CSC Blog

This TT250 maintenance tutorial addresses swingarm maintenance.   There’s not a lot you need to do to maintain your TT250 swingarm.   We wanted to take the swingarm off the motorcycle to take a look at the swingarm mounting system and its internals.   We found that by greasing the swingarm and shock absorber pivot points, the suspension was noticeably smoother.   The bike we performed this on has seen quite a few hard miles off road in dusty environments.

The first step  is to safely elevate the rear end of the motorcycle.   We use a motorcycle jack; any suitable lift method will work.

Remove the rear wheel.  Rear wheel removal is covered in the TT250 rear wheel removal tutorial.

Detach the rear brake line keepers from the swingarm.

Remove the nut and bolt that attaches the rear shock absorber to the swingarm.

Rotate the lower portion of the rear shock absorber to clear the swingarm mounting bracket, and remove the bushing from the rear shock absorber.

Unbolt the nuts securing the swingarm pivot axle.

There will be dust caps/washers on the frame between the swingarm axle nuts and the frame.   Remove these and set them aside.

Pull the swingarm pivot axle out of the frame.

Remove the swingarm from the motorcycle frame.

Remove the dust caps that fit between the frame and the swingarm.

The next steps involve re-greasing (lubricating) the swingarm pivot points.   We use Maxima waterproof grease, which is a great lubricant.   We stock the full line of Maxima lubricating oils and grease.  Please call us at 909 445 0900 if you need any of these items.

Apply grease to the frame bushings through which the swingarm pivot axle will pass.

Apply grease to the exterior of the swingarm bushings.

Apply grease to the rear shock absorber bushing.

Insert the rear shock absorber bushing and apply grease to the exterior exposed edge of the bushing.

Assembly is the reverse of disassembly.   Torque the shock absorber nut and bolt to 35 N-m.   There is no torque specification for the swingarm pivot axle nuts.  Tighten the swingarm pivot axle nuts equally such that there is no side-to-side play in the swingarm and it pivots up and down with minimal drag.

Folks, we’ve seen some dirty lowdown lies on some of the forums about our motorcycles, and you read my posts on the shenanigans of these mental misfits in the past (see, for example, my blog titled Venom, Viciousness, and Vituperation).  Today, though, the online disinhibited (read:  morons) hit a new low.   We recently boosted a Facebook post on the RX3.   It’s a good one.  I shot the photo we used in it…

When we boost a post on Facebook, people can post responses.  Most of the responses are very positive, and a large number of them are folks posting their friends’ names in the comments area to tell them about a great bike and a great deal.  The RX3 is out there, you and I have  accumulated tens of thousands of miles on our bikes, you are posting positive things about the bike and our company, and the reactions have been strongly positive.

We still get the occasional anti-China rant from the folks who don’t like China, and we get the occasional comment banging our direct-to-you sales model from the dealers and their shills, but that is noise level stuff and we can all see through it.   Today, though, the online hatred hit a new low.   Check out this Facebook comment and photo from a Robert Newcomb…

Robert Newcomb I just bought mine, but it set on fire when charging in the garage. Picture I took before I called 9-1-1. I have tried repeatedly to get through to customer service but they just leave me on hold ’til I hang up. No response to emails. Wtf?

Newcomb’s post is a bald-faced lie calculated to denigrate the bike and our company.   I know this for several reasons:

• We never heard of Robert Newcomb until he posted that ugly lie on Facebook.  He’s not a customer of ours.
• He never called, as his post claims.
• He never emailed, as his post claims.

I took the image this lying sack of suds (I’m keeping it clean here, folks) posted online and did a reverse Google image search on it, and what do you know, here it is in the original article…

MONITOR TOWNSHIP, MI — A Monitor Township man narrowly escaped an exploding garage which ended up spreading fire to his home.

At 6:38 p.m. Thursday, March 31, a man was working on his motorcycle inside his garage at 1213 E. Midland Road. When he went to put fuel in the bike, he dropped the can and spilled fuel across the floor, said Monitor Township Fire Department Lt. Brian Bladecki.

A furnace and hot water heater were in the garage, and they ignited the fuel’s fumes.

“He saw the flames come across the floor,” Bladecki said. “Just as he took off out the garage door, that’s when it blew up.”

The garage was composed of cement blocks, all of which were cracked by the explosion, Bladecki said.

“It was quite an explosion,” the lieutenant said.  

The fire spread to the man’s attached house and to a pickup parked next to the garage. A neighbor attached his wrecker to the truck and pulled it 20 to 30 feet away, though its motor and front end were already damaged by the blaze, Bladecki said.

Firefighters responded to battle the blaze. There ended up being heat, smoke, and water damage throughout the house. Bladecki said the house is considered a total loss, with the value estimated to be between $100,000 to $120,000.

The man was the lone occupant. He was a renter and did not have renter’s insurance, though the landlord did have insurance on the property, Bladecki said.

No one was injured. Firefighters cleared the scene at 9:27 p.m.

So, who is this Robert Newcomb, actually?  Beats the heck out of us…as I said, we never heard of him until today.   He’s not in Michigan (as was that poor guy who’s house actually caught on fire); Newcomb is up in northern California somewhere.   But if you want to know more about the background of a true troll, you can glean a little bit more by taking a peek at Newcomb’s Facebook page.

That’s it for now.   Newcomb, get back under your rock.   You’ve been outed.

Our good buddy Colorado Dave posted his Baja photos on Google….you’ll need a Google account to see them (it’s easy and free if you don’t have one).   Dave’s photos are here!  The photo below is mine…it shows Dave and his new 40-ton friend!

Folks, we’ve simplified the pricing on all three of our bikes – the TT250, the RX3, and the RC3.   Here’s the deal:  For all bikes, we’re now offering free shipping to anywhere in the c0ntinental United States (call us if you are in Canada, Alaska, or Hawaii).   We now have a flat $35 documentation fee, a $195 assembly fee, and a $150 crating fee (basically, just add $380 to the bike’s price to cover all fees except for sales tax and registration).   If you pick up your bike here at our Azusa facility, you won’t have to pay the $150 crating fee.  Here are the prices for our motorcycles:

• The RX3 is $$3,895.
• The RC3 is $3,495.
• The TT250 is $1,895.

If you would like more information, please give us a call at 909 445 0900 or check us out online.

Hey, this was a fun morning!   Kevin (on the right) and Burl were here to pick up their matching 2016 RX3s, and I grabbed a photo of both guys and their new motorcycles.  Both bikes are finished in the new Sierra Silver color with Tourfella luggage, the new front brake kit, our aluminum skid plate, knobby tires, and more!   These are awesome machines, and this father and son team are going to enjoy some grand adventures!

That’s our good buddy Dan K in the photo above with the date palms and the Rio Mulege in the background.   Dan just posted his absolutely awesome photos from our Baja ride, and you can see them here!

Thanks, Dan…your photos are great!

The range at my gun club was closed this morning, which I suppose shouldn’t surprise me because, after all, it is Easter.  I’m a club member and I have the combination to the gate lock, and I actually like it this way a little better because the range is a lot less crowded.  There was only one other guy out there early this morning.

I knew it was going to be a good morning when I rolled along the dirt road to the range.  I saw a bobcat.  We were both surprised to see each other.  He looked at my Subaru and I looked at him, and then the cat leisurely walked across the road and bounded into the brush on the right.   It was a good sign.   I’ve seen bobcats out here three or four times in the last 30 years, and seeing one this morning was a treat.

My new .45 Single Action Army .45 is magnificent, and it grouped well with every load I tried this morning.   It likes a powder called Trail Boss (those two groups noted with arrows were with this powder).   The gun shoots exactly to point of aim (I used a 6:00 o’clock hold on the targets above), and the spread you see in the groups is almost certainly more the result of my old hands and eyes than it is the result of the gun or the load.  Still, that Trail Boss load shot the best, and that’s the one I’m hanging my hat on.

This Old West stuff is fun.  The gun is the Taylor and Company’s Ranch Hand model, and it is straight out of the old Westerns by way of Italy (it’s manufactured by the Italian company Uberti).  Their other models have names like the Cattleman and other western-themed monikers.  The gunpowder I got those great results with is called Trail Boss.   Shoot, even the guy at the gunstore who sold it to me has the right name…he’s Rory (look up the actor Rory Calhoun and you’ll understand).   You probably remember all those western movies Clint Eastwood filmed in Italy, and I think that’s what I’ll call my new .45…the Spaghetti Western Special!