Helmutt

I'd love to convert my CR250 into a CR500AF, ride it few times and then sell it before it kills me Thats a nice 500 for sale though!

I agree -- the 002R's are good for track use, but hardly any street life in them - the Q2's have a lot positive feedback for all around use too. I'm on Roadsmarts now, they're taking mild abuse fairly well - but I already know I wont get 2 seasons out of ANY tires unless the bike breaks down.....doh!!

She choked

^^^You're not kidding - brutal heat all day, by 10am I was feelin' it

Guys are prone to take off one front brake rotor / caliper assembly to save more weight.......these drag bikes are all about going, not stopping

Now this ^^^ is a completely different story - this Duc is truly built with a purpose and not just a show pony......I personally haven't seen a Duc like this before, and I'm assuming that reason is either Ducati's engine / chassis setup is hard to work with for milking more absolute power, or they're simply too expensive to get BMW type performance out of it on a dragstrip. Here's my (personal) concensus, if somebody wants to dump tons of cash into a showbike - then so be it......but they're just taking ALL that the bike was built for away from it by trying to make it "look" like it's a drag machine.......so to me, this is simply a huge moneypit that does NOTHING it was intended for as far as performance goes. If the owner digs it, that's fine - I'm just voicing my opinion on this type of custom sportbike, I'm not force feeding anyone here -- but I do concur with what you'd do to a Beemer, because it works great on the strip right out of the box so that makes sense to me.......just don't have it airbrushed and chrome it out before you launch it!!

That Duc is doing NOTHING functional other than burning fuel, eating the middle out of that rear tire, and maybe winning show trophies........But, I can completely understand slamming and stretching an S1000RR, it's been proven on the dragstrip since it's inception, and is actually a really good platform to build an 8 second bike out of.......but what you don't see is anyone running a "functioning" dragbike down the strip with 300mm's of back tire, it's just a futile attempt at looking mean without performing to that degree. How many Duc's have been dragraced religiously? Rare at best. I consider it like tubbing an 80's Chevette, just no rhyme or reason other than conforming to a showbike standard........afterall, this is NO daily rider for sale here.

Up to you and your wallets acommodations, if you plan to keep bike, the newer AGM batteries are good for cell life and save some weight too.......you'll get what you pay for there. If you plan to sell it or trade it this year or next, I'd go with the cheaper option. I've had good luck with BikeMaster brand and price is fairly comparable to WalMart.

Didnt get a drop after this mornings little shower - still on slow broil over here

I cringe at the sight of such wrecklessly abandoned purpose - I can understand to go where rarely anyone has gone before, but some custom sports make me sick - professionally done or not, how can one allow such a hack up of some of the best suspension/chassis engineering this planet can buy off the showroom floors? I'll never understand those that choose form over function when it comes to sportbikes, cruisers are another animal so go ruin one of those instead - they dont corner to begin with Like having a top-of-the-bloodline bull.......with a vasectomy

I really like the Bell Star series, especially now that I need a new lid -- I've dropped my KBC about 7 or 8 times and got a chunk of plywood to the faceshield on the highway........it's definitely getting beat to shit and I'd rather a new one before any possible "field testing" of this old one........good thread

Highways just make me want to blast past traffic at a steady 3-digit pace........I'm more into backroads for commuting, just more fun and typically the routes I take are less travelled -- rarely see a sheriff, but they do appear once in a while Plus it's hard to beat tree canopied backroads on hot summer days -- it's free a/c for bikers!!

yeah, it's a Honda........so the engine has to come out and be completely disassembled before any repairs are possible :D:D j/k Pitman arms are fairly easy but some do require the case cover to be removed - either way, may as well ready an oil change while you're at it??

Walmart battery's are great if you plan to sell the bike IMMEDIATELY

^^THIS!! Raider's are mean lookin' rides - saw a few at MidOhio this year, one of the few cruisers I'd consider owning

On an unrelated note - robsgsxr1000 has one killer avatar!! Look at that lean angle!!!

I can tell you that the fuel tanks don't hold much.......displacement vs. gallons, you'd probably be lucky to get 80 miles to a tank -- but guys aren't buying these to travel or get decent mileage........it just seems to me to be a little too much "form over function"