Best way to store a bike for a long period of time

[Cwidova]

as the title says, i want to know the best tecniques to store a bike as i wont be able to ride for a while. i basically don't care about the tyres cause when it goes back on the road, it wont be my main transport and i will be getting some nice grippy tryes.
i am more concerned about the engine and forks and such.
i know about the usual oil in the bores (which i havent done yet) but any advice is welcome

[Wattie]

you put it into a courier van, and send it to bligh park NSW.

there is a person there commonly called "Wattie".

he will garage it and clean it, and treat it to nice rides in the mountains, keep it warm with a nice blankie till you require it back.

best of all its FREE!!

[dutchy]

you put it into a courier van, and send it to bligh park NSW.

there is a person there commonly called "Wattie".

he will garage it and clean it, and treat it to nice rides in the mountains, keep it warm with a nice blankie till you require it back.

best of all its FREE!!

just beaten to it.........damn!!!

[Cwidova]

if i could afford it i would consider it. it makes me sad to see it just sitting in the garage
tried to get a couple of mates to ride it, every now and then but they went and bought their own bikes dammit.

[Wattie]

you need new mates

[red_dave]

Stick a maintenance charger on it.

Disconnecting the battery will only delay the sulphation...

Or, send it to Wattie's place

[Wattie]

yeah in all seriousness, how long is it off the road for?

get a battery charger, or plan on buying a new one later,

i'd even consider spraying the engine etc with wd40 to keep the milldew from growing, and surface rust (eventhough most if the bike is alloy)

not sure about the oil down the cylinder bit, i thought that would be more like of it was stored fpr 5 years or more.

forks would be worth rebuilding maybe after a year or so if sitting, but its no point trying to prevent anything, just get new seals and oil changed later.

[dutchy]

kick it to me! i'm closer!!

[robracer]

How long you talking about? daves suggestion on the M/Charger is a good one, Put the bike up on stands if you got them, plug up the exhaust to keep the nastys out, same deal with the intake, this should be good for 3 months any longer & I would change all fluids before riding again.
Oil on the pistons / bore if she is sitting around for a year or longer & dont forget a decent cover.... I would suggest a cotton sheet & then a bike cover over the top & seal the bottom with pegs

Heres a question for red_dave...... will there be a build up of gasses from the battery ?

I am sure there will be heaps more suggestions

[Cwidova]

it's been off the road for 6 months, and has another 6 to go.
have the battery charger on it already.
i start it every second week let it get warm then ride it up and down the driveway for about 20 mins.
i was thinking of getting the suspension set up and rebuilt when it gets back on the road.
would it be worth doing calipers as well? i was going to change all fluids as well
mainly worried about the cylinders getting surface rust (have seen it happen way to much at work!!) and anything else that i might have mislooked

[Wattie]

yeah not sure about the cylinders.

[red_dave]

Heres a question for red_dave...... will there be a build up of gasses from the battery ?

It depends on the charger.

The faster/higher amp you charge the battery, the more the battery will gas. A maintenance charger should be fine cause the float/trickle charge is so small the gassing is quite minimal. Sulphation starts to happen when it drops below 10.8v.

2 types of maintennce chargers

1 - Switch mode
2. 3 or 4 stage microprocessor controlled.

2nd one is much better for battery longevity but both will do the job.

Not a sales pitch but I can sort you out with a 3 stage jobbie for about $30.