Hawk 250 Resource and Information guide.

[Megadan]

Congratulations, you bought a new Hawk or are maybe considering buying a Hawk 250 or other similar brands of bikes. Maybe you already own one and now want to do some upgrades.

This is intended to be a FAQ and resource guide for new owners in setting up their bikes, known issues, and modifications or upgrades. Please refrain from posting questions on this thread, and instead make your own thread in the forum. I want to keep this as clutter free as possible.

If you have a write up or a thread with useful information, custom modifications, or simply see something you feel deserves to be here please PM it to me and I will add it here when I have a chance. This includes any topics currently listed or otherwise.

So lets cover the basics of your brand new bike. You just got it in the mail and you can't wait to get riding! Before you charge off into the great wilderness, here is a list of a few things you NEED to do.

1. Loctite! During assembly, take your time to put blue/medium strength loctite on every fastener. I recommend 243 since it has a higher temp rating, but even 242 will work. Leave no bolt or screw un-touched. It may add time now, but it will save time later.

2. Get Greasy! Put grease on both front and rear axles for the wheels. Also make sure to remove and grease the main bolt and bushings of the rear swing arm. This will prevent premature failure of the rubber bushings in the swing arm. It is also a good idea to clean out and grease the head stock bearings while first assembling your bike. A high quality waterproof/marine grease is fine for all of these parts.

A suggested and relatively easy upgrade for easy greasing of the steering stem bearings and swing arm bushings is to drill, tap, and fit a grease zerk to both. Some information and photos can be found here: http://chinariders.net/showthread.ph...highlight=zerk

3. Oil Change the oil before ever starting it, take your pick, but a large majority of us run Rotella T4 15w-40 with great luck. As long as it is JASO MA (wet clutch rated) then it will be fine.

4.Valves. Set your valve lash now, and then check it regularly. During break in the valve lash will change as parts stretch, shrink, etc. A large majority of starting and running problems are a direct result of poor valve lash.


5. Carburetor. You will have undoubtedly, even hopefully, found endless posts and videos on this subject, but lets cover the basics.
Unless you live above 4000ft in altitude, you will need to tune your carburetor. There are two ways to go about this.
a. Tune the stock carb.
b. Switch to the Mikuni.
There is no performance advantage with the Mikuni carb that many of us run. It is essentially the same exact carburetor, but it takes Mikuni jets. It's main advantage is that you can change the pilot jet out and the needle comes with 5 notches for adjusting, thus giving you full tunability. The stock carb pilot jet is unique and cannot be changed and the stock needle has no adjustment (but can be shimmed).

6. Chain The stock chain may not be the greatest quality, but during assembly you can remove it and either soak it in a heavy gear oil or give it a parafin wax bath. This method will greatly increase the life of the stock chain. If you lubricate the chain or not be sure to adjust the tension This applies to ALL makes of bikes that come crated, and they often get shipped very tight. Failure to do so can result in potential damage to the engine case halves.

7. Other Fluids. Fork oil and brake fluid. Some may argue the necessity of this, but it is so cheap and easy to do that there is no reason not to.
As far as brake fluid, buy a good DOT3 or 4 equivalent, I run synthetic Valvoline in mine, available at any parts store or WalMart. I buy a big bottle, and completely flush the system to ensure the entire system has good quality fluid in it.
As far as fork oil goes, the weight of the oil will come down to preference. I always recommend starting at 15W, and then you can change the weight of the oil as needed to tailor the dampening to your liking.
This is a post of mine describing a basic Fork oil change: http://chinariders.net/showpost.php?...17&postcount=3

8. Lubricate the cables. This is an often overlooked maintenance step that I suggest doing during initial assembly. There are many different lubricants on the market, so take your pick. My personal favorite is PJ1 cable lube https://www.amazon.com/PJ1-1-12-Cabl...pj1+cable+lube

I try to avoid "multi purpose" lube sprays for cables, as they tend to contain heavier greases and waxes that will trap dirt in the cables and cause them to get stiff and bind up. The PJ1 lube not only makes for very smooth cable action, but it also does a great job of cleaning out the sheath of gunk and junk.

9. Adjust the clutch. This guide for the TT250 includes the steps for proper clutch adjustment and also works for the Hawk 250. It is a good idea to go ahead and do this during assembly.
https://cscmotorcycles.com/tt250-clu...on-adjustment/

10. Spokes! One common truth among many Chinese bikes, but Hawks in particular, is the wheel spokes tend to come in a variety of tensions. It is worth taking the time to check both the front and rear wheel for trueness, and then tightening the spokes. Then make it a regular habit to check and adjust the spokes on a regular basis. If you ride in rough conditions it is a good idea to do it more frequently, and if you mostly ride on the road with less aggressive tires I would suggest at least as a part of your oil change interval.