There’s nothing worse than having a great ride interrupted by issues with your bike. It’s one thing having to stop and resolve an unexpected problem, but another having to stop and resolve a common issue that could have easily been prevented! When it comes to owning motorcycles, keeping on top of motorcycle maintenance is an essential part of getting the most out of your investment.
As well as having benefits for the rider, showing your bike regular TLC can help extend the life of your bike and its individual parts.
This blog talks through some common motorcycle problems and how to avoid them, so you can avoid unexpected stops and keep your eyes on the road. Naturally, we’ll be pointing out opportunities to use the unbeatable range of motorcycle maintenance products offered by Tru-Tension along the way.
Neglecting Your Chain
Knowing how to adjust, clean and lubricate a chain is a vital skill for any rider. Not keeping on top of tasks like this can quickly become a problem and reduce the quality of your ride. A neglected chain can be a real recipe for disaster when it comes to motorbikes, not only impacting rider experience but also exposing a rider to potential dangers. As a result, it’s important to keep on the ball with regular chain checks and maintenance.
Not Cleaning Your Chain
Your chain is central to the overall operation of your bike, so it’s important that you don’t let your chain maintenance slip. First thing’s first, it is vital that your chain is kept clean. Leaving a chain to gather mud and other debris from roads and tracks can wear the teeth on a chain’s sprocket. Unnecessary wear and tear reduces the life of your chain and is likely to result in a bike needing more frequent chain replacements over the course of its life. How often you need to clean your chain will totally depend on the type of ride your bike has been on. In short – more mud equals more frequent cleans.
Not Regularly Lubricating Your Chain
To keep your ride smooth, the connection between your chain and bike sprockets needs to stay seamless- regularly lubricating your chain is the best way to keep clunkiness at bay. A smooth connection between elements makes for a generally smoother ride, as well as reducing corrosion, friction and general wear. Many people overlook the importance of lubricating a bike chain when in reality, it’s an easy way of preventing troublesome motorcycle problems – especially with the help of Tru-Tension’s popular range of chain lubricant products.
Watch out though – there is such a thing as over lubricating. While an under lubricated chain allows too much metal-on-metal contact, an over lubricated chain can be a magnet for grit and dirt. It’s about finding a happy medium.
Not Carrying Out Regular Chain Checks
Carrying out routine checks on your bike’s chain won’t necessarily make you an instant motorcycling champion, but it does help if you want your bike to last. As you might gather, motorcycle chains can be pretty high maintenance. Not only can you run into problems if a chain isn’t clean or lubricated, you can also come up stuck if a chain is not adjusted correctly. On one hand, a loose chain is a recipe for trouble. On the other, a chain that’s too tight can cause just as many problems. For a no fuss solution to tensioning your chain, Tru-Tension’s ‘Chain Monkey’, motorcycle chain tensioning tool is here to help! Order yours here.
Not Carrying Out Basic Checks
Failing or forgetting to carry out basic checks on a motorcycle is one of the most commonly reported motorcycle mistakes. From tyre checks, break checks – even tightening bolts and screws. Simple precautions such as these can be what separates a safe ride from a highly dangerous one.
Not Carrying Out Tyre Checks
You often hear about checking the tyre pressure on your car, but motorcycle tyre pressure is just as important. Not regularly checking the tyre pressure on your motorcycle can have serious consequences. Not only does forgetting to check tyre pressure reduce the life of your tyres, it can also compromise the safety of a rider. The handling of a motorcycle can be heavily impacted by tyre pressure that’s too high or too low. Not keeping a watchful eye on tyre pressure can also make it easier for tyres to overheat.
Not Carrying Out Break Checks
It is always crucial to check that your motorcycle brakes are working effectively. Worn down brakes can be a serious hazard that hugely compromises the safety of a rider. Inability to make use of a bike’s braking system can easily cause dangerous collisions.
Not Tightening Bolts and Screws
The rapid vibrations experienced by a motorcycle can easily cause bolts and screws to become loose. Failing to tighten these bolts and screws can hugely reduce the structural integrity of a motorbike, even allowing it to fall apart. Regularly feeling for loose bolts and listening out for noise that indicates looseness can help protect a rider from hazards caused by this mistake.
Motorcycle Maintenance with Tru-Tension
To keep on top of all things maintenance and for help on getting the most out of your bike, take a look at the range of bicycle cleaning and maintenance products available with Tru-Tension. Our extensive stock features a wide range of products that help keep bike maintenance easy and you on the road.
For tailored guidance about selecting the product that’s right for you and your bike, get in touch with one of our team. Or take a look at some of the existing posts on our blog!