Ok guys. I'm an awful person. I was so excited about being a new rider that I only paid attention to riding skills and nothing else. Well here is the skinny.

I have a trip planned for sometime next month. Headed to visit family in the southern part of the state. It'll be a 2 or 3 day stay. 200 miles down, 200 miles back, and driving all over hell and creation to see everybody. Probably looking at 550-600 miles in a weekend lol.

Skill wise, do I think I'm ready? Well, I already crashed so I got that out of the way. I've been on the street for only about 250 miles but this is important to me. I don't have a car for the trip and I want to do this. I want to.

So here is my question(s):

The bike is at 13k miles. Lets pretend for a minute that the bike has had nothing done maintenance wise. Like, pretend its never even had an oil change since it was bought new in 2009. I need a list of things to clean, check, fix, tweak, tighten, loosen, purchase, replace, and fiddle with.

This post:
https://www.ninjette.org/forums/showpost.php?p=847386&postcount=7
Is what posed this question for me. I have no idea what my chain looks like or if its loose or dirty. So what else am I missing before the big trip, or any ride for that matter.

Well, I'd start off with topping off the blinker fluid and greasing the exhaust bearings. You may also want to pick up some riding skills, Cycle Gear might have some. Last but not least go get a check up from the doctor. Have them do an MRI and see if the decision making part of your brain is fully developed.

:o I'm posting to try to make sure everything is 100% before the ride. I'm allowed to be a noob aren't I?

Speaking of exhaust bearings though, why does my exhaust have a ring to it after it revs to 9k and comes back down?

Valve check/adjustments should have been done at 7500 miles. Oil change every 2-3k Miles. Dependent on your riding style. There's a maintenance checklist in the DIY TECH section.

Valve check adjustment may sound daunting at first but I would advise you read through it a few times and see if you can tackle it. Otherwise have someone that knows help your or pay someone to do it. Tires should be checked at least weekly and make sure you don't have dry rot, cracks, or nails/screws in them.

Ringing could just be normal or you have something rattling loose. Gear up and keep our head on a swivel and practice safety maneuvers and skills.

Is your backside ready for that amount of time on the bike?
When i got my bike i was hell bent on putting 1k miles on it one week, what a mistake that was, my behind was not ready for what that seat can do to you. The thing is not meant for touring of any kind and will take a fair amount of time to adjust to, just make sure you take plenty of breaks off of it or you'll regret it.

Make sure the oils changed, check the air filter and replace if needed, check the tires and make sure they have the proper pressure, check, clean and lube the chain

Hypothetically no maintenance ever? Check everything, that is all.

What do you mean by - "I have no idea what my chain looks like or if it's loose or dirty"?

You should know that if you've been riding it.

There's a lot to do if you don't want to go looking for trouble. If it has the stock tires on it, they are junk by now - no matter how much tread they have. 4-5 years is about max for a cycle tire, and I've seen plenty that are cracking and drying-out long before that.

The oil and filter should be changed. The air filter should be checked. All of the fluids should be checked and changed if necessary.

The chain should be cleaned, lubed, and adjusted.

You should be confident that it's running and operating properly before taking off.

If you've only ridden 250 mi on the street so far this may be pushing it for you.

i would say skip this trip and take an easier vehicle for now. mostly just because you don't even know what your chain looks like let alone if you need more important things like valve adjustments or an oil change or whatever

i would bring the bike to your local shop and have them do a scheduled maintenance on the entire bike. perhaps they will even find something that is wrong with the bike that you have no idea about (for example that just happened to me. brought the bike to the shop to get new tires put on and they found a leak in my fork seals. i would never have noticed that until bad things happened...)

unless you feel comfortable changing your own oil, brake fluid, coolant, etc, the list goes on and on, I would just bring it to the shop and get it all done for you. expect it to be a bit pricy though...

Have a look at this thread. (https://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=124168) You will see what a jacked up, loose and dirty chain, futzed up brake pads and brake rotors look like.

Then have a look at the maintenance schedule (https://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=10577) to see what should/ should've been done.

i would bring the bike to your local shop and have them do a scheduled maintenance on the entire bike. perhaps they will even find something that is wrong with the bike that you have no idea about (for example that just happened to me. brought the bike to the shop to get new tires put on and they found a leak in my fork seals. i would never have noticed that until bad things happened...)

unless you feel comfortable changing your own oil, brake fluid, coolant, etc, the list goes on and on, I would just bring it to the shop and get it all done for you. expect it to be a bit pricy though...

I think in this guys case it would just be cheaper to go buy another bike then hand his over to a shop and saying its got 13k on it with no service history please fix it up.

I think in this guys case it would just be cheaper to go buy another bike then hand his over to a shop and saying its got 13k on it with no service history please fix it up.

haha this is true.

assuming there is nothing wrong with the parts, the services should be affordable though. many shops in my area have preseason rates for full bike inspections (oil change, coolant change, brake fluid, etc) Hopefully that is affordable

haha this is true.

assuming there is nothing wrong with the parts, the services should be affordable though. many shops in my area have preseason rates for full bike inspections (oil change, coolant change, brake fluid, etc) Hopefully that is affordable
An "Inspection" doesn't usually include the actual service, it just identifies what needs to be done.

Paying a dealer to do basic maintenance is a fail. As a cycle rider you should know how to do all those things your safety depends on to work properly. As many can attest, a "Trained Technician" can often screw-up basic stuff like oil changes and chain adjustment to the point that it creates more problems than it solves.

Ok guys. I'm an awful person. I was so excited about being a new rider that I only paid attention to riding skills and nothing else. Well here is the skinny.

I have a trip planned for sometime next month. Headed to visit family in the southern part of the state. It'll be a 2 or 3 day stay. 200 miles down, 200 miles back, and driving all over hell and creation to see everybody. Probably looking at 550-600 miles in a weekend lol.

Skill wise, do I think I'm ready? Well, I already crashed so I got that out of the way. I've been on the street for only about 250 miles but this is important to me. I don't have a car for the trip and I want to do this. I want to.

So here is my question(s):

The bike is at 13k miles. Lets pretend for a minute that the bike has had nothing done maintenance wise. Like, pretend its never even had an oil change since it was bought new in 2009. I need a list of things to clean, check, fix, tweak, tighten, loosen, purchase, replace, and fiddle with.

This post:
https://www.ninjette.org/forums/showpost.php?p=847386&postcount=7
Is what posed this question for me. I have no idea what my chain looks like or if its loose or dirty. So what else am I missing before the big trip, or any ride for that matter.

The bike made it to 13K. I don't think another 600 miles is going to kill it. Ride the back roads down and back. Take your time, be careful, and have the time of your life. Tell the family I said hi. I'll be in that neck of the woods this coming weekend.

Check your fluids and adjust your chain before you go. Oyea, go over each and every bolt and nut to make sure they are tight before you go. One last thing, check your tire pressures.

Do you have any mechanical skills? Are you actually interested in this stuff?

Red flag for me is that you haven't paid any attention to the bike. I get the whole "hypothetical" thing about maintenance... surely some has been done and you're just trying to be careful. But if you haven't even looked at the thing in the (short) time you've been riding, well....

Do you even have tools? Not meaning to be a d*ck but the tone of your questions suggests you might not.

Prepping for a 500-mile trip is really little more than check the pressures and fluids and go ride.

If you really do want to do the top-to-bottom thing, short of valve adjustment, then:

- Change oil and filter.
- Remove, clean and oil air filter.
- Check clutch cable.
- Check all rubber hoses for signs of age (shiny, hard, cracked)
- Change brake fluid (which means bleeding), check brake hoses and pads.
- Clean, adjust and lube chain.
- Thoroughly inspect tires (meaning get them off the ground, spin the wheels and look at the whole tire).
- Check all your lights to make sure everything works.
- Overall condition inspection... put a wrench (or at least a hand) on every bolt you can reach. Stuff vibrates loose, you know.
- Do a general cleaning. Dirt and grease hide things.

Doing all this thoroughly and correctly is one pretty full day of maintenance if you're already familiar with the bike and have all the tools on hand. If you're not handy or need to go out and buy stuff, budget two days. If you want to do valve adjustments and have never done it before, budget a full day just for that. It can all be done faster... but it's better to take your time and make sure you're doing it right.

The bike made it to 13K. I don't think another 600 miles is going to kill it .......
Check your fluids and adjust your chain before you go. Oyea, go over each and every bolt and nut to make sure they are tight before you go. One last thing, check your tire pressures.

:whathesaid:

If the thing is working, don't mess with it.

Do you have any mechanical skills? Are you actually interested in this stuff?

Red flag for me is that you haven't paid any attention to the bike. I get the whole "hypothetical" thing about maintenance... surely some has been done and you're just trying to be careful. But if you haven't even looked at the thing in the (short) time you've been riding, well....

Do you even have tools? Not meaning to be a d*ck but the tone of your questions suggests you might not.

Prepping for a 500-mile trip is really little more than check the pressures and fluids and go ride.

If you really do want to do the top-to-bottom thing, short of valve adjustment, then:

- Change oil and filter.
- Remove, clean and oil air filter.
- Check clutch cable.
- Check all rubber hoses for signs of age (shiny, hard, cracked)
- Change brake fluid (which means bleeding), check brake hoses and pads.
- Clean, adjust and lube chain.
- Thoroughly inspect tires (meaning get them off the ground, spin the wheels and look at the whole tire).
- Check all your lights to make sure everything works.
- Overall condition inspection... put a wrench (or at least a hand) on every bolt you can reach. Stuff vibrates loose, you know.
- Do a general cleaning. Dirt and grease hide things.

Doing all this thoroughly and correctly is one pretty full day of maintenance if you're already familiar with the bike and have all the tools on hand. If you're not handy or need to go out and buy stuff, budget two days. If you want to do valve adjustments and have never done it before, budget a full day just for that. It can all be done faster... but it's better to take your time and make sure you're doing it right.

couldnt have said it better myself

Ok guys. I'm an awful person. I was so excited about being a new rider that I only paid attention to riding skills and nothing else. Well here is the skinny.

Skill wise, do I think I'm ready? Well, I already crashed so I got that out of the way. I've been on the street for only about 250 miles but this is important to me. I don't have a car for the trip and I want to do this. I want to.


What worries me is that you seem to think that crashing once means you will not crash again. And also being that you only have 250 miles experience but you are looking to do more than double that in a single weekend... That is quite a bit.

If it were me, I would take a bus. Why risk something if you are questioning if you are comfortable or not. To me, it sounds like you are not comfortable.

Also, not to sound like a d*ck, but it seems like you are not even familiar with your bike operation and how it works. Maintenance is a key thing, and if you overlook it, it will come back to bite you in the a$$

In the end, it is up to you, and your decision.

Hmmmmm. I'm a noob so my two bobs worth probably isn't worth much, but... I'll put it in anyway from the noob perspective.

I can tell how excited you are to do this ride from your original post. I feel the same way - had my bike for a month now, and want nothing more than to put her between my legs, so to speak. The key that I've learnt after joining this ninjette.org group though, is maintenance, and diligence in doing it. If you don't know much about your bike (which your post suggests you don't) then you need to learn before riding it. Especially 500 miles. What if your chain slips off? You get a flat? Your bike won't start after a pee stop? Your clutch cable breaks? Etc etc. Without that knowledge your pretty screwed and up for a few $$$ too, probably to repair something simple you could have done in 5 mins had you taken the time to learn some basics.

My advice; keep riding round your home at point of need; but get in the shed, get some tools, get reading on this forum, get reading on ninja250.org and tinker with your bike. You will learn quickly as I have done and grow to appreciate your bike, it's capabilities and it's temperament way more. They are not cars and can't be treated as roughly as a car, nor neglected as much as you can neglect a car.

I know your keen to do the trip, but my advice - patience! Your family ain't going anywhere and would like you to be as safe as possible when riding down to visit them.

I have to keep riding round my clothesline for a few more weeks yet till I get my bike sorted!!! It sucks but I'm still having tonnes of fun and getting much satisfaction from tinkering in my free time.