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well its already that time for me...


Benyen Soljax
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so my 250 is sitting at my parents house like it has been for about a month. what should i do do get it ready for winter? keep in mind that anything i need to do to my bike has to be ordered online and my mom has to carry out the deed. so far ive got sta-bil and a bike cover on the list, any other suggestions?

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my husband does something with our batteries so they don't die over the winter.....i wanna say something like trickle charger? we bought some at sears a couple of years ago for $20-30 bucks. i'll find out for sure and edit my stupid post if i'm wrong if and no one corrects me before then.

i just ride the fuckers, mark maintains them :0)

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front and rear stands. Keep from getting flat spots in the tires.

Flat spots are just a myth

Just make sure the bike parked on a piece of carpet or something to keep the tires off the cold concrete.. Stabil is good but also make sure to fill the gas tank as far up as possible to prevent condensation in the tank.. If your worried about "flat spots" just move your bike about a foot every 3-4 weeks. A battery tender is not a bad idea but Ive never used one.

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Flat spots are just a myth

Just make sure the bike parked on a piece of carpet or something to keep the tires off the cold concrete.. Stabil is good but also make sure to fill the gas tank as far up as possible to prevent condensation in the tank.. If your worried about "flat spots" just move your bike about a foot every 3-4 weeks. A battery tender is not a bad idea but Ive never used one.

again im a bunch of states away, its hard to motivate my parents to maintain my bike unfortunately.

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Like what's been said... flat spots are a myth. Get a couple scrap pieces of 2x6 or something to get the tires off the ground.

Before you do anything clean it. Wash it, scrub the chain real well using Kerosene and clean up any gunk you find anywhere... Lube all your cables and chain real well.

Put Stabil in the thing, and run it to make sure it gets through the system... Hit the gas station and top it off (as full as possible... the less air in the tank the better)... Air gaps pull condensation, causing rust...

Pull the battery, check the water level, fill with distilled water if it's not nearly full, and keep it on a battery tender (trickle charger) for the winter. If possible, store the charging battery in a temperature controlled evironment... if that's impossible and you don't want to screw around with the tender, you can drain the battery and keep the electrolyte stored seperately... That's more of a pain in the azz though IMHO... The point of all this BTW is to avoid oxidation on the plates.... which ruin batteries.

Depending on who you talk to, you'll want to drain the carbs. I've done it both ways, drain and no drain... never had any issues. When I had my bike stored for more than a winter, I've always drained the carbs... Without draining the carbs over a winter, it always fired right up and ran fine immediately at the beginning of the season.

Cover it. Guessing you'll store it in a garage... You'd be amazed at how much grease and dust is in the air and will stick to your bike... If you're real paranoid, you can plug up some of the various orafices to ensure mice and chit don't crawl up in there and die...

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Flat spots are just a myth

Just make sure the bike parked on a piece of carpet or something to keep the tires off the cold concrete.. If your worried about "flat spots" just move your bike about a foot every 3-4 weeks.

Like what's been said... flat spots are a myth. Get a couple scrap pieces of 2x6 or something to get the tires off the ground.

If flat spots are a myth then why do both of you recommend parking on carpet?? The point of the carpet is to avoid flat spots in your tires. They also make tire mats specifically for this, but the carpet is a way cheaper way to go. Or yes, you can just move the bike every few weeks and you'll be fine. It takes a couple of months. Even if you do get flat spots, they usually only last 50 - 100 miles or so before the tire takes shape.

Tire pressure?

Before putting your motorcycle into storage, make sure your tires are inflated to their maximum recommend pressure. Remember, as it gets colder, tires tend to lose their pressure. Properly inflating the tires will discourage the appearance of flat spots on the tires, as will moving the bike around every couple of weeks, so it is not sitting on the same spot on the tire all winter long.

That's from: http://www.kanetix.com/winter-protection-for-your-bike

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Here's some more info about winterizing:

http://www.rmh-d.com/service/winterize.php

http://www.motorcyclecruiser.com/tech/winter_storage/index.html

http://www.kanetix.ca/ic_moto_info_moto_articles_02

http://www.newfoundlandbiker.tv/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=16&Itemid=31

Having your motorcycle sitting in one spot for extended periods of time can create flat spots in your tires. The best solution for this is to elevate both wheels off the ground with front and rear stands.

http://www.motorcyclebasics.com/maintain.htm

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If flat spots are a myth then why do both of you recommend parking on carpet?? The point of the carpet is to avoid flat spots in your tires. They also make tire mats specifically for this, but the carpet is a way cheaper way to go. Or yes, you can just move the bike every few weeks and you'll be fine. It takes a couple of months. Even if you do get flat spots, they usually only last 50 - 100 miles or so before the tire takes shape.

That's from: http://www.kanetix.com/winter-protection-for-your-bike

Myth is not the proper word, I apologize... It's more that newer tires are not as likely to develop flat spots. 20 years ago, that wasn't the case.

The point these days of keeping your tires off the concrete is moisture. Moisture between the tire and concrete leads to premature tire rotting...

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Myth is not the proper word, I apologize... It's more that newer tires are not as likely to develop flat spots. 20 years ago, that wasn't the case.

The point these days of keeping your tires off the concrete is moisture. Moisture between the tire and concrete leads to premature tire rotting...

I've always done the carpet thing and moved it once in awhile. Usually the move was a quick (really fucking cold) ride around the neighborhood. :cool:

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alright well m not going to be home until christmas so maybe i can do some of this stuff at that point. i think the only thing my parents will be able to handle is putting stabil in the tank.

Stabil ain't gonna do chit unless you run it... And in all honesty, gas doesn't start to break down for a few months, so you could realistically just do everything when you are home for the holidays.

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I've always done the carpet thing and moved it once in awhile. Usually the move was a quick (really fucking cold) ride around the neighborhood. :cool:

My bike sat in storage for around 9-10 months a couple of times... I never moved it at all...

Another thing you want to make sure you don't do... Don't start it. If it's sitting, leave it sit... Starting it just allows condensation into the engine... Not to mention you invite air and water into the gas tank...

Here's another source to note... One thing though, most of these websites you'll find have unnecessary steps in many instances... Like fogging the cylinders... totally unnecessary unless you're gonna store it in a real humid environment (unlike our winters here)...

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If flat spots are a myth then why do both of you recommend parking on carpet?? The point of the carpet is to avoid flat spots in your tires.

Parking on carpet is to keep the tires of of the moist, cold concrete.. not flat spots.. Like what has been said 20yrs ago it was an issue but its not really anymore.

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