Questions you're too embarrassed to ask

[vifferman]

Don't leave slug bait lying around if you have a dog!! Dogs love slug bait, right up to the point where it kills them.

The same can be said for chocolate.

And my sister's first dog was killed by a sock.

[Dodger]

Question: TSS Motorcycles in Lower Hutt - What the hell does T.S.S stand for?

[James Deuce]

Ring up Stew and ask.

[007XX]

The same can be said for chocolate.

That's for sure. My sister in law's dog goes and hunts down chocolate wherever it is, and eats it, still wrapped in the packet foil and all...Then she has to follow the trail of "sparkly poos"

[TOTO]

That's for sure. My sister in law's dog goes and hunts down chocolate wherever it is, and eats it, still wrapped in the packet foil and all...Then she has to follow the trail of "sparkly poos"

funny, reminds me of that guy who had his marihuana eaten by his dog. he followed it for 3 days until he got it back...then he smoked it

[Drum]

Tommy Chong?

"It's mostly Labrador, man".

[Conquiztador]

Interesting thread!!!

My take on some of the issues rasied here:

Tank Slappers
Not enough rake of forks, giving you not enough trail. (Never get them on a custom with long forks!!) Add to that poor suspension and worn swing arm bushes and you are asking for it.

Snail trails on bike
As the snails do not jump down from the roof, but slither up from the ground, they either come up on the bike cover or the tyres (tricky little bastards!!) Make sure your cover does not touch the ground. And if they use the tyres, then perhaps put the tyres somewhere they can not go.

Oil pressure light coming on
Most, if not all, bikes have mechanical oil pumps. The pump is producing a pressure (by pushing the oil in to the motor, so the pressure is really as a result of that the pump is pumping oil in to a tight motor) that is monitired by a pressure switch. When the pressure goes below a certain level the switch turns on the light.
Some reasons the pressure can go down:
- Your motor has stopped, or your idle is too low. (The pump needs to run to provide pressure)
- Not enough oil. (No oil = no pressure)
- Blocked oil supply. ( As the filter is normally on the return to the tank/the sump, just for this reason, the problem is often a blocked supply line and not the filter.)
- Faulty oil pump.
- Wrong oil (gets too thin when warm)
- Big End bearings gone. As the resistance in the motor is now lower it reduces the oil pressure (But you would have noticed this as a increase in motor noise/vibration before this...)

In my old Bonnie I had the light turn on. I found that the valve that allowed the oil in to the pump but not out in reverse had failed (it is a ball bearing with a spring and there was some particles keeping it open). The old Triumph pumps were of plunger type. When I had fixed this I fitted a oil pressure gauge that allowed me to monitor the pressure so I was alble to see if it started to drop. I have on all my serious bikes since then always fitted one of these instead of a light as it gives me more control then a red on/off light. And the light might break and then what...

Forgetting to turn off indicators
The little Nifty 50 has a beeper that will beep when indicating. You try to turn off the fucker as soon as possible...

Re-jetting
Your bike needs a mixture of fuel and air to run properly. The carbi has fuel jets that allow the right amount of fuel to be introduced. Normally you have two jets: Idle jet (that is providing fuel when bike is idling and is main source of fule for the bike up to about 1/2 throttle) and Main Jet (that is the bigger one of them and is used from about 1/2 throttle to full throttle). When you change things in the motor that affects the performance you will almost always have to re-jet the carbi. If not, then the result can be a too lean fuel mix (in worst cases a hole burnt in the piston as the piston will overheat) or too rich fuel mixture (in worst cases a glazed barrel that will result in drop in performance and a re-bore). On a 2 stroke you can more easily change the jets without using a Dyno (a setup where the bike is monitored and exhaust is measured against the performance). A short trial run will often tell you what works best. But if you have more then one carbi on the bike, then I recommend to get a pro to do the job. But you can see what the motor does by monitoring how the spark plugs look (there is many charts available, even on the net) and by going up or down just one size in Main Jet you can often sort it out if the change to the motor has not been drastic.

Possums on the road
When in car I always try to run them over. On a bike I try to miss them. I recommend you do the same.

And agree with earlier posting: There is no stupid questions. Only way to find out!

[Soul.Trader]

Here's a sad question from a newbie/wannabe rider - how do you park a bike on a hill?

[Ixion]

Generally, go past the parking space, pointing uphill (regardless of which side if the road it is on ) and back in at about 45 degrees. That usually works OK for the side stand. But it will depend on bike, steepness, road camber.

Main thing is that you need the bike facing outward (so you can RIDE out) , and uphill (so the bike does not creep forward and collapse the side stand).

[breakaway]

I fitted a oil pressure gauge that allowed me to monitor the pressure so I was alble to see if it started to drop. I have on all my serious bikes since then always fitted one of these instead of a light as it gives me more control then a red on/off light. And the light might break and then what...

Ooh, sounds interesting, how would you go about doing this? Complicated? Sounds like it

[YellowDog]

Your insurance company should give you free puncture assistance and so will the AA.

[xwhatsit]

(so the bike does not creep forward and collapse the side stand).

Here's a silly question from a thumper-owner. I don't have a problem parking downhill, just let the bike roll forward until it hits compression. I know twins and multis don't have that strong compression `lock', as evidenced by ease of bump starting. Does this mean they can roll downhill in gear, as it would appear you suggest?

[Ixion]

Yep, they sure can. Two strokes especially. Not exactly "roll down hill", but creep forward slowly as compression leaks away. With a lot of side stands that'll cause the stand to swing back and the spring will pull it up. And down goes the bike. Better the nick the bikes in of course the less likely it is. But I've seen it many a time.

helps to turn the front wheel so it's facing up camber. But that can be a problem in itself on a hill.

[Conquiztador]

Ooh, sounds interesting, how would you go about doing this? Complicated? Sounds like it

Not too tricky. You will find the switch that turns on the red oil pressure light to be screwed in to its place in the motor where it can monitor the pressure. What you need to do is to unscrew this switch and get a sensor that has same thread. You can buy a sensor (sender) and a oil pressure gauge from places like Repco etc. They normally come as a kit as they need to be matched so that the reading is correct. There is two types: Electric one (some minor knowledge of wiring required, but there will be a instruction with a diagram inscluded) and a mechanical one (there will be a thin plastic tube that connects from the sensor to the oil pressure gauge that provides the pressure).

Once you have the bits, you replace the sensor/sender with the new one and you fit the oil pressure gauge somewhere you can easily read it while riding. Then connect up and you are away.

Check your manual what the oil pressure on your bike is supposed to be and buy a gauge that will go a fraction higher then that so that you get a good readout. No reason to buy one that does not allow for your max pressure or one where your pressure will only get the needle to just move at the bottom of the scale.

Good Luck.

[Conquiztador]

Yep, they sure can. Two strokes especially. Not exactly "roll down hill", but creep forward slowly as compression leaks away. With a lot of side stands that'll cause the stand to swing back and the spring will pull it up. And down goes the bike. Better the nick the bikes in of course the less likely it is. But I've seen it many a time.

helps to turn the front wheel so it's facing up camber. But that can be a problem in itself on a hill.

You can also fit one of those front brake leaver locks that are fitted on farm bikes if this is an issue for you on regular occasions (Your work parking is on a hill or similar). Then all you do is pull the front brake and push in the clip and the brake stays on.