First time in the rain, what do I need to clean? | GTAMotorcycle.com

First time in the rain, what do I need to clean?

A

Alderson

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I was forced to ride home in the rain last night for the first time, and am not sure what exactly, if anything, I need to clean in order to prevent rust.

I cleaned/lubed my chain last weekend and read that a lot of people clean/lube their chain after riding in the rain, so I'll be doing that. Is there anything else I need to pay attention to to ensure it doesn't rust?
 
need to lube the chain a little bit after every wet ride
best to take a short ride to dry/warm it first
then a gentle spray, rotate to work in

not really much you can do with the rest of the bike
shammy down flat areas, but water will get places you can't dry
 
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More important than cleaning is learning how to ride in the rain



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bigpoppa said:
More important than cleaning is learning how to ride in the rain



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Yeah it was a little nerve wracking because I had the idea in my head that I had 0% traction, so I was going about 10-15 under the speed limit. I didn't have any problems though.
 
Dude, seriously? If your bike is dirty, wash and dry it. It won't melt, nor will it rust before your eyes. It's merely a piece of machinery.

I understand it's your first bike, but every question you've asked, every thread you've started has been covered over and over. Search the site, or better yet, search Google.

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Alderson said:
Yeah it was a little nerve wracking because I had the idea in my head that I had 0% traction, so I was going about 10-15 under the speed limit. I didn't have any problems though.
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Its ok to slow down a bit, stay smooth with your inputs(braking , throttle etc) be careful around painted lines and manhole covers, try not to lean the bike over too much etc

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You have less traction in the rain, but plenty enough for regular kind of riding. People do it all the time.
 
Your thoughts. Stop thinking about that dirty bike that way.

It's not going to melt in your arms the next time you ride it.
 
Alderson said:
Yeah it was a little nerve wracking because I had the idea in my head that I had 0% traction, so I was going about 10-15 under the speed limit. I didn't have any problems though.
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this is risky in traffic, going that much slower
will cause cagers to cut you off, pull out in front of you etc.

a bike with decent tires is perfectly capable of maintaining sufficient traction
in even torrential downpour, to be completely safe at posted speeds

keeping an eye out for the road surface anomalies pointed by @bigpoppa of course

@Baggsy might tell you to take a course, and he'd be correct if you can't do the speed limit OP
 
Nah, I'm going to say "get a car to lead you at a set speed, and find out if your speedometer is out, and by how much." You could be doing 74 in a 100, thinking you're doing 87. If others are doing 120 or 130, that's incredibly dangerous.
 
No need to slow down, you have a lot more traction than you think. Just keep your inputs and actions smooth. Most of the time I'm passing cages in the rain cause they go slow too.

If you are going thru really messy areas, you might want to rinse off the grit, otherwise just wash when it's time. I wash the bike at least once a year..... :)
 
To the few people who said I'm afraid of the bike melting away, etc etc...
I'm not afraid of the bike getting dirty or wet, I'm afraid of certain parts getting rusty.

I'm asking if I need to worry about any other parts getting rusty, aside of the chain.

Thanks to those who gave me an answer.
 
Motorcycles are designed to get wet, contrary to the belief of a segment of the motorcycling population who won't leave their garage if there's a dark cloud in the sky or rain forecasted 48 hours either side of the planned ride.

I agree, with others...wash the bike the same as you'd wash a car. After the chain dries off lube it a little. Done.

No chain maintenance is the main reason I prefer shaft drive bikes, though.
 
Riding in the wet this time of year doesn't make nearly the mess it will if you ride it into later fall and especially early in the season when there's lots of salt powder, brine, sand and other crud around.
 
Blackfin said:
Riding in the wet this time of year doesn't make nearly the mess it will if you ride it into later fall and especially early in the season when there's lots of salt powder, brine, sand and other crud around.
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I dunno. This is mine after a buddy and I got back from our 5000KM adventure this past summer. This was the result of about riding 750KM or so of it in the rain. There's a lot of chrome under all that.

dirtyvtx.jpg


It never gets anywhere near that dirty riding in the winter.
 
PrivatePilot said:
I dunno. This is mine after a buddy and I got back from our 5000KM adventure this past summer. This was the result of about riding 750KM or so of it in the rain. There's a lot of chrome under all that.
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A bit of dirt won't generally hurt much though can play hell with your chrome if you're not careful in cleaning it (scratches etc.)

It never gets anywhere near that dirty riding in the winter.
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Good for you.

In dry conditions, the pulverized salt that whitens roads in the winter gets up into the nooks and crannies of everything. When it gets wet it turns to corrosive brine. If you're able to stay away from salty runoff during winter rides and keep the bike generally dry it'll remain clean-looking and a fresh-water cleaning in the spring is all that's needed to keep it safe.

Bikes that have been exposed to salts and brine and not cleaned well are the ones that end up with rusty fasteners, dulled chrome, pitted fork tubes etc. Older bikes can also be susceptible to electrical gremlins if that mixture ends up contaminating electrical connectors in hard to reach/clean areas.
 
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Do you really need to lube your chain just because it got a little wet? It takes a lot of water to wash off lube. (that's why you use kerosene or something like that to clean the chain, water would take too long).

I lube mine every 1000 kms and don't worry about if it gets wet in between.
 
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