Rain riding..

[BowDown]

Well with the price of Diesel now... I can save about $10 a day by riding the bike into work, over driving the truck. It's a 35 mile round trip. Over a 5 day work week that adds up pretty fast. So I have been riding the bike in regardless of weather.

It's really not that bad riding in the rain. I mean it kinda sucks having wet pants, and wet shoulders for the first part of the day, but hey.. that's good money.

Anyone else change their riding habits because of fuel pricing?

What kind of rain suit do you wear? I should really get one. My joe rocket mesh jacket isn't water proof.. nor are my jeans.

 

[BowDown]

Any special bike maint. tips for me because of all the wet riding? I have yet to lube my chain.. have about 6200 miles on it. Hmm.. prbly should.

I have a can of Suzuki chain lube.

 

[craigntx]

got caught in it last night.
dont have a rain suit. i ride ghetto. t-shirt and jeans, tucked in.
if it's a real heavy downpour, i aint going to work, and my boss knows it

 

[VaBusa]

I don't mind riding in the rain if I'm on my way home, but it's no fun to show up at work soaked and then rot at a desk all day

I have rain gear, goes right over your riding gear...good investment if you're planning on riding "no matter what the weather's doing", and yep, I'm trying to change my driving plans by riding the Busa more...sick of spending $55 to fill up a Mustang and $75 to fill up the Jeep...

 

[SANDFLEA85]

got stuck in a thunderstorm going home on wed,was on I95 doing about 80mph when out of nowhere its started pouring,at first i was pissed because thats the first time my bike has ever been wet (yeah,i dont wash with water) and then i was concerned because as hard as it was raining,the HW was sucking it right up and i could see what appeared to be oil sheens everywhere (HW was just repaved within the last month) i cut her down to about 40mph for about 5mi,even at that i could feel the backend kicking side to side...my 3rd eye was tight as a knot

 

[CCbusa05]

Any special bike maint. tips for me because of all the wet riding? I have yet to lube my chain..  have about 6200 miles on it. Hmm.. prbly should.  

I have a can of Suzuki chain lube.

Clean your chain with kerosene, dry it and then relube! You should be doing this as a matter of routine every 400 to 600 miles! I'd be surprized if you haven't already caused premature wear to your spockets and chain.

 

[jefferycarman]

got stuck in a thunderstorm going home on wed,was on I95 doing about 80mph when out of nowhere its started pouring,at first i was pissed because thats the first time my bike has ever been wet (yeah,i dont wash with water) and then i was concerned because as hard as it was raining,the HW was sucking it right up and i could see what appeared to be oil sheens everywhere (HW was just repaved within the last month) i cut her down to about 40mph for about 5mi,even at that i could feel the backend kicking side to side...my 3rd eye was tight as a knot

yeah been there. It puckers up quick.

I ride any weather... I'm an addict

 

[DropBusa]

as far as the maint, goes man you need to be on top of that chain. mine gets cleaned every weekend!
if you ride the thing in the rain quite often you really need to look and a fresh water bath to rinse off the salt/sand. then get it dry quick. make sure you look in the most inconspicuous places (body mount for swingarm).
Leaf blowers work very well to get those tight spots. Or just put a fan by it.
you dont want the fresh water sitting and causing rust and you damn sure dont want the salt/sand water sitting causing corrosion.

 

[Schism]

i have definately been riding more in the rain lately. i don't mind getting a little wet to save some coin ,but i always have to wash the bike shortly after which get's to be a pain in the azz.

 

[Over_Easy]

When you wear a shirt and tie to work it just isn't feasable. My only option would be to keep dry cleaning at work along with shoes, and ties and change before the days start and before headin home.

This is why I'm looking at getting a high mileage 38 mpg car like the Honda Civic...I put on 65 miles a day roundtrip and sometimes as many as a couple 100 with work.

 

[SANDFLEA85]

Any special bike maint. tips for me because of all the wet riding? I have yet to lube my chain..  have about 6200 miles on it. Hmm.. prbly should.  

I have a can of Suzuki chain lube.

Clean your chain with kerosene, dry it and then relube! You should be doing this as a matter of routine every 400 to 600 miles! I'd be surprized if you haven't already caused premature wear to your spockets and chain.

I read somewhere that kerosene isnt good for chains with o-rings,dry's them out? I spray WD40 on and use a toothbrush to get it in there and scrub and wipe clean with a rag..thats all

 

[MET]

More and more people or riding in the rain these days. I keep a light rain suit on both bikes, it really helps staying dry.

 

[HillbillyTom]

When you wear a shirt and tie to work it just isn't feasable.  My only option would be to keep dry cleaning at work along with shoes, and ties and change before the days start and before headin home.

This is why I'm looking at getting a high mileage 38 mpg car like the Honda Civic...I put on 65 miles a day roundtrip and sometimes as many as a couple 100 with work.

Get a large tank bag and take your office cloths in it, change at work then reverse the procedure for the way home. Leave the shoes and jacket at work.

 

[HillbillyTom]

I read somewhere that kerosene isnt good for chains with o-rings,dry's them out? I spray WD40 on and use a toothbrush to get it in there and scrub and wipe clean with a rag..thats all

That's strange, I've always read, heard, and experienced exactly the opposite. WD40, being a penetrating lubricant designed to break loose rusty bolts and dry moisture from distributor caps will deteriorate the o-rings and wash the factory lubricant out of the chain rollers. WD40 might work on a motocross (non o-ring) chain that you soak lube inside and out but is probably one of the worst things you could use to clean a sealed chain.
Kerosene has always been the recomended chain cleaner of choice in every owners manual I've had right up to my Busa manual that states Kerosene should be the ONLY thing used to clean the chain.

 

[BowDown]

You should be doing this as a matter of routine every 400 to 600 miles!

Are you on crack? That sounds insanely obsessive. I would be doing my chain every weekend?

 

[Teufel Hunden]

Well with the price of Diesel now... I can save about $10 a day by riding the bike into work, over driving the truck. It's a 35 mile round trip. Over a 5 day work week that adds up pretty fast. So I have been riding the bike in regardless of weather.

It's really not that bad riding in the rain. I mean it kinda sucks having wet pants, and wet shoulders for the first part of the day, but hey.. that's good money.

Anyone else change their riding habits because of fuel pricing?

What kind of rain suit do you wear? I should really get one. My joe rocket mesh jacket isn't water proof.. nor are my jeans.

I'm in the same boat. I need a bumper sticker that says "My other vehicle is a 6.0L." The only problem I have with rain is when I'm wearing nice clothes. It doesn't really bother me otherwise. Not that I like it... I'll tell you though, you get a hell of a lot less wet on the Busa than on some other bikes. No rain suit other than the Joe Rocket jacket. Definitely keep up on the wax and lube that chain as well as everything else that might rust. Even if you weren't riding in the rain, keep that chain lubed!

 

[BowDown]

Hmm... seems like I may have done a boo boo on the chain then.

My last bike had a driveshaft.. so I never gave any thought to the driveline. I would imagine the chain is prbly shot eh? What's the easiest way to examine the teeth on the transmission side of things?

 

[BLU88]

When you wear a shirt and tie to work it just isn't feasable. My only option would be to keep dry cleaning at work along with shoes, and ties and change before the days start and before headin home.

This is why I'm looking at getting a high mileage 38 mpg car like the Honda Civic...I put on 65 miles a day roundtrip and sometimes as many as a couple 100 with work.

I used to wear a shirt and tie everyday and i would just either leave my shoes at work and wear bball shoes on the bike. tuck the tie in under my jacket or just tuck it in. rode to work everyday it wasnt raining or to cold.

got caught in the rain plenty of time going home but never rode to work if it was already raining.. like michelle said .. would suck sitting at a desk all day wet.


i need to get a good rain suit also.

 

[metric03]

I'm sure it can be bad on the eastcoast, but anyone that rides in the northwest either puts up with the wet ride or doesn't ride for about six months out of the year, if you get caught it a downpour, especially if its just started a fresh water rinse is a must to get all the road oil and salt off your bike, then kerosene on the chain to get anything off the o-rings, unless you ride in the rain daily, normal lube schedule is fine. just remember the most dangerous time to be on the road is when the rain just starts, before it gets a chance to wash away the oil that sits on the highways.

 

[Loki08]

I have Frog Toggs tucked in my tank bag for daily commute to work. Rain doesn't bother me anymore. Just slow down a little, and pay attention to your mirrors more!