Winterize?

[chrisburges]

I live in NYC and use my bike daily to commute and this is my first winter with a bike. i do plan on riding in the winter as long as there isnt an inch of snow or slippery roads. 
 
What does winterizing your bike mean?
 
I'm obviously new to riding and dont really maintain by bike well (never cleaned my chain myself or even adjusted it, mostly becuase i dont have a rear stand.) theres been this annoying chain rubbing or noise maybe from rear wheel or brake dust perhaps whenver im over 35 MPH. the dealer sold me into having my chain adjusted which never got rid of the faint noise. maybe its a normal noise, but i dont remember that it when i first got the bike. they said its fine, but it bothers me. Any thoughts?

[duenan]

Winterize pretty much just means that your bike will be sitting unused for 3-4 months during winter (because most riders opt not to ride in freezing temp for various reasons such as traction or lack of cold riding gear) and you need to prepare your bike for that inactive period which usually means fuel stabilizer with a full tank of gas, oil change, cleaning the bike, having the battery on tender/charger, covering the exhaust to prevent rodents from going inside, things like that.
 
If you plan to be riding all through winter, then no, you don't winterize it.

[booboobusfz07]

Chain noise is extremely common with the stock chain it's never going go away until it's replaced with an aftermarket one.
Likewise for brake dust, it's a reality of riding and using your brakes.
 
You should be lubing your chain every 300-600miles. It's super easy there's no excuse not too and without it you will get thousands of miles less of use due to wear.

[chrisburges]

Chain noise is extremely common with the stock chain it's never going go away until it's replaced with an aftermarket one. Likewise for brake dust, it's a reality of riding and using your brakes.
 
You should be lubing your chain every 300-600miles. It's super easy there's no excuse not too and without it you will get thousands of miles less of use due to wear.

thanks, ill search around the forum for the best chains, is it true you should also change sprockets when you change chain? 
by lubing, do you also mean cleaning and waxing? im currently waiting on a good deal on a cheap rear stand

[booboobusfz07]

If your sprockets are decent you don't need to change them. A lot of people switch to a 520 chain which is lighter, in this case you swap sprockets to the new chain pitch.
 
You don't need to "wax" your chain some chain lubes leave a dry film behind sometimes lubes use wax to achieve this.
 
You don't need to clean it every time you lube it. I'd say every other time would be fine if you're lubing on a frequent basis. You don't need a rear stand I just moved my bike forward and back to move the chain until I got a rear stand. They make it alot easier and convenient tho
Pretty easy to find one under 50$ I got mine for 30$ at cyclegear

[chrisburges]

If your sprockets are decent you don't need to change them. A lot of people switch to a 520 chain which is lighter, in this case you swap sprockets to the new chain pitch.

i think i confused myself even more by looking at a forum about gearing and such. there are way too many chain variations, link number. ideally i wouldnt want to spend more than 120$ on a chain which already seems like a lot. any suggestions?

[Guest ChicagoAJ]

If your sprockets are decent you don't need to change them. A lot of people switch to a 520 chain which is lighter, in this case you swap sprockets to the new chain pitch.

i think i confused myself even more by looking at a forum about gearing and such. there are way too many chain variations, link number. ideally i wouldnt want to spend more than 120$ on a chain which already seems like a lot. any suggestions?

If you don't want to take care of your bike/chain. Get rid of the bike. A low quality chain won't last and still costs over $120 with chain and sprockets. If you're replacing the chain you must do sprockets too unless you want to ruin your new chain abnormally fast (or you have less than 100 miles on your bike total). A decent x-ring chain and steel sprocket kit is around $200-$230 depending on color and chain size.  
Take care of your chain and it'll last. Neglect it and you'll be getting a new one quicker than you think. If you don't want to change the gearing - make sure you get the front and rear sprockets with the same number of teeth that the stock ones have otherwise you'll throw off your odometer/speedometer. 

[Beemer]

Chains/bikes in general make noises. It takes time to learn the good noises from the bad but your noise sounds normal. If you're interested in cleaning your own chain and want a 'cheap' stand for it here you go.
 
 
http://www.harborfreight.com/motorcycle-wheel-cleaning-stand-98800.html

[chrisburges]

i think i confused myself even more by looking at a forum about gearing and such. there are way too many chain variations, link number. ideally i wouldnt want to spend more than 120$ on a chain which already seems like a lot. any suggestions?

If you don't want to take care of your bike/chain. Get rid of the bike. A low quality chain won't last and still costs over $120 with chain and sprockets. If you're replacing the chain you must do sprockets too unless you want to ruin your new chain abnormally fast (or you have less than 100 miles on your bike total). A decent x-ring chain and steel sprocket kit is around $200-$230 depending on color and chain size.  
Take care of your chain and it'll last. Neglect it and you'll be getting a new one quicker than you think. If you don't want to change the gearing - make sure you get the front and rear sprockets with the same number of teeth that the stock ones have otherwise you'll throw off your odometer/speedometer. 

thanks, are the chain sprocket kits good or its better to get each piece seperate

[chrisburges]

Chains/bikes in general make noises. It takes time to learn the good noises from the bad but your noise sounds normal. If you're interested in cleaning your own chain and want a 'cheap' stand for it here you go. 
 
http://www.harborfreight.com/motorcycle-wheel-cleaning-stand-98800.html

looks good, thank you so much!

[mjh937]

I have this stand from Harbor Freight.  It was cheap but has worked well for over two years now.  

[Guest ChicagoAJ]

If you don't want to take care of your bike/chain. Get rid of the bike. A low quality chain won't last and still costs over $120 with chain and sprockets. If you're replacing the chain you must do sprockets too unless you want to ruin your new chain abnormally fast (or you have less than 100 miles on your bike total). A decent x-ring chain and steel sprocket kit is around $200-$230 depending on color and chain size.  
Take care of your chain and it'll last. Neglect it and you'll be getting a new one quicker than you think. If you don't want to change the gearing - make sure you get the front and rear sprockets with the same number of teeth that the stock ones have otherwise you'll throw off your odometer/speedometer. 

thanks, are the chain sprocket kits good or its better to get each piece seperate

All depends on what you want. If you want an aluminum rear sprocket to free up some rotational weight for more power you'll likely have to mix and match. A lot of companies sell the kits in a -1/+2 set up so it'll screw up the gearing but make the bike faster by sacrificing top speed.  
If you want the cheapest stuff, get OEM sprockets at the cheapest price you can find and just buy a chain separate. But make sure you get the right size chain and sprockets so everything works together. 

[Beemer]

I have this stand from Harbor Freight.  It was cheap but has worked well for over two years now.  

That looks nice. I read the first review of that stand on that site and the guy said a little trick to make the rubber paddles last longer was to use some thick grease on them to make the bike slide easier.

[yamahazaki]

I don't understand why you are considering changing your chain for no other reason than a slight noise issue which may or may not go away. Just get used to the noise. Or get a new exhaust. Or wear earplugs which you should be doing anyway if you want to save that hearing of yours from constant wind noises.