oil questions....

[Tnutz]

There is only one oil to change right??? Engine oil lubricates clutch right, and there is no final drive oil to change???

[koolaid_kid]

Correct. The lubricant is shared between them.

[focus frenzy]

depends on the bike, the big shafties have a secondary and final drive that have their own oil supply that needs to be change once in a while.

[bostrom155]

Make sure to use M/C oil, don't use cheap auto oil. If it's got a chain, keep it well lubed, i've just been using wd-40 lately

[koolaid_kid]

depends on the bike, the big shafties have a secondary and final drive that have their own oil supply that needs to be change once in a while.

Correct, the shaft drives have their own lubricant that needs to be changed periodically. But it is not engine oil, and should not be confused with such.
Can't say that I would ever use WD40 as a lubricant. Ever.

[Tnutz]

well it's an 86 gs 550 ef, so i guess it's only engine oil then, So far i have replaced the clutch cable, back tire/repack the bearings, done an oil change with car oil (not energy conserving of course) cleaned and re-lubed the chain added an inline fuel shut off valve due to leaky petcock, changed plugs and added a K&N filter.

So far it is running and driving pretty damn good. Has a small oil leak from the front cam cover....but it just gets a little wet after a while, so i will leave it for now.

Winter plans: Change brake fluid, fix front brake switch maybe change fork oil...


oh yeh, WD40 cleans things better than lubes...i cleaned my chain lightly with solvent on the outside (just enough to get rid of the dirt) then used some chain wax.

[jimcor]

Make sure to use M/C oil, don't use cheap auto oil.

Oh, hogwash. Come back and tell me all about expensive oil and engine life after your bike turns over 93,000 miles.

[Tnutz]

auto oil is the same s h i t, as long as it's not energy conserving. i have used the yamalube in my v-star and the cheap auto oil with absolutely no difference....so why pay three times as much for the yamalube...

[Clone]

WD-40 as a chain lube I'm dyin' I guess that chain is not going to last as long as most others.

[akier]

yeah, WD-40 is not really a chain lube - it's more of an o-ring destroyer. isn't it probably a better idea to get a product tested for use on chains?

good article about chain cleaning/lube: http://www.webbikeworld.com/t2/motorcycle-chain-lube/