So somehow, Santa managed to stuff your new bike down the chimney (that you don’t have) and you are in a comic book, The Flash-type hurry to get on this thing and twist the throttle! We obviously can’t blame you. A new bike is possibly the best thing that you can get in this life, so you were obviously a pretty good human being this year. Here’s a quick list of what to do before you twist that throttle, brought to you by The Dirt Garage.

Yes I know – you don’t really want to wait to get on and ride, but unlike a wheelbarrow, your bikes need a little TLC to help guarantee that it gives you those long years of riding bliss that you and it deserves. If you simply set aside 30-40 minutes of your time before you start it up and take off, you will not only save yourself time and money in the long run, you will also learn a thing or two about your new bike in the process. And the more you know about your bike the better. This is true not just for brand new bikes, but any bikes that are new to you – no matter if they are from a shop, Joe down the road or the top Enduro rider in the country. Always give it the twice over.

Spokes

Spokes are a tricky beast. You don’t want to over-tighten then but at the same time, you don’t want to have them too loose. You can actually buy a specific spoke tightening tool that clicks when you are at the right tension. Brand new bikes from the shop almost always won’t have been checked from the manufacturer. The PD process (from our dealings – some bike shops might do this) doesn’t include tightening the spokes.

So as a rule from new, give the spokes a tighten from the get go about one full turn. Do this in a pattern of starting at the rim-lock and every 3-spokes you tighten. Count three more spokes and tighten again. And so on… Once you have completed three revolutions of the wheel you will have been over each one. A new bike will have some bedding in period so check the spokes again after the next three rides to make sure.

On a second-hand bike, you can quickly run a screwdriver around the wheel tapping each one of the spokes to listen for any sound changes that can signify a loose spoke. Tight spokes sound ping-y and sharp while loose ones sound flat and dead. I prefer to also run my hands over the spokes and squeeze them together close to where they cross over and feel for any movement. Then tighten the loose ones I find.

New bikes should come with a spoke tightening tool in the spares kit. Second-hand probably won’t so its good practice to have one anyway. They aren’t expensive.

Air Filter

Clean air filters are the bomb. They are beautiful and clean and ready to stop all that shit getting into your engine. If your bike is not brand-new, check to make sure the filter is clean. If not. Clean it. That includes the airbox too.

Brand new bikes from the shop come with a filter that is slightly oiled from the factory. Unless your dealer is a fantastic fellow and applies extra oil during the PD process, you really should put a bit more on before you go riding. Firstly, you don’t know how much filter oil has been put on the filter, and you also don’t know how long ago it was applied. Like all solvents and oil products, it can evaporate over time. It might have been 3 months since your bike was assembled in Japan/Europe and its been in transit or on the dealer floor evaporating away. It will be the easiest oiling you will ever have as you are pulling out a clean filter and just adding more oil. The next one won’t be as lovely.

Engine Oil

The bike shop should check your engine oil level during the PD’ing process. But just for your own peace of mind – check it yourself. This also makes you understand the process in a safe environment, like the garage, where you have all the tools required. The oil that comes in the bike will be perfect for running in your new bike. You should give it its first oil change after about 2 hours of light to medium riding.

The theory of needing to super gently run in an engine these days is kinda old school thinking. Back in the old days of two-strokes, the theme was to get the engine hot, then let it cool down. And repeat the process for about 5-6 cycles. These days your bike is basically get on and ride it. Don’t take it to the limiter right out of the box though and be an idiot. The metal inside the engine still needs to get used to the thermonuclear temp. Bit don’t be afraid to give it a handful either.

If your new bike is second hand – change the bloody oil straight away. You have no idea how long it’s been in there for. It’s not even close to being worth the risk. You will also know how much maintenance the previous owner had been doing by how black the oil is that comes out.

TOP TIP: engine oil colour is also a great thing to check when buying a second-hand bike. If it’s gluggy and black, step on back. If it’s golden brown, then ride it back to town. No guarantees given though.

Levers

These are ones that often get overlooked and it still surprises me when bikes shops insist on tightening the front brake lever and clutch lever up so tight that is will invariably break if you drop the bike. If you’re listening out there bike shops – please, please, please stop.

Now my rant is over, do yourself, your wallet, and your future experience of trying to ride back to your car without a clutch a favour and adjust your levers so that they can rotate with a bit of force placed on them. This is for new and old bikes alike. Obviously, you don’t want them so loose that they just flop down when riding. But you also don’t want them so tight that they have nowhere to go and snap when they hit the ground.

Tighten the pinch bolts up incrementally and test the levers for rotatability. If it’s easy to move, tighten up a little more. Check again. Then a little more and check again… If you find it difficult to move them, but you still can, you are pretty much spot on for tightness. If you’re worried about them coming loose and just have to tighten the crap out of them, cause that’s what your father did, and his father did, and his fathers, fathers, father, then wrap some plumbers tape onto the bar and then mount the lever on that. Then you can do it up tight and it should still rotate.

Note that this isn’t full proof and the perfect crash will still break your lever. But 9 times outta 10 it will work a treat.

Bolt Check

Do one – then do another. Again, bike shops aren’t scouring the whole bike for loose bolts when they are PD’ing a bike. If they had to check every single bolt of every single bike they build you wouldn’t get your bike this side of Christmas. If you have an 8, 10, 12, & 14mm socket (plus 6 & 13mm for KTMs) you will be able to check about 95% of the bolts on your bike.

This not only gives you peace of mind that everything is in tip-top shape, but make you explore the bike and learn about it in the process. What size bolts for the seat, plastics, engine, forks, etc. The more you know about your bike the better. Throw in some screwdrivers and Allen key set and you should be close to doing every nut and bolt.

Suspension Clickers

It’s not strange to hear stories of the suspension setting being completely different in each fork, and the clickers set in weird places on the shock. Don’t know whether its a game from the factory or what but often you will have one fork on 6 clicks and one fork set to 18. Then the rebound will be wound all the way in - it’s a mess.

If it’s a new bike, check out the owner’s manual for clicker settings. It will usually give you a couple of options for medium, hard and soft. If its a second-hand bike, and you’re not sure what you are doing, set the clickers to the middle.

Do that by winding the clickers all the way in and count how many clicks it takes to go all the way out. Then set them to the middle. Do this for rebound and compression on both the front and the back and that will be a fantastic starting point. It’s easy to do, takes only a few minutes and you should notice the difference in your suspension right away.

They say if you do the mahi you get the treats. Put the garage time into your new steed and you should be spending the Chrissy break railing ruts and nails jumps. Have a very Merry Christmas for me here at The Dirt and I hope to see you out on the trail sometime soon.

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