Well.... I got on the scoot xmas day and barely got 500 feet when that dreaded "oh no! whats goin on here?" reared its ugly head. Pulled over and a quick eyball check of the rear tire....""Yeppers, them's a belt I be a seein pokin thru!" So I figured why not replace them both. Got 7500 miles out of the Maxxis factory issued pair so I am happy with that. But second set of tires I am going with are Metzelers FeelFree from Dennis Kirk, both tires shipped to my door for about 150 USD.
Now for all of you who bought the DT 300i service manual online, are you like me and wondering "why do they only give us steps 1,3,5,7...etc etc?" Seems like they leave out steps 2,4,6.8.....etc etc. But for the price, I have found the online manual to be a major help and after I do each procedure for the first time I realize why they are not more detailed about their manual. Once you do anything on your bike, it will always be a piece of cake from that time on, providing your memory doesnt fail you, and at my age thats a likely possibility. The manual leaves out quite a few steps but if you accept that going in, you will game plan your repair and you will learn.
Now on to the tires. I wont go into the front tire removal because its simple and straight forward, nothing to "figure out". As for the rear......
To start off with, remove the seat and tub (do this for any repair regardless whether or not the "manual" suggests it, except the front end. It just makes everything easier). DONT FORGET the lil pop out rivet holding the seat underneath. Just press the center of the rivet in with a screwdriver until you hear it "pop", then with your fingernails pull it out. Once seat and tub are removed find the O2 sensor and remove it from the muffler. Then remove rear fender well. Trust me, you'll be glad you did. Then remove the shock. Manual says unhook it from the fork only but unless you remove it completely, you'll never get the wheel off the spindle. It takes a 14mm. Once again having the tub out of the way is a godsend. Now remove exhaust system, two long nuts hold it at the block and three bolts secure it to the fork/frame. Dont lose the exhaust gasket that is located between block and pipe. Manual says replace but its made of metal and unless its deformed or broken, you can re-use the gasket. Then remove 2 screws holding brake line to fork. Remove bolts holding brake caliper in place and remove from brake hub. loosen the 2 front bolts of the fork. If you have an impact, here's where you'll need it, if not, get a 1x1x12'' piece of wood and put it between fork and rear wheel spoke and use as a stop to break the 24mm nut loose from the spindle. Give the breakover bar a good whack with a dead blow to break it loose. Now remove the front 2 bolts and then the nut from the back and pull off fork. There is a collar that is located on the spindle. Make note of direction though I seriously doubt the install would be possibe if it were installed backwards. Now pull off wheel, being very careful not to damage spline of spindle. Just for safety sake, before taking wheel in for tire replacement, remove brake disc plate. You never know what kind of person will be working on your wheel so better to not have it there. Naturally install is the exact reverse of removal. It seems like a lot of work but it took me less than 5 hours from start to getting tire installed on wheel to putting it all back together. I expect it will go faster the next time. I will report back about the tires in a few weeks to a month. Also installed a new plug and though I only tested it for about an hour today I could tell the difference right off the bat. Some say a plug change is useless...I say otherwise.
