The Motorcycle Mart » Helpful Info

How to Winterize Your Motorcycle

Harley — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 19:49:24 +0000

If you live almost anywhere other than the southern coast areas, it’s likely you’ll not be doing much riding for the next few months. So it’s important you take a little time to protect your motorcycle and ensure it is running the way you want it to come spring. If your bike will be sitting for two months or more, just a few simple but important chores will safeguard your investment and have you ready to go the first weather fit day this spring.

Fill your tank with gas. Gasoline contracts when it gets cold and creates a vacuum inside your tank. To fill the vacuum, air will be sucked into the tank through your vent tube. Unfortunately, so will moisture in that air, which will condense inside your gas tank. This moisture will not only cause your bike to run rough come spring, it will also rust the inside of your tank.
So add a stabilizer such as ‘Sta-Bil’, and then fill the tank to the top. This will take care of any moisture and keep the gas from separating. Then run the bike for about ten minutes to let the Sta-Bil get into the carburetor and fuel injectors.

If you will be storing your bike for more than 4 months and have a carburetor, shut off the gas petcock and drain the gas from the carburetor bowls. (If you don’t know where they are, check your manuals for location of drain screws - if you have a fuel-injected bike, there won’t anything to drain.)
Some like to detach the spark plug wires and remove the plugs when they winterize their bikes, while others see this as unnecessary. If you choose to, remove the spark plug wires and remove the plugs. Squirt no more than a teaspoon of motor oil into the cylinders. Crank the motor with the starter for a few cycles, to spread the oil then clean and gap the plugs and loosely put them back on to keep dust from settling there. Leave the plug wires off until spring, when you will tighten the plugs again.
Change your engine oil, transmission fluid, and chaincase fluid. The fluids in your bike work to lubricate your engine and its moving parts as you ride. But those fluids are also waste collectors for all the dirt, water and acid created by the combustion, heat and friction. Storing your bike with these chemicals will not only further break down your oil, they may serve to corrode the metal surfaces. Changing the oil and filters now will protect your engine and have you ready to ride come spring.
Remove your battery and attach a battery tender. Even when it is not in use, your battery will gradually lose its charge. Certain systems on your bike will continue to run and eventually drain your battery. The easiest way to prevent this is to leave your battery in your motorcycle, but attach a battery tender which plugs into a standard power outlet.
If your bike has a liquid cooling system, check its level of anti-freeze with a hygrometer, then drain, flush and replace antifreeze if necessary. (Every two years should be sufficient.) Low or empty antifreeze will cause your cooling system to rust or corrode.
Clean your motorcycle. Carefully remove all road grime, grease, tar, stains, and bugs from painted surfaces, chrome, seals, and tires and dry everything thoroughly. It would be a good idea to then wax any exposed metal surfaces to protect the finish. Clean the chain (if you have one) and then spray off all the built up residues with WD40. Then lube the chain.
Inflate your tires to their proper level. Then, if your bike is to be stored on concrete, get the tires up off the cold floor with a motorcycle lift or if that’s not possible, onto wood or carpet.
Protect your tailpipe. Bugs and rodents like nothing better than a cozy tailpipe to nest in. To discourage this, stuff a clean rag in the end of your pipe, or cover it with a plastic bag (secured with a rubber band). Just don’t forget to remove the above as you’re preparing for your maiden spring ride.

Obviously, storing your motorcycle inside is the best, but sometimes this isn’t possible. If you must store outside, remember to put a cover your bike and make sure you have the tires out of the sunlight. If you protect your bike this winter you should be ready to enjoy your motorcycle this spring without any worries.

What’s the Best Motorcycle Jacket

Harley — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 04:49:48 +0000

Now and again you hear someone talking about a great motorcycle jacket or a jacket with a certain logo or having a certain brand jacket and have to wonder if they really remember why you wear the jacket. You don’t wear the gear for the ride, you wear it for the crash. Asphalt doesn’t care how fashionable you are.

So with that in mind, lets look at some safe but still great motorcycle jackets. There are three major issues that to most seasoned riders take precedents over looking great; those are safety, visibility and comfort.

You buy a safe jacket to avoid leaving little bits and pieces of yourself all over the road should you be in an accident. For that you need a jacket with some sort of armor.

Armor in a motorcycle jacket is like your life-jacket on a boat; most of the time it's bulky and unnecessary, but if you're in an accident, it can save your life. Street jackets with armor usually have it in the elbows and shoulders, with more expensive jackets including spine protection.

There are two kinds of armor, flexible and rigid. The flexible type is more like padding, designed to cushion the impact. Flexible armor can feel more comfortable and less restrictive, but will be less protective than rigid armor. Rigid armor is a hard shell with padding between you and the armor. After a couple of rides you'll hardly notice the armor is there.

Visibility is the next major issue. And though a white, orange or neon jacket would take care of that issue, thankfully we don't have to go quite that far. Retro-reflective patches, piping and stitching can help to make a jacket “light up” when hit with headlights while still remaining subdued and without ruining the style of the jacket.

Comfort in a jacket has more to do with material color and flexibility and the fit of your jacket. You want a jacket that fits well, but isn't so snug you can't raise your arms to the handlebars. The sleeves and waist should be snug enough to keep from catching the wind. You want to be able to check out your blind spot, without your collar getting in the way. And you want the material at the neck and wrists to be soft enough not to chafe your skin.

Many people say a leather jack is cooler than textile in the summer. Vanson Air Cobra, Joe Rocket, Power Trip, and Sturgis SD all have great, safe jackets that can be worn on the hottest of days on the road.

City driving of course is a whole 'nuther ball of wax. When you're sitting at a stop light and the sun is beating down and there is not one bit of a breeze stirring, those dark color leather and nylon jackets - no matter how many holes they have in them - will be hot as a fire cracker.

If you'll be riding in the stop and go traffic, in the summer a light weight, light colored jacket would be best. The light color will reflect the sun and help you keep cooler. A nice light colored helmet would be great for those summer days in town as well.

Perforated leather would be your best bet in hot weather, but you may want to pack a rain suit or get a jacket with a removable waterproof liner in case the weather turns bad.

Staying Cool for Your Long Summer Rides

Harley — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 19:45:51 +0000

Wouldn’t you know it, just when we have enough daylight in the evenings to go on a nice ride; it’s so hot you can hardly stand to go. Who wants to stop every 15 minutes of so for a drink? And if you shed all the riding gear, won’t you end up sacrificing safety just to keep cool?

Here are a few ideas to help you enjoy those summer rides.

We don’t want to sacrifice safety to keep cool, but a lightweight jacket can improve your hydration by preventing your skin from drying out due to sun and wind exposure. And should the unthinkable happen, while it won’t give you the protection of leather, it would afford you some protection.

Always wear light colored clothing. Light colored materials will reflect the suns rays rather than absorbing them. So the difference in temperature for you in a dark colored jacket or helmet as vs light colored would be quite significant. Many people have summer and winter helmets. Wearing a white or light colored helmet, jacket and pants in the summer just makes sense.

Start hydrating your body several hours before you start your ride. Your body needs half its weight in ounces of water each day. In other words, if you weigh 150 pounds, you need to drink 75 ounces of water each day to stay hydrated. And that’s on an average day. If you’re going to be doing manual labor or riding a motorcycle out in the heat you’ll need to replenish the fluids you lose to keep you cool.

To remain hydrated on a long ride you’ll need to make frequent stops to have a drink. You can carry bottled water in your saddlebags – some people freeze the bottles so they’ll be cool – or you can store them in an insulated bag to keep them that way.

But remember, you’ll need to stop for a drink every 15 to 20 minutes if you intend to keep your body properly hydrated. If you’re planning one of those really long trips, you may want to invest in a Camelbak. This would be a way to drink without having to stop so often for a break. But even though they may seem inconvenient, stopping frequently during very hot weather is still a good idea.

Remember, even with the best laid plans some times people will find themselves getting dehydrated. If you begin to suffer from dizziness, confusion, mental fog or just diminished reaction times, or if you stop sweating, get off the road and out of the sun. These are the signs you’re headed for a heat stroke.

Camelbak Hydration System

Harley — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 18:31:44 +0000

The Camelbak Hydration System is great to help you stay hydrated on a long summer ride. No need to stop every few minutes to take a drink. Here you'll find the selection of Camelbak packs available today:

camelbak hydration bag

$15.00

3h 3m

CamelBak HydroBak 15 L or 50 oz

$25.00

4h 51m

Camelbak Hydrolink Conversion Kit Bite Valve Quick Release SKU 90512 Free Ship

$4.19

5h 58m

Never Used Camelbak Peak Bagger

$45.99

7h 37m

New Olive Drab Camelbak Friction Fighter NT Gloves Large

$69.95

9h 2m

2 3 Liter Hydration Systems 1 Camelbak Desert Camo and 1 Skilcraft Digital camo

$28.55

9h 15m

Camelbak Motherlode

$100.00

9h 51m

Camelbak hydration system water back pack 70 oz Rogue

$50.00

10h 33m

CamelBak 2L 70oz 122cu in Desert Camo

$25.00

11h 43m

Don’t Forget to Budget for Insurance

Harley — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:42:08 +0000

As with almost anything you buy, you need to remember to budget for operating and upkeep expenses before choose your bike. And with motorcycles, insurance is often one of the expenses that gets overlooked.

Just in case you're wondering or in case someone has told you different, all motorcycles require insurance. If it's going to be ridden on the road, you need insurance. (There are some exceptions in some states for scooters under 50cc's, but those are the only exceptions.) So let's throw out a ball park figure so we can get on with shopping for a new bike.

On average you will need to pay anywhere from $ 500 to $ 5000 a year for insurance ($45-$425 a month). The rate you pay is going to be determined by your age, driving record, type bike you ride, whether you have other insurance with the company providing the insurance and where you live.

If you're old and gray, have a great driving record, live in a fairly safe area to drive (not a big city), insure lots of different vehicles and maybe a home with the insurance company you'll be paying $ 500 or so a year. But if you're a young male, with a rocket for a motorcycle, have several tickets under your belt and live in Los Angeles, look for it to be closer to the $ 5000 mark or maybe more.

Now before you go off licking your wounds remember, if you bought an automobile there would be little difference. You would still pay more due to your age, driving record, and depending on the car you bought the range for insurance could vary drastically.

But motorcycles use less gas than automobiles. You will save significant amounts of money on the difference in gas consumed. At the price gas is these days, you can make a big dent in the cost of insurance in gas savings.

If you are at all handy, you can take care of most of the maintenance on your bike yourself. Automobiles are a little more tricky. Once again another savings to be put toward the bike insurance.

You could buy a motorcycle that's a little more sedate. Yes those rockets do look cool, but they'll cost quite a bit more in insurance. You could buy a hot sports car but the insurance on it would eat you alive as well. Sometimes you just have to weigh the cost and say, "looking cool is not all it's cracked up to be."

So rather than looking at those rockets, chose wisely when you shop for your new motorcycle, and get insurance rates before you buy so you won't get an unpleasant surprise after you sign on the dotted line.