THE EVENT PAGE...
The above photo is also on our club page on FACEBOOK:
OUT AND ABOUT ON THE 250 REPSOL TODAY ... 253 miles of Autumn scenery.
As captured here in the above photo ... Taking a lemonade brake at Buster's in historic Sun City, Kansas, a really cool setting, feels like the movie set for Lonesome Dove, only it's authentic. If you are in the area, check it out?
"So ... Where did YOU go today?"
We invite members to E-mail us with a short account of your Thumper-related experience, attach a photo to your email ... don't let me have all the fun (grin)!
(Note: Not all accounts may be used...)
E-mail to: FSSNOCthumpers@yahoo.com
Put in the subject line: "Where'd YOU go today?"
And speaking of fun, be sure to review the ThumperCafe information below ... we have one coming up very soon so make your plans now! February 5, 2020 (see below)
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"W I N T E R B R A K E" ... returns
Meet us at DUMAS WALKER'S BAR AND GRILL in Earp, California on Wednesday, February 5th, 2020.
We'll plan to dine as a group about noon, come earlier to get signed-in and for coffee and conversation!
It's winter-time in much of our world that time of year so use good judgement in your choice of travel vehicle ... ice, snow, and cold temps may exist between your house and Earp, CA. No matter what that silly groundhog says, come meet, greet, and eat with us in sunny Earp, CA. - just a thump or two west of Parker,Arizona near the AZ./CA. border.
We call this particular ThumperCafe (#50) the "FSSNOC GROUNDHOG NATIONALS"! Let us know of your expected participation no later than January 1, 2020 and you'll earn yourself a FREE commemorative decal!
Visit this site weekly to view possible updates...
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TWO CENTS WORTH ... of entertainment, not to be considered as advice...
Hey Triple 000,
I’m sure you’re going to get a ton of replies on the chain lube topic (that was your plan wasn’t it)? So here’s my 2 cents.
Before I bought my 1990 Honda GB500 (and joined the FSSNOC) in October of 2011, I hadn’t owned a chain drive bike since the mid-70’s. Dating myself a bit, aren’t I? Anywho, I asked around a bit about different chain lubes and tried a few spray on brands, and wasn’t very happy with any of them. Experienced LOTS of fling off, which I don’t like at all. I’m trying to lube the chain, not the back wheel. I finally found one that I’ve been very happy with; Motul Chain Paste. It comes in a tube and as the name suggests, it’s a paste. About the same consistency as toothpaste (maybe just a bit thicker). It comes with its own applicator brush, which IMHO doesn’t work very well. I’ve found that an old toothbrush works much better and makes the application much easier. After a ride (warm chain theory), I apply it to the bottom run of the chain with the toothbrush and work it onto the rollers and side plates. Chains stay well lubed and VERY minimal fling off.
“Maynard”
FSSNOC 5208 (Wisconsin)
Good stuff, Maynard ... Thanks for your comments, my friend! - #000
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Dear Reader... To continue from last week, scroll down to the bottom of the following article (which ran last week):
(PHOTO ... last week 10-17-19) IF YOU LOOK OH-SO-CLOSE AND YOU HAVE YOUR "READERS" ON ... (GRIN), YOU JUST MIGHT SEE SOME TINY DIBITS OF WHITE LITHIUM GREASE ON EACH CHAIN ROLLER ON THE DRIVE CHAIN OF MY HONDA REPSOL CBR250R ... CAN YOU MAKE IT OUT?
HELLO again ... glad to see you made it over to the Event Page.
I'm balancing myself here on an ole 5-gallon plastic bucket, typing all this fun and foolishness for all of you FSSNOC faithful! It's quiet as a moose here in the Thumper Garage, my surroundings illuminated only by the dim light of the glowing screen of my computer. I hear a rooster crow. As I glance about, I see the familiar shapes of my bikes as they wait patiently and passively for the garage door to screech and squeal its way to the top, allowing a virtual explosion of morning sunshine to invade the soft gray light of the garage ... and another day begins.
The following casual dissertation is for your entertainment and is not to be taken as advice...
I'm hear, make that "here", in the FSSNOC Thumper Garage and I'd like to share with you all a new idea I've been using this year when I lube my Thumper's final drive chain. This isn't a new topic for me as I have to deal with chain maintenance all the time particularly because my current choice of Thumpers are chain-driven, which most available Thumpers are at this point in time. Yeah, there is a shaft-drive or two out there and you guys and gals with belt-drive Thumpers can kinda setback and smirk if you like, and that includes most Scooter owners as well.
When someone mentions bread, some of us think money, some think food ... but when someone mentions "drive chain", we all think of ... lube, chain-lube. There was a long dialogue on Facebook recently about chain-lubes. The featured FB spokesman had on display several cans of various popular brands of commonly available lubes for motorcycle drive-chains. He also had rigged-up a variety of ingenious methods to, in his opinion, test these lubes.
Know which one won his test? If you guessed a name brand that many now use or any available brand of prepared and formulated chain-lube ... you'd be wrong.
If you guessed ATF (automatic transmission fluid) ... you'd be wrong.
If you guessed, and this is my favorite, Lithium Grease ... you'd be wrong.
So - what won his test was ... are you ready?
90-140wt Gear Lube. I can buy it at a Farm Supply store, at Wal-Mart, at most C-stores, wherever ... it's common stuff. Based on the products tested and the tests used in this product comparison, Gear Lube does the best all-around job of lubing a motorcycle chain ... in essence, and this was my understanding of their reported opinion after preforming all their selected tests, Gear Lube is their choice.
Know what? For me, personally ... Yeah, I use it all the time. I love the smell. I love the price. And, I love the fact that it throws-off the spinning chain and sprockets and makes a mess on the garage floor and on the rear rim, but ... that said, I've never had a rear rim rust out yet.
I use it on my daily rider Yamaha XT250 dual-sport. Messy? Sure, so much so that I park the bike in the garage on a big sheet of cardboard (drip, drip) ... but it is in the "throwing-off" that it removes the dirt and debris from my drive chain, much like the spinning drum in a washing machine throws out the dirty water from my just-washed FSSNOC t-shirts.
A little trick I use to minimize that throw-off (or "fling" as I call it) ... is to lube the chain immediately at the end of my ride. Upon my post-ride inspection, should the rollers be shiny and dry, I loop a bungie around the front brake lever to secure the front wheel, then position the side-stand in the down attitude, and up the bike goes on my pre-measured to the bike prop-stick.
Ryan Newman is a NASCAR driver, he is also a college-educated engineer and in my opinion, he is somewhat of a thinker as well. I remember him saying one time, "It takes three points to make a plane" or something to that effect. When I checked with Siri (my cell phone), she brought up a dozen sites for getting reward points for travel by airplane ... grrrr!
I finally checked this out (it's been a lotta years since high school geometry) on mathplanet.com and it appears that I heard correctly. My secured-with-the- brake front tire, the down side-stand, and the prop-stick are my three points ... I've now made a plane out of my dual-sport?
The end result is that I can now rotate my rear wheel, which in turn, of course, moves the chain while the bike and I stay in a stationary spot. Convenience is everything these days, right? I can now conveniently dribble a bit of 90-140wt oil on my drive-chain, and incidentally, I apply the oil on the top of the bottom run of the chain, then rotate the rear wheel in the same direction as forward travel. That way the oil must work its way through the chain before flinging-off, thereby having the opportunity to wash the dirt and grit out of the chain. Clear as mud? (grin)
So why immediately after the ride? My self-imposed theory is that the chain is warm, thus dispersing the oil better ... but the real reason is my belief that as the oil is exposed to the air over time (as it sets in the garage awaiting the next ride) it gives up some of the ethers and becomes thicker, therefore more resistant to fling... (Yes, I find too much fling can be extra messy and undesirable).
So why the photo of a chain with lithium grease on it in the masthead above? Good query, my friend, good query. I use 90-140wt on the bikes that are used all or in part on off-road or gravel and dirt backroads. I use lithium on anything used on primarily on paved roadways.
Why the difference? (see my ideas below at the "whoa!" - #000)
Tune-in next week ... gotta run, it's lunchtime and all this work has made me hungry! Sign-On a new FSSNOC member this week?
I hope to see YOU up the road... Jack, FSSNOC #000/Director
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More comments (10-24-19) ... about chain lubes, and remember that all this conversation is indeed only here for entertainment, not advice...
Hello again, Thumper fans! ... (in the photo this week) - note the orange wheel is off the surface of the floor so it can be rotated to allow for easier access to the links on the drive chain, also note the toothbrush - its head cut to length to match the width of the chain rollers, and lastly, the pink tube of CRC lithium white grease. Why the pink tube, I've not a clue...)
The answer is actually in the previous paragraph in last weeks post. Motorcycles that I operate on paved roads are less prone to pickup sand and gravel in their drive chain than motorcycles that I ride on sandy, dusty, or dirty surfaces. Compare it to my boots, if I walk in the dirt, my boots get dirty quickly, if I walk on a clean sidewalk, my shoes stay much cleaner...
In Alaska, I rode hundreds of miles of muddy, dirty roads ... matter of fact, while there I used WD-40 and I lubed my chain at every stop, EVERY stop. Off those dirt/mud roads, I used lithium grease. That chain survived to a lofty mileage of 47,000 miles plus, despite the hard use in Alaska.
On my paved surface bikes, I've been experimenting with a dab of grease on each roller as opposed to brushing (in one direction only) it on as in the past. After grease application, I immediately manually rotate the rear wheel in the same direction as forward travel of the bike. This seems to transfer the grease to the rear sprocket and after several turns of the rear wheel, it appears that the grease has been transferred to the complete round surface of each chain roller. The result, as it appears to me, is less fling off, less grease used ... now if the chain lasts just as long, it'll be a win-win. We'll see...
It is my view that the lithium grease is a superior lube than the 90-140wt Gear Lube, but the heavy consistency allows it to pickup and contain more grit than the oil, so I restrict my use of the grease to bikes primarily used for paved surface.
That being said, a friend and fellow FSSNOCer uses detergent motor oil as his chain lube on his KLR. As I recall, every 100-150 miles or so, he puts the bike up on the centerstand and rotates the rear wheel in the rotation of travel while dribbling oil out of a little squeeze bottle onto the top of the outside chain roller side-plate on the bottom run of the chain as the rollers mesh with the rear sprocket. He only does it for a few seconds, not for the entire chain. I'm thinking that his KLR's chain life is up there around 50,000 miles using this method, so who can say? Perhaps chain life and lube is an inexact science...
Another FSSNOC member uses ATF, oils his drive chain at every gas stop with a minimal amount; the result? His chain on his 250cc went 100,000 miles! What?
An engineer from a major motor car company told me years ago that, in his opinion, it is really the type of crankshaft weight and design that plays a big role in motorcycle chain life, more so than which oil or grease or whatever is used as lube.
Interesting stuff! A popular X-ring chain advertises that the X-chain is much better than their conventional o-ring chain, giving much longer service life.
One thing about it, with all this talk about chain lubes, etc ... it helps me to remember to lube my chain. Perhaps in that is this topic's saving grace, eh?
Keep On Thumpin! - #000
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(10-17-19) MECUM AUCTIONS are coming to Las Vegas with 1500 motorcycles!
January 21-26, 2020
It's the 29th annual ... so whether you'll be buying, selling, or spectating, you'll not want to miss this opportunity to be part of this world-renowned auction event. Contact the folks at Mecum at: 262-275-5050 or www.Mecum.com
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THUMPERCAFE EVENTS ... are for FSSNOC members. If you aren't currently a member, we invite you to join our group. Membership applications are available at the FSSNOC sign-in areas at each ThumperCafe event. Also, in the interest of safety, we ask that everyone abstain from alcoholic beverages before and during our events.
...........................WHAT DO WE DO AT A THUMPERCAFE?............................
Each year since 1986, FSSNOC members have been invited to gather at more than 150 ThumperCafe sites in the USA to spend time with old and new friends alike. We share our love for Four-Stroke Single cylinder motorcycles, enjoy an often unique lunch, and have a short light-hearted "business" meeting after our meal. You'll meet genuine people with great motorcycling stories and big smiles on mileage-worn faces. What a wonderful way to spend part of a perfect day!
Each of our ThumperCafes is considered a single event. You may attend as many available ThumperCafes as is your pleasure. These events are what we call "Dutch Treat", in other words, we do separate checks at lunch so bring adequate funds to purchase your own meal and to attend to your own needs. Also, these events are fun(d)raisers for our club so we invite members to donate financially to the club as they are able and motivated...
Attendees are responsible for their own travel, lodging, personal needs, and general welfare. Participants at a ThumperCafe may wish to arrive a bit early to have an opportunity to get acquainted with other FSSNOC members before our group lunch. Upon arrival, please sign-in with FSSNOC staff.
ThumperCafes are static events ... we don't do group excursions or rides. We discovered years ago that spending quality time with other members makes the most out of the limited time available at an event.
Please note that you may arrive by whatever source of transport that you like. In the interest of safety, attendees are asked to abstain from the use of alcohol before and during our event.
Should you have questions, please contact us as above. And, it is a good idea to stay current with this website as, and if, changes or additional information surfaces, we will be advising you of that here... Jack, #000
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IF YOU ARE NOT A CURRENT MEMBER OF OUR CLUB, WE INVITE YOU TO JOIN. Click on "Membership Application" found under the "More" tab on this website masthead...
( We do have club membership applications at our events should someone wish to join onsite at an event...)
More information or questions? Call our club phone at 620-663-1869 or drop us a note at: FSSNOC P.O. Box 1809, Hutchinson, Ks. 67504-1809 or E-mail us at: FSSNOCTHUMPERS@yahoo.com
"Come Thump with Us!".
Thank You, FSSNOC #000, Jack Robinson - FSSNOC Director
FSSNOC - THUMPIN' WITH YOU SINCE 1986!
...this concludes our event page. Please visit our other pages...