Safety Safety & Maintainence Tips from MB.c's Members

[grakker]

I had just returned from a ride and was putting my bike away when the exhaust caught my leg... about six weeks for it to go away. Lessons learned... don"t wear shorts, let bike cool down first before stowing in cramped space and remember that the exhaust can be a tad warm, not to mention that you could burn down your shed!!

I wear naught but shorts. Well, flip flops and a t-shirt. It's funny to me because I have a trail of burn marks down my left leg from the cooling fins. I'll take that rather than wear pants in the summer. I lost enough skin skateboarding for 15 years that I don't really worry too much about the road burn at 25-30 miles an hour. If I ever buy that new sprocket, I will have to re-think my clothing choices.

 

[npk1977]

Safety & Maintainence Tips from M-B.c's Members

All --


Somewhere, there should be a notice to tighten clutch screws. I'm talking about the screws that retain element (1) in this diagram: http://www.motoredbikes.com/showthread.php?t=5977&highlight=clutch+diagram

Look at the attached image, the clutch screw wore a pattern in my clutch cover!!! Also, there seems to be only one screw in place, should there be two?

 

[quay1962]

vibrations loosen everything, check, check and re-check...turn signals help the law stay off your back...

 

[Scottm]

Good advice

I'm a newbie at all this. The tips given in this section are from experience and here for a reason. I finally got my bike running and love it!! I'm 38 years old and for the first time in my life, a pedal came off the bike on one of my first rides. After that, I must have tightend 6 nuts and 3 or 4 screws, that had come lose. Like a goof, I was too excited to put on jeans when I went for a ride in the wooded park near by. Aside from 3 burns, the cat claws and briars ripped my legs to shreads. It was the most fun I ever had getting tore up though. My cheeks hurt from smiling and laughing.
Thanks for all the advice posted here.

 

[try1897]

All the kings horses and all the kings men, please where a helmet Tom

 

[Scottm]

All the kings horses and all the kings men, please where a helmet Tom

what ever happened to SLAPAHO= Support Life and Put a Helmet On. My dad used to be a doctor and called motorcycles, donor bikes. Our's aren't any different in this aspect. I lost a friend in high school when a camaro hit him while on his bike. Please wear your helmets.

 

[Haggard]

This has already been covered but I'd like to emphisis .
CHECK YOUR NUTS AND BOLTS ALWAYS.
I wash my ride either before or after every ride.
Not just because I like a clean bike , but It forces me to look at every inch of my bike and catch any impending problems in the shop, instead of getting a surprise at 40 mph, when I'm surrounded by traffic.
I'm not sure if all the kits are the same but my 70cc came with aluminun nuts and bolts. These should be illegal. lol
I doubt I'm the first to find out how easy it is to strip a bolt.
I bought steel bolts cut off the heads and replaced all motor mount studs and exhaust studs with these. planning to do head bolts aswell as soon as 1 strips.
Steel bolt, applied lock tight aswell as a lockwasher, and to top it off, steel locknuts. over kill alot may say but they do not vibrate loose.
Total cost was $4 not including the locktight which was around another $5.
Head bolts are still stock but I,ve double nutted them using a locknut on top of the stock nut.
I still put a wrench to each and every one of them but they havent budged at all.
A loose nut or 2 might not sound like much to worry about until your engine shifts position causing the chain to jam on the small sprocket, locking your back wheel,sending you into a sideways drift directly into the path of a 4000 lb hunk of steel (car) thats hurtling down the road beside you at 60mph.
this is not what might happen, this is what WILL happen if your motormounts are neglected and loosen off.
PLEASE CHECK YOUR NUTS AND BOLTS ALWAYS
~Haggard~

 

[Haggard]

BE SEEN, BE HEARD.
i FOUND A little battery operated headlight just didnt let oncoming traffic know I was there. I now run the little white battery head light, but I also run red led flashing/strobing lights both front and back. It really helped cut down on the oncoming left turning traffic turning right infront of me or right into me.
On one of my bikes, I mounted a 12v motorcycle battery, a small 12v air compressor that i got at a wreckers and an airhorn from same wreckers off a semi.
The compressor I've seen since in auto shops in an airhorn kit for around $50. It only cost me $12 and i tell you what if they pretend they don,t see me, you gotta see them jump when they hear me!!
The air line from the pump to the horn is in 2 sections, conected with a neumatic quick coupler.
The reason for this is when I get a flat, i simply disconnect the horn, hook up a 2 ft hose i made to the quick coupler and have electric air compressor to refill tires after patching. tis a beautiful multifunctuional gadget. I havent a charging system though, just hook up the battery charger for a bit after every ride
Haggard~

 

[WIZARDOFOZONE]

We older guys who know the times we aren't going to do any nasty greasy or dirty type work on the bike, maybe just take a ride, often skip changing into denims and opt to keep our dress slacks on ... if so, be forwarned that soft flowing fabrics and/or stretchy fabric dress slacks find and cling instantly to the clutch lever on the left side of the engine and the cuffs EASILY wrap completly OVER the round clutch housing on the right which is a terrible experience in time you've decided you have waited for the pedestrian crosswalk signal long enough and feel sure you can pedel and pop the clutch faster than the oncoming corvette you see 35 yards away ! Make velcro straps to wrap around your cuffs, or pull your socks up over your pants bottoms, or high top boots with cuffs inside.

 

[Scottm]

Handing in my mebership card

I let someone who knew nothing about motored bikes ride my new project that I just got running yesterday. Here's the result. My friend was not physically hurt that she would admit to but she felt really horrible and has offered to pay for repairs. Still I didn't use my best judgemet and got a friend hurt and a bike broke. I was almost too ashamed to tell anyone and post this but I'm hoping it will stop someone else from being foolish like me.

Sourgrapes part of it, was I planned on getting springer forks soon anyhow.

If I am banned from MBc now, I'll understand. I know you wouldn't do it , but I still feel bad. I'm arngry with myself because I have read this entire thread several times since i joined MBc and I know from the 5th post http://www.motoredbikes.com/showpost.php?p=50788&postcount=5 it says don't let anyone who doesn't know what they are doing ride your bike.

She was slowing down and pulling to the curb to stop. Handle bars hit mail box, tire hit curb. Since the tire couldn't turn with the handlebars, the stering post sheared.