So it may have been some time since you and your Buddy were pals, your Hyosung sang or you sat on your SYM. Here are some things to think about if it has been some time since you went one on one with two wheels.
As we make the transition from winter to summer, keep in mind the following; the roads are still cold and your tires are cold too. Morning and nights are still very cool. Your tires won’t be as sticky as they will be in the heat of the summer. To make it more interesting, there is still a lot of gravel and some salt still in the intersections (think mid-corner) and on the sides of the roads. You won’t get wonderful traction over this gravel/salt – it acts like little ball-bearings. Next make sure you check the air pressure in your tires. Air leaks out of all tires. Motorcycles and scooters also don’t have the volume of air that automobiles have. If you ever feel your forks wobbling in a slow speed corner or the back end feels squeamish – put a pressure gauge on that tire and inflate it to specs. Call us if you don’t know what the right pressure is! As the air temperatures increase, check it again. You want it just right. Tire pressure helps determines the tire’s contact patch – and that is what connects your bike to the road.
Check the engine oil before you go riding. Some of our bikes nominally have less than one quart of oil – by design. Most cars have … a gallon or more. There is enough but not too much – checking it is important.
Genuine likes you to run the motors first and then let it sit for a few minutes to get a good oil level check. Motorcycle owners with glass oil windows, remember, the bike is supposed to be vertical and the oil level should be *in the window* when the bike is straight up and down. Don’t fall over doing this yourself – get some help if checking the oil is too hard to do solo. Don’t ask me why I make a point of that ;^). If you don’t check it in the saddle, don’t pull the bike over on you either.
Too much oil is almost as bad as too little. Too little – well it’s too expensive to contemplate!
Also, lube your control cables. We sell cable lube here or use a light oil (like 3-In-One oil). Cables will wear out and break – riders of bikes with manual clutches should keep this in mind at stoplights. Pay attention for a frayed cable near your handgrips. This is the part of the cable that is open to the atmosphere. The cable at this end gets dirt on it and often wears in this area as a result. Next, if your motorcycle is chain driven, lubricate the chain. We sell a chain lube too.
If your ride is liquid cooled (650cc Hyosungs, SYM HD’s, TN’G Verona’s among others) check that your coolant overflow bottle fluid level is correct.
Make sure your paperwork is up to snuff – your owner’s card and insurance card and that your vehicle inspection is current. All our road-going bikes need to get inspected just like cars in Pennsylvania. Our customers from other states, make sure you are doing what you need to do for your locality.
Lastly, don’t forget to gear-up. Leather palmed gloves, long pants (and not the oh-so-comfy jeans in your closet-wear the newer ones), a long-sleeved something (coat) and a helmet. We have all the Fieldsheer clothing and HJC Helmets in the online store and we can drop ship that to you. It’s all at 10% off list in the store. Use mpgcoupon1000 to take an additional 10% off at checkout.
Then go ride.
The Puma has a zero turning radius and our scooters can’t match that. However, all of our current roads are designed for vehicles that do have a turning radius. A small wheel scooter, most folks would agree, has a tight enough turning radius. That the Puma balances itself, well, that’s just cool. But, I’m not sure what that balancing capability does for the rider in reality. With only a 35 mph top speed, even our smallest scooters will walk away from the Puma.
