Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep . . . (Winter Storage Thoughts)

[Oldfishguy]

Just like that, winter is upon us in the north . . . Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep . . .

I’ve resurrected more than a few Honda’s over the years.  Some I keep, but many have been risen off by new owners.  If I could, let me give a few hints on preserving our machines.

Non ethanol gas:  Try to have your last few tank fills with it. And find a pump station that has a dedicated handle to this end. Otherwise you are pumping about a gallon of the previous customers fill in your tank. If you can’t find this option take a 5 gallon jerry can and fill the first few gallons in a car, then fill the can with the non diluted non ethanol.

The last ride:  Run the bike hard. Our Valks have pretty sturdy exhausts systems compared to the 1970’s machines . . . but still . . . you want to burn all the moisture from the exhaust system. I will shut the fuel off about a mile from home and let it fuel starve the carbs. Hold the bike vertical at the end with the choke on to try and get as much from the bowls as you can. In the spring turn the fuel on and let the machine sit for a bit as the rubber gaskets swell again. I’ve taken many carbs apart and I’d rather deal with dry carbs vs. gunky carbs.

Battery:  I pull mine, put a full charge on it and store in a warm basement. A lot of opinions on this, but we get some brutal cold spells at times and pulling the battery takes just minutes.

Starting the machine mid winter:  Do Not! See last ride above.

Does anyone have anything to add?

[scooperhsd]

Battery Tender !!! Whether you remove the battery or not (I don't, because on a nice warm day in Dec - Febuary, I just might go for a ride). I usually use non-ethanol all year round, unless I am on the road, but as long as I'm local - it's non-ethanol for me.

A Battery Tender will greatly extend it's useful life.

[msb]

While I am up in Canada, Winters here in my area of BC are quite moderate and relatively short compared to other parts of Canada and many of the Northern States. I've had my Valk for 20 years, and used to do a similar full winterization on it and pull it off the road for a few months way back when the kids were still at home and I had lots of other stuff going on. Over the past 10 years or so though, I haven't done a full winterization when I pull it off the road (usually for 3 months now), preferring instead to just run the bike either around the neighborhood when weather allows or just in the driveway, bringing it up to operating temperature... at least once or twice a week. I do make sure it's got a full tank of "good" gas when it goes off the road and a recent run with Seafoam (also in the first tank or two of gas in the Spring) along with a fresh oil change, etc. I also do other annual maintenance items like the rear drive service especially, during this time. It's stored in an attached insulated garage on a battery tender in between startups. So far so good....about 200,000 km on her and haven't had to rebuild the carbs yet, and I average about 6 years out of my Yuasa batteries. I'm sure the carbs are due for a good internal cleaning and eventual rebuild sometime in the not too distant future...I'll probably have that done sooner rather than later...before I start experiencing noticeable issues.
Also have a 78 GL1000...this is my Winter bike. I do more or less the same as I do with the Valk, except that it stays insured all year long so when days pop up during the December thru February months when weather and road conditions allow, it gets ridden as regularly as possible (would guestimate at least 6 - 8  times a month on average). Have only had it for 2 Winters, but again, so far so good.

[Savago]

@Oldfish: all good advice.

In a side note: what an awesome collection of Honda motorcycles!
 

[Oss]

Nice post   I ride into cold weather long as no ice or salt on road

I agree a battery tender once in a while is good before trying to start an interstate that has sat 2 weeks or more

[mbramley]

 It's possible I've just been on a lucky streak, but I don't hunt down "good gas". Like Oss I put mine to bed once they throw the first salt down, and she doesn't see blacktop until we have a couple of good rains to wash it off the roads. She is in a heated garage that doesn't go below 50-55 degrees. I use marine Stabil the last couple of tanks and start her up a couple of times a month and let her run while I do something else in the garage so there's plenty of time for her to heat up. A battery tender in between. From what I understand the marine Stabil is formulated to outgas in the tank and carbs to help defend against the new fuel.