1 A Winter Guide to motorcycling
Winter? Carry on riding, or snooze in the garage?
Lucy England
Like it or not, it's time to start thinking about whether to tuck the faithful two-wheeled friend snugly away for the winter or to keep riding on through. There will still be some great riding days with crisp, chilly sun sparkling on the frost, but equally, some days will just be hard work! That's what comes of living in the UK!If your motorcycle is planning to hibernate the winter away in a nice cosy garage or shed, or under a motorcycle cover, here is a to-do list which might help you.
1. Spick & Span
The first thing to do before you put it away, is to check your motorcycle all over carefully to see if it has acquired any damage over the summer. The roads are always gritty and dirty, plus there are a multitude of potholes, so inspect your bike, particularly the chain and cables for dirt and grime, and clean and oil everything you can. There are lots of specialised motorcycle cleaning products out there, so choose some good quality cleaners, it will pay dividends in the spring if you put in the hard cleaning yards now. Inspect your cush drive rubbers in the wheel hubs too for wear and tear, and replace as necessary, this may save you a chain in the long run. Check your bulbs, to be sure that they are still working, and if you need any new ones do it now so that you are ready to hit the road running in the spring.
2. Tyred Out
One important job is to have a really close look at your tyres to check for anything sharp which you could have picked up on the road, and which could have become embedded, and if you find anything remove it and replace or fix the tyre if necessary. Then give them a good clean. Check for any excessive wear too, to make sure the tyres are still in good nick. If you think they are on their last legs, get some good ones ready for next season. Once you've established that they are good to go, fully inflate them and make a note to check them occasionally and re-inflate when necessary over the winter. It's a good idea to change the bike's position from time to time to distribute the weight on different parts of the tyres over the winter. If you have a motorbike stand use that, but if not then a wooden plank will keep the bike raised off the cold concrete to help preserve the integrity of the tyre rubber. A tyre pressure gauge and some other tyre accessories are always a good investment, so that you can easily keep an eye on your tyre pressures
3. Battery Blues
Take your battery out and give the terminals a good clean. If yours has been troublesome it may be time to invest in a new one. Batteries can be a bit touchy, they prefer nice warm dry places and can misbehave if they're not looked after properly. It's a good idea to use a battery charger to make sure that your battery remains fully charged. There are a lot of good chargers out there, smart trickle chargers keep the battery ticking over all winter, ready for the off once the days get warmer. Plus useful battery accessories.
4. Smooth As Silk
Once you've checked and cleaned your motorcycle, then it's time to think about lubricating and oiling everything that needs it. This will protect it from damp and condensation and make sure that everything comes out rust free and in good working order, after the winter. Lubricate the chain, cables, stand – basically if it moves, lubricate it – apart from the abrasive brake parts obviously. ACF50 anti-corrosion formula is a great protective option for winter maintenance and will prevent corrosion eating the metal during the winter. Check your manual to ensure that you are using the correct lubricant on the correct parts of your bike.
5. Petrol Heads
If you’re not gong to be riding over the winter you need to decide what to do with any petrol left in your tank. You can drain it, or leave it and add a fuel stabiliser like Star Tron to help prevent it from going off. It is still a good idea to use E5 rather than E10 if you are going to leave the tank full for any length of time and think about Fuel Additives.
Note here though that some bikes are sensitive to fuel going off in the float bowls so be aware if this could be a problem for your bike in which case you will need to empty them before you restart your bike.
6. Oil Together Now!
Oil's well that ends well, so time to change the oil, draining off the old dirty oil which could turn acidic if left in the bike over the winter. Clean or replace the old oil filter and fill the bike with nice clean oil to keep it happy in hibernation.
7. Got It Covered
Invest in a good quality cover for your bike – think of it as a quality winter coat! Cover your bike and try not to leave any access points for determined creatures who might be tempted to overwinter on your bike and snack on cables or seat covers.
A Stitch In Time...
Saves nine! It might seem like a chore to have to do all this work on your motorcycle when you aren't even going to be able to get out on it until those balmy days of spring arrive, but you will be saving your future self a world of pain. It's much better to leave your motorcycle safe and sound and correctly stored, with all the proper maintenance done, so that it will not deteriorate over the winter and will wake bright eyed and bushy tailed, ready to vroom back into action in the spring.
Do you have any winter motorcycle storage tips to share? If so let us know on Facebook or email us at [email protected].
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