Packing the bike away for the winter.

At the moment it's just a thought.

Can't see many more nice days on the horizon and what with all the crap on the roads, do i even want to risk a 30 mile blip 'round Wales when I can stay in the warm and beat people up on Call of Duty 4 ?? hmmmm.. decisions..

What is required to 'pack a bike away' for an extended period of time??

• Stabiliser in the petrol ??
• Paddock stands to give the tyres abit of respite (ie: not stationary on the same patch of tyre continuously ??
• Grease up the chain nice..
• Let tyres down perhaps ??

Oh i don't know..

Any suggestions welcome.

Its just something I am playing around with at the moment - it's not definite..

[G]

Dont do it why pay insurance and tax to not ride it 6 months of the year because its a little bit cold.

Take it out, hose the salt off with cold water, job done. You will feel better for it. And you wont feel like a fairweather nancy....no offence intended

Oh but I am a nancy..

On a more serious note, I am not worried about the cost implications as it was only ever purchased to be a 'toy' so to speak. It won't really be 6mnths as due to global warming, isn't our summer around March time anyhow's?? That's 3 month and 2 weeks roughly..

Plus, it isn't so much the salt, its the fact that i desperately don't want to spill it so will i get my usual enjoyment out of riding when i am pooteling about like a remploy ??

..not to mention I can't afford warm biker clothing at the moment. Crappy leather jacket and jeans is all i got and I've asked Santa for other stuff ..

[G]

If your worried about binning it you will never enjoy it.

and

The best way not to bin it is to be out there learning on it.

The "putting the bike to sleep" stuff is all in the manual (near the back IIRC). There is absolutely loads you can do to it, but IMO, most of it's overkill unless the bike is going into storage for 6 months plus. Brimming the engine with oil, brimming the tank with fuel and whacking the battery on an optimate will be fine for 3 months or so on a new SV. If you have paddock stands, use them, if not, just roll it a foot forwards every 2 weeks or so. Just remember to drain/change the oil before you start it up (post it note over the ignition works for me)!

If you get stuck PM me as I'm fairly free this week and could pop over one evening to help.

I just pop mine in the shed plug it in to the optimate and get it on the abba stand. I start it up every 3 weeks or so just to get the oil round the engine. Done that the last 2 winters with no problems. oh and I do move the front tyre round a bit as well.

Originally Posted by DoubleD

I just pop mine in the shed plug it in to the optimate and get it on the abba stand. I start it up every 3 weeks or so just to get the oil round the engine. Done that the last 2 winters with no problems. oh and I do move the front tyre round a bit as well.

this is all i do with no problems at all.

i have to disagree with mr patterson...nothing to do with being a fairweather nancy,more common sense really as well as taking pride in youre machine.

ive always stored my bikes from nov/mar for preservation purposes ie.. salt corrosion,and who wants to hit black ice/frost and end up goin a**e over t*t and smashing up their pride and joy?

1fill petrol up to full{stops inside of tank rusting}then add a fuel stabilizer.
2drain oil put fresh in{just cheapo stuff as it wont be used}
3give a good wash n wax
4spray all over with acf-50{protect from corrosion}
5keep battery on charge
6stuff a rag in end of exaust{stops moisture build up}
7try and get both wheels off ground{so to avoid flat spots and cracking of tyres}
8kiss it goodnight and cover it up.

when spring arrives change oil again{good stuff this time}and put in new oil filter.

this is my way of doin things and has always served me well,but its each to their own i guess.

hope this helps anyway.

[G]

So because you dont pack you bike away means you dont take pride in your machine and your not bothered about corrosion, and black ice.

Corrosion - keep on top of it and wash the bike down with cold water to rid the bike of salt.

Black ice - Take it steady in conditions where there might be black ice.

I ride my bike in all conditions and take great pride in it .

There alot to be said for packing a vehicle of any description away for long periods without use.

I know someone who teaches all year round on a fazer 600 its 3 years old and done 50k+ ......its in better condition and running order than alot of 3 year old bikes that have been tucked away every winter by 'caring owners'

Whatever floats your boat though i guess

I'll be putting mine away for a bit but will probably want to use it if we get a spell of dry/warmer weather.. It won't go more than 2 or 3 weeks without being used (hopefully).. is it ok to leave it as it is? I mean, is it worth adding fuel stabiliser or anything like that? I don't keep it on an optimate as it's outside and nowhere to plug it in! It doesn't have an alarm and haven't had a problem with the battery so far.. Touch wood