Well, it's another Beautiful Riding Season here in West Virginia and time to fire our powerbikes. First things first. Hopefully, you had a great time last fall cruising and checking out the leaves or "wildlife". Then you woke up that frosty morning and decided that it was getting just too cold to ride anymore. Well, there sat your mighty dependable steed in the building and forgotten for the winter. Before you know it you come crawling out from hibernation under all the gaming remotes,Christmas candy wrappers and thick blankets to discover the birds chirping, trees are blooming and it's warm enough to go for a ride. Ahh but, you failed to prep your bike for that long, cold, moisture laden winter. As the fog in your head from "God of War" begins to clear; you realize: "Crap,I left 1/3 of a gallon of ethanol gas in the tank (some in the carb as well) and no Stabil™. Now the ethanol has sucked moisture into the tank and begun to rust above the fuel level. The gas in that poor little crappy NT carb is so gummed up that the throttle won't even twist. So you attempt to drag 'Ol Bessy out of the barn to clean the carb. Next you discover when you pull the clutch lever the rear wheel still won't turn because you left the clutch engaged all winter and the plate has seized to the pads. Oh,and let's not forget we failed to spray some lubricant down the clutch,brake and throttle cables. Isn't Spring just Grand? So, as you clean the rats nest out of your handlebar tool pouch and as frustration mounts; you take pride in the fact that only the tire that went flat over the winter is dry rotted. As you return from the fridge with another cold one you say to yourself "Damn, I wish I had sprayed a little graphite lube on my chains." As you gradually begin mending you baby's declining health;you attempt to fire her up for the first time. Thoughts of the wind blowing through your hair quickly disappear after the third mile of peddling, kick-starting...pedaling, kick-starting...pedaling, bike- kicking ...pedaling throwing the bike to the ground or worse. Huffing and puffing you look down to discover that the same rats in your tool pouch are reason the ignition wires are chewed, Crap! Pushing the bike back to the barn because you no longer have any energy left to pedal; it dawns on you the the rear wheel has a weird wobble caused by lack of grease in your hub bearings. Remember last Summer when you were blowing by and laughing at all those "pedal-ers" and you felt a little vibration but, chocked it up to engine vibes. Well, come to find out that wobbly sprocket mounted to your spokes with two pieces of old rubber truck tire had helped finish off those dry hub bearings as well as broke two spokes. Ah, but, things are starting to look-up cause you bought a new rear rim and tire. You put in a new SmartTube. NOW, you're finally ready to get back to the REAL business of out-running the cops. So, it's once again: "pedaling, kick-starting...pedaling, kick-starting...pedaling, bike kicking...pedaling, throwing the bike to the ground or worse." Pushing the bike back home (again) and slamming poor "Bessy" to the ground notice water pouring out of the magneto cover. How in the heck could that have happened? Well,remember when received your shinny new "China Girl Kit"; it was just like Christmas in June. During all that giddiness of assembly on your $99 Walmart Cranbrook, you failed to pump silicone rubber into the magneto wiring port. While racing back in that torrential downpour;the front tire kicked rainwater into that port rusting and shorting out that magneto. Well I think everyone gets my drift here...a little pre and post season maintenance goes a LONG way towards riding Bliss...Take care of your Baby and she'll ride ya anywhere. Chuck "Cheech" Reed Red Rock Cycles Motorbicycles www.redrockcycles.com And As Always...Power Your Pedals and Ride The Breeze™
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Cheech Hey Guys, Cheech here from Red Rock Cycles in WV,USA. Here a cheap,simple and easy little trick for those pain in the rear choke arms on the stock NT type carburetor that you have to reach down under your leg to flip on and off as you wobble down the road. Step 1. I found a coaster brake arm strap layin' around the shop the kind with a whole in each end ...bent it in half to give it strength... Step 2. Drill a hole out at the folded end with a 5/32"(3.97mm) bit,tapped it out and threaded a knurl like on a set of cantilever brakes.Then I flattened out the 2 tabs on the choke arm and drilled a 9/64"(3.57mm) whole through the flattened tabs. Step 3. I placed a spring with about the same strength as an NT carb throttle spring between the choke arm and our cable support. Step 4. I used a throttle or brake cable threaded through a handlebar shifter arm (similar to the setup on a CNS carb) down through the knurl support, through the tension spring and through the flattened choke tabs Shifter arm (similar to the setup on a CNS carb) Step 5. Position your choke arm on your handlebar in a full forward (choke off) position on the carb end pull your choke in a full down position (Choke Off,spring should be relaxed) slip a brass cable stay up your cable and butt it against the bottom of the choke arm and tighten set screw.With a few fine adjustments you should have an excellent thumb choke. Be safe and as always...Ride the Breeze™ Close-up Hey Gang,
This week we want to welcome our friends from Green Earth Solutions who supplies Red Rock Cycles with some of the best 2-Stroke Oil from Green Earth Technologies.Of course we all want our "china-girl" engines to run at top performance during the riding season. Every one knows there are a ton of great chainsaw oils out there. Here at Red Rock Cycles we've done our best to bench and road test as many of these oils as we possibly could.Working through Walmart's generic over the counter "blue"oil, Castrol, Amsoil, Dumonde Tech... etc ...the list is endless.Then there is the EPA, the ludicrous C.A.R.B. law of California as well as the E.U.'s guidelines and restrictions and more pertaining to the so called synthetic oils on the market; we've tried 'em and fought with them all. Our point here is not to find the best of the Middle East or for that matter even America's best out of the ground oils but,the top of the line natural oils. To get back to the point of lubrication. What we're looking for (at least in our usage) is a couple things: !: Lubrication factors 2: Mixing Ability 3: Long Term Stability 4: Carbon Release Reduction 5: Performance Some of the reasons for this blog is to speak to the fans of 2-stroke engines.Our point is that using and mixing a variety of oils of synthetic and base oils is not only bad for your engine but,can create toxic releases into the environment. We know at the price of gas and mixing 1gal(3.785 L) to a ratio of 32 to 1)...blahblahblah 4 Bux per gal +4 Bux for oil comes to(at this date) $8.00 per gal. That said; we really need to be looking at how we really save gas,extend engine life and protect the environment. Well we don't pretend to be be able to answer all that crap.The one thing we do know is this: The oil for our 2-strokers's doesn't have to come out of the ground...but,from America's bi-products including but,not excursive to natural,and plant based resins.This is the opportunity to reduce our dependence on over-seas oil. Sure we started out this Blog introducing you to a company but,that's my prerogative.Your choice of oils is yours but,do your homework and you will find in the end that if you really want to make a change and really want a super-lub you'll find this is a made and grown in America oil solution... I do promise this...I am NOT Paid or Compensated in any way by the companies mentioned in this Blog...and as Always...Ride the Breeze™ Hey Guys,Cheech here from the Insane Labs at Red Rock Cycles WV,USA. Well,It was a long winter for all of us up here in the North but,the birds are back and the frogs are a peepin' which mean only one thing for all us crazies who Luuvv Motor Bikin'. Most of us up here have been hunkered down eatin' deer meat and wishin' for pretty days.Just itchin' to knock the dust off our bikes maybe just wanna try out that new motor or part we got for Christmas. Also,I Just wanna thank everyone who bought bikes and parts from us here at RRC over the winter. Yeah,it was 77 degrees here in central West "by god' Virginia.Yeah,yeah,yeah I know all my buds from Fla.,Tx.and AZ,you dudes have endless summers but,I have to say we here in WV have some of the most beautiful mountains and scenic drives in the world. So we suffer through ski season, green blooming Springs, mild warm Summers and cool,crisp Falls...LOL. Really it's an enjoyable place to live here on our 92 acre farm.Let's just say when work is done it's time to hop on our motorized bikes and hit the back roads and byways, enjoy the scenery and as always...Ride the Breeze™! |
Cheech Reed
Insane Labs Red Rock Cycles Archives
October 2013
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