DIRT GARAGE: 101 TIPS & TRICKS - PART 1
Welcome to Part 1 of The Dirt Garage: 101 Tips & Tricks for you and your dirt bike. Over the next three weeks, we will lay out one-hundred-and-one different things you can do to your riding, your technique, your bike and your body to help you out on the track and in the garage. Come back next Tuesday for Part 2 of The Dirt Garage: 101 Tips & Tricks.
Be Prepared
This may sound obvious but you can never be too prepared. Spare tubes, levers and even handlebars and grips can make sure you day doesn’t end prematurely.
Adjust Clutch Lever
Adjust the clutch lever so that you can use it with two fingers and are not stretching to reach it.
Spare Bars With A Grip
Have your spare pair of handlebars set up with a grip installed on the left so they are plug-and-play.
Sit Forward
Sit forward on the bike - right up by the tank, which puts weight on the front wheel to help cornering.
Cheap Boots
Pay as much as you can afford for a pair of boots.
Cheap Helmet
Pay a little more than you can afford for a quality helmet. Don’t skimp on your head.
Helmet Life
Think of a helmet like this. Good for 5 years use or one solid impact. Then get rid of it.
Chin Strap Chop
When you have retired a helmet (crashed hard or more than 5 years old), cut the chin strap off so no one else uses it.
Shock Removal
On a lot of bikes you can remove the muffler, take out the subframe bolts and slide the rear shock out without removing the air boot.
Zip Tie Spokes
Put Zip-Ties on your spokes where they meet to stop a loose or broken spoke from ending up in your caliper.
Loose Spokes
The spokes next to your rim lock are the most likely to be loose due to tightening the rim lock too much.
Reverse Goggles
When the going gets super tough, flip your goggles around so the strap sits above the eye port. This stops them from getting ruined when around your arm.
Linkage Bearings
Sit your bike on the stand and lift the rear wheel up and down. If you feel too much freeplay you might be in need of some new linkage bearings.
Gas It To Save It
“When in doubt Gas it out.” This can help you get out of trouble if you are about to bin it. We emphasise ‘can’.
Taking Tyres Off
When removing a tyre from your rim, start right on the valve to stop from putting pressure on it from the tyre sliding into the rim.
Putting Tyres On
When putting a tyre on your rim, start opposite the valve to stop from putting pressure on it from the tyre sliding into the rim.
Tear-Off Trick 1
Put your very last tear-off on with the pull tab on the right side. That way if you accidentally pull all your tear-offs in one go, you still have one up your sleeve.
Tear-Off Trick 2
Put one tear-off on your goggles when practicing and cut off the tab. This will act as a protective film on your lens and help them last longer.
Spoke Tightening
Tighten your spokes before riding a brand new bike. Then tighten them again after every ride for at least 5 rides. They take a while to bed in.
Maybe Don’t Clean it?
If your bike is just dusty, you might be better off not cleaning it and just greasing the moving parts instead. Water blasting, especially around the seals an bearings can sometimes cause more damage than its worth.
Gearing
This can completely change the way your bike feels and delivers the power. A good rule is one-tooth change on the front sprocket is equal to about three-teeth on the rear.
Mousse Tips 1
Cut an old tube up and wrap it around the mousse tube to help stop the mousse from wearing out too quickly.
Mousse Tips 2
You can use what tyre shops call ‘Monkey Snot’ - a gel-like tyre mounting compound instead of the expensive, specific mousse lube you can get.
Change Your Oil
Change your oil regularly - it’s cheap and easy to do once you know how.
Clean the Air Filter
This is even easier to do and cheaper too. This will really help give your engine longevity.
Lube the chain
Possibly the easiest of the maintenance routine, do it before every ride. It's cheap and really helps the chain and sprockets last.
Wet Hands
Riding with wet gloves and wet hands suck! If you know this is gonna happen, put some talc powder in some rubber gloves and wear them under your normal gloves. Good for freezing temperatures too.
Front Leg Placement
You front leg is not an outrigger. When putting it out, keep it close to the forks and keep it bent slightly.
Plug Life
Sparks plugs can foul, but still spark when you pull them out and check them. The vacuum in the cylinder can render a weak spark plug useless.
Muffler Packing
Don’t repack your muffler too tight. It will just create a straight shot out the back. It needs to be fluffy to catch the sound.
Sand Riding
As a general rule, have your weight more towards the back when gassing it through sand. Too much weight on the front wheel can have you knifing and going over the bars.
Look ahead
Always look ahead when riding. Process what you have already seen and let your body react to the terrain as you get to it, while looking ahead to what is coming up next.
Weight Outside
Putting weight on the outside peg can help with grip when riding on off cambers or going around slippery corners.
Don’t Start On A 450
Don’t make your first bike be a 450cc - no matter how tough you think you are.