Articles - Tech Talks

In this month’s tech talk, Mike discusses some common terms that we use when we discuss characteristics of shock setups and compare the performance of different shocks.

The spring on your shock assembly supports your weight. We offer springs with different rates to support riders of different weights. A stiffer spring is designed to support more weight. The valving in the shock provides damping to control how quickly the spring is allowed to compress and then to dissipate the compression force so that your bike doesn’t become a pogo stick.

In this month’s tech talk, Carl discusses the care and maintenance of some components on your motorcycle that you might not think to lubricate.

In this month’s tech talk, Carl talks about aftermarket seats for your motorcycle.

In this month’s tech talk, Carl talks about the different filters on your motorcycle.

The EPA and CARB continue to crack down on emissions tampering, and we are doing our part to comply with the letter and spirit of the laws governing motor vehicle emissions.

All the products that we sell that have potential emissions implications (carburetors, mufflers, jet kits, etc.) are labeled correspondingly on our website. Products that are labeled “race use only” can only be used in closed-course competition racing, and cannot be used on the street.

In this month’s tech talk, Carl talks about the benefits of LED lighting. While many manufacturers have kept their dual-sport models pretty much the same since the late 1900s, you can still take add new technologies like LEDs to make your ride safer.

In this month’s tech talk, Carl talks about the importance of having matching rims and spokes when putting a wheel together.

We hear from a lot of customers who dent a rim, bend some spokes, or just want a different rim on their bike. We also hear from customers who bought a rim somewhere and just need us to get them a new set of spokes. Unfortunately, not all rims and spokes go together.

In this month’s tech talk, Carl gives an overview of fuel petcocks and walks through the process of rebuilding one. Fuel petcocks sit between the tank and the carburetor, and are typically either vacuum-fed or gravity-fed.

In this month’s tech talk, Carl will demonstrate how to properly apply anti-seize paste. Anti-seize paste contains copper, aluminum, or zinc particles mixed with bearing grease, and helps keep your parts lubricated so that they do not seize up, even after being exposed to extreme temperatures or the elements.

Copper-based anti-seize are suited for high-temperature applications such as spark plugs, head bolts, or brake calipers. Aluminum-based pastes can be used for things like triple-clamp mounts or handlebar mounts.

In this month’s tech talk, we will go over how to replace the throttle return spring on a Mikuni TM40 carburetor that’s often used as an aftermarket option on the Suzuki DR650, Honda XL650L, and Kawasaki KLR 650. Many of our customers feel that the stock spring is too stiff, making it harder to rev up their bikes and straining their wrists on long rides.