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Winter commuting questions

J

jamminbmx

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Joined
Mar 7, 2016
Messages
131
Location
oxford
Bike
M600
Hi all!

Bit of a weird question during the heatwave but...

I use my Monster 600 in the summer and DR800 in the winter for commuting.

Need to take the DR off the road and use the Monster in the winter this year.

Does anyone have any tips for winter commuting? I'm worried about electrical issues and corrosion in the rain!

Cheers

Ben
 
If the temperature is down towards zero and the humity is just so you can get ice forming in the intakes, possibly heightened with the potential water content of E5/10 fuel.
You just need a bit of fuel additive to stop it happening.

Corrosion, ACF50 will keep that at bay.

Water proof electrics ... well my 750 got me home though some floods >> pics etc here << If you scroll down there's the main grid station for the county which was on my route home, spot the road on the right, half a mile on your off the embankment and it got to be real fun :cens:
Didn't miss a beat in water up to knee level, that's knee level sitting on and riding (make a bow wave and hope it gets shallower and DON'T STOP!!) the bike so it's probably less of an issue than you think. Just make sure your connecters are clean and lube with some suitable grease.

Hopefully not one you'll find but given reasonable tyres you'll be OK in snow up to 10 - 20 cms deep, the forest was always a bit carp for winter weather, well OK depends on how you ride but the motors doff along nicely and the flat torque curve means it rarely snaps out on you.

The motor casing paint will fall off anyway, salt will make it happen faster and the cases can get messy, again ACF everything.

No problems Jamin, good gear and it'll be a doddle.. not enjoyable but a doddle.
 
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Holy moly! I was just thinking of a light downpour...not riding home via the nearest river :) Good to hear its more robust than I think it is!

ACF50 sounds like a plan. Will have a look at fuel additives and contact grease as well.

Thanks for all the info. Put my mind at ease. DR800 needs a piston and with my mechanical abilities this could take a few winters :)
 
jamminbmx said:
Does anyone have any tips for winter commuting? I'm worried about electrical issues and corrosion in the rain!
Click to expand...

Clean your electrical connections and apply dielectric grease liberally before the winter.

Check your battery is up to snuff/charging works well (as cold temperatures will kill a marginal battery quicker). I fitted a lithium battery and will probably never buy another lead acid battery - tired of them needing a tender, or even just not holding a charge anymore at a year old.

Tyres. If they're a few years old, even with good tread, putting fresh rubber on for the winter might be a really smart move. The ones that came on my S4 looked fine and really weren't high on my list of priorities in the dry. But they quickly moved to the top - they were absolutely horrifying with any moisture at all.
 
Got new tyres the other day…man what a difference! Got a motobatt too which is great.

Never used dielectric grease so that will be a Youtube video!

Cheers all!
 
jamminbmx said:
Got new tyres the other day…man what a difference! Got a motobatt too which is great.
Click to expand...

Cool. Hope the AGM works out for you.

jamminbmx said:
Never used dielectric grease so that will be a Youtube video!
Click to expand...

It's a non-conductive grease, usually silicon-based. Clean your electrical connectors if/as necessary- and then apply dielectric fairly liberally. and re-connect. The pressure of remaking the contact displaces the grease - and then the connection is sealed from the air/moisture.

It just prevents air or water getting into the connector causing them to oxidize or otherwise corrode/degrade the connection. It's probably not so vitally important for the WeatherPack/SuperSeal connectors on the main harness (these should be weathertight anyway, if in good condition) - but that cheesy alternator block connector? Bullet terminals on the indicators? Pack that stuff in there, you betcha... LOL

I'd do battery terminals, multi-plug connectors, handlebar switches, spark plug caps etc. are all candidates. I'd probably also do relay bases etc and anything else I could find while I was at it for good measure. Basically everything on a bike is exposed to the elements, especially at any out-of-town speed...
 
The looms are usually OK it's the connecters that are the weakest spots, just make sure everything is lubricated and it'll be fine.
Oh and on one deep long wade on my way home a cheeky bugger on a BMW offered me a squirt or two of WD, hmmm who was misfiring when we got to the other side :)
 
Yeah I went past a massive mint BMW GS type thing broken down on the hard shoulder yesterday in the heat. My old DR800 loved the 40 degrees...probably because the carb is set up for desert conditions or something I don't understand.

Mind you my DR800 sounds like it is about to let go of all its metal bits so I should not be too cocky :)

Thanks for all the tips!
 
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Should be fine in the winter, but you may run into carb icing when the temps are 2 or 3 degrees, causing the bike to die on you but be fine after a few minutes of being stopped. Addition of Silkolene Pro FST to the fuel prevents this. Suggestions above on ACF50 and protecting electrical connections are all good!
 
OK will make up all the connectors with this magical grease! Will have a look at the fuel additives as well...but might wait to see if I have issues first.

Cheers all!
 
First ride to work in cold conditions today! 2 degrees and damp. Bike was not really happy even after running for a while. Had to keep the rev's up and it was a bit jerky when throttle opened.

Could carb icing be the issue here? Might have a look for the Silkolene Pro FST...
 
What a nutter! Might stop complaining about my jerky throttle...at least I didnt need to brush the snow off my number plate :)
 
-5 degrees today and apart from requiring lots of choke for the first few minutes the Monster worked well!

My fingers didn't though! Absolute ice blocks! Soooo...heated grips tips? I have Oxford on my other bike and they work well. Anyone know which type fit the Monster?
 
jamminbmx said:
First ride to work in cold conditions today! 2 degrees and damp. Bike was not really happy even after running for a while. Had to keep the rev's up and it was a bit jerky when throttle opened.

Could carb icing be the issue here? Might have a look for the Silkolene Pro FST...
Click to expand...

Almost certainly carb icing addition of Pro FST will help enormously, try not to use E10 if you can.

https://www.mandp.co.uk/products/pro-fst-1-litre-544454

A cap full in every full tank

When it's cold, miserable and wet like now the best recommendation I have is UBER
 
Glad to hear everybodie's Monsters are working fine in the cold. I ran my M900 through the first winter I had it and it was a disaster:- the carbs froze-up, the brake clagged up with salt corrosion and the engine cases went all furry with the paint peeling off, it aged the bike into a classic over-winter.
 
If you're not using the other bike this winter, why don't you swap the heated grips onto the Monster? I think they are fairly universal, but then I've never fitted any.

Had you considered heated gloves and heated socks?
A friend of mine has occasion to walk fields this time of year and swears by his heated socks. He reckons a charge lasts all day and only ever needs to use the low setting.
Expensive, but are they though, If they keep you comfortable?
 
Back in the day I used to do despatch riding (on a 53 plunger BSA B31) around London, anyway one day I came across Captain Sneddon Royal Signals retired, who also rode a BSA, modified by himself to take advantage of everything electric all via Mod surplus equipment. He had heated gloves, socks, plus an all in one arctic tank suit, all connected with that twisted fabric cable & jack plugs, draped in swags either side of the petrol tank. He also informed me that he had his lunch slow cooking in one of the panniers. I told him how much I admired his style and rode on my way, but I never came across him again, where is he now?
 
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Kato - I own an old diesel golf but it makes my cry with boredom everytime I sit it in. Plus it is sh8t for filtering. I would rather risk frostbite than have to sit in that thing.

Gazza - good point! But the heated grips are annoying to fit as they have loooooong wires and I am crap at installing anything in anything. Gonna treat myself to a second set. Heated gloves are expensive!

Bitza - Thanks for cheering up my otherwise uninspiring lunch break.
 
I know the Oxford grips work well, but I'm not a fan of the rather bulky and clumsy looking control unit. I have some Yamaha branded grips on my Gilera, which have the controller built into the left grip, so are much neater.

They wouldn't work on the Monster though because Ducati grips tend to be longer than many other marques, 128mm as against 120mm - 125mm for, say, Honda or Yamaha, so check the grip size before ordering any replacements.

If I were looking to fit heated grips to the Monster, I think I'd go for these Koso/Komine jobbies, as they also have an integrated controller and look to be quality items.

 
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