Motorcycle Maintenance Articles***
by Jasmine Bluecreek Clark


First, if you are one of the nice folks who follows my web site regularly - I so apologize for no updates and no new maintenance articles since first of DECEMBER. First my old computer died during Dec, then it was THE Holidays, no time to shop for a new computer. Finally in January I got a new computer - but it's taken me a couple 'o three weeks to get used to the new programs and caught up on my over-flowing email box. So there you have it - my excuses. I plan on doing better in the immediate future, so you will have a new maintenance article to read in here shortly!

***Disclaimer: The decision to work on your own motorcycle ~ or not ~ is a personal choice. It is possible to do serious damage to both you and your motorcycle. Jasmine Bluecreek Clark, Bluecreek Art Works and Bluecreek Motorcycle Training Co. creates and shares these articles to be an aid in understanding how your motorcycle works. They are not a substitute for professional repair or maintenance work done by a certified mechanic or technician. In some cases, working on your motorcycle could void your warranty, if you motorcycle is still under a manufacturer's warranty.

While the information shared is true and accurate to the best of our knowledge, motorcycle technology is a rapidly changing field.
All recommendations are made without any guarantee on the part of the Author and/or Publisher, who also disclaim any liability incurred in connection with the use of the data
or general or specific details included within this web site.




How Do We Diagnose Motorcycle Problems?
Engine & Motorcycle Problem Diagnosis ~ Part 1 Brakes ~
February 2010

So you've bought a motorcycle manual and you've read how to do all these different things to your motorcycle. How will you know when it's really the right time to tear into your brakes, spark plugs, air filter, etc?

When I first learned how to wrench professionally, on automobiles, diagnosis was usually the hardest part of the job. Diagnosing the mechanical, electrical or pilot error that is causing a problem is often over half the battle.

How will you know what's wrong and when? It used to seem like a big mystery to me, and I'd been to auto-tech school: I figured other folks might like some hints to help them along. While I'm no expert, I have learned a few things over the years about diagnosing engine problems and I'm in a mood to share them with you.

This edition - we'll discuss brakes and how to know when they need servicing. I will include other motorcycle-related problems and how to recognize them, in future articles.

Diagnosing Braking Issues

Well, the first and most obvious way to know when to check your braking system out is by reading the owner's manual. There will be recommended times to periodically have the brake pads, brake shoes, rotors or drums checked. This is THE MINIMUM amount of checking that should happen.

You can always check on your brakes and other systems on your motorcycle as often as you feel necessary. Personally, I think the best time to check your brakes is every time you are getting any service work done to the wheels or tires. It seems natural if the Tech or Mechanic is already working on that part of the motorcycle, to ask them to double check that your braking system is in tip-top shape also.

Secondly, any time the brakes don't seem to be stopping as well as they did last week - could mean that at least you may need a brake adjustment. Some brakes are adjustable, some are not. Some Brakes that are not adjustable can still have both the front brake lever and the rear brake pedal adjusted up. Sometimes, the brakes are fine, but the pedal or lever needs a small adjustment so that you can activate the brakes faster.

If you start hearing sounds coming from the calipers or rotors - down at the front or rear wheel - that could be a braking problem developing. It might also be worn wheel bearings, or a few other things. The deal is - to notice if there is a change in the sound while braking. Are you hearing high screeches during braking, a rubbing noise or some other sound? If you are hearing new sounds - time to at least get the brakes checked out. Something as simple as dirt between the pads and the calipers can cause some chronic noises, even though this is not a dangerous condition.

The most common sound is when the brake pads are worn down enough, the little metal indicators (prongs that will start to rub the rotor when there is not enough 'meat' still on the pads) start scratching the rotor surface making a metallic rubbing noise. You may hear a sound that repeats with every wheel revolution while you are riding along; Kind of a Kshish a kshish a kshish a - noise. Don't ignore this sound or you'll be replacing your brake rotors as well as the pads - and that gets expensive.

Lastly, if your brakes feel spongy, soft, or sometimes the lever or pedal goes all the way in or down - there may be air in the brake lines. If you need to pump the brake to stop your machine - this also is indicative of air in the brake lines. This is easily remedied, but can be very dangerous to let go on - as your brakes may fail completely at some critical point when you are really wanting to get that motorcycle stopped. Bleeding the brakes is a relatively simple proposition on most motorcycles, however if you've never bleed the brakes on a car or bike before - take it to a professional. You could accidently allow even more air into the lines in you don't know what you are doing.

Ok, that 's all for now. I've got to pack and get on a Jet for Las Vegas and then a motorcycle ride over to Phoenix with the Sin Sity Sisters for the WITW Winter Nationals. Next time, How to tell when you need to change your filters. JBC


Tune Ups
Article #2-09

Tune Ups "It just needs a tune up and she'll be running great!"
Mysterious words that captured my imagination at a tender age. All the men seemed to be in on this great secret 'fix' that women just weren't expected to be able to understand but I just had to know what was going on under the hood.

My dad and his friends, then later my brothers and their friends would pounce on a poorly running car or motorcycle over a wk.end, give it a 'tune up ' and Voila - by Sunday afternoon we had a smooth running machine again. A good tune up seemed to be a magical fix for all things motorized. I guess I really am a born motor head as I always found this extremely fascinating.

Just what really is involved in a tune up? Well back then, the process was actually much more complicated than it is today. In the beginning, a tune up included quite a variety of tasks. The points would be replaced or filed and reset as necessary. All the filters, air, fuel & maybe the oil filter would be replaced or cleaned as appropriate. Spark plugs would be removed and replaced with new ones. If the plug wires were worn, you got new ones at this time. The carburetor might get a few adjustments - maybe the idle speed or other things. Timing would be reset if necessary - no small feat of wrenching in itself. This could involve slowly rotating the distributor around and flashing a special timing light down on a mark on the crankshaft at the same time. A job best done with two people really. Most all the fluids would be checked and topped off or changed as required. No wonder the dang things ran better after a tune up… quite a few parts & fluids were renewed, cleaned or replaced.

These days a computer handles about 90% of the above chores. Computerized Internal Combustion Engines require less moving parts as more and more engine components are electronic not mechanical in nature. Of course the core engine still has lots of moving parts - pistons moving up and down, chains, belts, push rods or over head cams - all moving. The valves still have to open and close, but the ECM or PCM controls all these things today. Through feed-back from sensors all over your motorcycle, the brain decides how the bike should fire, idle and run whether under load or not.

Another factor that minimizes what gets done during a tune up now is the fact that most shops will itemize some of the above items into a different category than tune up. For example: Changing the oil and oil filter is one job to itself. Changing a fuel filter would be considered to be a job to do with a fuel-delivery problem or general maintenance.

So, what do you get today with a tune up? Pretty much, the spark plugs will be checked and or replaced and the air filter will be changed or cleaned as appropriate. Fluids should be checked, but if you need to change them, this will be an additional charge not included in the tune up price. A good shop should check your tire air pressure and will probably take a look at your tires and brakes for wear, though if the bike needs these things it will cost extra.

Well I hope that unravels the mystery for you. It's still important to tune up your motorcycle regularly, check the owner's manual for the schedule. These days most of us can learn to do a tune up on our own motorcycles, since it's mainly just plugs and an air filter. Cool, huh?

Till next time~ Keep the Shiny Side UP ^ Jasmine Bluecreek Clark
www.bluecreekmotorcycletraining.com



Winterizing Your Ride
Article #1-09

Ugh! Motorcycle Maintenance Again? Yeah, I know, we all just want to ride 'em not work on them. Believe me I know it gets tedious sometimes - all this maintenance. But if you spend a couple of hours preparing your bike now - your motorcycle should crank right over and breeze right out of the driveway next Spring.

We all know batteries and tires need winter attention, but leaving the old fuel in the bike all winter can also cause engine and carburetor problems next Spring. If you are planning on winterizing your own machine pay careful attention, recommendations for computerized, Fuel Injected models are different than those for Carbureted models.

The following suggestions are for folks who are parking their motorcycles until next Spring.
On either style of engine if you are not going to drain the gas be sure to use a good fuel stabilizer in a full tank of gas a.s.a.p.
These products can help prevent gumminess in the fuel during storage.

Carbureted Engines should have the fuel drained from both the tank and the carb. Open your fuel line somewhere between the gas tank and the carburetor and simply drain all the gas into a suitable container. Replace your fuel line, close the fuel valve and run your bike in neutral until the carb is empty. All finished with that chore. It is pretty easy actually! This does not harm your engine - it is the same thing as if you ran out of gas while riding. Now you won't have to worry about 'gummed up' fuel passages next year.

Fuel Injected Engines - DO NOT attempt to drain all the fuel from the system! Instead you want to do the opposite. Keep the gas tank filled to the top to discourage moisture build up. Start your motorcycle at least twice a month from now until you start riding it regularly again. You'll want to run it approximately 5-8 minutes - no more. Remember, if your motorcycle is air-cooled, leaving it idling for any longer can cause other costly damage - so only run it for a few minutes. A good way to determine how long to run it - if during this process the bike becomes so hot you cannot touch the motor with your bare hand - it's too hot - turn it off immediately. If it is liquid cooled - I would still not recommend letting it run longer than about 8 minutes. Circulating the gas in this manner will keep the fuel passages open and will also help circulate the oil and lubricate seals throughout the engine. Remember to open a window or door if you are working indoors.

Cable Lubrication is also important. Whether you lubed the cables last Spring or not, it is now time to lubricate them again to prevent moisture inside the sheath over the winter months. Your owners' manual or dealership can recommend a suitable cable lube product. In the past, we always used an oil-based cable lube, but now we prefer to use Dri-Slide™, a Moly Dry Film Lubricant. This product is easier to use as the molecules are smaller so it works its way through the cable sheath faster and is less messy. However, Dri Slide is more toxic. You will need to wear gloves and be careful.

With either product, simply follow the directions supplied with the cable lube and squirt that oil or moly film into the sheath at the grips until it comes out the other end. You can see it come out at the transmission for the clutch cable, or at the carburetor for throttle cables. Redo the cables at the hand grips and your bikes cables are protected against rust and corrosion for another season. There is a detailed chapter on how to do this in my new book ABC's of Motorcycle Wrenching.

Antifreeze, if your bike is liquid cooled it is absolutely mandatory that you check the freeze-point of the coolant. Make sure it's good enough for the coldest temperatures you expect in your location. While you're at it - look at the condition of the coolant. Is it clean and sweet smelling? Or is it brown, smelly, full of rust or other contaminants? The coolant may no longer be able to do its job if it smells or looks nasty. The dirt or rust could cause engine damage. Probably a good time to flush the system and put in new, clean antifreeze as per your owner's manual recommendations.

Speaking of Batteries, did you know computerized and fuel injected bikes draw current all the time, even when your bike is parked? Yes they do! I recommend keeping a battery tender on your bike all winter long. This is also helpful for being able to start it up periodically to circulate the gas and oils.

On some motorcycles, it's recommended to simply remove the battery from the bike, Dual Sport or Dirt bikes for example. Store the battery somewhere warm for the next few months to prolong its life. Remember to throw a charge on it before reinstalling next Spring.

Protecting the Internal Engine might be in order for some riders. If you plan to start it up throughout the winter, no need to think about this step at all. On the other hand, if you are planning to remove the battery, some mechanics recommend protecting the cylinders by squirting about 1 teaspoon of Clean engine oil into the cylinders through the spark plug holes. Next, you would replace the spark plugs, but not the plug wires. Carefully ground the spark plug caps, but do not reattach to the spark plugs yet. BE CAREFUL - DON'T ELECTROCUTE YOURSELF. There's about 50,000 volts coming through those spark plug wires and caps during the time you are cranking the engine. Keep Your body parts and anything flammable well away from the spark plug caps at this point in the proceedure.

Then simply crank the engine over - once or twice only. This spreads the oil to coat the cylinders to protect them. Then simply reattach the wires to the plugs. Note: do the above before you remove the battery.

We all want nice round tires when we're next ready to ride. If you leave your bike parked in one spot for months we all know what happens right? First ride next year, your bike will be making all kinds of ka-thunka-a-thunka noises! The tires will develop flat spots. To prevent this, store the bike on a center stand or mc lift that gets it up off its tires for the winter. If you don't own anything like that, simply roll the mc to a different tire contact patch periodically and often. Special Note: If any or all of the above sounded like Greek to you - don't mess with winterizing your own motorcycle (unless you are Greek) - take it to the dealership or shop.

I always like to remind ya'll that the best thing for your motorcycles over the winter is to keep riding them! But then, Winter riding certainly carries its own hazards and is not for everyone. Speaking for Roger and I, we ride every chance we get - even in the cold. Chilly, short rides are great for relieving cabin fever and PMS (parked motorcycle syndrome) and are good for the bike as well.

If you take care of this maintenance now, I predict you will open your garage next Spring to a much happier motorcycle that is ready to hit the road when you are. Now that is something to look forwards too!
Jasmine Bluecreek Clark
www.bluecreekartworks.com






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***Disclaimer Repeated: The decision to work on your own motorcycle ~ or not ~ is a personal choice. It is possible to do serious damage to both you and your motorcycle. Jasmine Bluecreek Clark, Bluecreek Art Works and Bluecreek Motorcycle Training Co. creates and shares these articles to be an aid in understanding how your motorcycle works. They are not a substitute for professional repair or maintenance work done by a certified mechanic or technician. In some cases, working on your motorcycle could void your warranty, if you motorcycle is still under a manufacturer's warranty.

While the information shared is true and accurate to the best of our knowledge, motorcycle technology is a rapidly changing field.
All recommendations are made without any guarantee on the part of the Author and/or Publisher, who also disclaim any liability incurred in connection with the use of the data or general or specific details included within this web site.