Pick the perfect line Tip #154 from the pages of The Total Motorcycling Manual
When motorcyclists talk about “line,” they don’t mean something you use for fishing. They’re talking about the exact path their bike travels over a road or track. Each line has three parts: the entry,...
View ArticleGet the right tools for bike repairs Tip #224 from the pages of The Total...
COMBINATION WRENCH SET Either metric or standard, depending on your bike. Really old British iron uses a third system (Whitworth). If you’re low on cash, get only the sizes you need, but it’s usually...
View ArticleUse A Bike Lift Tip #234 from the pages of The Total Motorcycling Manual
Hunching over to work on your bike gets to be a drag pretty quick. If you’re lucky, you’ll be able to build a knee-high platform in your garage. But the real deluxe setup is a bike lift. There are two...
View Article8 Tips To Consider Before You Hit The Dirt Tip #20 from the pages of The...
Dirtbikes are some of the best machines to learn on, but only if you pick the right one. Here’s what to consider. HIGH-QUALITY SUSPENSION These bikes are meant to handle rough terrain, and often need...
View ArticleBreak In A New Engine Tip #79 from the pages of The Total Motorcycling Manual
From “ride it like you stole it” to “you can ruin your engine in the first hour if you’re not careful,” you’ll hear more superstition and voodoo around engine break-in protocol than about virtually...
View ArticleLearn How To Master Trail-Braking Tip #91 from the pages of The Total...
Brakes aren’t just for slowing down or stopping—proper brake use also can help you turn as well as settling your bike’s chassis. Traditional riding instruction says do all your braking with the bike...
View ArticleLearn Your Bike’s Limits When Shifting Tip #85 from the pages of The Total...
If your bike doesn’t have a tachometer, how do you know when to shift? Virtually all modern motorcycles feature rev limiters, so you’ll probably never over-rev your engine so long as you’re in gear....
View ArticleLearn How To Winterize Your Bike Tip #291 from the pages of The Total...
Winter can be cruel to both a bike and its rider. Until the Big Thaw comes, here’s what you can do to put the machine into storage. CLEAN IT Give the bike a thorough wash and wax. Don’t just wax the...
View ArticleLearn To Use A Torque Wrench Tip #231 from the pages of The Total...
Torque, in this instance, is the measure of how tight a nut or bolt needs to be. The great dirt bike writer Ed Hertfelder once opined that there were three torque levels: White knuckles, grit your...
View ArticleGo Both Ways On A Dual-Sport Tip #21 from the pages of The Total Motorcycling...
The key to choosing the right model is to know how much off-road riding you’ll do compared to how much on-road riding, since individual models are usually biased one way or another. SUSPENSION In...
View ArticleGear Up For The Rainy Season Tip #58 from the pages of The Total Motorcycling...
professional essay writersWater conducts body heat much, much faster than air of the same temperature. You already know this: stand around on a 32º F (0º C) day and you’ll be a little chilly; fall...
View ArticleHow-To Pick The Best Tires For Your Bike Tip #251 from the pages of The Total...
Once, I asked a rep from one of the big motorcycle tire companies to tell me all he knew about tires. “They’re round, black, and sticky,” he said. I told him to give me the graduate course. “Some are...
View ArticleKnow How-To Countersteer Correctly Tip #89 from the pages of The Total...
buy eye glasses onlineEvery rider knows that you lean when your turn. Yet few understand a critical aspect of this—countersteering. Countersteering is the technique you consciously or unconsciously...
View ArticleThrow Your Own Biker Film Festival Tip #76 from the pages of The Total...
Hollywood loves bikes as much as it loves pyrotechnics, complicated romances, and blondes with extensive cosmetic surgery. So it’s no surprise that Tinseltown has produced some epic motorbike movies...
View ArticleLearn How To Read A Dyno Chart Tip #72 from the pages of The Total...
A dyno chart is a two-dimensional representation of an engine’s horsepower and torque over the engine’s speed range, as measured by a device called a dynamometer. Most dynamometers either connect to...
View ArticleUnderstand Your Engine’s Cam Shaft Tip #65 from the pages of The Total...
In almost every bike spec chart, you’ll see something describing camshaft layout, and sometimes it looks like gibberish. SOHC, DOHC—what’s it all mean? First, the basics: virtually every four-stroke...
View ArticleBe A Good Passenger Tip #93 from the pages of The Total Motorcycling Manual
Most of the responsibility for the ride falls to the pilot, but as a passenger, you can help to ensure a good experience. Here’s how. DRESS FOR SUCCESS Wear what a smart rider wears: Long pants,...
View ArticleUnderstand Stopping Distance Tip #164 from the pages of The Total...
Every basic driving course tells you there are two components to how long—and how far—it takes you to stop: reaction time and braking time. But motorcyclists need to know more. A good sportbike can...
View ArticleKnow How To Split Lanes Safely Tip #100 from the pages of The Total...
Lane splitting, lane sharing, traffic filtering, white-lining—whatever you call the practice, it’s one of the huge advantages motorcycles offer over cars in traffic. Basically, it’s about riding...
View Article3 Tips For Handling A Skid Tip #166 from the pages of The Total Motorcycling...
In a car, you’re taught to steer into a skid. On a bike, things are considerably more complicated. If your rear wheel starts to skid when you brake, the easiest solution is just to release the rear...
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