The Ninja Goes to the Shop
May 5, 2010 
2 Comments
I’ve been waiting for finances to shake out (and for the last of the parts to arrive) to take the Ninja to the shop. The front brake master cylinder came today, and I have a little money (although it looks like I’ll be paying rent late), and today is supposed to be the last nice day until Sunday, when the shop is closed, so I opted to take it in to the shop today.
First: putting the fairing back on the bike was a PITA. I’m not completely done with the fairing repairs – it’s fully functional, now, and I’ve repaired all of the cracks, but I still have some sanding and painting to do before I’m happy with the finished product. (And I promise pictures soon!) But when the right mirror broke, it bent the frame, and it also cracked the fairing where the fairing attaches to the frame. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get the fairing to bend back. I tried banging it with a rubber mallet, using pliers to try to flatten it flush, and even banging it with something underneath it. All I managed to do is make the cracks worse, so I decided to call it a loss and fix the cracks with the fairing in the slightly wrong position.
Alas, I discovered when I went to re-mount the fairing, that the new position of the mirror mount holes, combined with the bent frame that I’d manually re-bent back to the best of my ability, meant that the holes no longer quite lined up. I had a brainstorm and put the old mirror directly back on the frame, and used the leverage of the old mirror to bend the frame a bit more, and then re-applied the fairing. The holes still don’t line up perfectly, but I was able to use brute force to get the screw started and then that forced the mirror and the fairing into roughly the correct position, although it’s just a smidge off. But not so anyone would notice. It’ll just make taking it off again a PITA.
So then I bundled the replacement front brake master cylinder into a shopping bag, since the guy who shipped it didn’t bother to drain all of the brake fluid, and it was all messy, and took the bike to the shop.
First time in the new pants: they’re wicked comfortable, in spite of being too tight in the waist. The venting is good – my legs weren’t overheating even though it was mid-70s at the time (although the top half was burning up – may have to replace the coat). Am happy with pants.
Also the first time I’ve been on the bike since riding it home after the accident. I’ve gotta admit, I was a bit apprehensive about getting back on it. I think I’ve been a little afraid of the bike this whole time, given how things went down when I dropped it. I wasn’t looking forward to riding it to the shop, with a busted front turn signal, no taillight/brake light, no wind screen, and a potentially leaky front brake master cylinder. I was also worried about the path, because the roads between here and there are fairly busy, and they involve some busy intersections that worried me.
I needn’t have worried. Being on the bike again was wonderful, awesome – I just wanted to keep going. I got it up to 25 at one point, which is roughly the speed I was going when I low-sided (I live in the city so we really can’t go all that fast around here) and there was a minor nagging “Hmm. Fast.” under the “Yay! This is FUN!” but the “Yay! This is FUN!” voice drowned it out.
All in all – I really want to be back on the bike now. I don’t know what I was worried about. Rationally, I understand the fear. But it won’t stop me from riding. On the whole, I think this has instilled a healthy respect for what can happen on a bike, combined with a love of good gear, and gratitude that the person who introduced me to the world of motorcycles is a ATGATT sorta girl.
The shop itself was relatively painless. I asked a few questions, and the guy who took the bike answered them honestly. (i.e. the exhaust pipes are showing a fair amount of rust, but he told me not to bother replacing them – he said I can clean them up and they’ll last the life of the bike). Apparently this is what the bike needs:
New front brakes.
Masukomi replaced the front brake, I think, before she went on her big trip last year around the U.S. She mentioned that the front brake has roughly 5k miles on it. The tech guy said the front brake is completely shot, so I’ll need a new brake pad and they’ll install it for me. (Lota money to install a brake pad – I might buy a lift so I can start doing this stuff at home.)
New tires.
I knew it needed new tires, but apparently it REALLY needs new tires. Like, he said he’d probably have to fail the bike on inspection because of the tires. The rear tire is completely worn down to the wear marks, and the front tire is in better shape but is dry rotting. I had planned to replace the tires in the next month, anyway, but apparently I *have* to do it now to pass inspection.
Shop guy just called, and he’s recommending Dunlop tires. I’d been thinking Pirelli Sport Demon tires, because some guys on the Ninja 250 forum recommend them, but the guy said Dunlop would actually serve me better for a long trip because they’re made of a harder compound. He said that Pirellis are a softer compound tire, and they perform well in the short term, but don’t hold up to the miles as well. Unfortunately, I think this means the Dunlops won’t handle as well in rain or off-road conditions; still not sure what tires to get for the big trip this winter. But these tires should do for my trip next month,
New turn signals.
So the right turn signal got busted when I low-sided the bike. I ordered replacement turn signals on eBay, and in spite of saying it would fit my bike, it doesn’t fit my bike. I asked if they could replace the glass on the outside of the turn signal, and he said they couldn’t – they aren’t even motorcycle turn signals. Apparently they’re lights that whoever owned the bike before the gf took off something like a truck cab and re-wired for the bike. And they also re-wired the bike to fit them. So now I have to order another set of turn signals, and they’re going to have to re-wire the bike again to go back to standard motorcycle turn signals. (Although I’m getting an AMP pair, since stock is like $110 – bah. They have to order the AMP pair for me, which will take one to four days.)
And I asked for:
Install the front brake master cylinder.
Theoretically, I could do this myself. Installing the master cylinder isn’t hard. But then you’re supposed to bleed the brakes when you do. And I totally didn’t want to deal with that. It’s one of those technical things I don’t wanna eff up, because brakes are important. So they’ll put the new front brake master cylinder on, but it’ll be an hour of labor, and that’s $90. Bah.
Adjust the forks.
The main reason I took the bike to the shop was to have them adjust the forks, and it turns out that’s only a fraction of what they’re going to end up doing. But they said adjusting the forks is relatively easy – they’ll probably just have to loosen the seals and adjust them, which jives with what the Ninja250 forum people told me. The only reason I didn’t do this myself is that the forks are a major part of the way the bike operates, and I consider it a major safety issue. I’d much rather trust them to do it. Assuming nothing is busted, it’s only going to cost a half hour of labor to do this. It’s probably the cheapest part of this whole visit.
Check out the taillight.
When I replaced the right peg bracket, I had to re-mount the rear brake to the new piece, and re-attach the rear brake sensor. I went to check the brake light after I re-attached the sensor, just to make sure it was working, and realized that not only is the brake light busted – I have no taillight. I hope it’s just a busted bulb. I checked the bulb, and it didn’t look busted, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed. The turn signals still work, so I’m hoping it’s not some weird wiring thing. But I want a brake light again.
Replace the clutch safety switch.
Masukomi told me a while ago that the clutch safety switch in the bike needs to be replaced. She discovered when she was taking her trip last year that the bike simply wouldn’t start one morning, but eventually managed to get it started and took it to the nearest shop. They diagnosed that the clutch safety switch was busted. Theoretically, this meant that you couldn’t start the bike while holding the clutch, which effectively meant you couldn’t start it in gear; only in neutral. She didn’t have time to get it replaced then, because the shop didn’t have it in stock, but she’s been telling me since before I bought it that she’d pay to have it replaced. So I asked them to check it out.
Amusingly, the guy called me a few minutes ago to talk about turn signals and tires, and told me that he’d been able to start the bike in gear, holding in the clutch. He said it might just be that the sensor contacts need to be cleaned, and that they’d check it out for me. I thought about it, then, and realized that the bike has stalled on me a few times because I haven’t quite gotten the hang of this manual shift thing yet (releasing the clutch and giving it gas at the same time) and I’ve been able to re-start it in first gear with the clutch held in. So now I’m not so sure it’s busted, either.
So this shop trip is going to cost me a lot, sadly. I was hoping to just have them check the forks and install the front brake master cylinder. I was naively thinking I could maybe get this done for under $150, including inspection, at their $90-per-hour shop rate. But with new front brakes, taillight and turn signal, the guy said I’ll be lucky to get out for under $350. And that’s not counting now with the tires and the clutch safety switch. The Dunlops are going to run me around $175 for the front and back (since they have a deal with Dunlop to get a 25% discount) plus installation. So with the tires, I’ll probably be looking at $600-700.
Ouch.
Dachary,
This is Matt (threestarzrx7) from the Ninja 250 (dot org) website. We’ve communicated via the forums before. I read your recent post in “Bike Talk” and then followed your profile links here. I read this and the windscreen post. While I have nothing helpful to say about the windscreen I do hope it arrives for you soon! Here on the mechanical front, however, I have a few things to say and I do hope I can be of help.
First point – The Ninja250.org FAQ:
The FAQ on the Ninja250.org website is a WEALTH of information. It is a blessing and I am very grateful to the forum founders for having taken the time to create it and keep it up to date. If you have not dedicated some time to immersing yourself in the FAQ, try to find some time to do so. It’s not a bad idea to be perusing it even when your bike is running at its best and you have no problems. In addition to getting more familiare with your bike and how to work on it, the FAQ and inspire ideas for making the bike a better bike for you. Read away and you’ll see what I mean! =)
On to the points in your blog here…
New Front Brakes: The front brakes on the EX250 are a peice of cake to service, at least to just replace the pads. You do not need a lift to service the front or rear brake pads as the wheels do not need to be removed. The caliper straddles a disc which is mounted to the side of the wheel hub. The bolts on the front are on the fork and very easilly accessed. The rear is a tad more annoying because the exhaust gets in the way, but removing the muffler is a cakewalk or you can just snreak a wrench in there to get those bolts out. If all you know is how to put a socket on a ratchet and turn it you can probably do the brakes in two hours. For me, with my experience, it’s a 30 minute thing. Access the FAQ and follow the directions, no sweat. It’s also important to note that the stock pads are not great and the dealer replacements that I’ve encountered were made of butter. What you want are “HH” grade pads which are generally a compsition called “Sintered Metal.” EBC makes sintered metal pads for the EX250 and they are available from a website called Bike Bandit (www.bikebandit.com). Even with shipping they will probably be less than the dealer pads. I put my sintered metal pads on over a year ago and they barely show any wear. I highly reccomend them and I bet most of the club members would echo me. Just be easy the first time you use the front brake – the much better pads will take much less lever effort to produce a powerful braking force. But that is the ONLY thing you want on your front brake! Again, see the FAQ info on brake pads for corroborating information.
New Tires: If your technician is reccomending that you install the STOCK Dunlop tires… Take your bike and RUN! The stock Dunlop tires should NEVER have been stock on this bike. They aren’t qualified to be mounted on a wheelchair. They have poor handling, even poorer in the rain, and wear out like they too are made of butter. The front will wear feathered and wavvy and after not too long you will have a shimmy or nervousness. Taking your hands off the bars for even an instant will result in a rapid side-to-side shake. The model for these tires is Dunlop K630. EVERYONE swaps them out. If your technician was reccomending Dunlop GT501′s then that’s not bad, but I don’t have a good feeling that he was. There’s an entire section of the FAQ devoted to tires, and there an article that lists all available tire makes for the EX250. All the information you need to select a few tires you’re interested in and then do your own “homework” to narrow them down is there. It really matters what you want to do with the bike (commuting, touring, aggressive riding, etc.) Don’t let them put the OE Dunlop K630′s back on your bike, the bike can be SO much better on REAL tires, and your skills as a rider will develop better if you’re not constantly (wether you know it or not) having to overcome crummy tires. Also, search Bike Bandit for prices on tires (whatever you pick) and see if you can get them cheaper. I’ve ordered tires from Bike Bandit two or three times now and every time the tire was there two days after I ordered it. They get you your stuff fast!
Yes, I know I may sound like I’m hocking Bike Bandit. I don’t work for them, I’m just a very satisfied customer and I know I’ve saved a boatload of money already buying things from them.
New Turn Signals: I don’t know much about inspection requirements because in Florida there are NO inspections. Not for cars, not for bikes, not for boats, nothin’. But I do know that every state DMV has to publish the “handbook” for motorcyclists in that state. That book will cover all the inspection requirements. Looking at the photos you took it looks like the signal that was installed was a “flushmount” turn signal, not a truck cab light. These are a very common modification since the stock signals stick out riddiculously, IMO. Most people think they look ugly, and if you drop the bike they’re guaranteed to break, so they change them. Most flushmount signals require some minor modification of the fairing to install them. There’s only one brand of flushmount signal that is EX250 specific and that’s Asian Cycle signals (www.asiancycle.com). All the stuff you can get on eBay is going to be an imperfect fit to the fairing indent. There’s no harm in modifying the fairing indent because it’s behind the signal where no one can see it. If you can cut a little bit then you can probably get it (them) on. About the wiring though, without seeing it I can’t tell what was done. When you turned the key on, did the lights glow, or did they only operate as turn signals? If you know anything about wiring you can nail it, there’s info available in the FAQ to help (you must be getting tired of hearing that by now.) Most aftermarket flushmount signals are DOT approved because people expect that. You may be able to find a better solution than spending $200 for turn signals, if this post arrives in time, that is. It’s your bike, it doesn’t HAVE to be returned to stock if you don’t want it to be. Flushmounts are nice, and Asian Cycle signals are $30 for a pair as opposed to the $110 the shop wants to charge.
Install the Front Brake Master Cylinder: Bleeding brakes is not a hard thing at all to do. Starting to sound familiare? That’s beacuse most of this bike’s maintenance and repair work is easy. All you need to do is drain the old fluid (open the cap and turn it upside down) before you install it. Remove the old master (FAQ) and install the new one. Connect the line to the caliper and then fill the new master cylinder with fresh fluid from a sealer container (I reccomend synthetic brake fluid, specificall Valvoline Synthetic, but any DOT4 fluid will be fine, Val Synthetic just has higher standards.) Open the bleeder screw on the caliper, it is very easy to find, it’s a screw with a nipple and a hole in the top of that nipple. It accepts a 10mm wrench. Just put a peice of clean tubing over it before you open it and route the tube into a catch container (if you use a tupperware or any food prep item it can NEVER be used for food again, ever. This goes for any food prep item, usually plastic containers, that come in contact with antifreeze or brake fluid.) Once the bleeder screw is open you will see fluid in the clear tube. At this point you don’t need to pump the brake lever, you’re performing an operation called “gravity bleeding” and at the same time you’re flushing the old brake fluid out. Keep the master cylinder top open and keep a close eye on it (don’t let any dirt or anything other than brake fluid get in there.) Don’t let it run dry, it’s best to keep it close to the top to avoid that happening. Wait until the fluid in the tubing runs clear (it should start yellow/amber), and you should have observed by now bubbles coming out too, so wait until they stop, then close the bleeder (the trick is to put your 10mm box end wrench over the bleeder first, then put the tube on, and only crack it open far enough to start bleeding fluid, so you can keep the tube on while opening and closing the bleeder.) Ensure the master cylinder is topped up, then replace the cap on the master. Slowly pump the brake lever three times, and the last time keep it held. Slowly open the bleeder screw until air and fluid comes out. Close the bleeder BEFORE releasing the brake lever, otherwise you will suck air back in. Once the bleeder is closed, release the brake lever and let it sit for 15 seconds, then repeat the bleed proceedure. Do it until you see no more bubbles leaving the bleeder, and then once more for surety. The handle should be nice and firm. If it is then check that the bleeder is snug, remove the tube, top the master up once more, and test ride carefully. (Note: Do NOT allow brake fluid to contact painted surfaces. If it does, wash it off IMMEDIATELY with copious volumes of water. Brake fluid attacks paint. Be sure to wash it off your tire, brake caliper, etc before riding off.)
The rest of it I can hit quickly. It’s good to let the shop check the forks. All they’re really going to do is loosen all the clamp bolts and wiggle the forks to remove any stress and reset the forks straight ahead if they are not already. As for your tail light and clutch switch, if you no nothing about wiring and don’t feel like teaching yourself then leave these to the pros. Or to a friend who knows. If you’re willing to learn then you can certainly learn how to deal with all this stuff, you’re quite obviously intelligent.
You will find that the joy of owning a motorcycle is far greater if you do the work yourself. The biggest things is savings, which reduces stress over finances. But more than that, you’re becoming intimately familiare with your machine. It’s good for you as a rider, believe it or not, and it’s very rewarding.
Keep in touch! Feel free to use my email to communicate. Much of what you need is in the FAQ but I’m available to help a fellow rider if needed. Good luck!
-Matt
Thanks for the comments, Matt! A lot of the stuff that the shop is doing, I’m letting them do just because I don’t wanna deal with the hassle. (That, and the whole passing inspection thing.) I have enjoyed the work I’ve done on the bike, and I’ll still have more work to do when I get it back – I’ve still gotta work on finishing the fairing nicely (need to do more sanding and painting) and will have to install the windscreen when it arrives.
I’m fine with the minor/cosmetic stuff, but I’m still new enough to motorcycles that I’d rather let the professionals deal with safety-related things like the brakes, forks, etc. I also wanted them to give it a once-over to see if anything else needs to be done. Once I’ve been riding for a while and have a better sense for how it should handle, etc., I’ll be more comfortable doing the more substantial work myself.
But I really appreciate all the info here! I’ve been poking around the FAQ on the Ninja 250 Forum (it’s how I found out how to do the fairing repairs, and I’ve read the tire articles) and I’m planning to consult it again on a lot of stuff before my upcoming U.S. tour. I appreciate the note – if there’s anything I can’t figure out between the forum, the FAQs and the service manuals, I’ll keep you in mind!
- Dachary