Long-Term Storage for Two-Stroke Bikes


Most owners of old two-stroke motorcycles know that they're harder to store long-term compared with four-strokes because the engine internals are more exposed to the atmosphere. With some understanding of the engine you can with a single-cylinder turn it in the top-dead-center which will close the intake and exhaust ports.

With a two-stroke engine the crankshaft bearings are only being lubricated by the two-stroke oil in the fuel mixture when the engine is running and any moisture in the air will settle on cooler metal. A capful of oil down the bore may keep the piston and rings coated, but it won't touch those crankshaft bearings, and if there's a spot of corrosion on the faces that's about the most costly repair on any two-stroke engine.
Then there are all the rubber seals that dry out and get rigid; crank seals, fork seals, caliper piston seals, not to mention the plastic used in the carburetor and other parts of the fueling system that will swell if left full of ethanol-rich fuel. For that reason, I'd drain the fuel tank and hook up any stored, but running, motorcycle to an auxiliary fuel tank suspended from the garage rafters.

Good long-term storage means exhaust and inlet bungs with the carburetor wrapped in lots of tissue paper. Me, as a minimum I'd go out to it once a week, kick it into life and get the temperature gauge up to regular operational engine temperature… during this I'm pumping the forks and brakes and selecting first and second to get the gearbox moving, you might even be tempted to go for a ride as even in the raining season it's not always that bad weather...Tag: Two-Stroke Maintenance Weather Oil Service Crankshaft-Bearing Two-Stroke-Oil Raining-Season Storage
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