Yearly servicing ? whats involved ?

[BrownyNC29]

I have a 1990 CBR 400 NC29 its going in tomorrow to have 2 new tyres fitting BT090 at the front and a 92 at the rear, also new renthal sprockets and a Tsubaki gold x ring chain plus new rear pads. I use the bike daily and was wondering what I should cover as part of the yearly service ?

heres what I was thinking of replacing

Air filter
Oil filter
Oil
spark plugs
front pads
strip front brakes clean and bleed then replace fluid

what else should I get done thats an essential yearly change ?

Carb clean & balance ( how often should this be done )
valve clearances
fork oil & seals ( how often should the oil be changed )

PS bikes done 21000 miles I have owned it since last december and done 1200 miles it had new sprak plugs and an oil and filter change 6 months before I bought it

[CMSMJ1]

Oil and filter as often as you can afford it in my opinion

Also drain and refresh the coolant, wash the rads too.

thinki about regreasing the shock linkages and the headstock bearings.

oil the cluthc cable and the throttle cables

I change the oil and filter on my bike at least 3 times a year and am sure it is the key to keeping an old, high revving bike alive and well!

[BrownyNC29]

thanks mate well I will do an oil change, spark plugs, filters, coolant and brakes for now, should keep it tip top over winter :-) I guess carb clean balancing and valve clearances can wait until spring eh :D

[leopard_pagan]

Air filter- if K&N clean one a year, if not replace once a year.
Oil filter- replace every other oil change
Oil- once a year
spark plugs- only when needed....
front/rear pads- only when needed
strip front brakes clean and bleed then replace fluid- strip after winter NOT before...
Carb clean & balance-balance once a year.. clean only when needed/issues arise.
valve clearances- debatable..
fork oil & seals- when they start to leak!....

PS bikes done 21000 miles I have owned it since last december and done 1200 miles it had new sprak plugs and an oil and filter change 6 months before I bought it
> then leave it for another 6 months.. or do it now...its up to you.
if you ride all year then id do all the work in spring after the last salt has been down esp the brakes.

[Matchlessman]

Have you got a haynes manual yet? it covers a lot of the servicing stuff and has a good guide for frequency of servicing.

Mind you, the knowledge on this site is probably far more than haynes. Its a good starting point though.

[hannakournikova]

Oil filter- replace every other oil change

what??
are you serious?

[CMSMJ1]

come on dude.they only cost a fiver..lol some people are tight!

might as well change them I reckon! NO point filtering all the crap out your oil, then swapping your oil and then putting this clean oil through a dirty filter!

@ LP - valve clearances are important too - you should do yours in the summer when the weatehr is better - IL4 got to be so much easier than the V4!!

[leopard_pagan]

i try to do a lot of work to my bike on my own.. but i dont have the knowledge to do valve clearances.
i still havent done a compression test as this weekend wasnt the best for weather to work on the bike out side.

[CMSMJ1]

You do have the knowledge..you are just being scared! (cue slaps )

I reckon you know plenty about your bike to be able to follow a Haynes guide to the valve clearances..and with you being a girl you will have dainty hands which would make it even easier

Working outside sucks though so I sypathise with you aboutthis. I got my new house with garage a year ago..it is so nice to be able to work out of the wind!

[leopard_pagan]

"just being scared"
> yup + what i will find out from the compression test!!
i think i may just bite the bullet, unbolt the mirrors and bring the bike inside in to the sitting room and do the test!!!

i had hoped id pass the driving test so that i can start using a car/van to get to work then bring the bike in and start doing the jobs that need doing!
next test in Dec!