Moto-Brian

We "encourage" "I" riders to safety wire... It only makes sense anyways being on the track and all, but yes, it isn't "required". Yet...

Another note to Pony. You can't beat their price and even if you buy cheaper on line, a dealer is going to charge you to mount and balance so, it will equal out most likely. As a matter of fact, it will probably be cheaper to get it all done at Pony...

I'll do $5800 with the stock crushed tank on it, OEM rotors front and rear, Stock fairing stay, Goodridge brake lines instead of Speiglers, Stock CR9ES plugs instead of the $25 each surface gap plugs, No quick shifter and no spares... BUT... if you have $5700, it's gotta be easy to get another $1800 and get all this... Trust me, it won't disappoint. Well, unless you're Drew...

Dude, you still want these pads and tires?

600s and 750s weigh the same. The new rules rejuvenate the 750 class. Be MUCH easier on a privateer to run a GSXR750 with a mild tune to get 140 than a full blown SB 600... Anyways, I did what I said not to - derail the thread... I'm an IDIOT!

Ok, many guys have different ways of measuring sag. This is how we do it. They way we do it is going to measure overall sag... Rider sag is anywhere between 25mm and 45mm. That's pretty big in terms of a guideline, but each rider is different and what and where you ride will dictate what numbers you will use. For this exercise, I like between 30-35mm up front and 32-37mm in the rear... This is more track prep than street prep and you'd want a little more for street use considering the duties a street bike performs... Tools you need: -17mm T handle or a socket with a longer extension to adjust spring tension. Your bike may be different, but most are 17mm... -Zip tye for the front fork. This helps with measuring accurately. -Rear fork tool. Most street machines require what they call a spanner wrench. The Penske we have and use is a round stock bar with a slight bend in it. -Tape that reads in MM as it is referred to use MM vs. inches, etc... -Two buddies and yourself as the rider. Front sag: First, you need to wrap a zip tye on the front fork. Make it tight. Don't worry, it'll move under load and won't bind your fork. Trust me. Too loose and you get poor readings as to where the exact place of travel is... Once you have the zip tye on, get your two buddies. Role for each person: Person (A): Rider. The one who will sit on the bike Person (B): One who measures the distance. Get someone who can read the tape measure accurately. Person ©: Just helps to hold the bike... Now, before you measure, the Rider needs to have all their gear on for an accurate reading. I also prefer the bike to have been ridden at least one session to get the fork and shock fluid moving and warmed up a tad. Helps getting a better and more accurate reading. If it is cold, the oil is cold and doesn't allow the suspension to move as free... So, once geared up, the Rider and Person C each take a bar and lift the front of the bike until the wheel is completely off the ground. Person B will then take the zip tye and push it to meet with the dust seal. Most bikes have upside down forks, but if you have traditional forks, you do the same thing - push it to meet the dust seal. See figure A.... Figure A: Push zip tye to dust seal with wheel off the ground and suspension unloaded: Now, GEBTLY rest the bike down onto the ground and straight up and down. The Rider will hand the bike to Person C and Person C will hold the bike by the upper fairing stay while straddling the front wheel. Person C CANNOT hold the wheel with their legs or knees. They must also not push down on the upper or allow the suspension to be restricted. Person C's job is to simply hold the bike straight up and down while the Rider climbs on. The rider needs to get on smoothly and not bounce the suspension when they climb on. Rider then needs to get into the tucked position as if they were ripping down a back straight away... Once the Rider has been into position (only takes a few seconds), they then must GENTLY climb off the bike taking great care to not push down or bounce the forks or front end. Rider and Person C will each again take a bar and lift the bike so the front wheel is off the ground. While off the ground, Person B will measure from the dust seal to the edge of the zip tye that was up against that dust seal. The number you read is the sag. In this case, it is a hair over 35mm. See Figure B... Figure B: Measure the distance while the front wheel is off the ground from the dust seal to the edge of the zip tye. This is your sag reading... Again, I prefer 32-35mm so, we're pretty close here. To get closer to 32mm, I would need to get that 17MM T Handle and turn in the front pre-load adjusters. Turning in or clockwise stiffens the front up and will reduce the sag number. Loosening or turning counter clock wise will soften the front and increase the sag number... The final stage on the front is to note your zip tye position. The zip tye shows the amount of total travel when you come off the track. I prefer about 1/4" left from the zip tye to 100% bottomed out. That allows for a bit more room should need be and it also shows I have the forks working at almost their entire range of motion. Rebound and compression help in these overall, but that again is rider preference and a whole other thread... Rear sag measurement: Rear sag is also done via completely unloading the rear shock and measuring. So, there are a few things you need: -Spanner wrench or shock tool to add or subtract spring tension via the spring adjustment collar on the shock. Some are like the Penske and smooth with small holes for a special tool while others 9most common) are with what appears to be teeth and are a threaded collar requiring some type of spanner wrench to adjust. -Two buddies like needed for the front. -Measuring tape that reads in MM. -Blue tape or masking tape and a pen... Ok, if you did the front, the rear is pretty much the same. The following people have key roles: Person (A): Rider. The one who will sit on the bike Person (B): One who measures the distance. Get someone who can read the tape measure accurately. Person ©: Just helps to hold the bike... Again I prefer 32-37MM sag in the rear depending on the track, etc. This is going to be different for each rider and each application.... So, to begin, Person C needs to find a solid point on the subframe to measure from and a spot on the swingarm to measure to for total distance. Some people use the rear axle hole which works, but on my bike, that means pulling from the tail section which is NOT secure as the subframe itself. You want to pull from a secure and solid spot that will not move under the weight of the rider or could be moved if any pressure placed on it like a tail section could be... Also, try and make your measurement as straight a line as possible. Reason being is that it will help to tell proper sag as opposed to a steep angle say from the passenger pegs to the rear axle hole... In Figure C, I show where we pull and measure to on my bike. Note in Figure C that I use painter's tape to make a mark where I place the measuring tape against to have an accurate reading every time I measure... Consistency... Figure C: Shows as straight a line as I can get and pulling from the subframe which is MUCH more solid than from my tail section. The painter's tape allows me to mark a line that allows me to hit the same spot each and every time for more accurate readings... So, to measure this sag from the rear, Rider and Person C need to lift the bike so the rear is completely off the ground. If you have a kick stand, it is strong enough to lift up and support the weight on it. However, it makes it tough to get a reading as you have to work on the exhaust side. In my case, no kick stand so, Rider and Person C grab hold of the foot pegs or subframe and lift the rear off the ground. I get a total reading from my measuring points as seen in Figure C and write the total number down. Then, each person rests the bike back on the ground. Person C then goes back to the front of the bike and JUST LIKE they did for measuring the front sag, they hold the bike via the upper fairing with care to not restrict the forks, etc. Rider then gently gets onto the bike and gets into the tucked position. As before, they should have their gear on to get a more accurate reading... I usually have the Rider do a gentle bounce while sitting to make sure the suspension is set. While the Rider is on the bike, I then take my tape measure and place it on the same points as seen in Figure C. I then write down the number. That number should be close to 35mm when you tally the difference. For example, if the original number was 205MM when fully unloaded and rear wheel off the ground, the measured number with the Rider on board should be 170MM. Figure D shows the example. The picture was taken w/o a rider so, it is totally an example... Figure D: Shows how the tape measure is placed next to my mark and shows how I read the number. The number shown should be 35MM less than the number read at full extension of the shock while unloaded. Now, if you need to get MORE sag, you need to turn the threaded coupler clockwise. From the sprocket side of the bike, you would turn the coupler to the left... If you need LESS sag, you would turn the coupler counter clock wise or to the right from the same side... Hope that helps a few out there. Sag is VERY important to the performance of your machine. Especially you track day riders. Too often, most never check and they struggle with their bikes when if they would take about 15 minutes, they could easily enjoy it more and get more out of their machine... Good luck!!

Had a bunch of guys asking me at the last couple of track days as folks have been telling others to check my bike out. Well, I'm pretty serious in selling it now so, here's the FINAL listing and the EXACT and COMPLETE spares list that will come with the bike. Don't ask to buy parts, please. I'll sell ANY spare part for $7500 OBO... -2005 GSXR750 with an Indiana Salvage Title. -Frame is 100% straight and all other items that are key on the machine such as subframe, wheels, forks, etc. -Motor is a Superstock build done by Reuben Frankenfield. Reuben is in Indianapolis and is easily obtainable for any motor work or refreshes. -Motor was dyno'd on pump gas and had 138 plus rear wheel. Has been mapped for U4, but is usually ran on Pump 93 octane. -Bike has a full season on the motor, but is still strong and shows good compression. Easily can be ran for track days with reliability for many more to come. Refresh usually entails valve springs and cleaning of the cylinder head. Nothing major... -Bike had fresh tranny put in due to loss of 6th gear and a bent shifter fork. The tranny in the bike was actually the original tranny. All parts were new and OEM. Complete excluding shafts as they were in great shape. Bike has the following on it: -Penske Triple Clicker rear -GP Suspension's 25mm internal cartridge (billet) kit. -DynoJet PCIII USB Race -DynoJet Quick Shifter (GP Pattern) -Vortex fairing stay -Woodcraft clip-ons -Woodcraft rear sets with replaceable shifter and brake arms -Speigler front brake lines -Toby sprint damper -Woodcraft engine case covers -BMC air filter -PAIR valve mod -Sharkskin race plastic with tail that incorporates the stock seat -Braking Wave front rotors -Punched out, lightened rear rotor -Carbon Loraine Race pads -Michelin Pilot Race with PRC front Spares: -Complete Subframe -Left and right inlet air ducts with screens -Stock OEM damper -Goodridge SS brake lines -Stock OEM front calipers -Woodcraft billet replacement shift arm -Woodcraft billet replacement brake arm -Clutch perch -Front Brake Master Cylinder -Remote reservoir (new OEM) -Spare Vortex clip-on bars -Used Vortex clip-on bars -(3) Brake levers (OEM) -(3) Clutch levers (OEM) -Cam chain tensioner (new OEM) -Footpegs Woodcraft and Vortex -Rear set plates Woodcraft -Rear set plates Vortex -(2) Shift rods -Radiator hoses (OEM) -Exhaust bracket -Ti Force mid pipe (Titanium) -Arrow Shorty Race canister -Gauge Face (new OEM) -Side cover gaskets (new OEM) -(2) Fuel pumps -Tank side covers -Cush drive rubbers -Crashed (dented) OEM tank. -Spare set of COMPLETE rims front and rear. Have OEM rotors front and rear and complete cush drive assembly. I think that's it. Again, was looking at $7500. With the spares, I think that's fair and the fact that the motor has over $2k in parts and labor. Let's try and keep this a For Sale thread and no conversations... We can start a new thread for that...

Guys, it was 2 hours before the event. Might have been covered in a bit of pre-coverage, but overall, you weren't going to see it on live TV... Speed Report might have covered it - I didn't watch. On every News outlet governing road racing (RRW and SUperbikeplanet) they talked about it. There's a transcript over at Superbikeplanet that has Q&As with Nicky...

It is slated to be about 2 hours before the Indy 500. He gets to do a couple of laps = 1 behind the pace car and he waves and the second a chance to open it up a tad. Not a "hot" lap in GP terms, but enough to let the crowd hear the bike and be jazzed to come back for the GP race...

www.briarcliffmx.com I think Quick Sand is goner. It hasn't been talked about for a couple of years. Place was a shit hole. Had fenders and such buried!! Not safe and the layout was boring...

I'm not really interested in an 06, but if the price is right, I may be interested for a build and sell...

You guys owe it to yourselves to check out Briar Cliff. Just east of CBus outside Newark. Best MX track around. New Vienna is a pile compared to Briar... Plus, it has three track set-ups and is watered regularly and groomed constantly...

What year? If it is an 08, I'm interested if the insurance buy back is reasonable... Have him ask - he has first right of refusal... I'll pay him extra (he'll make money on top of what they will give him for it)... It honestly doesn't look that bad... Oh, and the tires look fine...

VERY well said. There isn't a SINGLE person on this board that hasn't been driving and made a mistake. We've all been talking on the cell and not paid as much attention to the traffic - nothing happened, but could have... We've been driving and zoned out for a minute and pulled out in front of someone because we didn't look well enough - nothing happened... We've been driving the same stretch of road we drive every day and the attention we lack could easily be a fatal error. Don't pass judgement on the van driver. Saying they killed someone is correct, but honestly, the way some of you say that, it sounds as if the kid driving is a murderer. Sure, you didn't say it specifically, but it is perceived that way. How many of us have pulled out and not looked well enough or thought we did and it ended up being "close", but it went ok...? It could have easily been a simple error that while tragic, was just that - a mistake. And to think that the kid who was driving has to live with that every day...

Thoughts out to the family and friends of this rider. One thing I must say, though. It is easy to get pissed and be upset. However, the minivan driver isn't a murderer. It was a lack of attention for sure, but how many of us have done the same thing? How many of us have ridden on occasion recklessly and gotten away with it? How many of us have done something rather stupid like drank too much and driven home and gotten away with it? How many of us have gone somewhat "postal" and had road rage get the better of us w/o concern to others around simply to prove a point? There's a lot to everything that happens in life. Calling the driver a murderer is a little uncalled for. They weren't out hunting for motorcyclists and trying to kill or hurt them. I know it sucks. Trust me, I drive 48K miles plus a year. I've had my share of stupid people who don't think or are so immersed in what they are doing, they aren't paying attention to their driving. Not taking the min van driver's side, but step back and as the one poster stated, it's a bitch to turn left at that intersection... Bikes are tough to see at times. We all know that. It's what we sign up for being an enthusiast... God Speed to the fallen rider...

I'll let you know. She touched base via PMs and I responded. As soon as I hear word, I'll let everyone know status...

SOLD!!! Lock her up!!

Get with me and I'll hook you up with my guy. He can install and set them up for you better than anyone around here....

Chris - Get to an STT event where we can sit down, go through your suspension notes, set the suspension and try things. Your bike is probably good, but your head is wrong. We need you to start having fun. Get with us at an event, pit with us and let's get you rolling. Realize that in life, w all can try things and do as much as we can. But, in the end, some of us aren't meant to be what we want to. Not saying you're not meant to be a racer... I am saying that you sometimes have to do it because you enjoy it. Once it becomes work, it isn't fun. I raced for 14 years. the first three were AWESOME! The rest was to a point where I competed and tried so damn hard to win and make money that I forgot the reason why I enjoyed it. I did well for myself and for our team. I got to see a lot of things, meet a lot of people, ride a shit pile of cool bikes, etc. BUT, even though I made some cash, had a few trophies and had some cool moments, I never enjoyed it as much as I did in the first three years. Now, with doing STT, I feel the way i did in those first three years. I have fun, I have a bunch of cool people I get to hang with, I get to help once in a while with others who try and learn to ride the track. Above all, I don't feel as if it is a job. I love it. Will i race again? Probably. I will do the one off events. Maybe an endurance race now and again, etc. But, no more full seasons. I'm not fast anymore (Never was) and I'll leave it to the young pups. Get with me and we'll try and get you laughing and having a good time. We'll get that 1000 working better, too.

Don't waste money on the forks. Buy an Insert Cartridge kit from Ohlins. They have 25mm kits that will net better results than the Street and Track forks they sell for $5k or around there... The rear? I'd say a TTX rear is a HUGE improvement over anything else out there stock. Don't overlook Penske, though. Killer shocks and easy to maintain as opposed to Ohlins where you need special tools and such. Overall, they will be heads and shoulders over the stock stuff. You could really do well even at the track with a ZX14 if you had those items. They simply allow the bike to work easier and better. Thus, making it easier to ride fast without as much effort on your part. Those changes would net you a pretty damn good handling machine...

You're using your rear brake WAY, WAYYYYY too much if it is warped. The front rotors are HUGE for a reason - primary stopping use. Get it replaced as a warped rotor - even if not used much - will cause the pads to be pushed back. In the case of an emergency and you actually need the rear, it will be a dead pedal due to the fact that they are pushed back and the pistons are recessed... Rear rotors are stupid cheap - check Ebay.

Will do! I'll take the camera tomorrow with me and get some pics soon!

No problem. Also do the front end, as well. Get a zip tie and wrap the fork tube. Get two buddies to help - you need them anyways for the back. Have them lift the bike off the groud and push the zip tie up to the dust seal. GENTLY let it down and get on the bike SLOWLY and get into your ride position while one buddy holds the front by the fairing stay straight up and down. Get off SLOWLY w/o pushing down on the front... Lift the bike off the ground and measure from the dust seal to the zip tie. Again, similar to the rear - around 30-35mm. Don't just do the rear - do both ends... I can maybe write a guide with a bike and pics. I'll shoot some tomorrow and Thursday when we're at the track...

25mm is stiff as shit. I run at the track between 30-35mm. Usually in the 32ish area... I'd say stick closer to 30mm. And to correct your guy, they don't set spring rates and such to 150 pound riders anymore. Most sportbikes come with 1.0 springs or .95... ZX14s may differ, but considering the weight of the bike, I doubt they have anything less than that in there... The tire PSI for the street seem fine. If they are feathering even after adjusting, you actually may have to put in more PSI. Can't imagine doing that, but more air equals lower temps and less air leads to higher temps... o, you may need to add a couple of PSI... I'd work the suspension first. But, DON'T go with 25mm sag...

Great wrench. Problem is on today's bike (sportbikes/sport tourers), it is damn near impossible to get a tool in there to adjust. Hell, even with race rear shocks and special tools, it is a bitch. I suspect the ZX14 isn't any different. Maybe I'm wrong as I haven't looked close. Maybe it is like the Honda and has access via the bottom of the shock. If so, this tool is great. If not? Hammer and screw driver...