Break-in regimen...

[ride4now_imp]

A few of us have recently picked up new bikes... more will do it this weekend, and with the spring/summer riding season about to start, many more will pick up new ones over the next few months. Hopefully, many of them will be CB1100's!
Question for discussion... How will you break in your new bike? Will you ride it like you stole it and let the dealer deal with it under warranty, when and if? Or will you ride it like a baby? Will you keep the revs low? Or not worry about it. And when will you do your first oil change? And the 2nd? Just curious. I don't remember what the manual says and I know what I'll do. But what will you do? Or... what did you do?

 

[Tortuga_imp]

My bike had 104 nervous wobbly demo miles on it from a city centre dealer where they wold get 10 mins to ride the bike in city traffic.

It was serviced before I collected it as it was a year old.

I have ridden it predominantly below 5000 rpm so far, occasionally bumping up to 6000ish.

I'm going to keep gradually increasing the revs and throttle inputs with the occasional 'ripsnorter' and hope she beds in well.

 

[flynrider]

When I picked mine up a year ago I noticed that the break-in instructions were somewhat vague. Basically, they wanted you to avoid drag race starts and the redline.

I just rode mine in a combination of city and highway miles in a spirited, but controlled fashion. I didn't test the min. 0-60 time and generally kept the revs below 6K. After about 1000 mi. of that I began riding it like I stole it. So far, so good.

Generally speaking, I think riding at either extreme (like a baby or a maniac) durning break-in is probably not the best way to go.

 

[Tortuga_imp]

When I picked mine up a year ago I noticed that the break-in instructions were somewhat vague. Basically, they wanted you to avoid drag race starts and the redline.

I just rode mine in a combination of city and highway miles in a spirited, but controlled fashion. I didn't test the min. 0-60 time and generally kept the revs below 6K. After about 1000 mi. of that I began riding it like I stole it. So far, so good.

Generally speaking, I think riding at either extreme (like a baby or a maniac) durning break-in is probably not the best way to go.

That seems to be a wise summary.

I know years ago when I was selling Land Rovers from a main dealer we used to register a handful of Discovery TDiS's as Service Loan cars. They would be sent into the field with delivery miles to be 'run in' by service customers, usually late for work having dropped their own vehicle off, and definitely not showing any mechanical sympathy.

I would cringe as a saw a brand new Disco being thrashed up the road, cold by one of these clowns.

Funny thing was, they'd all come back in and comment on how the service loaners with a few thousand miles on were smoother and quieter than their own cars which they ran in carefully!

Same goes for other makes I worked for, and I still see a few cars on the road today that I used to drive as my 'demo' and thrashed mercilessly.

I think there may be something in the whole 'ride it like you stole it' method?

 

[the Ferret]

I just ride them like I normally ride, but some would call that babying it, certainly not as hard as some would ride it, but I don't lug it and I don't race it.

 

[avsbezzy_imp]

I am a partisan of this method. It worked out great on my Suzuki DRZ400 (was way smoother than my buddy's who babied his), HD slim (ran great), Suzuki SV650 as well. None of these bikes used oil ever between 2 services...3 to 5 k miles...
Did the same for my trucks, F150 EB and NIssan Titan.

Break In Secrets--How To Break In New Motorcycle and Car Engines For More Power

my 2cts,

 

[OldF7Guy_imp]

I just ride them like I normally ride, but some would call that babying it, certainly not as hard as some would ride it, but I don't lug it and I don't race it.

Right or wrong I subscribe to the same procedure and always have. Maybe a burst here and there and let the engine do the braking.

 

[CB4ME_imp]

Tires supposedly need 100 miles before you want to start scraping the pegs. They tell you not to keep the bike at a steady RPM for a long periods of time during the first several hundred miles. I varied speed and shifted between 4th and 5th pretty often.

I kept mine below 4500 rpm for the first 100 miles, up to 6500rpm until 1st service, and now generally shift at or below 8000 when goosing it. I haven't hit the rpm or speed limiter yet.

 

[dBuster_imp]

Funny, just had my first service and had taken the bike back in for the knocking noise. Over 700 miles on the bike. Went to pick it up and they say there is no noise so I take it for a spin and I hear it again. So I start asking questions about the first service and what the bike calls for and what they used for oil to find out it calls for 10w30 in their shop manuals for our bike but their default computer program tells them the amount of oil and 10w40. So I tell them they did the first service wrong since it calls for the 30 weight oil. They then started telling me it is a break in period after getting your oil changed! I was like another break in period?!

Needless to say I will ensure from now on they only use 30 weight or I do it myself. Now to just figure out this new break in period they were talking about after an oil change...

Sent from my XT1055 using Tapatalk

 

[ride4now_imp]

I think I'm with Ferrett on this, however I ride
gingerly most the time anyway. None of my bikes,
since my old H1 have ever seen redline. But that's
another story for another day. For the first 100 miles
I'll do mostly easy riding, nothing constant. staying below 4000 rpm.
After that, I'll run it up a bit.... get out on the interstate and venture out
a bit farther and at a bit more constant speed. I'll do my first oil change
at 600 miles and then my second at 1200 going to synthetic at
that time. After that first oil change, I'll ride it normally with the
occaisional fast acceleration, but again, nothing even close to red line.

 

[Damfino_imp]

When I picked mine up a year ago I noticed that the break-in instructions were somewhat vague. Basically, they wanted you to avoid drag race starts and the redline.

I just rode mine in a combination of city and highway miles in a spirited, but controlled fashion. I didn't test the min. 0-60 time and generally kept the revs below 6K. After about 1000 mi. of that I began riding it like I stole it. So far, so good.

Generally speaking, I think riding at either extreme (like a baby or a maniac) durning break-in is probably not the best way to go.

+1

 

[CIP57_imp]

The first 100mi i keep it under 7000rpm's varying speed. After that i bring her up to red line to seat the rings, always have done this and never had an oil burner. Oil gets dropped at 500mi and ride normal from there on. There is also a break in period for your brakes and tires, so easy on the brakes and turns for the first 200miles.

 

[DAC]

:huh: Kinda confused. I'm not a mechanic but built some engines with buddies long ago. (don't ask.)

There is a significant chance that the dealer I buy my DLX from will be over 100 miles away. A question I have is how I break it in on the ride home. So far, this thread has been, ah, unhelpful.

The link to the mystery expert seems to say you need to ride it like you stole it immediately. Elsewhere here the advice is to sorta baby it - but not really. LOL!

So, I am guessing that the best plan might be to warm the bike up, get it on the road and run it kinda hard for a few miles, then just ride it normally although varying engine speed here and there.

A plan??

 

[CIP57_imp]

Dac,

Your asking a tough question everyone is different. Personally i would not ride it like you stole it out of the dealership, you may find yourself on your butt coming on the first entrance ramp with brand new tires. I wouldn't cruise along 100 miles on the highway either. Find yourself an alternate route to enjoy the bike on the way home bringing the bike's rpm's up and down.

 

[dBuster_imp]

Dac,

Your asking a tough question everyone is different. Personally i would not ride it like you stole it out of the dealership, you may find yourself on your butt coming on the first entrance ramp with brand new tires. I wouldn't cruise along 100 miles on the highway either. Find yourself an alternate route to enjoy the bike on the way home bringing the bike's rpm's up and down.

I agree! Vary the rpm's get to know your bike enjoy the ride..

Sent from my XT1055 using Tapatalk

 

[the Ferret]

Dac, no one here can definitively give you the best plan for breaking in your new bike, other than quoting what is in the manual.

Truth be known, you probably couldn't hurt this motor no matter how you rode it as long as it had sufficient oil in it. Break in has been a black hole mystery since the first engine was started, and I don't think the manufacturers recommendation has changed in 30 years even though materials and manufacturing processes have improved greatly. Old timers generally break in things differently than young pups, who consider our antiquated ways hog wash. In recent years the "ride it like you stole it" mentality has taken a foothold.

When I bought a bike from a dealer 100 miles away (Joe's in Dayton) We took interstate I-75 up in the car, and I took St Rt 42 the back way home, that way I could stop, go, vary the speed etc, even stopped for lunch in Centerville, rather than jump on 75 south and run 70 mph for 1 1/2 hours straight. It probably would not have hurt the Triumph motor which like our CBs is air oil cooled 4 stroke, but I'm a codger, and wouldn't treat a new motor like that. It's the old dog..new tricks thing.

In the end, I think you will know how "you" want to treat the motorcycle you just paid $10,000 of your hard earned dollars for. Your money, your motorcycle.

 

[DAC]

Thanks all!

 

[flynrider]

Dac, no one here can definitively give you the best plan for breaking in your new bike, other than quoting what is in the manual.

Truth be known, you probably couldn't hurt this motor no matter how you rode it as long as it had sufficient oil in it. Break in has been a black hole mystery since the first engine was started, and I don't think the manufacturers recommendation has changed in 30 years even though materials and manufacturing processes have improved greatly. Old timers generally break in things differently than young pups, who consider our antiquated ways hog wash. In recent years the "ride it like you stole it" mentality has taken a foothold.

When I bought a bike from a dealer 100 miles away (Joe's in Dayton) We took interstate I-75 up in the car, and I took St Rt 42 the back way home, that way I could stop, go, vary the speed etc, even stopped for lunch in Centerville, rather than jump on 75 south and run 70 mph for 1 1/2 hours straight. It probably would not have hurt the Triumph motor which like our CBs is air oil cooled 4 stroke, but I'm a codger, and wouldn't treat a new motor like that. It's the old dog..new tricks thing.

In the end, I think you will know how "you" want to treat the motorcycle you just paid $10,000 of your hard earned dollars for. Your money, your motorcycle.

I seem to recall manufacturers providing a bit more detail in the old days. I remember stickers on the tach with rpm restrictions for break-in. My Kawasakis had something like 4K rpm for the first hundred, then 6K until the first 600 mile service. Maybe that was just Kawasaki? Or possibly that with today's more technically advanced materials, it doesn't matter as much?

Interestingly, when breaking in air cooled aircraft engines, the instructions are very specific. They require high power settings (i.e. higher cylinder pressures and temperatures) in order to get the new rings to seat in the cylinders. Low power operations are to be strictly avoided, to the point where if you anticipate a delay in takeoff they recommend shutting down the engine until you can make an immediate departure. Aircraft engines would definitely fall into the "fly it like you stole it" category.

 

[Aussieflyer]

The first 100mi i keep it under 7000rpm's varying speed. After that i bring her up to red line to seat the rings, always have done this and never had an oil burner. Oil gets dropped at 500mi and ride normal from there on. There is also a break in period for your brakes and tires, so easy on the brakes and turns for the first 200miles.

... sorry officer I was just running in my new bike.

 

[CIP57_imp]

The first 100mi i keep it under 7000rpm's varying speed. After that i bring her up to red line to seat the rings, always have done this and never had an oil burner. Oil gets dropped at 500mi and ride normal from there on. There is also a break in period for your brakes and tires, so easy on the brakes and turns for the first 200miles.

... sorry officer I was just running in my new bike.

... sorry officer I was just running in my new bike.
State limit is 70mph, my bike red lines at 60 mph :biker: