Winter Riding

[emskee]

Folks,

I'm used to riding all year (+/-) round. I live in NE Ohio and we get both winter and lake effect storms here.

3 of my 2 wheelers went through some snow, and a whole lot more slush. My first Sportster lost a lot of the fin mass on the voltage regulator heat sink due to road salt. But all in all the body and frame parts on it and my 2 Victory bikes held up really well. Except for the inside front fender on the Vegas which I had to scrape and treat with Por-15.

The Urals were in the snow all the time. Covered them with a can of Boeshield and hosed them down with cold water before putting them away. Dern things, being painted rather than powder coated rusted a bit in spite of it all. Especially the Taiga which had no primer under the top coat, er, I mean only coat which was prone to peeling.

Ran a synthetic 20W50 in the hacks and I could head out in single digit temps. But most of the time when I was out, even with the 2 wheelers, was when it was 20 or above and the roads not icy but wet (salted.)

My question: who here runs in the snowy times and what if anything different do you do?

(I know we have Alaskans here, and a lot of other cold country inbetweeners.)

I figure Harley lubes are good above 15 degrees or so (right?)

2 wheelers and hacks can be operated in the ruts, that is that inevitable crown of slush/snow in the middle of the lane can be avoided or straddled. A trike, not the case, front tire right in the thick, so I think I'll need to avoid overly snowy roads if I want to be able to steer. Just plain snow, not good for 2 wheelers (though I did get caught a couple of times) but nothing for the Urals and maybe not toooo crazy on a FW.

I suspect the cold water hose down is still in order.

Anyway, who here does winter riding and any war stories or tips?

Thanks,

emskee

[rhino 2]

I ride all winter, And as long as the snow is under 3 inch's and i remember to stay off the front brake i'm ok, Anything over 3 inch's i wait till the plows go by... As far as the salt gos, I just live with it, It did stain my wheels and the salt puddles got into my reverse motor and corroded the brushes... I have a mechanical reverse now... If i'm bored i will sometimes hose the Trike down with hot water in my garage and blow dry it with my leaf blower.. OR i'll use the exhaust side of my shop vacuum' which blows hot/warm air... That said i never worry about what the trike looks like'.....
;Run it Must; Shine who cares.
Now my Victory i'm a little more careful with, But not too much....

[emskee]

That said i never worry about what the trike looks like'.....
;Run it Must; Shine who cares.

Yeah, that's me. Never been inclined to put lipstick on any of my bikes. They are things to be ridden and as it turns out I ain't retired yet and so am compelled to leave the driveway often when I'd rather not (like weekday mornings for example.) If there is any way NOT to take the car, well then that's a good (or at least a better) day.

That's interesting about the reverse motor. Makes sense....... I've only used reverse once to see how it works. Since then I just get in front of the bike, grab the forks and push. I guess I wouldn't miss it. I'll look into shrouding it or something. Or not.

Thanks, appreciate the support of a kindred soul.