Winter plans for your bike?

[Stu]

So what plans do you have in store for the bike to keep you occupied through this long cold spell? 

 

For me its just remove some of the fairings and have a general clean of the nooks and crannies you can't normally reach 

 

I also need to reset the timing as its slightly out 

 

Maybe remove the rear drive shaft to lube the splines 

[Pie man]

Keep on riding them, as my main mode of transport I've not much option. I don't mind winter riding. The cleaning afterwards keeps me busy

[Bender]

Sort out clutch switch, ride it when it's dry  

[Pie man]

1 minute ago, Bender said:

Sort out clutch switch, ride it when it's dry  

Which could be sometime - with this weather  

[billy sugger]

I'm with @Pie manman. I ride it all year round, then spend ages cleaning it in winter 

Edited December 8, 2021 by billy sugger

[S-Westerly]

Got it treated by All Year Biker guy down in Wiltshire. Then ride it when I can. I'd prefer not to ride in snow. The most annoying thing is I have to wash it so much more often due to crap on roads.

[Fish]

I'm with @Pie man, weekend rides if the weather is decent or to commute if required

[S-Westerly]

Surprised how long in advance I've had to book my bike in for service. Its due this week but the earliest I can get it done is 8th January. Hey Ho.

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

The Honda gets ridden as usual. I keep a hose by the gate to rinse it down when the mud gets too thick.

 

The Bobber stays in the garage until a dry day comes along.

 

The only time I don't ride is when the hill has black ice on it. 

[iangaryprice]

I ride mine most of the winter, MOT done last month, new Michelin Pilot road 4 fitted on front, I have a rear in the garage, it will be fitted soon.

I fitted heated grips today and went for a test ride. I only got cheap ones £15 off ebay, but first impressions are good. I could feel the heat though my gloves aftera few minutes.  Started on max heat setting (4) turned down to 3 after about 10 mins. I think 2 would have been best for a longer ride. Temp was about 8degC today so hopefully they are powerful enough for frosty mornings.

 

[Stu]

10 minutes ago, iangaryprice said:

I ride mine most of the winter, MOT done last month, new Michelin Pilot road 4 fitted on front, I have a rear in the garage, it will be fitted soon.

I fitted heated grips today and went for a test ride. I only got cheap ones £15 off ebay, but first impressions are good. I could feel the heat though my gloves aftera few minutes.  Started on max heat setting (4) turned down to 3 after about 10 mins. I think 2 would have been best for a longer ride. Temp was about 8degC today so hopefully they are powerful enough for frosty mornings.

 

 

Heated grips are so underrated! 

 

A lot of people say nah you don't need them but once you use them you need them on every bike 

[iangaryprice]

1 hour ago, Stu said:

 

Heated grips are so underrated! 

 

A lot of people say nah you don't need them but once you use them you need them on every bike 

I think I will end up agreeing with you. I bought the cheap ones because I wasn't convinced. Only cost £14, (1/2 the costof R&G and 1/3 cost of Oxford), seem to work well, not sure how long they will last, they have a 5 year guarantee and seem fairly well made.

After this afternoons test ride I realised I had not put the liners back in my Jacket and trousers (wondered why this winter seemed so cold). Should be nice and warm now - heated grips and thermal liners!

[onesea]

7 hours ago, iangaryprice said:

I think I will end up agreeing with you. I bought the cheap ones because I wasn't convinced. Only cost £14, (1/2 the costof R&G and 1/3 cost of Oxford), seem to work well, not sure how long they will last, they have a 5 year guarantee and seem fairly well made.

After this afternoons test ride I realised I had not put the liners back in my Jacket and trousers (wondered why this winter seemed so cold). Should be nice and warm now - heated grips and thermal liners!

I have to ask which cheap ones you bought?
I have used this type for years (5 years and 4 years), and I cannot fault them.  

What attracted me is there is no control box to mount on the handle bars.

 

The only additional thing I have done is fitted a relay so they turn off with the ignition.

 

I had Oxford on my fittest bike and IMHO they got to hot your hands sweated then got cold because they where damp.

 

Edited December 9, 2021 by onesea

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

Heated gloves for me. They keep the back of my hands and fingertips warmer. Plus one pair of gloves works on whichever bike I'm riding. 

[TimR]

Ordered one of these for the wife's Ninja...

 

 

https://m.louis-moto.co.uk/artikel/louis-vci-fold-garage-corrosion-protection/10011346?filter_article_number=10011347

 

But they were on offer for £24 

 

Mine will be used so a good clean soon and give it a good blast with ACF.

 

 

[fastbob]

I'm going to clean every inch of mine and put it up for sale in the Spring . Then I'm going to search for a 1450 FXDX Dynaglide Sport that hasn't been buggered around with . 

[manxie49]

The only thing that changes for me is the winter gear comes out, liners get put in, and my heated gloves get charged up and ready to go.  I usually prep the bike around October.  Good clean and a covering of ACF50.  The only weather I try and avoid if possible is snow and ice, I actually hate riding on icy roads, even more than ones with snow on them,  at least with snow you can see its there.

[Trooper74]

Ice Ice Baby ..... If it’s icy the cover stays over the bike, ( it lives outside all year round ) if not its ridden. I tend to ride between 1000 - 1500hrs only in the winter ..

[Ian Frog]

2 hours ago, fastbob said:

I'm going to clean every inch of mine and put it up for sale in the Spring . Then I'm going to search for a 1450 FXDX Dynaglide Sport that hasn't been buggered around with . 

I think there is a very nice FXCDC lurking somewhere on here if your search doesn`t go well !

Cheers

Ian

[husoi]

With the BACA membership I will be riding a lot more than previous years and on any weather conditions

[John Metcalfe]

I'm probably more fortunate than you guys in the UK as living here in Tunisia we having good biking weather all year round with the average temperature this time of year being around 25C. Only problem I have is cleaning all the dust & sand out of the nooks and crannies after a ride out but that's a minor inconvenience compared to rain and snow in the UK.

[Stu]

2 minutes ago, John Metcalfe said:

I'm probably more fortunate than you guys in the UK as living here in Tunisia we having good biking weather all year round with the average temperature this time of year being around 25C. Only problem I have is cleaning all the dust & sand out of the nooks and crannies after a ride out but that's a minor inconvenience compared to rain and snow in the UK.

 

Nothing like rubbing salt in to the wound  

[iangaryprice]

9 hours ago, onesea said:

I have to ask which cheap ones you bought?
I have used this type for years (5 years and 4 years), and I cannot fault them.  

What attracted me is there is no control box to mount on the handle bars.

 

The only additional thing I have done is fitted a relay so they turn off with the ignition.

 

I had Oxford on my fittest bike and IMHO they got to hot your hands sweated then got cold because they where damp.

 

 

These are the ones I bought off ebay. £15.79.

I connected mine into the headlight wire (headlight live when ignition is on) so did't need a relay. I put a 10amp breaker in the line (going to change it for a 5amp one soon).

I like the lack of control box as well, the oxford ones are quite large and stand out. These grips are fairly unobtrusive, only the control on the left grip shows they are fitted (wiring is mostly hidden). I didn't use the metal bracket supplied for the wiring on the right grip, I got it much neater with a cable tie ontot the exsiting wiring.

I'll get some photos later and upload them.

I checked the current draw with them set to maximum, it was about 2 amps (without engine running, I'll check again with enf=gine running). I think the Oxford ones are about 4 amps,

[iangaryprice]

47 minutes ago, John Metcalfe said:

I'm probably more fortunate than you guys in the UK as living here in Tunisia we having good biking weather all year round with the average temperature this time of year being around 25C. Only problem I have is cleaning all the dust & sand out of the nooks and crannies after a ride out but that's a minor inconvenience compared to rain and snow in the UK.

Weather in the UK at present is not nice, it chnages every day. We have had 2 storms so far causing a fair amount of damage, todays not bad, about 8c and very little wind and no rain, but roads are mostly wet and not drying out. We had some snow last week as well.

[fastbob]

1 hour ago, Ian Frog said:

I think there is a very nice FXCDC lurking somewhere on here if your search doesn`t go well !

Cheers

Ian

Well I have dropped you the odd subtle hint in the past . If you were thinking of selling it would take all the stress and uncertainty out of the equation .