Oct 27, 2025 | Motorcycle, Motorcycle Maintenance
One of the best feelings about riding a motorcycle is the ability to feel close to the road. It’s important to remember that motorcycle tires are (almost) the only thing between you and the road. While this can be a freeing realization, it’s also a reminder to check your tires. As is all motorcycle maintenance, proper tire tread can be important to ensuring a safe ride.
Motorcycle Tires: Maintaining Safety
The Treads
If you’ve ever seen a brand new tire next to an old tire, the difference is noticeable immediately. The grooves on your tire should be definite and distinct. The depth of the tread is a good way to tell how much life a tire has left. Some motorcycle tires have tread wear indicators. Once you see these, you know it’s time to get new tires.
PSI
The air pressure in your tires is important. A tire with good tread can be unsafe if it is over inflated. Similarly, if a tire is under-inflated, it can be even more dangerous. Check your motorcycle tires regularly with an accurate pressure gauge. Some recommend once a week and definitely before any long trips.
What to Avoid
When it comes to motorcycle tires, it’s best to avoid mixing and matching brands. If you have two different kinds on your bike, you could become unstable and uneven. However, rear tires will wear out more quickly than the front, so you can mix and match new and old tires. You will likely go through two rear tires for every front tire.
In addition to avoiding mix and match brands, you should also avoid old motorcycle tires. A set that has never been mounted but are more than five years old are unfortunately no good. Over time, the chemicals in the rubber wear down. After this point, the “sticky” tire becomes hard and brittle.
To conclude, be safe and diligent about your tires. If your tread is getting low and the roads are wet, it’s best to not ride. Keep an eye on your PSI regularly. Check your brands and make sure the front and back matches. While these are all basic things, they can be crucial in a safe ride.
Sep 29, 2025 | Motorcycle, Motorcycle Maintenance
Your tires are an important part of your motorcycle’s performance. However, how do you know when it’s time to consider tire replacements? Knowing the signs can help you get new tires before your old ones completely go bad…
Tire Replacements: When Is It Time?
Depth of tread
Checking your tires’ depth of tread is the most obvious sign if you’ll need tire replacements. Too much wear on your treads can lead to safety issues and even blowouts. However, it’s actually pretty simple to check if your tread has gotten too low. The least amount of acceptable tread on a tire is 1/32 of an inch, or 1 mm.
Therefore, you can actually use a penny to check your tread levels! All you need to do is find the most worn part of your tires (usually in the center). Place the penny into the tread with Lincoln’s head going first. If any part of the tread reaches the head, you have at least 2/32 of an inch. Knowing these handy tricks are key to timing your tire replacements.
Damage
Damaged tires are unsafe tires. If there are major flaws on your tires, it’s probably time to consider tire replacements. That’s why it’s a good idea to regularly check your tires for any flaws. Keep an eye out for any bumps. broken cords, or uneven wear. These are some of the more harder-to-spot signs of damage than holes or tears. If you notice any of these flaws, then you’ll know it’s time to get new tires.
Age
Tire age is also something you should keep in mind when it comes to tire replacements. Even if the tires have only a few miles on them, they can still deteriorate over time. This can be seen in some obvious and not-so-obvious ways. If your tires are becoming “weather checked”, then that’s a good sign they’re getting up there in age.
However, some tire manufacturers put antioxidants in their tires to help prevent this. Still, the integrity of your tire could still be at risk if it’s too old. If you know it’s been quite a while since you got your tires, you should consider getting tire replacements.
Having good tires is an important aspect of proper motorcycle safety. Older tires are more unsafe and more accident-prone than their newer counterparts. If you notice those signs of wear or age on your tires, try to get some tire replacements as soon as you can.
Aug 10, 2025 | Motorcycle, Motorcycle Maintenance
It’s always exciting to get a new motorcycle. It’s also important to break in the bike properly. However, there’s a lot of debate out there over the “right” way to break in a bike. As it turns out, there is a way to do so which will benefit your bike in the long run…
New Motorcycle: Getting Used to It
The break-in period
First, it’s important to know what the break-in period for a new motorcycle is. Generally, this period is during the first 500-1,000 miles of your ride on the bike. However, it’s always a good idea to check the bike’s manual to see what the manufacturer considers to be the bike’s break-in mileage.
Breaking in your new bike is important to help get your bike running at its full potential. The friction in your engine is at its highest during this period. This is because the components haven’t been “bedded in” yet, so you’ll have lesser engine performance until they are.
What to avoid
According to some riders, you should break in a new motorcycle aggressively. They claim this style of breaking in your motorcycle will prevent the engine from being too weak. However, this style does more harm to your engine instead.
The increased friction in your engine produces more metal shavings than in a broken-in bike. These shavings can then get into your engine oil. Given enough time, and you could end up with these shavings clogging up your oil filter. They could even make their way back into the more crucial parts of your engine!
Break-in properly
Instead of the previous method, the best way to break in a new motorcycle is by keeping your throttle low. Try to avoid going over 3/4th of your throttle during those first 500-1,000 miles. You should also avoid high engine speeds, so don’t take your bike out on the highway just yet.
You’ll also want to ride as safely as possible. That means avoiding hard stops, fast starts, and rapid acceleration as best as you can. While you can increase your engine speed to the rev limit for a short period of time, you should do this in quick, one-off goes. Don’t make it a habit to constantly rev your bike up all the way while breaking it in.
Jul 20, 2025 | Motorcycle, Motorcycle Maintenance
In a lot of pop culture, motorcycle gangs get a bad (or a bad boy) wrap. For example, Sons of Anarchy depicts an outlaw motorcycle gang. In other movies like the John Travolta movie Wild Hogs, some clubs are really just a few friends who get together to ride semi-regularly. What do these two clubs have in common? Biker communities are full of people who come together for the same purpose.
Biker Communities: Finding New Family
Who?
You don’t need to be an outlaw to join a club. Actually, it’s probably best that you aren’t an outlaw at all. Biker communities are a good way to feel at home when you’re on the road. Your friends from your local group become your family. This family will become someone you rely on throughout your biking days.
Where?
Biker communities are all over. They can be big or small, just a couple of people can be considered a club. The best part is, nothing has to be official. Just calling someone to join your ride will be good enough. You can have a destination or not, it’s up to you.
When?
There may be scheduled rides some days, or impromptu “it’s beautiful outside, let’s go for a ride” rides. Either way, enjoy them when you can. If you decide a more formal club works best for you, try finding biker communities with regular rides. If you can’t, you can start your own! This way, you can add a new patch to your vest or jacket.
Why?
Lastly, do we really need to answer the why? Biker communities are a great way to feel more comfortable on the bike or on the road. They can give you confidence and a community of support. There are few other people who will give you the security that your community does.
You don’t need to be part of a gang to be a part of one of the plenty biker communities that are available. Joining the club will bring a new appreciation for your bike, the road, and the community it offers.
Jun 29, 2025 | Accident prevention, Motorcycle
Many motorcycle riders tend to opt for using Bluetooth units while they’re riding. In fact, many modern helmets come designed with these devices in mind. But what is it about them that makes riders choose them? As it turns out, these devices have many features which help with both convenience and safety…
Bluetooth Units: Why They’re Useful
Phone integration
Practically every smartphone these days comes with Bluetooth options. These allow for them to easily connect and pair with Bluetooth units. This means that you can make use of features on your phone without having to ever pull it out while on the road.
For example, connecting your phone to Bluetooth units will let you get directions from apps like Google Maps or Waze. You’ll also be able to answer any potential phone calls you get while riding. All of this can be done without taking your eyes off the road or your hands off your bike, giving these units a nice added safety element too.
Listen to music
Another nice advantage of Bluetooth units is when using them to listen to music. It can be quite loud when you’re riding on a motorcycle, and standard motorcycle speakers just might not cut it. However, instead of investing in a sound system, you can chose to listen to music through one of these devices.
Streaming services make it easy to just open up a music app, connect your devices, and start listening to music. Also, most of these Bluetooth units have a “priority system”. If you have a GPS app open while playing music, your GPS will always take the priority and cut in to let you know when you’re coming up on the next turn before continuing your music.
Talk to other riders
Motorcycles being loud doesn’t just make it hard to listen to music. It can also be hard to hear or talk to other riders. This can be especially frustrating if you’re riding in a group. However, Bluetooth units can help solve this problem.
Older devices use Bluetooth connections between units to usually allow about 4 riders to remain in touch while within a few hundred feet of each other. However, newer devices use networking, which let’s your Bluetooth connection stay free and increases the amount of riders and distances you can have. While they are a bit more pricey, the added convenience can make them well worth it.
May 25, 2025 | Motorcycle
That beautiful spring weather is fast approaching. Which means, it’s about time to bring that bike of yours out of hibernation. The weather is right, and that means the time has come. But, before you hop back on the hog, it’s important that you spend a little time in the garage. Why, you ask? Well, it’s time to do that warm weather maintenance. You likely don’t ride as much in the winter, therefore there’s a few extra steps you need to take to make sure you, and your bike, are in riding condition.
Warm Weather Maintenance for Your Bike: Before You Leave the Garage
Start with electronics
Check those wires. If you keep your bike in a garage, it avoids most of those winter woes. But, one it might not avoid— is the electronics. It could be a mouse, everyday wear and tear, or a freak accident. No matter the cause, it’s worth a check before you get back out there and realize halfway through that your speedometer isn’t working.
Now, let’s move on to the battery
At the very least, it might need a quick scrub with the wire brush. Build up happens over time, especially depending on where you store it. I’m sure you know, but if not, build up on those battery terminals can cause a poor connection. In short, your battery might not work— but with a little elbow grease, it just might. No matter if the battery is bar, or just dirty— it’s a quick and easy fix.
Next, let’s check those fluids
It’s time to check the brake and fuel lines. Get them drained, cleaned up, and topped off before you even consider getting back out there. Keeping them in proper shape can increase the life of your bike, but also keep from potential failures along the way.
We’re almost finished! Sprockets and chains time
It’s time to check them out, clean them up, lube them up, and get ready to go. Winter is typically pretty dry, and that dryness can be tough on your chains. So, giving them that once over and moisturizing them can increase the life and decrease the chance of failure.
Lastly, give those tires some love
Another aspect of your bike that can suffer greatly from winter weather are your tires. The air is getting cold, then colder, and then hot again— especially if you live in the South. So, it’s easy for tire pressure to fluctuate. Check and make sure they’re pumped up, no holes, flat tires, or bald spots. once you’ve done this, you’ve completed your warm weather maintenance and you’re ready to ride. But remember, safety first!
