new Hawk 250 owner in TX

pedlerr · 07-06-2017, 07:38 PM

ordered and waiting any suggestions on assembly ?

Megadan · 07-07-2017, 05:03 AM

Welcome and congrats on the new purchase.

Suggestions.

1. take your time.
2. Loctite 242 on all critical fasteners at a minimum. A small dab on even the screws that hold on the body panels is not a bad idea.
3. Change all of the fluids. At a minimum the engine oil, do not run it with the stuff that came in it. I highly recommend replacing the fork oil as well. 210ml per fork of a good quality fork oil. I also suggest bleeding the brakes and putting a good quality DOT 3 or DOT 4 fluid in.
4. Get yourself a spoke wrench to tighten up the spokes on the wheels. They are cheap and most bike shops carry them. Spoke checks should be a regular routine, but these bikes tend to come with fairly loose spokes so it's a good idea to tighten them up. Search here or on youtube for how to do this, it is really easy.
5. Set your valve clearances before you run the engine. They will come tight with zero play. With the motor at Top Dead Center, the specs are .003 intake and exhaust with a plus or minus of .001. I recommend setting them on the wide end to start, and then after a couple to a few hundred miles check them again.
6. While not necessary, it never hurts to go over the wiring on the bike and take measures to prevent rubbing with some electrical tape and zip ties. If you plan on encountering any water in your adventures with the bike, it doesn't hurt to use some dielectric grease on the connectors, but you don't have to.
7. Fill the battery no higher than the suggested fill lines on said battery. You should have battery acid left over in the container it comes in. After you fill it, let it sit for an hour or so, and then connect it to a trickle charger to charge fully.
8. Use a good waterproof grease on the axle shafts front and rear as well as the swing arm pivot bolt and bushings.
9. I recommend pulling the rear wheel and check the rear sprocket for play (easy to do if you put some grease on said axle, since the wheel will be pretty much removed at this point). Make sure to remove each nut and put some of that loctite mentioned above on each sprocket nut/stud. Tighten to 34ft-lbs.
10. Depending on where you live, look into tuning the stock carburetor - unless you live at or above 5000ft it will likely be too lean. Many people have success with a 110 main jet and shimming the needle with 1 or 2 small 3mm hole washers. There is a lot of information on doing this so it should be easy to find more in depth information here and on youtube.
11. There are other things I recommend, but you can get away with not doing. Such as greasing the head stock/steering stem bearings. That said, start with what your capabilities are. This will be very easy to do if you pull the forks out to change the fluid, as almost everything will be disconnected or uninstalled that is necessary to do this in the first place.

Also, never be afraid to make a post asking questions. The only dumb question is one not asked. If you do a build log post for your bike it will keep the information centralized, but individual posts about specific questions can also be answered. Read through Hawk Talk in the Dual Sport/Enduro section if you get a chance, there is a ton of good Hawk specific information on there.

Weldangrind · 07-07-2017, 11:31 AM

Welcome! Thanks for joining us.

Bogmeister · 07-07-2017, 10:09 PM

Hi. It's good to see another newbie here.

pedlerr · 07-08-2017, 10:31 AM

great info guys, thanks Looks like ill be getting it Monday with some luck ill be ready to ride to work Tuesday! (4 mile commute)

Megadan · 07-08-2017, 03:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pedlerr

great info guys, thanks Looks like ill be getting it Monday with some luck ill be ready to ride to work Tuesday! (4 mile commute)

If you get it early in the day on Monday and you have at least one person to help you get it up off the crate and on 2 wheels the rest of it should only take a few hours if you work diligently. Getting it off the crate by yourself is a bit more challenging, but doable.

I forgot to mention one other thing. give the brake rotors and pads a good dose of brake parts cleaner too.

BlackBike · 07-08-2017, 03:48 PM

Go for the battery set up first thing out of the box to give it plenty of time to soak that acid before first crank.

pedlerr · 07-11-2017, 10:04 PM

thanks for the post guys the bike has been delayed twice now pretty ironic i live 40 mins from TXpowersports but UPS has taken 3 days plus to deliver... maybe tomorrow

07-06-2017, 07:38 PM	#1
pedlerr Join Date: Jul 2017 Posts: 5	new Hawk 250 owner in TX ordered and waiting any suggestions on assembly ?
	1

07-07-2017, 05:03 AM	#2
Megadan Join Date: Apr 2017 Location: Omaha, NE Posts: 8,028	Welcome and congrats on the new purchase. Suggestions. 1. take your time. 2. Loctite 242 on all critical fasteners at a minimum. A small dab on even the screws that hold on the body panels is not a bad idea. 3. Change all of the fluids. At a minimum the engine oil, do not run it with the stuff that came in it. I highly recommend replacing the fork oil as well. 210ml per fork of a good quality fork oil. I also suggest bleeding the brakes and putting a good quality DOT 3 or DOT 4 fluid in. 4. Get yourself a spoke wrench to tighten up the spokes on the wheels. They are cheap and most bike shops carry them. Spoke checks should be a regular routine, but these bikes tend to come with fairly loose spokes so it's a good idea to tighten them up. Search here or on youtube for how to do this, it is really easy. 5. Set your valve clearances before you run the engine. They will come tight with zero play. With the motor at Top Dead Center, the specs are .003 intake and exhaust with a plus or minus of .001. I recommend setting them on the wide end to start, and then after a couple to a few hundred miles check them again. 6. While not necessary, it never hurts to go over the wiring on the bike and take measures to prevent rubbing with some electrical tape and zip ties. If you plan on encountering any water in your adventures with the bike, it doesn't hurt to use some dielectric grease on the connectors, but you don't have to. 7. Fill the battery no higher than the suggested fill lines on said battery. You should have battery acid left over in the container it comes in. After you fill it, let it sit for an hour or so, and then connect it to a trickle charger to charge fully. 8. Use a good waterproof grease on the axle shafts front and rear as well as the swing arm pivot bolt and bushings. 9. I recommend pulling the rear wheel and check the rear sprocket for play (easy to do if you put some grease on said axle, since the wheel will be pretty much removed at this point). Make sure to remove each nut and put some of that loctite mentioned above on each sprocket nut/stud. Tighten to 34ft-lbs. 10. Depending on where you live, look into tuning the stock carburetor - unless you live at or above 5000ft it will likely be too lean. Many people have success with a 110 main jet and shimming the needle with 1 or 2 small 3mm hole washers. There is a lot of information on doing this so it should be easy to find more in depth information here and on youtube. 11. There are other things I recommend, but you can get away with not doing. Such as greasing the head stock/steering stem bearings. That said, start with what your capabilities are. This will be very easy to do if you pull the forks out to change the fluid, as almost everything will be disconnected or uninstalled that is necessary to do this in the first place. Also, never be afraid to make a post asking questions. The only dumb question is one not asked. If you do a build log post for your bike it will keep the information centralized, but individual posts about specific questions can also be answered. Read through Hawk Talk in the Dual Sport/Enduro section if you get a chance, there is a ton of good Hawk specific information on there. __________________ Hawk Information and Resource guide: http://www.chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=20331 2018 Hawk 250 - Full Mod list here. http://www.chinariders.net/showpost....62&postcount=1 2024 Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 https://chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=34124
	3

07-07-2017, 11:31 AM	#3
Weldangrind Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Sardis, BC, Canada Posts: 25,977	Welcome! Thanks for joining us. __________________ Weldangrind "I figure I'm well-prepared for coping with a bike that comes from the factory with unresolved issues and that rewards the self-reliant owner." - Buccaneer
	1

07-08-2017, 03:48 PM	#7
BlackBike Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: George West, Texas Posts: 4,097	Go for the battery set up first thing out of the box to give it plenty of time to soak that acid before first crank. __________________ ***************************************** 2015 Bashan"Blaze" BS250GY-31 (DB-07K-250) GONE 2017 Suzuki V Strom 650 XT "We are all born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid." ~Benjamin Franklin~
	1

07-07-2017, 10:09 PM	#4
Bogmeister Join Date: Jul 2017 Posts: 11	Hi. It's good to see another newbie here.
	2

07-08-2017, 10:31 AM	#5
pedlerr Join Date: Jul 2017 Posts: 5	great info guys, thanks Looks like ill be getting it Monday with some luck ill be ready to ride to work Tuesday! (4 mile commute)
	0

07-11-2017, 10:04 PM	#8
pedlerr Join Date: Jul 2017 Posts: 5	thanks for the post guys the bike has been delayed twice now pretty ironic i live 40 mins from TXpowersports but UPS has taken 3 days plus to deliver... maybe tomorrow
	0