Newbie Questions

AF,

Get in touch with the Arizona Trail Riders, it's about the only motorcycle club in Arizona. They are having a ride next weekend and it would be a good opportunity for you to meet people to ride with. e-mail me if you want some more info. BikeDestroyer@aol.com

Brenda

as far as minor maintenance is concerned...make sure you clean your air filter at least every couple rides, or every ride if the track/trails are dusty. also make sure to keep moving parts lubricated (levers, linkage, footpeg mounts or anything that starts squeeking). also you'll need to bleed your brakes if they start to get spongy or weak.

with washing your bike...im not positive but i heard that you should put chain lube on the chain before you wash it to keep water from getting into it, and then spray it with WD-40 after youre done washing it to drive out any water that may have gotten in.

also make sure the chain is tight, but not too tight. if its too loose you run the risk of derailing a chain, but if it's too tight you might snap it. i use the 3 finger rule (three finger's should just be able to squeeze between the top of the swingarm and the chain).

thats about all the minor maintenance i can think off of the top of my head. hope it was some help to you

Try out ridingarizona.com . Its got a great forum so you can hook up with other riders and lots of information about places to ride in Arizona.

Ditto on the AZ trail riders.

Also, keep fresh oil in that puppy ( every 2-4 rides depending on severity/length of ride). Check your spokes every couple rides , too. They tend to loosen on thumpers more often, probably because of weight. Lube your linkage and steering stem as needed. I do mine every time I change the front tire, and every other time I change the rear - but a 225 won't eat up rears too fast, so you might want to think about doing the rear linkage/swingarm every time you change the rear tire. That is all I got - good luck, have fun, and don't wreck too hard.:)

Originally posted by ttr225

2. "Lube your linkage and steering stem as needed" With What??!

TTR225

Click to expand...

Well, with steering stem and linkage lube, silly!:confused:

Any good quality grease will do, but I use waterproof marine grease, (Qucksilver actually). Since your bike is fairly new, I would get right on the lube task since the manufacturers tend to be pretty skimpy on the grease. Go over all of the nuts and bolts with a little blue Loctite. Remove the brake pad retianing pins and put a dab of anti-sieze compond on the threads. That will keep them from freezing up in the caliper, causing you to have to drill them out later.