Articles - Tech Talks

We get a lot of questions from customers about how best to set up their suspensions. This can be a tough question to answer, because so many riders are looking for different results. Some riders are just street riding with very little off-road, others are full off-road, and others are somewhere in between. While we have lots of choices for forks and shocks to have your bike perform better for you, you should not forget about tuning the suspension, including setting the sag. An appropriate amount of sag allows the shock enough travel to perform well on compression and rebound.

Whenever you mount new tires (front or rear), it is very important that you properly balance the new setup. Because of parts like valve stems and because of manufacturing tolerances, your wheels & tires will not have their weight perfectly distributed. Taking the time to make sure your wheels & tires are correctly balanced will greatly improve tire performance, increase vehicle stability, and promote even tire wear, extending their life.

Your bike's handlebar is a key element for your safety and comfort while riding. OEMs generally include a simple, basic stock handlebar, but we can easily improve it to increase the level of control and reduce the amount of fatigue while on your dual-sport.

As riding season is upon us, many of us are getting ready by prepping our bikes. Among all of the basic items to attend to – new oil, fresh gas, and other details – we want to highlight four services that get overlooked.

Switching to Summer Air

The easiest things to correct are often the most overlooked. Switching to summer air in your tires provides you with quicker warm-up and improve tire life. Plus, it’s easy to do! Just let out the old winter air and pump in new summer air. Always check and monitor your tire pressure with a quality digital tire gauge.

Our customers often ask us about the difference between chain lubes and chain waxes. Both products perform the same function of reducing wear on your drivetrain, but the most important difference between the two is how and when you apply each.

It doesn’t matter how much power your bike has, how great the brakes are, or even how awesome the suspension is, if your tires can’t transmit those forces to the ground, it’s useless. We explain tire basics in two parts: selection and sizing.

One of the most common desires we see from our customers is to go further on a tank of gas. While many of you install a larger fuel tank on your bike, improving your MPG will also help extend your range.

There are a few simple maintenance items that can make a big difference in getting better MPG.

#1 is a clean air filter. A good, clean air filter will allow your engine to breathe more easily, improving its operating efficiency.

Today, we look at the brake fluid in your bike. What types there are and which one is best for you.

The four most common grades of brake fluid are DOT 3, DOT 4, DOT 5, and DOT 5.1. Each grade is manufactured to a specific performance standard. DOT 3, 4, and 5.1 are glycol-ether based, and DOT 5 is silicone based. In general, the higher the number, the boiling point of the fluid (more on this later). Fresh and clean brake fluid will have a higher boiling point than old and dirty fluid.

Today, we look at the benefits of the over-size aluminum handlebars.

Most new motorcycles come standard with steel handlebars that are ⅞” in diameter. This has been used for decades, and all after-market products (accessory mounts, hand-guards, etc.) are made to fit this.

The steel bars have proven to be rugged and relatively low-cost to produce.

More recently, aluminum over-size bars that are 1⅛” in diameter began showing up in the aftermarket. At first, these were used for MX & off-road racing only, but these have big benefits all types of riders.

No, not that bag of caps and stems your buddy has brought on your annual camping trip. Your tires ability to hold air depend upon the valve stem cores and caps. These tiny items make a big difference with tire performance.