As the weather has started to take a turn for the worse (if it was ever good in the 1st place) and as i'm a completely fair weathered rider, any tips for storage? evo sp will be kept in a heated garage, i have a rear paddock stand (should i put it up?) and i'm thinking of getting one of those chargers from ducati that will keep the battery topped up, anything else?
Depends on how fussy you are - garage is heated so corrosion and condensation unlikely but otherwise I'd suggest coating nuts n bolts, aluminium casings, etc, with ACF 50 and making sure she is full up with petrol to minimise condensation.
You don't need a charger from ducati. get one of these Oximiser Battery Charger That'll do the job just fine.
Empty fuel and stands both ends, headstock front not under fork ones imo And no battery connection or charger, just stick it on charge a week before you need it. Prob be dead after 6 months on an optimate anyway so nothing to lose
cheers for the heads up with this, ordered one, £40 cheaper than the ducati one, and £30 cheaper on that site than anywhere else.
+1, you can also get a plug in extension lead and permanently wire it in to your battery so you don't have to lift the tank each time you connect it.
Depends how long you are going top leave it. Worth getting the tyre off the concrete though as I believe that prolonged standing can allow the oils in the rubber to leech out, easy to put a piece of hardboard or something similar under the tyre. When I have had my Ducati's standing unused for a while, every month or so I like to put the bike in top gear and turn the engine over a few degrees using the back wheel to move the belts a bit to eliminate them 'taking a set' whilst curved over the pulleys. if you were really keen you could squirt a few cc's of engine oil down the plug holes and move the pistons up and down to smear oil on the bores and rings to prevent corrosion.
You could just tuck it up in bed with an electric blanket and give it a mug of hot chocolate every night.lol Either that or nip our for a ride on the odd days when it's dry and not salty, works for me.
I kept my monkey bike in the living room for 5 years. I did get divorced eventually but to be honest the monkey was a far better ride.
Generally put the bike up on stands to keep tyres off the ground but my garage is carpeted so not as important if your on concrete. Give it a really good clean including taking the fairings off and cleaning the engine. Spray everything with WD40/Duck Oil/ACF50 excluding tyres/brake discs etc. Put battery on optimate and if your really anal then let the tyres down a little! Oh and read your manual about storage.