Ahoy hoy!

[Alvis]

Hi there, guys! I've been rebuilding and riding mopeds for the past several years, but finally decided to take the plunge and get a full-sized bike. I was planning on getting a 2009 TU250, but after seeing how much I owe in taxes this year, and finding a good deal on a used 2003 GZ250, it was just too awesome to pass up.

I'm scheduled to take a motorcycle training and safety course in three weeks; having no license yet and with the bike sitting in the driveway are going to make those a LONG three weeks.

[blaine]

Welcome to the fourm.Ride safe,have fun! You have bought a great bike.

[Easy Rider]

having no license yet and with the bike sitting in the driveway are going to make those a LONG three weeks.

Resist the temptation to do any more than start it in place and run it a bit.

It would be a MUCH longer 3 weeks if you had to spend it in a hospital bed !! :cry:

[alanmcorcoran]

I disagree. Read the manual. Study the controls.

Fire it up. Duck walk it 50 feet, drop it into first, let out the clutch and go for a ride. Ideally there is an empty parking lot nearby. If you can ride a moped, you can ride a GZ. Just stick to light to no traffic roads for the first few miles. Avoid hills.

I rode mine the first day I got it, I hadn't been on a moped in 30 years and I was fine. Make sure you understand how to shift the first three gears, wear a helmet and the other gear, keep your speed under 20 til you get the hang of it. Watch out for the tailpipe (It gets hot and will burn you if you touch it.)

Have fun.

EDIT: OOPS, just re read that you have no license. Get your permit or whatever you need to practice first!

[Alvis]

Yeah, I've got the permit, but I think I'll wait till the course to try riding it. I understand the mechanics of shifting well enough, but would rather practice on the course's bikes than mess up my gearbox.

[mole2]

Welcome aboard Alvis. I agee...it's going to be a long three weeks for you. :cry:


:)

[Alvis]

Took delivery yesterday. Very anxious to get my license!

I'm planning some rides in advance around central NJ. I want to check out Frenchtown on the PA border, which looks awesome on Google Maps. Any other suggestions, if anyone's familiar with the area?

http://img202.imageshack.us/img202/4843/gz250.jpg

[dhgeyer]

Here are a few things you can do to pass the time.

Download the service manual from this site and give the manual and the bike a good going over.

Check the DOT codes on the tires to make sure they're not more than 5 years old. Check tire pressures.

It may just be the photo, but the chain looks a tad loose and maybe has some rust on it. Might want to tighten it up a little. Check service or owner's manual for correct tightness and how to move the wheel if you do need to. Get some kind of spray lube, chain wax or Teflon.

Order _Proficient Motorcycling_ by David L. Hough from Amazon and read it.

Google "Hurt Report" and read the 50 odd summary findings. Know them by heart.

If your permit allows you to do so, I would say, after all of the above, go ahead and get in some parking lot time, assuming you can get to one without riding in traffic. If you've been riding mopeds for years, you won't find it that hard. Stay in first gear for a while till you get the hang of that. Practice braking with both brakes, and stopping with only the left foot down - they stress this in the course. Keep your head and eyes up. Have fun.

[mrlmd1]

Get some gear - full face helmet, armored jacket, good gloves, boots, riding pants - to keep yourself safe, and an engine guard/crash bar to keep the bike and also yourself from getting hurt. You want to enjoy the ride as long as you can and do it right. :) :tup:

[Clockwork]

Beautiful bike - like it in the blue!

[Alvis]

Thanks for the tips!

[alanmcorcoran]

ALvis,

What is the make and model of your windshield? Can you take a close up of it's mount to the fork?

[blaine]

I beleve it is a "SPITFIRE". it mounts to the bars. I have the same one.Bought mine from dealer.

[dhgeyer]

It's definitely a Spitfire, by Slipstreamer. I noticed that right away. I've had probably half a dozen Sptifires. They're really a great product. They'll mount on just about any bike that has tubular handlebars. You do have to make sure that the mounts are the right diameter for your bars. They're very inexpensive as windshields go. Other than that, the mounting system is so flexible, I've never tried to mount one on a bike and had it fail. I've had them on the Rebel, both Shadow VLX's, the GZ250, the GS500, the Vulcan 500, the Nighthawk 650, and I even had it on the BMW R1200R until the Cee Bailey came in. It's not a hugely sturdy mounting system, but the attachment point on the windshield is about in the aerodynamic center, so it doesn't need a lot of rigidity. You do have to make sure the little thumbscrews are tight once in a while.

It does not have any attachment to the forks. Because the mounting system is so flexible, on most bikes you have some leeway with respect to how high or low you set it.

[blaine]

I put a little loctite on the screws to make sure they don't vibrate loose.

[Alvis]

I beleve it is a "SPITFIRE". it mounts to the bars. I have the same one.Bought mine from dealer.
Bingo.

[alanmcorcoran]

Looks like it fits the bike better than mine (which has the handlebars and the fork mount.) I'm still effing with mine two years later. Hard to get the angle, the hand guards, the height and the speedo all where I want them. But I get a little closer each time. There's a lot of crap on the forks that is exactly in the wrong spot. The big ass "Spartan Shield" style on the Yammie solves the problem with brute force.

[blaine]

Thats why I like the "SPITFIRE",fits the bike well.I think some windshields are to big,slowing the bike down on the highway.Also a shield not angeled properly will do the same.Shield should on same angle as the forks.

[Alvis]

New tires are first on my to-do list. These have a 2002 date code, and the rubber is cracking.

[Alvis]

Chain is quite rusty. Do you clean or replace these?

Think I should swap in a 16-tooth sprocket while I have time to kill? Or should I wait to try riding stock first?

[alanmcorcoran]

You can clean or replace it. I believe many folks on here clean them in a bucket of kerosene (do a search.) If it's just got surface rust on it it should be okay. I think the mileage is probably a better indicator of wear.

As I said before, I think you'll be fine if you ride it prior to the MSF, but to each his own. (You can often download the MSF instructions. Typically they have you in first gear after about an hour or so on the course.) I'd wait until you ride it. I'd say based on my expereince and what I've observed on this board, you are far likelier to trade the GZ for a bigger bike than to find that the 16T makes it all worth while. The boost of the 16T is in the low end (from what I hear) and it will (allegedly) reduce your top end. I think you should ride the bike regularly for three months so you have something to compare it too.

You really should replace the tires first anyway. Getting a blowout, even at 50 mph, on two wheels is probably going to hurt. Much more important than the 16T.

[Easy Rider]

Chain is quite rusty. Do you clean or replace these?

Think I should swap in a 16-tooth sprocket while I have time to kill? Or should I wait to try riding stock first?

If you are in the "target audience" for the 16T, I'd be tempted to do that, chain and rear sprocket all at the same time as the tires......if you can afford it all. You will save a little on labor by not having to take the rear wheel off twice.

[music man]

If you are in the "target audience" for the 16T, I'd be tempted to do that, chain and rear sprocket all at the same time as the tires......if you can afford it all. You will save a little on labor by not having to take the rear wheel off twice.


You would think so, but at a lot of shops that is not true, most of them nowadays go "by the book" on whatever you want done. So in other words if you want to get back brake pads put on at the same time as a new back tire, they charge you for whatever labor time they have set for a back tire and then charge you whatever labor time JUST doing the back brake pads would take.


Shitty as it is, that is what i have experienced in more than one shop. Its because long gone are the days of a mechanic actually deciding how much he will charge you to do something, he looks at a book and IT TELLS HIM how long it should take him for each separate task, and he adds them together. I have even worked at a small engine shop that did that, I hated it so bad I quit.

[Easy Rider]

You would think so, but at a lot of shops that is not true, most of them nowadays go "by the book" on whatever you want done. .

I don't think my bike shop does that......but my car dealer certainly does........or tries to anyway. I always question it and often get an adjustment.

Tire rotation and off-the-car balancing is an excellent example, along with brake inspection.
IIRC, they once tried to charge me for removing and replacing the tires THREE times. What a crock.

At any rate, it is always good to ask if they use the flat rate manual.......and if they DO, then ask if they make adjustments for work that "overlaps". If not, I'd argue the point......or go elsewhere.

[music man]

I don't have any go elsewheres left, if the bike shop I use now pisses me off, I will have to turn my garage into a full service motorcycle shop. I already can't go to the Suzuki shop anymore (you don't want to know), the Honda and Kawasaki shop won't touch my Suzuki, the Yamaha shop went under (and unfortunately got took over by the Suzuki shop) so now I am down to the Hyosung Dealer, they will work on anything.

Sorry about Hijacking your thread Alvis.

[Alvis]

No worries, music man!

I'm going to try the kerosene on the chain. The rust is all over, but doesn't look deep and pitting. Also have some steel wool I can use. About 5K miles on the bike.

I want to see what the local Suzuki dealership can do for me on the tires, though I'm likely going to end up buying them myself and having to find a third party to put them on the wheels.

And I'm hoping I don't outgrow the GZ250 too soon. I got by on 50cc mopeds for the past four years, riding about 1500mi/year. This upgrade to 250cc could quite well blow my mind on its own.

[alanmcorcoran]

If you don't got hills or highways the thrill will last longer.

A steel wire brush might be easier on your hands and more effective on the chain. wear some gloves and don't poke a hole in them.

There's lots of posts on here re tires. It seems to take a little looking around to locate the equivalent size - it seems many people have had trouble finding the ones that come on the bike.

[blaine]

A 100-90-16 will work if you can't find the proper size.I have run this tire for 3 years.

[Water Warrior 2]

If you don't got hills or highways the thrill will last longer.

A steel wire brush might be easier on your hands and more effective on the chain. wear some gloves and don't poke a hole in them.

There's lots of posts on here re tires. It seems to take a little looking around to locate the equivalent size - it seems many people have had trouble finding the ones that come on the bike.

The wire brush will clean off the chain side plates but do not do the rollers. With some bad luck you will damage the O rings and shorten the chain life considerably. You might want to just try kerosene and a rag initially. Rubber gloves and elbow grease may be all you need.

[Easy Rider]

I'm going to try the kerosene on the chain. The rust is all over, but doesn't look deep and pitting. Also have some steel wool I can use. About 5K miles on the bike.

Surface rust really does not harm a chain. If there is no rust on the rollers or the teeth of the sprockets, a light rinse with kero, mineral spirits (kero without the smell), diesel fuel or even WD 40 is all you need. Anything else (brush, steel wool, etc.) is likely to accomplish nothing really useful and probably will create a REAL mess on adjacent parts......and YOU.

Wipe it, oil it and ride !!