Australasian Dirt Bike — January 2018

THERE’SAPRICEto pay for

pitching your two-wheeled

pride and joy off mountains and

buryingitinswamps,andthat’s

thetimeyouspendbetween

ridesmakingsureit’sripeand

ready for your next off-road

torture session.

Joining the DSMRA crew on

theirannualCanberratoTumut

trailridewasthekindofouting

thatcantakeatollonbikeand

bodyalike,particularlythis

year when conditions were

cold,wetandextrasloppy.

Mudandslopisamortal

enemyofdirtbikes,soafterthe

Tumutjauntitwastimetogive

theRS500Raseriouscleanin

an effort to remove lumps of

the Brindabella Ranges from

theSWM’svitalorgans.

The Force Accessories

bashplateisamudtrap,of

course,butthat’sasmallprice

topayformaximumprotection

of the engine, sump and frame

rails.Thebashplatecanbe

removedeasilywithasingle

bolt,allowingthebuilt-upgunk

to be cleaned away.

TheblackPPAcoatingonthe

outsideofthebashplateisnow

littered with nicks and chips

aftermonthsofabuse,butthat

tellsmethebashplatehasbeen

doing its job.

The VPS Barkbusters copped

a workout on the ride, with

greasy logs putting me on the

deckahandfuloftimes.

Buttheycoppedthehitswith

ease,withnodamagetothe

grips or controls.

The right Barkbuster did get

pushed down, but after

looseningtheinnermountand

barendfitting,itcouldbe

movedbacktoitsrightfulplace.

Down at the rear wheel,

there’snowadingintherim

afterIbeltedarockhiddenin

thesloponafiretrail.Inever

evensawthelump,butIknew

allaboutitwhenthebackend

ofthebikesteppedoutandthe

seatslammedintomybutt.

Mud can hammer brake pads,

but the front and rear stoppers

stillhaveplentyofmeat.

The chain and sprockets also

look good, despite some

serious abuse.

Given the damp conditions,

dust was not an issue, so the

filterelementgotthroughthe

ride okay, but a swap out and

cleanisontheagenda.

Sotooisanengineoiland

filters change.

Allofwhichisbasically

routinemaintenance,whichis

justthewayyouwantitwhen

you’dwayprefertobeoutin

thebushroostingwithyour

matesthanwaitingforpartsor

workingonyourbike.

–Clubby

CLEANUPYOURACT

RSSURVIVESARUNINTHESLOP

1

2

3

REAR GUARD

HOW TO RIDE / ADBGARAGE / WE RECOMMEND / TECH / KIDZ KORNER / USED RIDE /

1. The bashplate has copped a pasting
   2. The rear rim has copped a dinging


2. The Barkbuster has copped a pushing

SWM RS500R

RRP:

$8990

WARRANTY:

Six months’ parts and labour

DISTRIBUTOR:

SWM Motorcycles Australia

INTERNET:

http://www.swmmotorcycles.com.au

SO FAR ...

HOURS:

60

MODS THIS MONTH:

Check over

MODS NEXT MONTH:

Oil and fi lters

SWM

RS500R

212 | DECEMBER 2017 http://www.adbmag.com.au