Gummed, cooked and lost confidence

[ital916]

Hey guys, Lots more newbie questions for you experienced bikers to have a chuckle at.
1. My RG150 is gummed up, i.e when starting it's rough, ride it hard a little clears up then after a while gums up again in a couple days, it does a poppy shooting crap thing out of the exhaust thing lol..any way to fix this apart from riding it like a moto gp racer around town which is a big no no for me as i'm learning. Unfortunately i can't ride it at 12k all the time while commuting lol
2. I have had the unfortunate experiences of binning twice while cornering and have lost a lot of confidence. Now when i go through a corner i worry im gonna bin again which leads to a little panic and i then slow to a crawl, it only really happens when i lean because those were the times i binned. Not really an answerable question but confidence boosting tips would be appreciated.

Thanks guys
P.S I love riding, i've ditched the cage permanently now, two wheels only for me :D

P.P.S Anyone going to the bronz run? I'm hoping to build my confidence back up the best way..by riding!

Ride Safe

D

Oh the cooked bit in the title refers to how the engine gets hot, accidentally added that in, you know you type what you think thing. lol

[breakaway]

1. My RG150 is gummed up, i.e when starting it's rough, ride it hard a little clears up then after a while gums up again in a couple days, it does a poppy shooting crap thing out of the exhaust thing lol..any way to fix this apart from riding it like a moto gp racer around town which is a big no no for me as i'm learning. Unfortunately i can't ride it at 12k all the time while commuting lol

Dirt / water / semen in the carb? I'm sure a KB DIY guru would be able to help you there.

Could also be a fouled plug. Go and buy a new one and slap that in and see if it clears up.


2. I have had the unfortunate experiences of binning twice while cornering and have lost a lot of confidence. Now when i go through a corner i worry im gonna bin again which leads to a little panic and i then slow to a crawl, it only really happens when i lean because those were the times i binned. Not really an answerable question but confidence boosting tips would be appreciated.

Do it more often. I had this problem after I came off around a corner. I used to slow right down. But now I'm more confident (and careful) with more practice. Practice is the only thing that will get you over corner fears.

Just relax, take it slowly at a speed that you are comfortable at. The more comfortable you are, the faster you'll go.

IMPORTANT: Does your temp gauge move? Odds are it doesn't. Mine didn't. Rig up some sort of digital thermometer from DSE or some shit to it, if you want to know when it's about to seize that is.

[xwhatsit]

It's a two-stroke, give it shit or it will gum up :laugh:

That's the whole point :yes: -- just take a look at the maniacal grin that appears on GiJoe1313's face after winding out his RZ. Been next to a guy on an RG150 at the lights... kept giving it a handful, spewing clouds of fragrant smoke onto the cage behind us until the lights went green and he ring-a-ding-dinged off.

[WRT]

Just relax, take it slowly at a speed that you are comfortable at.

Good advice. You should always be relaxed, never tense. If you do tense up, everything will feel wrong, cornering especially. Untense, and everything will flow again.

PS - Semen in the carb??? What the hell do you get up to with your bike? Actually - please don't answer that.

[Rosie]

Hey D!

When I had a two stroke, it was oiling up a bit, because I didn't thrash it as much as I should have, and my mechanic put a hotter-running sparkplug in it, which really helped. You'd have to chat to a good 2-stroke mechanic about that though, because if the plug ends up running too hot it can cause problems, so you have to make sure you were doing the right thing.
Also, keep an eye on how much oil and fuel you are using - top up the oil tank, fill up with fuel, then keep all your fuel dockets until you need to fill the oil tank again. Most 1 litre bottles of 2-stroke oil have measurements along the side, so you can tell how much oil you've used.
I think a ratio of 30:1 to 40:1 is reasonable, but again, something to chat to a mechanic about. If the bike is getting much more oil than that, it could be causing the fouling up. But if the bike doesn't get enough oil, it will cause large expensive problems later on, so don't go fiddling with it yourself and hoping for the best.

With the cornering thing, can you find some nice quiet roads where you aren't going to be bothered by traffic, and practise going around corners. Just start off going the speed you are currently comfortable with, and then go around the corners a little tiny bit faster than you would want to. Try to think about the things you need to do to go around the corner - look where you want to go, push gently on the inside handlebar to countersteer, and try to keep your body in line with the bike. If you are concentrating on the things you need to do to go around the corner, you are less likely to suddenly panic and grab a big handful of front brake. If you panic and think you are going too fast, keep looking where you want to go, keep countersteering and keep leaning with the bike.
If you are nervous about the engine stopping and the rear wheel locking up (was that the cause of one of your bins? I forget), keep your hand over the clutch lever when you are feeling nervous. I had some engine stopping moments on my 150, and once it was all sorted out I would sometimes have "OMG the bike is about to stop for no reason!" moments. So I would cover the clutch, and keep it covered until I was feeling calm again.

Good luck! I know you can get this sorted!

Rosie.

[janno]

Car park drills and low speed practice with a mentor is a superquick way to get confidence up quickly - in conjunction with your open road practice. I think some riders forget it's something you should keep on with, not just for the first week of riding.

It's all about learning your bike, how it reacts when you do this, that and the other and what it feels like.

Can you ask someone to supervise the above? Got the dosh to do a Ride Safe course?

[pritch]

Once upon a time people used to clean plugs but Hey! we're a disposable society now. Being able to read, clean, and set a plug could be a handy skill for a 2 smoke owner though.

While on plugs it might pay to check that the plug installed is the correct one. The manual or the agent should be able to advise. It's important that the answer is the correct one, not somebody's best guess.

I was recently reading an article on cornering in BIKE. The relevant passage was to the effect that you shouldn't beat yourself up for taking a corner too slowly. Rather congratulate youself for getting through it safely.

Also if you take a corner too slow, don't decide to attack the next one. That approach leads to tears. Each corner has its own problems and solutions.

[ital916]

yeah my last bin i was leaning but not enough revs and the rear wheel just slid out + someone nicked the petrol in my tank,i was like nooooo then ka bang then crap lol so yeah i hope i will get my confidence back soon.

[fireball]

i can understand your fear of corners......
i am still over coming my fear of them after my bin 3 years ago (hit by a car heading towards warkworth one weekend) it just takes practice and just relaxing and trusting your own skill and tyres
just keep pushing yourself and it will come together i have found riding with 2 other bikes one in front one behind can help when going for a ride as you can follow the lead bikes line and you dont have the stress of having a cage up your ass...

[avgas]

iridium plugs, worth their weight in gold in the little rg150. also check that you warm the bike good and proper, run a synthetic oil (motul if you can).
Try to ride the bike above 6,000 revs most of the time too - below this there is insufficient moving bit speed to make the ports work perfectly.
Also next service you do (or get) get the power valves, and oil pump checked as there may be something a-miss there too.

[ital916]

yup, got iridium plugs in mine and run motul 510 :D

[Ixion]

Hey guys, Lots more newbie questions for you experienced bikers to have a chuckle at.
1. My RG150 is gummed up, i.e when starting it's rough, ride it hard a little clears up then after a while gums up again in a couple days, it does a poppy shooting crap thing out of the exhaust thing lol..any way to fix this apart from riding it like a moto gp racer around town which is a big no no for me as i'm learning. Unfortunately i can't ride it at 12k all the time while commuting lol



Nope. It's a two stroke. Y' gotta rape it full time. Two strokes (the Rg150 sort anyway) only have two throttle positions , full closed and WOT. And two engine speeds, idle (with mega blipping :bleh:) and redline. 'Tis why we luvs 'em :love:

At the very least keep it above 6000 rpm all the time.

Also, corning technique on a two smoker is different to a four stroke. Get someone to show you. And I'd bet my virginity that you are cornering at WAY too low revs. You do NOT want to hit the power band suddenly on corner exit. As I think maybe you already discovered.

Two smoker cornering is bang bang bang scream dinga dinga ringa ding scream click scream. Repeat

[The Pastor]

What does WOT mean?

[necrolyte]

Nope. It's a two stroke. Y' gotta rape it full time. Two strokes (the Rg150 sort anyway) only have two throttle positions , full closed and WOT. And two engine speeds, idle (with mega blipping :bleh:) and redline. 'Tis why we luvs 'em :love:

At the very least keep it above 6000 rpm all the time.

Also, corning technique on a two smoker is different to a four stroke. Get someone to show you. And I'd bet my virginity that you are cornering at WAY too low revs. You do NOT want to hit the power band suddenly on corner exit. As I think maybe you already discovered.

Two smoker cornering is bang bang bang scream dinga dinga ringa ding scream click scream. Repeat

Oh shit, i almost wet myself.... "bang bang bang scream dinga dinga ringa ding scream click scream"

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

[breakaway]

Oh shit, i almost wet myself.... "bang bang bang scream dinga dinga ringa ding scream click scream"

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

He's right though.

However, I don't think you have to worry about cornering on a two stroke. That is ONLY a problem if you come from 4 stroke (And are used to linear power delivery :p)

Also even though the RG150 is pretty fast for it's displacement, I don't think there is too much of a danger of your rear spinning up when you wind on the throttle upon corner exit.

[ital916]

I'm still getting a little wobble on corners but i think ive found the problem, im leaning a little too much whilst going a little too slow..NOOB ERROR basically the back wobbles a little and starts to slide out, is this correct??

[discotex]

I'm still getting a little wobble on corners but i think ive found the problem, im leaning a little too much whilst going a little too slow..NOOB ERROR basically the back wobbles a little and starts to slide out, is this correct??

The rear shouldn't slide from going too slow.... I guess it could feel that way if you're off the gas the whole way around the corner though as the bike will be unsettled on the suspension. Sounds to me more like the rear suspension is wallowing or something else like too low tyre pressure.

Might pay to take someone more experienced out and have them follow you and you follow them.

[Daffyd]

What does WOT mean?

Wide Open Throttle?

[ital916]

I tried to put air in the tires today, got the front one done but the stupid air thingy couldn't reach my rear tire air thingy cos of the stupid disc brake and chain and sprocket lol will take the bike to the station tomorrow and try again

[Ixion]

I'm still getting a little wobble on corners but i think ive found the problem, im leaning a little too much whilst going a little too slow..NOOB ERROR basically the back wobbles a little and starts to slide out, is this correct??

Nope. Not at all right. Firstly you shouldn't be cornering by leaning over. Do you know what countersteering is ?

Secondly if you did oversteer ('lean too much') it wouldn't make the back wobble or slide out (unless you are cornering at speeds way way greater than a beginner should be - rear won't slide until race track speeds).

Dude, get thee to a RRRS course ASAP. They'll sort you out

[ital916]

Argh, i'm not leaning the bike is leaning, i countersteer, go in to corner at a slower speed look through the corner push gently in opposite direction bike leans hit apex then roll on throttle out of corner, i've just started riding so i'm not gonna be perfect at it lol thanks for the advice though :niceone:

[ital916]

plus i've done an on road riding course with riderskills, they were very good spent the whole day out learning, riding and working on skills.

[FruitLooPs]

Hmm that is strange, yeah i'd be checking what quality tyres you've got - not plastic are they ;)

My RG can go through the powerband while mid corner no worries, rear stays planted even in the wet although thats not something I do often. I did find trying an inline 4 was pretty strange after riding the RG as my first bike. Reckon for the twisties 4 strokes make ya lazy, especially if they've got power - nothing more fun than clicking up and down the box on a small bike to stop it from going backwards haha :D

Not sure what advice to give really, I know when I first rode I had the odd moment where it felt like the bike was gonna drop cause of low speeds round a roundabout or something - get used to it pretty quick though.

Give 'em death and they'll treat you right hehe. That and leave a smoke screen for the following cagers :ride: :shutup:

[PrincessBandit]

What does WOT mean?

Definitely NOT where i want to go with my bike yet :laugh:

[Number One]

I have had the unfortunate experiences of binning twice while cornering and have lost a lot of confidence.

Hee hee I remember my first bike also an RG150. Washed it out on the Rimutaka hill, the rain had just started and I was going around the outside of a car (in a passing lane btw) and the whole thing just let go front and back.

Also spent alot of time trying to master the clutch and gear thing...having only ever driven automatic cages previously this was a real learning curve...remember crawling up to red lights in the hope that I wouldn't have to stop! SHAME

If it has the original tyres on it - I'd definately recommend getting replacements - they are crap! BT39SS (Battleaxes)are the bomb! Real sticky and very very good for confidence as you can get away with quite a bit. Rock on Dririder and enjoy :headbang:

[gtr boy]

get sum good leathers bro hehe

[2Cycle]

It sounds as though your rg is running too rich. Mine was running like that for a while.

Carbs need adjustment every so often. I just moved the needle up one position and adjusted the idle jet to match and it was sweet after that. If your unsure about this get a mechanic to do it as it can be dangerous to run too lean, I also just use the standard spark plug and it goes fine. Never carbons up.

As for cornering wobbles. The only problem I have had is when going for an open road ride in hot weather it will sometimes get a bit of head shake on corners at high speed. I think this is because as the tires get hotter than normal the air expands and they get a bit too hard, not sure but just a guess.

Hope this helps.

[Skyryder]

In simple terms look to where you want to go.............not where you are going. There is a difference and when you can tell what it is then you will know how to corner. Ride at a speed you are comfortable with.

Brake before you enter the corner, when the bike is upright, and then power out of the corner at a speed you feel confident with.

Better to come into a corner slowish and speed out than come into the corner with speed and slow out(bin etc.)


This might sound a bit girlish but riding pillion with an experianced rider and focusing on the vanishing point on the bends is not a bad way to learn either. The idea is so the the focus on the VP becomes a habit.

Skyryder

[breakaway]

That looking where you need to go stuff - I can never do that. I know I'm supposed to be looking at the vanishing point, but I'm far too worried about the immediate road surface, so I end up looking a few meters ahead of me, and 'updating' my focus point every 3-4 seconds. I presume this is bad? How to get aroudn this?

[discotex]

That looking where you need to go stuff - I can never do that. I know I'm supposed to be looking at the vanishing point, but I'm far too worried about the immediate road surface, so I end up looking a few meters ahead of me, and 'updating' my focus point every 3-4 seconds. I presume this is bad? How to get aroudn this?

It's *real* bad not looking ahead. At 100km/h you cover a shit load of ground in a second. If you're not scanning at least 4-12 seconds ahead you won't be able to react to any "issue" that comes up (such as a cow in the middle of the road).

If you're only looking a few meters ahead of your front wheel it's too late to do anything about what you see. The faster you go the more it gets important.

If you really struggle to look up ahead you should look to the vanishing point then closer (say mid way) then back etc.

Have you had your eyes tested? I'm only -1 in each eye (not enough to require glasses to drive) but it's still enough to make it hard for me to focus in the distance. Since I got contacts I'm much more confident scanning further ahead as it's crystal clear. Whenever I forget to put them in I find myself focussing closer which means I have to ride slower... Maybe that's what's happening with you.