Maintaining Bike When Riding Little (Winter)

esh21167

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 10, 2021
Total Posts
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Location
Reading, Pennsylvania, US
Hey all,

I have a 1978 Hondamatic 400 and a 1979 CM400. Weather is getting pretty cool here (30's) and wondering what to do. Have only ridden about 50 miles in the last couple weeks.

Is it OK to keep gas tank pretty full of ethanol free fuel treated with enzyme/stabilizer, and start up/try to ride a couple miles weekly? Or drain all fuel from tank and carbs? If that, is it possible to just remove the carb bowls to drain, or is more work needed?

Thanks!
 
I fill the tank as full as possible, with an ethanol-compatible fuel stabilizer (no e-free here), drain the carbs, then let the treated fuel from the tank fill them again. If possible, I lift the weight off the tires and let the pressure down by about half, to keep rubber damage to a minimum. Battery tender as needed. Don't start again, unless I'm prepared to ride 10 or more miles, so the water of combustion can boil out of the oil; if it's really cold, it takes longer to heat up.
 
WintrSol said:
I fill the tank as full as possible, with an ethanol-compatible fuel stabilizer (no e-free here), drain the carbs, then let the treated fuel from the tank fill them again. If possible, I lift the weight off the tires and let the pressure down by about half, to keep rubber damage to a minimum. Battery tender as needed. Don't start again, unless I'm prepared to ride 10 or more miles, so the water of combustion can boil out of the oil; if it's really cold, it takes longer to heat up.
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Any difference if stored inside or outside? Mine will be in a garage, so lowest temp is probably 45F.
 
Mine are stored similarly, garage that doesn't get below 45F. I don't think it matters if it is outside, though, although I may leave the carbs empty there. A tender on the battery would keep it from freezing unless it gets really cold, so may pull it in really cold weather, if kept outside. Biggest things for me are to keep as much water out of the tank as possible, from breathing it in through temperature changes, and not getting the oil wet. I used to ride to work at temps as low as 40F, but the ride was only about 3 miles; I had to work on the clutch after a winter like that, and found what looked like peanut butter trapped in there. From then on I rode the long way - over 5 miles one way, with plenty of warm-up time.
 
4. A few months sitting is not a pull the plugs and dump oil down the cylinders. This is for years being parked like a garage queen.
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I disagree, it depends if your bike sits in an environment with a constant humidity and temperature or fluctuating humidity and temperature. From physics point of view, any surface, especially metal or heat conducting surface, should remain above the dew point temperature. The dew point calculation is depending of the relative humidity and the temperature of your object (in this case the cylinder wall) relative to the temperature of the air. When your object is colder then the temperature of the surrounding air and the relative humidity is at a certain level, condensation WILL arise no matter if it stays for days, weeks, months or years.

In the Netherlands the humidity and temperature can change quickly, and if your bike is stored in a unheated garage, condensation is your enemy, especially on steel, aluminium and chrome surfaces. It doesn't matter if air can come into the cylinders because the valves are closed. The trapped air in the cylinder contains water, and this water will condensate on your cylinder walls. After condensation it will run down to piston and rings both will start to rust.

This process isn't depending on the total time that your bike is stored, but is depending of the amount of dramatic changes in temperature and humidity and thus reaching the dew point of your metal surfaces....
 
The reason is not that the rings are seized in a few weeks or a few months. The issue is oxidation of the cylinder walls, resulting in pitting. Pitting is damage, no matter how you look at it. Yes, it will run with pitting in the cylinder walls, but that's not what I'm aiming for. I want to keep my bike in good shape, and the pistons and cylinders are the heart of the bike, why let it oxidate those few months? I like my bikes in good health, high compression, low wear, high mileage without wrenching too much. The residue's of today's patrols don't help either.
 
cntrhub said:
There's no crying on a tech forum.
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No, but there is civility. In this forum, where we are polite and agree to disagree if viewpoints clash, and leave the personal references out of the discussion. If, as you say, it was not addressed to Jensen personally, then why did you make direct reference to him along with the crass comments about looking out the window and seeing him doing something you believe is in futility? We all have our opinions, but in the end the only one that counts in these situations is mine.

I'd suggest you read your newest private message from me and take it seriously.
 
Merry Christmas all!

Some years ago, I spec’d dry vane (carbon) vacuum pumps to move process air that was 100% RH. They were relatively close tolerance cast iron pumps from Becker, an excellent pump by all metrics. I involved the factory rep and we were advised this was an appropriate environment for this pump. It was not. That is, the pumps when running were fine, it was when they alternated offline to another pump in the plant per control logic, the lubricating carbon was washed out, high wear ensued. Crevice corrosion was observed. Galvanic corrosion was observed. Just plain rust was observed. Other problems too. I wrote the lessons learned book on that one!

So what? The cast iron liner material has a similar CTE (coefficient of thermal expansion) as the aluminum block and an outstanding wear liner while running. The liners have zero, nada, zippo, zilch, nothing, that protects from surface corrosion. Jensen is correct and further that humidity acts as a couplant and accelerant to said corrosion depending on humidity minerals in the mix. It can be measured as x mils/day and is no joke.

If there were an affordable all aluminum cylinder block with chrome bores, I’d be all over that in a heartbeat!
 
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