Sand/dust prep

[Shadow]

Hey, I wonder if anyone in here knows some useful things to prep a bike for sandy and dusty conditions?
I do most of my riding at a very sandy track that has no irrigation system and is very rarely watered so most of my riding is done at dry and dusty conditions.

I did get a filter skin some time ago and it was one of the most useful purchases I've done as far as dusty conditions are concerned.

[rm250guy]

with your comment on the filter skin you already know the most important consideration.... to keep the filter clean and breathing!  Always bring extra air filters with you and change the filter between motos.  Make sure you change the filter carefully so that sand does not drop into the intake boot!  If your bike has a removeable air box cover, keep it in.  That will help to keep a lot of the sand out of it.  Some riders I know remove this cover thinking that they get more performance without it but I havent noticed any difference at all with my RMs.  I also remove the airbox and put a generous strip of silicon sealant around the fastening lip to keep everything air tight.  I  sometimes put a little grease on the lip of the filter when reinstalling but frankly even when I dont do this I have not noticed any sand/dust getting past the seal.  I saturate the entire air filter then squeeze out the excess.  For ripping in the sand the engine is working hard so I would go a little rich (1 size) on the main jet to save some piston/bearing wear and tear.  Also important is make sure that you wash your fork seal wipers with soap/water after each ride.  If your conditions are like mine out here in the desert, the fine dust/sand collects quickly on the seal wiper and can cause the seals to start leaking within a few rides.  I only use wd40 on my chain and it works just fine.  If I use chain lube the sand just sticks to it and it makes a mess and seems to wear the chain/sprockets faster.

[yo_marc]

I wanted to mention that about the WD-40 for chain lube (assuming you have a sealed chain).  I always run just WD no matter the conditions - but I think it would be especially true for sand.

[Shadow]

Thanks for the tips, though most of them I already do, or something similar to them.

For chain lube I use some cheap stuff that's sorta peculiar. It comes off from the can as sort of foamy stuff and then liquify after it makes contact with something. It needs an hour or two to dry up, but after that it still lubricates the chain and hardly any sand stick to it.
Can't remember for the life of me what it is though.


What are your opinions on fork seal covers, are they worth the money?

[rm250guy]

I always use a quality 0-ring chain/sprockets and just lube with wd40.  It is really a wear issue for me because the spockets and chain seem to last forever when compared to a standard chain.

It would be good to get some comments from others on the fork seal cover question.  I have thought about using these for my bikes but never have.  Some of the dust here is so fine it is like talcum powder! 

[Shadow]

Well, here's a pic of the track so you can judge yourself whether it seems similar to the desert you ride in.



The fork seal covers got me thinking, are there old style fork covers available for upside down forks like the ones that were used in conventional forks in dirtbikes way back then, or could old ones be retrofitted into an upside down fork? I don't really care how silly it would look if it increases reliability and lessens the need for maintenance.

Another thing that I thought, was to wrap the airbox with something to work as an additional filter keeping most of the sand from ever entering the airbox. Something fairly durable fabric that would still pass air through. Like old pantyhose if need be. 

[TMKIWI]

Like old pantyhose if need be. 

ford has plenty.

[Shadow]

Like old pantyhose if need be. 

ford has plenty.

Think he might mail a pair or two?