, today was the first time. I'll lube it every week from now on and clean it once a month. Why can't we just have belts on our bikes? It would be so much safer and easier, if a belt goes it won't lock your wheel, a chain will... :rolleyes:

benji182 said:
I've got a picture or two in the new bike thread (somewhere)

This is her after a wash the other week

https://vimeo.com/140098893

Nice, are those lights stock? It would look so much better with bulbs that produce white light.

Kreeeee · 22 Sep 2015 at 21:07

IC3 said:
Ups, I didn't clean it or lube it in 2-3 months time, today was the first time. I'll lube it every week from now on and clean it once a month. Why can't we just have belts on our bikes? It would be so much safer and easier, if a belt goes it won't lock your wheel, a chain will...

You can have a belt on a sexy Buell or a shaft drive on the monster BMW K1300S.

On a serious note, you really need to read some guides on motorcycle maintenance as I'm not sure you do all the critical pre-flight checks and the regular maintenance checks.

TallPaul_S · 22 Sep 2015 at 21:11

Chain lube for me is usually every tank, so every 200 miles - less if it's dry and definitely every tank if it's wet.

benji182 · 22 Sep 2015 at 21:13

IC3 said:
Nice, are those lights stock? It would look so much better with bulbs that produce white light.

They're stock yes, After seeing what Wazza has put in his 2011 ZX-6R I'm half tempted to swap. I'd rather do it when a bulb goes and change them all rather than replace bulbs that do work, just not great at night

wazza300 · 22 Sep 2015 at 21:20

Lube it every few months,clean it never,it hasn't fallen off yet

Edit:looks nice Benji,I see yours is already decatted

@IC3 pick yourself up a cheap led parking bulb,brilliant white

IC3 · 22 Sep 2015 at 21:42

Kreeeee said:
You can have a belt on a sexy Buell or a shaft drive on the monster BMW K1300S.

On a serious note, you really need to read some guides on motorcycle maintenance as I'm not sure you do all the critical pre-flight checks and the regular maintenance checks.

I think that you're over exaggerating, I check my tyre pressure, oil levels and break fluid levels every week.

benji182 said:
They're stock yes, After seeing what Wazza has put in his 2011 ZX-6R I'm half tempted to swap. I'd rather do it when a bulb goes and change them all rather than replace bulbs that do work, just not great at night

Depends how much riding you do at night, I always end up coming back home from a longer ride at night and because I can't go on motorway I've to use twisty roads. With the stock bulbs the vision was bad, the new bulb has improved it. When I replace the bottom light I should be able to see more.

wazza300 said:
Lube it every few months,clean it never,it hasn't fallen off yet

Edit:looks nice Benji,I see yours is already decatted

@ic3 pick yourself up a cheap led parking bulb,brilliant white

You seriously haven't cleaned the chain since new? I think lubing every week is a bit of an overkill, every month sounds more realistic.

BTW Already ordered Osram 4000K parking light bulb, should be here tomorrow.

benji182 · 22 Sep 2015 at 21:47

IC3 said:
Depends how much riding you do at night, I always end up coming back home from a longer ride at night and because I can't go on motorway I've to use twisty roads. With the stock bulbs the vision was bad, the new bulb has improved it. When I replace the bottom light I should be able to see more.

I'm doing more and more as my GF lives in central London and although I can leave hers at anytime and see clear as day due to all the street lighting, It is just when I'm going down A1/A41 towards Oxfordshire that it gets tricky as only a few bits are lit.

wazza300 said:
Edit:looks nice Benji,I see yours is already decatted

Yup, Full race

If weather is good Sunday I'll use my new Zoom H2n and GoPro to get a nice audio/video up as that is just a cheapy mobile vid above.

wazza300 · 22 Sep 2015 at 21:51

I've never cleaned a chain tbh,just lubed it

I don't have the time,I might do if it was a new bike just for appearances

Led are better though as they don't vibrate like a filament bulb,plus they use less power

Stovepipes · 22 Sep 2015 at 21:54

wazza300 said:
take it to a radiator refurb place,they will weld or solder it up

much cheaper

Thanks, that's the kinda thing the dealership would never have told me lol. I was gonna try an independent garage not that I could find any near by.

IC3 said:
BTW
I damaged my phone today on my ride, forgot my side pockets aren't waterproof and now my PC is not recognising my phone. yay! The good thing is I've insurance, 24h swap out (took the phone under my mums business contract )

I had the exact same problem last week, so annoying.

IC3 said:
How often do you people lube your... chains?

I try to do it once a week or every 500 miles. I only clean it about once a month though if that.

Craig321 · 22 Sep 2015 at 22:00

Kreeeee said:
You can have a belt on a sexy Buell or a shaft drive on the monster BMW K1300S.

On a serious note, you really need to read some guides on motorcycle maintenance as I'm not sure you do all the critical pre-flight checks and the regular maintenance checks.

Does anyone actually do the recommended 'pre-flight' checks before riding, every time?!

wazza300 said:
Lube it every few months,clean it never,it hasn't fallen off yet

Edit:looks nice Benji,I see yours is already decatted

@ic3 pick yourself up a cheap led parking bulb,brilliant white

tbh I can believe that. From what i've seen, over maintenance on the chain destroys it far quicker than just leaving it alone and lubing it. Learn that the hard way back on my 125

Kreeeee · 22 Sep 2015 at 22:00

IC3 said:
I think that you're over exaggerating, I check my tyre pressure, oil levels and break fluid levels every week.

It's your life, do what you want with it.

Personally, my life is too important to skip a tyre check before I ride.

Edit: Mind you, if I fall off it will be a few KM tumble off a mountain rather than a slide down the road...

IC3 · 22 Sep 2015 at 22:37

benji182 said:
I'm doing more and more as my GF lives in central London and although I can leave hers at anytime and see clear as day due to all the street lighting, It is just when I'm going down A1/A41 towards Oxfordshire that it gets tricky as only a few bits are lit.

Yup, Full race

If weather is good Sunday I'll use my new Zoom H2n and GoPro to get a nice audio/video up as that is just a cheapy mobile vid above.

If you've money for GoPro and H2n you should be able to find some spare 10 quid for new bulbs, surely?

I just find night riding dangerous with the stock bulbs, with my next bike I'll go with HID Kit like wazza did. This little 125 will go as soon as I do my A2, depending on my financial situation I'll sell straight after or only when I get next bike.

wazza300 said:
Led are better though as they don't vibrate like a filament bulb,plus they use less power

I'll get a HID Kit ony my next bike, this should do for now. The bulbs were cheaper than a HID Kit would be, how much did your HID Kit cost and how hard was it to install?

Stovepipes said:
I had the exact same problem last week, so annoying.

I'm annoyed as its my beloved Nexus 5, a new nexus 5 is coming out soon though. I was planning on getting that anyway, so if they offer me that for the replacement I'll be happy. If not, then I'll probably take a Sony or Samsung equivalent to my N5.

Stovepipes said:
I try to do it once a week or every 500 miles. I only clean it about once a month though if that.

Every week just seems like an overkill, especially since the cleaning stuff for the chain is acidic... you're pretty much scrubbing off all that protective layer that was applied to the chain from the factory.

Craig321 said:
Does anyone actually do the recommended 'pre-flight' checks before riding, every time?!

tbh I can believe that. From what i've seen, over maintenance on the chain destroys it far quicker than just leaving it alone and lubing it. Learn that the hard way back on my 125

Craig321 said:
Does anyone actually do the recommended 'pre-flight' checks before riding, every time?!

Tbh? Nope, I do them weekly though.

Craig321 said:
tbh I can believe that. From what i've seen, over maintenance on the chain destroys it far quicker than just leaving it alone and lubing it. Learn that the hard way back on my 125

That's because the cleaning stuff is acidic, so that means you'll scrape off that protective layer on the chain and make it less durable.

Kreeeee said:
It's your life, do what you want with it.

Personally, my life is too important to skip a tyre check before I ride.

Edit: Mind you, if I fall off it will be a few KM tumble off a mountain rather than a slide down the road...

If I was really that worried about my life and safety. I wouldn't ride a bike, I would either get a car or use the public transport.

The truth is that on a bike you're more likely to crash and became disabled or worse die. If you're not taking that into account before getting a bike, you're just being naive by lying to yourself...

overmaintenance like someone else has said previously could potentially ruin the chain, it makes sense as the chain cleaners are acidic and by using a brush you're removing/weakening the protective layer that has been applied to the chain from factory.

Edit

This post is soo long, that's what she said.

Kreeeee · 22 Sep 2015 at 22:41

Pre flight checks have nothing to do with chain cleaning.

Anyway, do what you want. You don't need to justify anything to me.

TallPaul_S · 22 Sep 2015 at 22:58

IC3, all 125 headlights are crap - changing bulbs won't make that much difference.

Big bike headlights are just sooo much better. Bigger engine = bigger alternator = more electricity = better headlights.

My CB400 with it's single dual filament bulb (hi and lo beam in one bulb) is 10x better than the dual bulbs on my old varadero - granted they were only 35/35w bulbs though.

IC3 · 22 Sep 2015 at 23:08

TallPaul_S said:
IC3, all 125 headlights are crap - changing bulbs won't make that much difference.

Big bike headlights are just sooo much better. Bigger engine = bigger alternator = more electricity = better headlights.

My CB400 with it's single dual filament bulb (hi and lo beam in one bulb) is 10x better than the dual bulbs on my old varadero - granted they were only 35/35w bulbs though.

My main beam is 60/55w and the parking light at the bottom is 55w.

Edit

Took apart my phone, cleaned the connections with alcohol and the phone works again.

Stovepipes · 22 Sep 2015 at 23:51

IC3 said:
Every week just seems like an overkill, especially since the cleaning stuff for the chain is acidic... you're pretty much scrubbing off all that protective layer that was applied to the chain from the factory.

Lubing that chain once a week seems like overkill really?

With the weather we've been having I've been thinking I need to do it more often or get one of those Scottoiler things.

IC3 · 22 Sep 2015 at 23:53

Stovepipes said:
Lubing that chain once a week seems like overkill really?

With the weather we've been having I've been thinking I need to do it more often or get one of those Scottoiler things.

Lubing no, but cleaning every week yes.

I've had a look in the manual for the first time how to adjust the headlight, will increase the distance a little. I'll do that tomorrow if the side/parking light comes in.

Edit

How long does it usually take to run in a new tyre? Since I'm keeping the bike I ordered some other tyres, they'll be here next week.

Edit2

Only just remembered, Clovis you need to post pictures of that evotech tail tidy! I'm curios how it looks in comparison.

Stovepipes · 23 Sep 2015 at 00:25

IC3 said:
Lubing no, but cleaning every week yes.

Ah right well as I mentioned I clean the chain once a month if that. I am dreading having to adjust it though, I know that's gonna need to get done soon.

wazza300 · 23 Sep 2015 at 00:25

Bout 100-200 miles I find,depends(wear in a tyre)

Hid kit for both lights was £19 but I've seen them for £13,be cheaper for single headlight, fitting was a 2 minute plug in job
Main things to check on a bike is the engine oil and tyre pressures imo,the rest you can feel as yourriding,like low pads or a slack/dry chain

You don't have to worry bout much

Can't you pop it phone in a sealable sandwich bag? Poke few holes in for ventilation

I wrap mine in a hanky,I don't want my bank cards to scratch it,it don't get wet though

Captain · 23 Sep 2015 at 00:40

IC3 said:
Lubing no, but cleaning every week yes.

I've had a look in the manual for the first time how to adjust the headlight, will increase the distance a little. I'll do that tomorrow if the side/parking light comes in.

Edit

How long does it usually take to run in a new tyre? Since I'm keeping the bike I ordered some other tyres, they'll be here next week.

Edit2

Only just remembered, Clovis you need to post pictures of that evotech tail tidy! I'm curios how it looks in comparison.

Will do when I get off my arse and fit it.