Tech Torque: Common mistakes and how to avoid them
Quite often when doing routine maintenance mistakes are made which can lead to unnecessary breakdowns. Here are a few simple steps to avoid them happening…
Lambretta guru, Stu Owen, shows us some of the more common maintenance mistakes, and tells us how we can avoid them like the plague.
As spring approaches and the rally season gets under way it’s time to bring your Lambretta out of winter hibernation. Even if you have left it in warm dry conditions there is every chance some minor maintenance will be required. Sometimes the eagerness to get back out on the road can lead to getting sidetracked while carrying out those procedures, leading to a breakdown later on. Here are a few simple steps and reminders to make sure that this doesn’t happen.
Front brake and speedometer cable
Quite often it will be necessary to remove the front wheel. Whether it’s for a tyre change or servicing of the brake, this will involve removing both the front brake and speedometer cable. Once the maintenance has been carried out both cables will need to be put back into their respective clips on the forks. While it is easy to remember the clip on the fork link pivot bolt, quite often the one at the top of the fork stem is forgotten – most probably because it is out of sight. More often than not it is the brake cable that is not put back in place as this is the most likely one to be removed during servicing.
If the cables are not put back inside the wire clip then they will run very close to the front tyre. This can cause wear on the tyre surface which is dangerous. A much worse scenario is the possibility of a cable catching the tyre, resulting in it wrapping around the wheel. If it does then the brake