Maintenance: How do you do yours?

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I don't understand most people who suggest people like the OP try to do mechanics themselves.
His very life is in the balance. If he bungs it up, he could kill himself. He only tried to adjust the chain, and he could not get the alignment correct.
What does that tell you about his abilities.
He is not mechanically inclined.
Now you tell him to try to adjust his valves?????

Just how does that happen?
How many things will he screw up?

Just let him bring it to somebody other than Ted, and leave him be.

If you are not sure how to change your wife's brake pads and rotors, should you go ahead and risk your wife and kids lives?
 
He already said he went to Ted and claims they missed a bunch of maintenance issues. I'm questioning his understanding of maintenance, but either way, that is what he claims.
 
I happen to agree with Ted. You can check most of that stuff a lot later than the book recomends.
But for a guy like this, Ted should check everything on the list for the owners piece of mind.
And charge him accordingly.
I'm sure Ted was trying to save the guy some money, and left the valves because there was only 9,000k on the bike.
 
Low rider said:
I don't understand most people who suggest people like the OP try to do mechanics themselves.
His very life is in the balance. If he bungs it up, he could kill himself. He only tried to adjust the chain, and he could not get the alignment correct.
What does that tell you about his abilities.
He is not mechanically inclined.
Now you tell him to try to adjust his valves?????

Just how does that happen?
How many things will he screw up?

Just let him bring it to somebody other than Ted, and leave him be.

If you are not sure how to change your wife's brake pads and rotors, should you go ahead and risk your wife and kids lives?
Click to expand...

lol thank you for the flip side of things but I do agree that learning a few things could be okay.

I managed to change my clutch cable last year too...somehow. Trying to learn how to cook along w/ maintenance; it's always good to have more than my work field skills.

EDIT: Also, I think I fixed the alignment problem (plus someone at YorkU helped out). It's not wobbly or doing stupid things at 160-180km/h which it was before w/ the loose chain. And since I'm alive I guess the wheel should be okay then? lol Or is my train of thought very wrong
 
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Please adjust everything precisely following the instructions in a repair manual. Don't attempt to go 160 km/h with a wobbly rear wheel and loose chain.
 
I pay someone else to do it =P wee !
 
油井緋色;1815508 said:
Went home, got the cotter pin off, loosened the bolt w/ an impact hammer (not even sure if I should have used that since its power is insane). Then when I was adjusting the tension...I forgot which way to turn it. Instead of doing the right thing, I just started turning them all over the place. The result was an overtightened chain. Unenlightening was living hell. By the time I wanted to go back to tightening, it was dark and the damn flies were all over me.

I managed to fix it this morning, but the rear wheel's probably misaligned as I'm slightly (very slightly) turning right in order to keep straight. But....the bike isn't wobbling at 160km/h or more so that means the chain should be okay? <_<
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After reading this description, the image of Homer trying to fix Marge's camera instantly popped into my head.

"Easy...Easy (smash!)
I think I'll need a bigger drill".

homertripod.jpg
 
matthew said:
After reading this description, the image of Homer trying to fix Marge's camera instantly popped into my head.

"Easy...Easy (smash!)
I think I'll need a bigger drill".

homertripod.jpg
Click to expand...

That's.....close to how I felt lol
 
lmfao^^^ thats an awesome frame.
 
油井緋色;1815782 said:
lol thank you for the flip side of things but I do agree that learning a few things could be okay.

I managed to change my clutch cable last year too...somehow. Trying to learn how to cook along w/ maintenance; it's always good to have more than my work field skills.

EDIT: Also, I think I fixed the alignment problem (plus someone at YorkU helped out). It's not wobbly or doing stupid things at 160-180km/h which it was before w/ the loose chain. And since I'm alive I guess the wheel should be okay then? lol Or is my train of thought very wrong
Click to expand...

You "think"you fixed it?
 
OP, it depends how much you trust yourself. I'm not a handyman...it makes more sense for me to pay someone who knows what they're doing they're doing. I don't trust myself to wrench on something that could fall apart when I'm riding it lol.

It's definitely more expensive in the long run, but I'm paying for the peace of mind and to save my time (I remember when I adjusted my chain slack that **** took me forever and I found out that you don't even need to align it 'cause it does it automatically once you start rolling -_-*)
 
It does it automatically once you start rolling -_-* ??????
 
Low rider said:
It does it automatically once you start rolling -_-* ??????
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Sorry - I probably didn't word that right. As long as you don't line it up completely crooked, it'll align itself over time? Every time a thread like that comes up, numerous people say that there's no point of aligning the rear perfectly(+ the swingarm marks can be useless on a lot of bikes). Reciprocity's one of the people that always points this out
 
I'm stilll not getting it?
The axle nut loosens itself and makes the alignment perfect and then tightens itself again?
The adjuster nuts are there to keep it from moving.
 
Low rider said:
I don't understand most people who suggest people like the OP try to do mechanics themselves.
His very life is in the balance. If he bungs it up, he could kill himself. He only tried to adjust the chain, and he could not get the alignment correct.
What does that tell you about his abilities.
He is not mechanically inclined.
Now you tell him to try to adjust his valves?????

Just how does that happen?
How many things will he screw up?

Just let him bring it to somebody other than Ted, and leave him be.

If you are not sure how to change your wife's brake pads and rotors, should you go ahead and risk your wife and kids lives?
Click to expand...

+1

OP... Wouldn't it be smarter to 'learn and practice' mechanics by taking a course at a Community College rather than on your bike?
 
Major said:
+1

OP... Wouldn't it be smarter to 'learn and practice' mechanics by taking a course at a Community College rather than on your bike?
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Don't friends work too? lol

Not that I'm disagreeing. Just lack the time =(
 
Don't let the manufacturer's service intervals make you all paranoid. They're usually overkill and sometimes outright wasteful, like changing the air filter every 2 years regardless of mileage, type of thing. The problem is that if you don't know how a bike works and how items wear then you have no better way to know what service intervals to use.

But if someone who knows bikes like Ted doesn't follow the recommended service interval, that doesn't mean they're a bad mechanic or slackers. Repair shops love customers who come in with the owner's manual and point at every little thing that "needs" to be done because they are suckers who don't know anything about maintenance.
 
fastar1 said:
Don't let the manufacturer's service intervals make you all paranoid. They're usually overkill and sometimes outright wasteful, like changing the air filter every 2 years regardless of mileage, type of thing. The problem is that if you don't know how a bike works and how items wear then you have no better way to know what service intervals to use.

But if someone who knows bikes like Ted doesn't follow the recommended service interval, that doesn't mean they're a bad mechanic or slackers. Repair shops love customers who come in with the owner's manual and point at every little thing that "needs" to be done because they are suckers who don't know anything about maintenance.
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Thanks; I guess that makes sense since the OEM dudes want more $$$ so you go do more services and get parts?

Or do the engineers actually know what they're talking about? =(

Why can't things ever be easy :@
 
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