Well I've made my choice on what bike I'm getting and my choice is the Gixxus 1000. Mainly because it would be cheaper to mod, dealership support, reliability, wet weight of the bike, looks, TC, It's an inline 4, not as torquie as other naked litre bikes i've ridden and cost of maintenance. Don't know if I should go for the ABS version or not, now just gotta wait until tax season. One question I wanted to ask was, what are your thoughts on a hard break-in vs. a soft break-in, I've seen videos and read articles on the benefits of a hard break-in, are they FOS or is there some valid points to their opinions.
Decision made on bike
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I spent, literally, days doing my own research on break-in methods, as well as reading what a bike, or any vehicle, might go through before it even leaves the factory (full throttle, bouncing off the rev limiter for up to 30 seconds). That, along with the conspiracy theories. For instance, an easy break in takes longer, so it might be months before you get to 600 miles. If you can keep it low, your warranty runs out. Things like that.
My opinion is that the idea has merit. You want the rings to seal. They need to do that before the cylinder walls smooth out. In order to do that, you need pressure. That process can take place within the first 30-50 miles.
I put 13, HARD miles on my bike in 30 minutes, then let it cool off at the bar I was playing trivia at. Then 13 more hard miles on the way home. I'm talking 2500rpm, 2nd gear pulls to 6-7k, then only letting the engine slow me down. On the way back, it was up to 10-11k, again, letting only the engine slow me down. Open road, and certainly not for very long. This is another key to the hard break-in. Engine braking can help get whatever is on the cylinder walls out via the exhaust. Proof? No, none, it's my opinion.
I changed the oil and filter the next day at 28 miles on the ODO. It was dark, but I couldn't tell if it had any metal in it. Then I rode it spirited over 2 weekends and put another 572 miles on it. I again changed the oil at exactly 600 miles (got lucky, it clicked over pulling into the driveway) and am in normal mode now. I still vary the RPM's, but I do not baby it. It runs great, mileage is going up, and it doesn't smoke on decel. I have just under 900 miles on it.
Another way to do a hard break-in is on the dyno. This has merit since you won't be doing triple digit speeds on the street to get it done. But I'm cheap, and a daredevil.
And since it's 110 outside, and in a dyno cell, cooling might be an issue.
My opinion is that the idea has merit. You want the rings to seal. They need to do that before the cylinder walls smooth out. In order to do that, you need pressure. That process can take place within the first 30-50 miles.
I put 13, HARD miles on my bike in 30 minutes, then let it cool off at the bar I was playing trivia at. Then 13 more hard miles on the way home. I'm talking 2500rpm, 2nd gear pulls to 6-7k, then only letting the engine slow me down. On the way back, it was up to 10-11k, again, letting only the engine slow me down. Open road, and certainly not for very long. This is another key to the hard break-in. Engine braking can help get whatever is on the cylinder walls out via the exhaust. Proof? No, none, it's my opinion.
I changed the oil and filter the next day at 28 miles on the ODO. It was dark, but I couldn't tell if it had any metal in it. Then I rode it spirited over 2 weekends and put another 572 miles on it. I again changed the oil at exactly 600 miles (got lucky, it clicked over pulling into the driveway) and am in normal mode now. I still vary the RPM's, but I do not baby it. It runs great, mileage is going up, and it doesn't smoke on decel. I have just under 900 miles on it.
Another way to do a hard break-in is on the dyno. This has merit since you won't be doing triple digit speeds on the street to get it done. But I'm cheap, and a daredevil.
And since it's 110 outside, and in a dyno cell, cooling might be an issue.That's another point of contention. Oil discussions are like politics and religion (and break-in methods). Not just weight but brand and composition. I used Castrol 4T 10w-40 dino oil myself, with a Fram (gasp!) filter the first time, and a Wix the 2nd.
I think the most important thing to do is read everything you can, weed out the crap and do it the way you feel comfortable with.
I think the most important thing to do is read everything you can, weed out the crap and do it the way you feel comfortable with.
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451 Posts
I always read these threads, I keep hoping for some response where someone did it a certain way and will never do it that way again because....
I've seen many claim positive results from hard break in, and positive from easy break in. I dont recall a post, ever, saying anything negative. On the forums where engine failure happens, it gets chalked up to a defective product.
Have you guys seen anything you;d consider as evidence, no matter the outcome?
I've seen many claim positive results from hard break in, and positive from easy break in. I dont recall a post, ever, saying anything negative. On the forums where engine failure happens, it gets chalked up to a defective product.
Have you guys seen anything you;d consider as evidence, no matter the outcome?
RC, the only thing physical I have seen regarding break-in methods are the pics of the pistons on Mototune's site and somewhere, dyno results of two of the same bike, broken in each way. The hard bike made more power, though I don't remember how much. It was a fair difference though. More than what I thought would be manufacturing tolerance.
Results are subjective. The only definitive way to test something like that is get 5-10 of the same bike and break half of them in one way and the other half the other way. Then compare things like horsepower, oil consumption and fuel consumption, including oil testing. Then take them apart after a reasonable amount of time to compare physical wear. And it might not conclude anything at all.
Motoman actually has done something like this. He's taken apart engines broken in both ways and shown pictures of their pistons after so many miles. The motoman method pistons do look quite a bit cleaner, with less blowby.
Break In Secrets--How To Break In New Motorcycle and Car Engines For More Power
That's just his first article. There's another one that shows like a dozen of these.
Here, again, my opinion, is one of the differences. Barring the banging off the rev limiter, is what *I* imagine a bike broken in 'easy' might look like. I only picked these videos because I think the exhaust system is kinda cool and hence, have seen them before.
https://youtu.be/5kQuJ0yTPeM?t=66
Vs one that *I* imagine has been broken in hard...
https://youtu.be/34ak0UTrhgI?t=93
Results are subjective. The only definitive way to test something like that is get 5-10 of the same bike and break half of them in one way and the other half the other way. Then compare things like horsepower, oil consumption and fuel consumption, including oil testing. Then take them apart after a reasonable amount of time to compare physical wear. And it might not conclude anything at all.
Motoman actually has done something like this. He's taken apart engines broken in both ways and shown pictures of their pistons after so many miles. The motoman method pistons do look quite a bit cleaner, with less blowby.
Break In Secrets--How To Break In New Motorcycle and Car Engines For More Power
That's just his first article. There's another one that shows like a dozen of these.
Here, again, my opinion, is one of the differences. Barring the banging off the rev limiter, is what *I* imagine a bike broken in 'easy' might look like. I only picked these videos because I think the exhaust system is kinda cool and hence, have seen them before.
https://youtu.be/5kQuJ0yTPeM?t=66
Vs one that *I* imagine has been broken in hard...
https://youtu.be/34ak0UTrhgI?t=93
Well I'm going with the non-ABS version for now, probably going with the Matte Gray finish as well. At my local dealership the Gixxus 1000 is $10,650.00 that's with freight and setup, I wonder if they'll waive that fee, even though i'm only putting down $1500, I just want to pay MSRP+Tax&License.
Don't be afraid to negotiate on the price, make an offer and see what they and go from there.
That's exactly the price I'm shooting for when I get ready to purchase.
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451 Posts
I know on all the two strokes I've built (20 Plus), we had way, way, way better results building the piston and rings dry. In dry, I mean completely, 100% dry.
You would clean the cylinder as well as you could. Hot soapy water. Then atf cleaning, followed by more soapy water. Cleaned until you could use a white rag and not pick up any traces of color on it.
Longer piston and ring life, less smoking, less oil spooging, everything.
You would clean the cylinder as well as you could. Hot soapy water. Then atf cleaning, followed by more soapy water. Cleaned until you could use a white rag and not pick up any traces of color on it.
Longer piston and ring life, less smoking, less oil spooging, everything.
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851 Posts
You probably won't find too many stealerships willing to bargain on a brand new model but doesn't hurt to try. To get you out the door at 10k they's probably have to price it below 9k. Might be tough.
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