New (old) RG150 tips and tricks

**beanz** · 4th March 2004, 09:42

G'day... just bought a 1998 Suzuki RG150 and basically don't know anything about keeping it happy.

Starting it for the first time was quite difficult with the petrol tank selector set to "OFF", but after I nutted out that, things went a bit smoother. Halfway back home, it started dying, making hillstarting a right pain in the rectum. A few more hills later, I realised the main/reserve selector needed to be switched to RES to use the rest of the tank.

OK, so the point is I don't know shit about bikes... yet. I'm wondering if anyone has an owners manual for my beast (which I could photocopy)

Or alternatively, has anyone got any more tips which could save me from embarrassing unplanned stops.

I've found the 2-stroke oil tank, and another apparent oil filler on the right, near the kick-start lever. Does this bike have Engine Oil ASWELL as 2-stroke oil?

OK, enough raving. Thanks for any help.

**SPman** · 4th March 2004, 10:43

Originally Posted by beanz

I've found the 2-stroke oil tank, and another apparent oil filler on the right, near the kick-start lever. Does this bike have Engine Oil AS WELL as 2-stroke oil?
.

Gearbox oil filler.
Should be plenty of RG150 owners who can fill you in on the details.

**FzerozeroT** · 4th March 2004, 10:44

ooh jeez, you're in trouble...

you had better get a manual from somewhere cause the 'engine' oil is transmission fluid, if you put engine oil in it your clutch and gears will get stuffed. It is a secondhand bike so when was it last serviced. You will have to give it a full service now cause you can't trust whoever you bought it from ( they were trying to get rid of it! ), for my KR150 a service is about $80 (warranty required) or you can do it yourself for the price of fluids ( brake, trans )

If you went to your local Suzuki dealer they would prolly let you have a glance at thiers (if they keep you happy you might come back for something else type theory) and mechanics are good people to get to know before they start touching your pride and joy.

**nicko** · 4th March 2004, 11:09

Got a manual for you to copy beanz, have flicked you a message.

The engine oil filler is under the pillion seat on the right.

Cheers,
Nick

**beanz** · 4th March 2004, 15:22

Thanks for your help guys.

I'm kinda a service-it-yourself type of guy, so would be keen to do most things myself. Obvious ones are radiator flush, new spark plug, gearbox oil change, new shock oil & seals, new chain and sprockets.

Have I missed any?

**White trash** · 4th March 2004, 15:28

Don't forget to lube the cables.

A bit of lube often goes a long way, or so my wife tells me

You shouldn't need to replace fork seals unless they're leaking but a change of oil is a great idea.

**Hitcher** · 4th March 2004, 15:29

Originally Posted by beanz

Thanks for your help guys.

I'm kinda a service-it-yourself type of guy, so would be keen to do most things myself. Obvious ones are radiator flush, new spark plug, gearbox oil change, new shock oil & seals, new chain and sprockets.

Have I missed any?

Brake fluid & pads?

**beanz** · 4th March 2004, 15:40

Does brake fluid need to be replaced if its full and not leaking? Does brake fluid get "old"?

Yep, front suspension feels reeaally spongy, and theres a bit of oil coating on of the shock pistons. Guess the oil has all leaked out, so will need to replace the seals. Is it just the top seals needing replacing, or are there others down in the guts of the shock (like mountain bike shocks)?

**bungbung** · 4th March 2004, 15:41

Brake fluid & pads?

Good call, even if your pads are meaty, replacing the brake fluid and and bleeding the lines will give you a sense of security.

**White trash** · 4th March 2004, 16:05

Originally Posted by beanz

Does brake fluid need to be replaced if its full and not leaking? Does brake fluid get "old"?

Yep, front suspension feels reeaally spongy, and theres a bit of oil coating on of the shock pistons. Guess the oil has all leaked out, so will need to replace the seals. Is it just the top seals needing replacing, or are there others down in the guts of the shock (like mountain bike shocks)?

When you say "shocks" I'm assuming you mean the front forks of the bike?

First, remove the big top nuts on the top of the fork tubes. This releases all spring preload. Remove the forks from the bike and tip out all the cruddy old fork oil.

The top peice of rubber that the tube slides through is a dust seal. With the forks out of the bike they pop off quite easy with a flat blade screwdriver. Be really carefull not to damage them.
Beneath the dust cover will be a steel spring type clip. Gently release these with your trusty screwdriver. These secure the actual oil seals in place. The way I remove them from here is not the technically aproved way of getting fork seals out so stop reading.

Why are you still reading?

I then pry/destroy/generally buuger the seals to leaver them out with........you guessed it, my trusty screw driver! Unless you hadn't guessed, I only have one tool in my box

Once the old seals have been butchered free, I coat the new seals in rubber grease (very important, must be rubber grease) and slide them down the tube into place. The may need some gentle persuasion to seat properly and for this I use the least rooted of the old seals as a spacer and knock them home with whatever happens to be closest.

Replace the holding clips and dust seals.

With the springs removed and the forks fully compressed, pour in (Suzukis recomendation) 302ml of #10 weight fork oil. A more accurate way to set levels is to measure 116mm from the top of the compressed fork tube.

Replace the springs, spacers and any other junk in the order it came out and screw on the top nuts.

Put the forks back in the bike at matching levels and go ride.

After you've put the front wheel in correctly.

Dont forget to squeze the front brake a couple of times to build pressure.

Start reading again now

**Two Smoker** · 4th March 2004, 18:03

That was very technical using a large aray of tools White Trash

SOunds like you have the right ideas Beanz, you can get a manual from Colemans for like $60, Haynes doesn't make one

**k14** · 4th March 2004, 19:19

Nah, you dont need to use a screwdriver to get the old seal out. That could wreck the sliders and take a few chips of chrome off.

Just put the bottom of the shock in the vice in a rag and then pull the slider out a few times pretty hard. It will take a few goes, but isnt too hard as long as you give it hell.

Also make sure that you undo the bolts at the bottom of the shocks that screw up inside them to the damping rods. This will let you fully pull the shocks apart and clean everything up inside.

Isnt too hard, ive done it 3 times now with no accidents. Good luck.

**mccool** · 7th March 2004, 21:23

Welcome to the club Beanz. The good thing about those dopey slip ups is that they only happen once. I ran my first bike dry too, and I pushed it 2 kms before I figured it out. That was 25 years ago and it will never happen again! Its a good move getting a manual - excellent for helping you work out what maintenance you are up for and what is foolhardy to tackle so early in your riding career. Kia kaha.