2 Strokes.....

[raceboy]

Right I think I've finaly bite the bullet and dived into the world of biking (only a year after passing my test ) and all going well I should pick up my little holigan next sunday, but sat about yesterday pondering things as you do, the question was asked....
As it's a 2 stroke you need to add 2 stoke oil, but on a crosser style bike where do you keep it? I don't fancy having a litre of it in my coat pocket all the time, is there a simple solution or am I just being a bike numpty?

[dern]

On more modern bikes you'll have a two-stroke oil reservoir which you'll need to fill up periodicaly. You'll need to establish how long this res. lasts and if you let it run dry you can say goodbye to your engine. If it lasts a number of days then you've got no problems and you can fill it up each night as I used to do with my rd350lc. If you need to fill it up more often or you're in the habit of forgetting (a dangerous habit) you'll need to carry some with you. Depending on the state of tune you may need a specific quality of oil in which case you can't rely on garages selling the one you want so you will have to carry some in your rucksack. If the crosser is an older bike and you don't have a reservoir then you'll have to mix the stuff in the tank (you really should mix it in a separate container but it's impractical at the filling station). This is a pain in the *rse and you'll have to be fairly disciplined about it as the ratios (petrol to oil) must be correct.

Good luck,

Mark

PS. I used to carry oil under the seat but have heard horror stories of oil leaking out because of vibration and getting on the wheel. Some sort of rack would seem like a good idea but the vibes on the back mudguard of a crosser are probably going to be quite high. I'd carry it in a ruck sack wrapped in an old tea-towel with some elastc band to keep it all together. If you keep the bottle clean it shouldn't smell too much.

>> Edited by dern on Monday 17th February 10:35

[raceboy]

Cheers for that.......
I imagine it will have an oil res as it's a 99 Cagiva SuperCity 125, but you never know.
The only experiance I've had with 2 strokes is my Go-Ped which you just mix in a bottle and pour in the tank.
So complete numpty question no 2.......
Do you just fill the res up as and when like the petrol tank and the bike sorts out the mixture?

[dern]

I imagine it will have an oil res as it's a 99 Cagiva SuperCity 125, but you never know.

I'd be extremely surprised if that doesn't have a reservoir. It may even have a warning light to tell you your resevoir needs filling up. Nice looking bike by the way.

So complete numpty question no 2.......
Do you just fill the res up as and when like the petrol tank and the bike sorts out the mixture?

Yes, there'll be an oil pump that draws oil from the oil reservoir and feeds it to the engine at the rate the engine requires for the current throttle opening. It may even be more sophisticated than that.

Just keep an eye on it to see the rate the oil is being used at but don't rely on the level in the plastic tank as often they are odd shapes as they need to fit around chassis rails or body work. I was caught out by the res. in mine looking half full and then having it drain very quickly indeed as the res. narrowed towards the bottom if you see what I mean. So find out what the capacity is, pour in that much (or to the top level) and then you'll be able to measure what percentage of the capacity you'll be using in a day/week whatever. Then you can top it up well in advance of it going empty - if you do inadvertantly empty it you may need to reprime the pump so check the owners manual before you assume you can simply top it up as the pump may not draw the oil through if air has been introduced by running it to empty.

All the best,

Mark

[lancelot]

Don't know if it's any help but I've got a Cagiva Planet. I've gone a couple of fill-up's (petrol) without the oil low warning light coming on and there has still been stuff in the resevoir. Have got into the habit though of toping the resevoir up when I get home after each visit to the petrol station.

[raceboy]

Cheers for that chaps, knew it would be a bit more sophisticated than the Go-Ped
Just hope everything goes ok this week (it's having it's 1st MOT) and then hopefully I pick it up on Sunday
Just need to slope off one afternoon this week and sort out some kit

[raceboy]

Right got the bike, which indeed did have a seperate 2 stroke oil res, now it came with quite a bit of oil in it, I've since topped it up with some Castrol stuff I had knocking about from the Go-Ped, but now I need to buy a bit more, now full on Numpty question........
Is there much difference in oil qualities, Castrol stuff at £6 a litre looked very similar to Coma stuff at £2 a litre, and I can't see a way around not mixing the stuff if you buy different brands each time, is this a problem?
And then theres gearbox oil the manual says 1T oil but a quick look around this lunchtime and nowhere had any, is this a bit more specialised and bike shop only type oil?
And another thing, brake pads, I presume motorbike brake pads are thinner than car pads, but how thin are new ones?

[dern]

raceboy said: Right got the bike, which indeed did have a seperate 2 stroke oil res, now it came with quite a bit of oil in it, I've since topped it up with some Castrol stuff I had knocking about from the Go-Ped, but now I need to buy a bit more, now full on Numpty question........
Is there much difference in oil qualities, Castrol stuff at £6 a litre looked very similar to Coma stuff at £2 a litre, and I can't see a way around not mixing the stuff if you buy different brands each time, is this a problem?

Depending on how highly tuned the bike is I'd go for middle price range stuff rather than cheap and only go for the expensive stuff if highly tuned. In an emergency I'd use what I could find. I never had any problems mixing brands.

And then theres gearbox oil the manual says 1T oil but a quick look around this lunchtime and nowhere had any, is this a bit more specialised and bike shop only type oil?
And another thing, brake pads, I presume motorbike brake pads are thinner than car pads, but how thin are new ones?

Don't know on the gearbox oil front, check with a bike dealer and see what they would use. Depending on what your brake pads look like, bike pads will generally have a groove running down the middle to indicate wear. You don't want to wear the pad down so much you can't see the groove any more, I'd say leave 2mm rather than letting it wear any lower just in case the pressure on the pad isn't even and you score your disc. Pads are *way* cheaper than discs. I was seriously surprised when I got the new pads for my blade as they were no where near as meaty as I expected and I had to re-evaluate whether the old ones were worn or not.

One thing on brakes... when they start to feel a bit cr*p (or do this now if the bike is used) change the fluid before you invest in special pads, disc, brake pipes etc as it's amazing what a difference new fluid makes. If you don't feel confident doing it (the reservoirs are small so you need to be careful to avoid introducing air into the system) then get the dealer to do it for you, shouldn't cost much.

Apart from that, are you enjoying the new bike?

Regards,

Mark

Edited to add: it only took 18 months from brand new of reasonable use (10k miles) for the brakes on my blade to feel awful. After changing the fluid they felt new again.

>> Edited by dern on Tuesday 15th April 20:53

[raceboy]

Well this is what Cagiva state to use in the handbook
Agip F.1 Supermotoroil
Now normally I would believe what they say but does this sound right?

[dern]

It doesn't to me as that's 4-stroke engine oil isn't it?

Going by this castrol site...
www.castrol.com.au/lube_guide/index.html
...and selecting the cagiva mito (your bike isn't listed but I suspect the engines are very similar) is suggests Castrol TTS for the engine...

"Full synthetic, high performance engine oil. Specifically designed for the latest generation of high output air and water-cooled two-stroke motorcycle engines. Provides extreme protection at high RPM for greater engine performance. Exceeds JASO FC"

...and Castrol MTX gear oil...

"Motorcycle transmission fluid for two-stroke transmissions, and four-stroke motorcycles with separate transmission cases. Provides excellent cold shift, low drag and gear wear protection compared to engine oils and transmission fluids in similar application. Not to be used as an engine oil. SAE 75W/80, API GL4."

I suspect you can pick these up or similar oils that meet the same specs (check against the specs suggested by the manual).

Mark

[raceboy]

Can't get the link to work beyond the home page
But the engine is the same as a Mito or a Planet, so basically any 75/80 gearbox oil will be OK?

[dern]

I imagine so but you need to get stuff designed for motorcycles as car stuff will tend to have friction reducers in it. This is no good for a bike as it'll knacker the wet clutch. You should be able to get the castrol mtx gear oil in halfords, I'm pretty sure I've used it before and that's where I would have got it from. My local halfords seems to do a much better range of bike oils (especially 2-strok oils) these days in order, I imagine, to support all the scooter/peds kicking about.

Mark