hi,first of all i want to say im sorry for badmouthing the cruiser site when i kept getting knocked off,and was kidding about who is the it guy running it,ha i think this site is really nice,and the people on here are so great,and have such beautifull bikes!  not like some biker sites iv been on,where you have all these wiseguys thinking they know it all!  i always would help anyone i can and i dont care if they have a moped.  i wrote a couple of blogs and people actually read them,ha    so here goes it again! i would like to tell all the bikers things i learned lately,probly most know things im gonna say,but maybe this might help someone out there.  most people that have brand new bikes dont have to worry about these things,but may in the future.  i would tell anyone that plans to do work on their bike to get a shop manual and a torque wrench,almost all the nuts and bolts on your bike have torque values,some are critical and some not as much.  a for instance,the rear axel,even if you just adj the chain,if you over tighten it,which i used to do,cause i was afraid my wheel would fall off,so i would sock it home,ha   but it will burn your bearnings out quick if its too tight! and other parts that are alloy,you will put more stress on them by overtighting. like the forks and risers,which if they break while your doing 80 or so,could give you a problem,ha a lot of people buy used bikes,they look like new,but if they were laying somewhere for a few years,you schould change all the fluids,i had a bike i sold to my brother,my last bike i had,he used it for a while and then it was in a garage for 15 years. i told him i was thinking of getting another bike to mess around with,i asked him what he did with the bike,he said i still have,and you can have it if you want,but you will naver get it running. i got it running in 2 days,pouring gas into the carb with a funnel and hose,but couldnt use it cause i had to get a fuel pump,i got it on ebay,took 3 days,ha  i had problems with the clutch and front brake,i drained the fluid,it looked like mud,and cleaned the resovoirs.  the cables were all gummed up too,and the fork oil was mud also.  so just because the bike looks good doesnt mean everythings ok   you dont want to go on the road and get stuck in the boondocks with a broken cable,or your trottle gets stuck wide open going around a turn,ha  its worth it to put a little 3 in 1 oil on all the moving parts every now and then.   and if you have a chain,clean it good with diesel fuel,then lube and adj it,i used to use that spray on lube,i didnt like it,my bike calls for 90 weight gear oil,and lube every 300 miles.  i was riding with a friend of mine,and he started skidding out of control,i cant belive he didnt fall,when i stopped,i said whats wrong,and he said i dont know,i looked and his chain fell off and wrapped around the sproket,i tryed to put it back on and the links wouldnt even bend,i said your lucky you didnt get killed,he lubbed it after that,ha  another thing i just learned is if you replace plugs in your car or bike,if the heads are alloy,you schould use antiseize grease and boot grease on the wires,the plugs almost get welded in,and the wires break when you have to pull them off next time.  i always say,i learn something new everyday!  so take a little time and lube all the moving parts and check the air in your tires,and dont just lube your chain,clean and lube it once in a while. cause you dont want to get stuck in the boonies,or get killed cause you didnt oil a cable.  i know this is a long blog,but maybe it will help someone who is new to bikes!  oh by the way,i still my torque wrench,i bought from sears 30 years,its a cheapo beam one,they still have them,it works pretty good,so if you dont want to spend a lot of money on one,check them out.  so for the people just starting to work on their bikes,buy some good tools,junk ones wont last,i know  and 1 more thing,a impact driver,i used to strip all the phillips heads that were really tight,1 wack with the impact driver,and no problem,but switch to allen heads,(chrome of course)wiitch are better,ha   and a set of easy outs too,my friend has a yam warrior,he broke his exhaust bolts and has 2 vice grips holding it on,ha   when i get some time im gonna fix it for him,ha  so do the work on your bike,it makes you feel good when your done,and ride safe! nick