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Bike Safety Check � The Know How


Unfortunately there�s more to riding your bike than a simple flick of the switch and yank of the clutch if you didn�t already know! In order for your bike to hold strong resale value you�re going to have to look after it, (or love, admire and caress) as is the case here at BBG� Familiarise yourself with its requirements, cater to its well being and in-turn both you and you�re bike will most likely pose a motorcycle match made in reliability heaven. BBG offers you ten steps to maintenance success below, take a read, and then off to the garage with you!�

Top Ten
  1. Tyres
  2. Chain
  3. Engine Oil
  4. Coolant
  5. Brake Fluid
  6. Oil Filter
  7. Brake Pads
  8. Spark Plugs
  9. Battery
  10. Bolts Check

1) Tyres: What make? When it comes to choosing a set of tyres, never fret too much, just make sure they�re black and round with enough thread for frequent wet weather riding. Legal thread depth for a motorbike tyre by Irish Law is 1.6mm, so ensure to have a good set of rubber on your bike before taking to the streets, not only for keeping those men in blue well at bay, but for you�re own safety too. Many motorcyclists find themselves unsure, pondering over what brand of tyre to pick. Stick to mainstream brands such as Dunlop, Michelin, Bridgestone, Avon, Metzeler etc. We never thought we�d see it, but even regular road users can pick from a choice of different compounds too. For those who don�t know how this operates, a soft compound tyre will grip better and offer brilliant feel, however wear faster than a hard compound tyre. A hard compound tyre won�t grip as well as the soft, but will last longer and cost you less cash in the long run.

2) Chain: Thicker chains/sprockets will wear in different ways. The best thing to do is keep your chain well lubricated, and that means using either wax or spray. WD40 doesn�t work folks, so invest into a good bottle of Castrol or Silkolene chain-grease. Remember that if you need to replace the chain, it�s most likely that the bike will need a new sprocket too. If you place a new chain on without a new sprocket, the chain will actually wear out a lot faster. The same can be said if you buy a sprocket though not a new chain, you�ll wear out the sprockets! Buy both as a set on purchase and fit them together.

3) Engine Oil: Different riders will off-course have their different opinions, but we do recommend you change your bikes engine oil every three to five months max, disregarding the amount of mileage you�ll be covering within that time or engine type of your bike. Its good practice and for the sake of a 15 Euro drum you�ll have guaranteed piece of mind. Note (Two strokes do have varying requirements).

4) Coolant: It�s something that doesn�t bother us all that much, only requiring top-up now and again, so approximately every two years it should be changed. A lot of bike owners mightn�t even change it around in that time, however leaving stale coolant within the engine for any longer periods of time may well lead to serious cases of interior head corrosion. Here�s a brief guide to changing your bikes coolant

Coolant Change:
  • 1 Remove your radiator cap.
  • 2 Remove the cap from the overfill tank.
  • 3 Your best getting a basin and placing it underneath the bikes radiator system.
  • 4 Now remove the overflow vent hose near the radiator filler. When the hose is open direct it towards the basin so that water and coolant will flow out into it, rather than all over the floor!
  • 5 Unscrew the hose clamps off the large radiator hoses ofthe engine and pull hoses off the engine flanges.
  • 6 Now that these are open, the coolant should drain from both the engine and radiator. Once the flow of coolant has stopped, turn your bikes engine over a few times, ensuring to get rid of any left inside.
  • 7 Put the hoses and clips that you earlier replaced back on
  • 8 Now refill the rad back up with coolant/water, and hey presto there you have it!

5) Brake Fluid: It�s brilliant having the latest model Suzuki GSXR1000 or Honda Fireblade spitting out in advance of 170bhp, but all that power remains completely useless unless you have some sharp, functioning brakes. Fluid should be changed every year, don�t listen to the lazy source who says every two years. For those who don�t know, brake fluid is a type of hydraulic fluid used in brake applications on bikes and cages (cars) too. How it operates is it transfers force under pressure through hydraulic brake lines beside the wheels. Brake fluid does come in a range of different formats, varying from DOT2, to DOT 3, 4 and so on. Use DOT 4 or DOT 5 in your bike, and again do spend a little extra on buying fluid with a brand name i.e Silkolene, Rock, Castrol etc. Often other companies will produce low quality brake fluid in big bottles enticing customers, however they don�t last as long and usually let in moisture straight away, whereas the others won�t. Its quality, not quantity that counts guys.



6) Oil Filter: It�s said that for every oil refresh you do, you should go through two oil filters. We have recommended above that you change your engine oil every four months approx. You do the maths, an oil filter every two months.



7) Brake Pads: Back to brakes. Different riders, and obviously different bikes will wear out brake pads in different ways. Obviously a rider who commutes daily and also racks up some weekend riding too will use up a set of brake pads faster than rider B, who is an average Sunday morning ride-outs-only kind of guy. To check your brake pads you�ll have to grab some spanners, and remove the brake callipers away from the brake discs. Examine the pads, and if there�s anything less than 20% compound that was on them when they were new, its realistically time for a change. We recommend EBC�s double sintered pad range.


8) Spark Plugs: When it comes to checking your spark plug condition, there are a few tricks to the trade. Remove the necessary components to gain access to the Spark Plug(s), making sure that the engine is cold and switched off when you go to do so. Pop of the Spark plug cap and loosen the plug with a ratchet, later removing it by hand.

Examine the plug (not the white section), and see what condition it is in. Compare it with the below;

  • If the spark plug you have removed is pretty clean and dry, there�s no need for a change.
  • If there is a build up of dirt that�s moist, shinny and dark, this will mean the plug is oil fouled. A varying range of factors could have led to this problem, including a faulty ignition or worn, unchanged pistons.
  • If the plug is dry and brown coloured, that's an overheated plug caused by too lean an air-fuel mixture, a hot running engine, valves not seating or wrong ignition timing.
  • If it is soot black and very dry, this means that the plug is most likely fowling over petrol. Air fuel mixture is too rich or the engine could be idling too high.


9) Battery: We�ve all at sometime experienced it (and for those of you who haven�t it will happen!), you push the starter button in with your thumb, and nothing happens. Dead battery! Looks like you�ll have to charge it, or if this happens on a frequent basis, its time to buy yourself a new battery. If you do go down the new battery route, make sure to price around as a lot of dealers will try and charge you an extra �25 over manafcturers recommendation.

10) Bolts Check: Bikes do rev pretty high in comparison with cars, meaning nuts and bolts will eventually loosen themselves out over time. We�ve seen everything from Belly pan screws, to rear-set bolts working themselves loose, so every month; grab a spanner and screwdriver, taking a quick run around every bolt visible on your bike and tightening them. Might sound a little anal, though nothing beats the piece of mind found with a tight, finished right bike.