My Biking Tips

#1 - Always try and lock your bike to an immovable object even when it's at home. If you haven't got a ground anchor, get one.

#2 - Never leave the lock lying on the floor (as it's easier to break with a hard surface behind it)

#3 - Brake cleaner is excellent at cleaning hard to remove grime off your bike. Finish off with Silicone spray for a clear protective shine, but don't get any on the seat, tyres or brakes.

#4 - Silicone is also excellent at protecting your radiator and forks from Winter salt rot.

#5 - When cornering on left handers, stay to the right of the bend for the best view (and vice versa), but never compromise on safety.

#6 - UK safety cameras will generally go off at 10% + 2mph minimum. A nice table below:

Speed limit Trigger speed
20mph 25mph (due to accuracy of speedometers)
30mph 35mph
40mph 46mph
50mph 57mph
60mph 68mph
70mph 79mph

#7 - The SV speedo is ~5-10% out and will over-read slightly further as tyres wear down. By my calculations (GPS)

Displayed speed Actual speed
20mph 14mph (!)
30mph 24mph
40mph 34mph
50mph 45mph
60mph 56mph
70mph 66mph

In conjunction with #6, you will generally be safe from a safety camera hit if you ride within the next speed limit band (for example, indicated 70 in a 60 will generally not trigger the camera, so you have no excuses!)

#8 - Placing the bike on a paddock stand, flicking it in first, spinning the back wheel up slightly and spraying the chain with lube on the sides and on the bottom run as it runs up the sprocket is an excellent way of ensuring excellent lubrication (careful with your hands)

#9 - If the bike finds false neutrals when changing up, check your gear changing foot is in the right position on the peg. Adjust the pegs if you have to angle your foot up to change up. Be positive with your shifts and don't tickle it.

#10 - Don't use washing up liquid to clean your bike, it'll corrode (salt content)

#11 - When running in tyres, increase lean angles in corners for a CONSTANT speed. Don't accelerate or brake sharply especially when leant over as the tyre compound release agent has a coefficient of friction similar to diesel.

#12 - A small amount of WD40 and Silicone spray on a rag applied to your helmet visor will disperse rain quickly.

#13 - Try not to ride in the rain with the helmet cracked open more than 1 inch. Rain will enter the inside of your visor and obliterate your field of vision when you pull it down again.

#14 - As everyone forgets to perform safety checks on a bike use the following acronmyn and put it in your garage or near your bike gear, particularly valuable for Winter riding.

B - Brakes
L - Lights
T - Tyre tread depth



Cheers

Originally Posted by mpaton2006

#6 - UK safety cameras are crap.

#7 - Just go through them too fast and break the legal limit - I'll pay the fines if you're caught.

[dirtydog]

Originally Posted by mpaton2006

If you haven't got a ground anchor, get one.

And where do we put the said ground anchor if we park in the street?

Originally Posted by mpaton2006

#6 - UK safety cameras will generally go off at 10% + 2mph minimum. A nice table below:

Speed limit Trigger speed
20mph 25mph (due to accuracy of speedometers)
30mph 35mph
40mph 46mph
50mph 57mph
60mph 68mph
70mph 79mph

So you're advocating speeding in 20mph areas ie outside schools etc? That 20mph limit is there for a reason. Do you have kids? would you be ok with one of them being knocked down outside school and seriously hurt cos the rider/driver was doing above the speed limit cos "the camera doesn't go off til you get over the 10% + 2mph" so it must be ok?

Originally Posted by mpaton2006

#7 - The SV speedo is ~5-10% out and will over-read slightly further as tyres wear down. By my calculations (GPS)

Displayed speed Actual speed
20mph 14mph (!)
30mph 24mph
40mph 34mph
50mph 45mph
60mph 56mph
70mph 66mph

In conjunction with #6, you will generally be safe from a safety camera hit if you ride within the next speed limit band (for example, indicated 70 in a 60 will generally not trigger the camera, so you have no excuses!)

So again you're advocating speeding, so when people get a3 points and a fine for speeding can we pass these on to you to deal with?

Originally Posted by mpaton2006

uot;]
#8 - Placing the bike on a paddock stand, flicking it in first, spinning the back wheel up slightly and spraying the chain with lube on the sides and on the bottom run as it runs up the sprocket is an excellent way of ensuring excellent lubrication (careful with your hands)

Indeed an excellent tip...
for removing any unwanted fingers

Also paddock stands aren't that stable so i certainly wouldn't be doing that!

Originally Posted by mpaton2006

#12 - A small amount of WD40 and Silicone spray on a rag applied to your helmet visor will disperse rain quickly.

Do you know what is in WD40 etc and what effects it may have on your helmet/visor? I don't so wont be doing that either

Originally Posted by mpaton

#13 - Try not to ride in the rain with the helmet cracked open more than 1 inch. Rain will enter the inside of your visor and obliterate your field of vision when you pull it down again.

Again another top tip ... unless your visor is badly misting up and you cant see anything anyway

Originally Posted by mpaton2006

#14 - As everyone forgets to perform safety checks on a bike use the following acronmyn and put it in your garage or near your bike gear, particularly valuable for Winter riding.

B - Brakes
L - Lights
T - Tyre tread depth

A better acronym is probabbly the POWER one

Petrol
Oil
Water
Electrics
Rubber

[dirtydog]

Aah K beat me to it albeit a simplified version

Originally Posted by mpaton2006

#8 - Placing the bike on a paddock stand, flicking it in first, spinning the back wheel up slightly and spraying the chain with lube on the sides and on the bottom run as it runs up the sprocket is an excellent way of ensuring excellent lubrication (careful with your hands)

Please do not try this at home folks.

[Richie]

Originally Posted by stuartyboy

Please do not try this at home folks.

Summary Over the past 5 years, 134 digits were replanted in 85 patients. In 9 patients — 10 digits (11%) — the causation of injury was a motorcycle chain. The significant incidence of this type of injury has prompted us to report the replantation results. Hopefully, this might be used to caution the public against cleaning the chain while it is in motion. All amputated parts were distal to the DIP joint. The digits were replanted with anastomosis of both the artery and the vein. Eight out of the 10 replanted digits survived to give a success rate of 80%. There was no statistical difference between this rate and that for all other replanted digits resulting from various causes in Zones I and II, i.e. 86%. The high success rate suggests that replantation of the chain-amputated digits should be recommended, and the apparently poor conditions of the crush injury are no contraindications for surgery.
Key words Finger amputation - Replantation - Chain injury

[21QUEST]

Jesu Christy , you guys have really gone to work eh..

For sure some of His tips are very debate-able but I'm think with a bit of common sense(now I'm guessing here) they are not that bad.

About the chain if I've read that bit correctly he was referring to lubing and not cleaning so I'll say why not?

Over 20mph past schools? Of course you can do that without putting any kids in danger.


Cheers
Ben

People who know me will know that I am the LAST person to speed. I posted the guide for informative purposes only, considering so many people get caught then complain about it.

I posted the stats on speeding outside school a short time ago. The proportion of children involved in KSIs outside school due to breaking the speed limit is statistically insignificant.

Plus, cameras are the last thing I'd put up outside a school. I'd much rather people be concentrating on the road.

Regarding the other tips, they do work. If you've not got any common sense, and you're stupid enough to put your hand in the chain when the wheel is spinning (incidentally at about 20-30 rpm, not 3,000) then you deserve what you get.

WD40 is fine for helmets, just don't get any on the rubber seal, which is why I suggested a rag for application.


In summary if you haven't got anything better to do than be deliberately antagonistic towards my thread and incite trouble, then **** off. The tips were mainly for newer riders. If you know it all, then don't read them.

Originally Posted by Richie1743

Summary Over the past 5 years, 134 digits were replanted in 85 patients. In 9 patients — 10 digits (11%) — the causation of injury was a motorcycle chain. The significant incidence of this type of injury has prompted us to report the replantation results. Hopefully, this might be used to caution the public against cleaning the chain while it is in motion.

Key point clearly marked.

tips for newbie riders huh? Thank **** you're not an instructor or something.