What I mean to say is…

For the first time I’ve got the luxury of being able to lay up the fs bike this winter and use a ht in the gloop instead.

Trouble is, in the past when I’ve let a bike go unridden for extended periods it’s sometimes had a detrimental effect on the fork or shock. Had this recently. Bike laid up for 9 months, stored indoors. Go to use and find rear shock making a nasty and as it turns out, costly noise.

So… Are there any little routines you use/do before you hibernate your fs for a few months?

Full service, clean and lube to get rid of any nasties and protect from oxidation. Then every few weeks tip the bike upside down to move fork/shock lube around and then cycle the suspension a few times and give the brakes a bit of a go to keep the piston seals lubed.

you only ride a FS for 3 months of a yr? 😯

I find the best way to look after is to just ride and wash it. Crazy I know…

bruneep – Member
you only ride a FS for 3 months of a yr?

Put me in mind of this…
[video]https://youtu.be/iSjS-iCPeW8[/video]

“lay up your fs for the Winter”

Lost me there 😕

Ride it, don’t wash it so much. It’ll survive the winter longer than being sat around rusting probably, and it’s way more fun 😉

Never understand why suspension is seasonal.

Take it for a spin in the dry once a week- just 5/10 mins on the road if necessary.
GT85 spray on moving parts. Sort of what andyl said, but slightly more involving.

coogan
I find the best way to look after is to just ride and wash it. Crazy I know..

Yes, yes, very droll but it would somewhat negate having the hard tail for Winter.

As my opening post mentions.

andyl – Member
Full service, clean and lube to get rid of any nasties and protect from oxidation. Then every few weeks tip the bike upside down to move fork/shock lube around and then cycle the suspension a few times and give the brakes a bit of a go to keep the piston seals lubed.

Thanks, that’s pretty much what I was thinking mate.

boxelder – Member
Take it for a spin in the dry once a week- just 5/10 mins on the road if necessary.
GT85 spray on moving parts. Sort of what andyl said, but slightly more involving

Will probably do but without the gt85 bit. That’s me though. 🙂

.. but it would somewhat negate having the hard tail for Winter.

There you go. Problem solved.

Sell it.

Poopscoop – Member
it would somewhat negate having the hard tail for Winter.

Hard tail for hard tail terrain, full sus for full sus terrain. That’s what suspension is for.

deadkenny – Member
“lay up your fs for the Winter”
Lost me there

To be honest, until recently I agreed with you.

However after spending loads of money on the fs this year I had so many serviceable spares I decided to make a ht up… and the idea of a bike that’s easier to clean in the dark, in the garden, built up with bits I don’t really mind hearing grind away under the muck became appealing.lol

That said, this thread isn’t trying to impose my opinion on anyone. You like to ride your fs all year? That’s fine by me. It’s just that this year I won’t be doing the same. That’s all.

This thread is to glean some info from a large number of people on here that do keep a second bike as a mud plugger.

Nothing more. 🙂

Why not ride the full sus all year? How did buying another bike become cheaper than maintaining one? Can’t see the saving myself and your right it will deteriate without use. I dont use any detergent on my bike either. Currently might get a power wash every month as its dry otherwise I use a brush to get the worse off it in five mins. Quick lube and it’s ready to go again.

awsy_Bear – Member
Why not ride the full sus all year?

To be honest, probably as for the first time I have another option. First time I’ve ever owned more than one bike. Since I was a kid anyway.

Just a personal choice thing. 🙂

Just seen your post.

No detergent or cleaner
Minimise washes
Keep drive train clean and lubed
Dab of fork oil on dropper post, fork, shook seals. Keeps them supple
Dry your saddle after each ride
Grease spds bearings and dab grease on threads so they don’t seize on crank
Seat post out clean reinsert with a dab of carbon no slip paste stuff

NP. I kept my old full sus and use that sometimes. A good bike is still a good bike to ride.

I ride the same trails in winter that I do in summer.

Why would I put my FS away?

TheArtistFormerlyKnownAsSTR
I ride the same trails in winter that I do in summer.
Why would I put my FS away

Indeed, and I would never ask you to, bless your little cottons. 😉

Surely it’s those crisp days and niights when the ground is frozen solid that you most need suspension?

I don’t understand your question but store in a cool, dry location and spray the bike and its bits with Scottoiler FS365 – it’s designed to protect motorbikes and they’re worth more than your FS.

But yeah – ride it all winter.

I see where you’re coming from, I have both (bought a cheap hardtail with the intention of saving my FS from winter slop) but find that I just take out which ever I fancy riding at the time or tailor my bike choice depending on where I’m riding, how muddy it is and who I’m riding with rather than ‘laying’ a bike up for a set period.

Put it in the cupboard with the potatoes.. Somewhere cool, dry and out of direct sunlight.

I guess the answer is don’t ‘lay it up’ completely.

On the rare/occasional nice days drag out the FS and take it for a spin.
My bikes seem to have coped with a couple of years relative inaction ok. The worst I’ve had was the brake pistons furring up which needed them to be stripped down and properly cleaned.

Always wash after use, dry off and oil/lube chain, stanchions, etc.

Even if you use the bike just once every 6-8 weeks or so surely it’ll be fine. Mine seem to have survived this way (admittedly hard tails). 😳

I’ve never laid up a bike intentionally, but I did get routine cleaning absolutely nailed.

First, buy Muc-Off (other cleaners are available) in huge bulk.
Second, get a pressurised spray-bottle (that squirts continuously until depressurised) and keep it full of Muc-Off.
Third, acquire a soft car-cleaning brush attachment for your hosepipe, and leave it plugged in.
Fourth, thoroughly (really thoroughly) degrease your chain and give it a light/moderate oiling only, just the rollers.

When you get back from a ride, immediately give the bike the once-over with the hose brush, then give it a Muc-Offing, paying particular attention to the chain. Leave for 5 minutes while you sort out whatever else needs sorting, then give it another going over with the hose brush. Next, re-oil the chain, which should be largely grease-free, and put away. I appreciate there’s nothing very original there, but having it all set up meant that I always cleaned properly whenever it was even slightly dirty, even if I was cold, wet, drunk or whatever – because it took a grand total of about 10 minutes. If you keep the chain reasonably clean and don’t re-oil over dirt then the whole thing just keeps running along fairly nicely. 🙂

I’m swapping all bits apart from fork and frame to my HT and spare fork, just so that I can keep a simpler bike clean in the crappy months. I plan to strip and service the frame and fork without having to feel time pressured that I need them for a ride soon.

Dear OP
I totally get what you are doing and why.
I will be going over to riding my rigid SS now it’s getting muddy and cold.
My only advice would be to pump your dropper post every couple of weeks.

I have a winter bike but there’s no way Id lay up the posh bikes for winter. My local trails only get surface mud on em really which is no issue – and trail centers are fine. In fact I only really use it when I am forced to ride in what I know will be axle deep filth… but I would never seek out these conditions intentionally…and I have been known to not attend prepaid events because of the weather. In fact thinking about it, I have a pointless bike….. But It is different to ride and enjoyable in its own right…so no I’m not selling it Mum. 8)

Wot BigDummy said is pretty much my routine as well

but I did get routine cleaning absolutely nailed

But, with the addition of hot and cold water taps outside. Not for the bike though, to hose myself down before entering the house. 😀
MrsMoosehead doesn’t like trails of peaty mud through the house to the bathroom.

Why though? Just ride it and give it an extra wash…not after every ride but make sure the drivetrain is oiled and the stanchions are clear and off you go.
If riding on roads then give a wash to ensure any salt is off the bike.
Why put it away? I’ve never understood why people do this…1 bike, ride it in all weathers…roadies are the worst for this…an hugely expensive fancy bike for sunshine and then what they consider a hand-me-down for winter…just seems nuts.

Hmmm, I’d been debating whether to put my FS away for winter. This thread has decided it for me.

As I can fit more extensive mudguards to the HT more easily, that’ll be my super wet bike anyway, but I think I need to keep things from seizing up by taking it out.

FS all year round for me. I would like it to wear out one day so I can justify an upgrade 😀

Storage though, bike upside down keeps fork seals moist….or use fork on HT?

I’m actually about to get mine out for winter as I’ve mostly ridden on the road all summer

I ride my HT 90% of the time and my FS (and HT) where laid up for 12 months after my knee injury. It’s not inusual for my FS to go months without being ridden.

I’ve never had a material issue with the the bike after lay up. Most important thing I do is store it upside down so front fork seals stay lubed/wet. Aside from that it’s basics making sure bike is clean and running gear is well lubed, I will refresh lube on chain etc from time to time. I have Hope brakes and the rear gets air in when stored upside down, this can be sorted by putting bike “vertically nose up” for a day with lever pulled back with elastic band and tapping hoses or with a bleed.

roadies are the worst for this…an hugely expensive fancy bike for sunshine and then what they consider a hand-me-down for winter…just seems nuts.

you’ve missed all the explanations in the hundreds of threads where the topic and merits of a winter bike has been done to death, then?

Mudguards, fatter/more heavily treaded/more puncture resistant tyres, permanently mounted lights, cheaper consumables,… my winter road bike is worth less than the drivetrain on my ‘summer’ bike. I ride my summer bike on crisp, dry winter days, but road salt and grime, new (unseen under leaves/puddles) potholes, the increased chances of having an off due to all the above all take a heavy toll on a bike used regularly through the winter. Chains, rings, sprockets, pads and rims all wear more quickly. Unless you clean it after every ride steel and bare alloy corrode. In crappy conditions you’re likely to be riding more cautiously and therefore sedately than in good conditions so the extra weight etc is less of a burden.

Nope, I just don’t agree with them…ride the bike, clean it and it’ll last.

Get this, I have THREE bikes that I lay up for the winter. 😯 I don’t fancy expensive custom/carbon/D-A/XTR in the salty shitty grinding paste that is a winter season. Last time I did a winter season on a good MTB, the eventual repair bill was around 700 quid. And that was a hardtail. The bill for the last decent road race bike I used through a winter was over a grand. I can usually get an MTB to do three or four summers on that sort of outlay, and a road bike probably half that again.

What he said. My wintery MTB cost me a grand total of £250, plus a load of worn out bits I bodged together and made work. Wintery road bike stands me about £1000, but that includes an old groupset from another bike (that gets laid up for the winter)

And no, the bikes don’t get left covered in salty rubbish, at the very least they get a thorough rinse and the water blasted off.

And in answer to the OP, good clean, take off what is knackered or going to need replacing (cables, chain, cassette for instance) some of that can be used on the winter bike. Service what needs servicing. Dry it off and stick it in the attic. If it’s got tubeless, take the tyres off and clean the goop off the tyres/rim.

I negated the issue by moving to Australia. Winter was about 6 weeks long.

Winter?

Surely you mean “Winter”

As in a couple of months were the temp drops into single figures?

Slight risk of frost…..