Hello from Iowa!

[CDryder]

Hi everyone, I'm a 19 year old guy from Iowa who is mostly new to motorcycles. Right now I'm riding an rps hawk and looking forward to getting a csc tt250 in the next few weeks. I only just finished assembly of the hawk yesterday but it seems like a great bike so far.

As a new rider I do have a question:

I haven't adjusted the carburetor yet and the bike won't idle, so when I was riding I gave too little gas and accidentally killed the engine while in 1st or 2nd gear. This caused the rear wheel to seemingly lock up and caused me to slide a bit until I stopped on the gravel.

Is this normal for motorcycles when the engine dies in low gear? I wouldn't think it would happen if I was going faster in a higher gear, but it's not something I'd like to test out...

[BlackBike]

Originally Posted by CDryder

Hi everyone, I'm a 19 year old guy from Iowa who is mostly new to motorcycles. Right now I'm riding an rps hawk and looking forward to getting a csc tt250 in the next few weeks. I only just finished assembly of the hawk yesterday but it seems like a great bike so far.

As a new rider I do have a question:

I haven't adjusted the carburetor yet and the bike won't idle, so when I was riding I gave too little gas and accidentally killed the engine while in 1st or 2nd gear. This caused the rear wheel to seemingly lock up and caused me to slide a bit until I stopped on the gravel.

Is this normal for motorcycles when the engine dies in low gear? I wouldn't think it would happen if I was going faster in a higher gear, but it's not something I'd like to test out...

just find the idle adjust screw and turn it up, right?

[CDryder]

Originally Posted by BlackBike

just find the idle adjust screw and turn it up, right?

I thought I needed to do something like that, but I haven't had the chance to check for the screw yet. I'll have to look at the bike later.

Aside from the idle issue, the rear wheel locking when the engine dies is normal? I figured it should roll to a stop.

[hertz9753]

You are a first time four stroke rider. It is normal for the rear wheel to do that. It's called engine compression braking.

[BlackBike]

I had it happen to me upon clutch release in second gear, it's called clean your drawers.

[hertz9753]

It's a common problem for two stroke riders getting on a four stroke for the first time. Going from a four stroke to a two stroke is also scary with out that third brake in the first dirt corner.

[Weldangrind]

Originally Posted by CDryder

Hi everyone, I'm a 19 year old guy from Iowa who is mostly new to motorcycles. Right now I'm riding an rps hawk and looking forward to getting a csc tt250 in the next few weeks. I only just finished assembly of the hawk yesterday but it seems like a great bike so far.

As a new rider I do have a question:

I haven't adjusted the carburetor yet and the bike won't idle, so when I was riding I gave too little gas and accidentally killed the engine while in 1st or 2nd gear. This caused the rear wheel to seemingly lock up and caused me to slide a bit until I stopped on the gravel.

Is this normal for motorcycles when the engine dies in low gear? I wouldn't think it would happen if I was going faster in a higher gear, but it's not something I'd like to test out...

Welcome!

At the risk of sounding like your Dad, please take a MSF course; it'll teach you terrific skills for the road.

Turning the idle up might only be a Band-Aid. If the slow jet is too small, it'll continue to give you trouble, especially in colder weather.

[CDryder]

Yep, the only prior motorcycle experience I've had was on a little 2 stroke Yamaha rt 100 when I was younger. That bike never seemed to lock up to my memory which made me question this one.

Right now I'm just riding the hawk as a dirtbike. It's actually my brother's bike and he will likely keep using it mostly on dirt. He's letting me use it a bit to get practice until the tt250 arrives. I've discovered I'm not that great at riding yet and I can take an MSF course close to home so I'll probably sign up.
Thanks for all the help!

[dpl096]

Welcome aboard. Congratulations on the Hawk and the upcoming TT...... Ride safe, be smart and have fun.....oh and big time ditto to Weld...the class is a good idea.

[hertz9753]

When I did the MS a few years ago (1981) we had Yamaha DT100 Honda Twinstar 185 bikes. I always got a DT 100. I was a big boy on a tiny bike when I was 14.

[SeerAtlas]

welcome to the board there is a ton of good info on tuning up a hawk here and soon to be pretty much everything you ever wanted to know about the tt250. use that search engine
I too am awaiting my imminent tt250 by the way, what color did you order? he,he,he

[zingshoen]

greetings to iowa! that locking means that you have good compression ie the motor stops the rear wheel from turning. if you don t want the wheel to lock up you need to pull the clutch.

you ll work out how the bike behaves, but you need a reliable ride to begin with. getting a steady idle is a good start, and you ll find posts here on how to do it.

[CDryder]

Originally Posted by hertz9753

When I did the MS a few years ago (1981) we had Yamaha DT100 Honda Twinstar 185 bikes. I always got a DT 100. I was a big boy on a tiny bike when I was 14.

As someone who is 6' 3", I quickly became too tall for the rt 100. I actually rode a friend's old pw50 once as a joke...I'm not sure who had more fun, me or the people watching.

Originally Posted by SeerAtlas

welcome to the board there is a ton of good info on tuning up a hawk here and soon to be pretty much everything you ever wanted to know about the tt250. use that search engine
I too am awaiting my imminent tt250 by the way, what color did you order? he,he,he

I've been following some threads here very closely which has been very helpful. Also I was going to purchase the tt250 in black, but I decided on white since it's the fastest color.