Moto-Brian

Monday was COOOOLD. But, it wasn't bad. You had to watch the corners a tad in the keyhole exit, turn 8 and 14. But, everything was good. Until I got some stomach flu that put me down after lunch. I got two sessions Monday and went to bed and felt like throwing up all night. Tuesday wasn't any better with a knot in my stomach, but I wanted to ride the bike and sort it out. Got 3 more sessions Tuesday and got some good notes. Just wish I was in better condition to focus more... But, Tuesday after lunch was awesome!

In on Monday. Will be helping out and trying to learn the new toy...

The 10mm is compressed amount on an unloaded spring. Even if the bike is off the ground completely and sacked out, there is still compression on the spring. When the spring is on your table before installing in the shock or fork, it has a set length. Once installed, you have to turn the nut or compress the spring when installing in the forks. Some guys tune with spacers also. GSXRs, for example. We had several length spacer tubes that allowed us different characteristics for whatever track we were at. Different lengths afforded different amounts of preload to be used and finer tuning... On the rear of the bike, the nut does it all. But, ride height and chassis geometry comes heavily into play as well. The Pani is VERY sensitive to ride height. VERY... GSXR is also, but when you set it, it typically isn't changed much after. Also, rider input and riding style come into play as well... No two racers have the exact same setup, but using another rider's notes can allow you to have a starting point and tune from there. So, at the end of the day, what I am saying I suppose is that it all connects and not near as simple as setting sag and being done. It is something that can be overwhelming to a degree and even to the point that I get confused...

You have to remove the rear spring or unspin the preload nut to the point the spring has zero compression on it. from fully unloaded, measure the length. once you have the length, turn the preload nut down on to the spring until you have about 10mm compressed. That's the starting point. Same with the front forks. Issue there is that unless you've had them completely out, you won't know what the length is. If you've never had them apart, you will be somewhat in the dark. The internals can have the springs compressed at assembly and it isn't as simple as fully out on preload and then turning in ten turns equals 10mm... In that case, I would get with Matt Carr at Ducati Indy and ask him if the forks on your Monster have a stop similar to the other Ducatis and what the distance for STREET use or TRACK use should be from bottom of the tube to the zip tye. Like I mentioned, I shoot for 31mm from bottom to zip tye in terms of after a ride and looking for travel of the fork. In other words, we don't set sag and look more at what the total travel is. In the case of what I am using as an example, 31mm is about 6mm from full bottomed out. But, here's the rub... If you set sag for say, 30mm, you may be too far from full travel or opposite and too much full travel. At that stage, you then need to add or remove preload and that will change your sag numbers. Again, the idea here is that the suspension needs to be used in totality and not by just sag. Sag is a great place to start, but the issue is that it can be different when you tune for travel. If that all makes sense... Like I said, we are getting away from sag numbers as of late...

Also, for example with the Pani and sure the other Ducs are similar, you have about 25mm of stoppage that is due to a bump stop of sorts at the bottom of the fork. So, even though you see the fork slider run to the fork base, the fork will not travel that full amount. For example, the Pani will be bottomed out and show 25mm of distance from the zip tye to the fork bottom. However, the suzuki would go all the way down to the fork bottom. For the Pani, we are looking for 30-31mm range or 6-7mm of left over travel. The suzuki would be about 1/4" from full bottoming out from zip tye to fork bottom... So, take that into consideration when I am seeing 60 plus mm... Also, if you have progressive springs in the forks, you are not getting proper sag measurements...

actually it is from topped out to with rider. Rider gets off and lift the bike to unload everything and measure to zip tye... 30-35mm is general and very much middle of the road. Personally, we are getting less and less about sag and more about setting the 10mm spring compressed from fully unloaded and dialing the suspension in per track and to the rider's feel...

Yes, good idea to change the fork seals also if that old... My opinion since you will have them apart... If you are doing track days now, my suggestion would to be get the tools from a place like Traxxion where they are very inexpensive and for the low amount of use you will be using them, they will hold up just fine. http://www.traxxion.com/ForkServiceToolKit.aspx

Dude, you hustled that entire race. I remember looking back at Peters and seeing you back there and I was so burned out at that stage. You reeled us in and honestly, another lap, probably would have taken Peters and possibly me by the carousel. Great riding man. Clean and exact. I do gotta say that while a liter bike doesn't net fast lap times at Nelson, it is pretty cool to watch us just jet away from you on the exit of the carousel and front straight... But, they wear you the hell out!!! You done good, man. Thanks for posting the vid.

Oh, I thought you'd spoon on the slicks for the track day. I wasn't thinking to have you buy them for street use. I do have a brand new set of Pirelli Super Corse in the 200 rear and 120 front for 1000s...

Showroom fresh. Well, his seat probably smells like Vag due to his riding ability, but some top shelf vinyl cleaner will rid it of that. In all seriousness, probably the best colorway and well maintained and babied.

I have a set or three of Dunlop Ntec slicks that will work on your 1000... I also have a brand new Dunlop US front slick that I will sell for less than what you'd get direct. Let me know and I can provide prices. You really need to be replacing tires if you have any thought they may be too worn...

Monday only. Unless the weather's better on tuesday!

Well, it looks faster than I can run it, but looks amazing. Paint done by Stalemate here on the forum - he's out of teh mansfield/Lexington, OH area near Mid-Ohio. You need to get something painted, he's your guy. Decals were done by Scott at SR Sign Design in PA. He is awesome and has NEVER done a Pani yet. So, he was doing a lot off the cuff and working with me a ton. EASILY obtainable on the phone and email. ALWAYS calls back and responds in a timely manner. This is important to me as I want it done and not have to wait 6 months... http://www.srsigndesign.com/ So, here it is:

Marty- You get any pics this weekend? I know I was slower than usual so, it should have been easy to catch!

My weekend was a cluster fuck. Had issues again at the start of Saturday and a fire on the bike. Yes, fire... Wasn't bad and with the help of Hancock, we got it fixed and got to run 2-1/2 sessions Saturday. WAAAAAAAY off pace. Close to what I was getting with the struggling and lower powered RC8. The 1199 is a rocket, but the rider was the issue both days in terms of pace. Sunday was better, but with only about 40 minutes with the bike on Saturday, I didn't have but maybe 45 minutes with it Sunday in practice and then off to the races. Shit times, out of shape and basically being a pussy didn't help. The first race, I didn't even see the flag, but saw Peters and Neyra take off. I got a terrible launch. Second race, I got up to second into one behind Justin and the third race got me the holeshot from the second row. So, figuring out the launch process with the bike. Just need to sort chassis and brain and we might have a chance...

It's not beat up, but keep this in mind. Someone looks at this thing and has to take your word for it on the miles since it never had gauges. They then look at what the cost of fairings are going to cost. Finally, while it does have some cool changes from other Suzuki machines, it is a possible indicator that it has been crashed and possibly has chassis issues. If you warranty against the frame being twisted or tweaked and can get a set of gauges that has at least closer miles to what you believe, it makes it a $3k maybe bike. The way it sits, $1500-$2k is really a fair price. I stated steep because you were not accepting of $1500 which had me thinking you thought $4k was fair. That would be "steep" in my opinion. That all being said, I like it. A lot. I am very interested as I have a design for a cafe racer for the bike and am looking into the things that will cause issue from a buddy in Chicago that does these types of things. I just am not interested if you think $1500-$2k is lowball. I respect what you want out of it, but just trying to paint a picture of what potential buyers are going to think...

Yes, the Diavel does not handle like a sportbike. HOWEVER, anyone that says it handles like any other cruiser isn't that informed on how bikes handle. I can promise you that the Diavel can outhandle any cruiser out there. Maybe an XR1200 might give it fits to a degree, but I would still pick a Diavel to race on a track than an XR... Yes, they are that good. The trail numbers are such to provide a slight bit of cruiser feel, but the bike handles rather well. The feeling in the bars and body position are what makes you feel somewhat disconnected to the road when it gets spirited. A test ride isn't going to give you the feel I am describing. Reason being is that a test ride is going to be after the ride to the dealership on your sportbike and that feeling you just had will be compared to the Diavel. The chassis is awesome and designed to handle. Even with the cruiser rear tire width. The bike is no joke and makes a VMax and Vrod feel like tanks and feel like they steer like dump trucks... I sorta have a lot of miles on one...

Doug's story is inspirational to say the least and those of you that know the story understand what I mean... TP is an awesome kid. I can attest that everything you see on TV and videos is how he really is. He is a competitor and hates to lose anything, but is as nice as anyone you have ever met. Kids look up to him and are drawn to him and he knows that and makes time for them all. Both are awesome symbols of our sport of motorcycling...

How's that workin for Suzuki and Kawasaki? Oh, wait... They aren't involved anymore... Unless a Honda and Yamaha (which by the way, have put all resources into MotoGP vs other series...) in MotoGP, you aren't doing anything... At least Ducati is still involved and while I think we pulled too many resources from WSBK to MotoGP, we are at least very involved in both top level forms of motorcycle racing in the world. Plus, there isn't any of the other manufacturers that have the winning records Ducati has in WSBK... If you think Ducati is less about performance these days, you have forgotten a lot of history.

How do you know the exact miles if you did not have gauges? This is a great thought for a build and looks very clean. My fear is that the cost vs the amount of work is too much. I will think it over as I have some ideas on a street bike and have a friend that is also interested. The price is a bit steep, however...

OK... First, no dry clutches anymore. Second, maintenance is over 15k miles. I can promise you that the old Kaw you own is well below that service interval. Outside poor education as to what you are looking for, some food for thought. One, your size... You are not going to find the Aprilia and even ZX10 to suit you if you feel you are too big for a 600... These bikes every year get smaller and lighter and the Aprilia and Ducati 1199 for example in Euro speak are very small and tiny. Smaller feel than even an R6 which is tiny. The best choice for you on Euro terms if a sportbike is probably the RC8 as several tall and bigger guys always commented how well they fit on the bike when we did demos. Second, drag racing... Any of these liter bikes are going to need severe lowering and help in the keeping the front wheel down, department. Also, they are strong and will hold up, but a ZX14, Busa, etc are more accommodating to being punished and then street ridden. Ask on here as to who has the best drag stuff and you will find very few with ZX10s and Aprilias. It was mentioned and honestly, as far as cruisers go, the Diavel is the strongest power to weight cruiser out there. We also have drag racing series down in the south central part of the US and they run like stink. Third, Ducati... I'm biased of course. But, this whole BS of egos and douchyness is silly. I'm a Ducati owner and I can promise you that the guys I know that own Ducati are more enthusiast than most anyone else I know. Are there assholes out there that own Ducatis and have egos? Hell yeah. But, the reality is that while they do cost more on average (Not that much more these days due to the dollar/yen value and increased Japanese production costs), most are buying something with a racing heritage. The company is associated with racing more than any other brand. Not like Harley where they promote an image. Ducati promotes performance... Again, I don't mean to insult, but the bikes you have as a target to buy are not really well suited to your needs. Several examples or suggestions have been made that make better choices than the Aprilia and modern liter bikes like the ZX10. Although, the R1 has the largest ergos of them all and would make a good choice also... And to make it clear... Dry clutches and service intervals are a thing of the past in the current line of Ducatis...

I'm in. The bike is seemingly cured of electrical gremlins. We are set to be there Saturday to learn the bike and find a setup in a short day.

$4k budget for racing? I just spit out my water!!! Guys, do not get any false ideas (Hate to be a Debbie Downer) you can race on $4k... Here's a break down that doesn't even cover everything: -License $120 -Trackday and two sprints - $250 (I think I added that right) -Gas (Pump gas - 10 gallons to cover both days $3.85/gl) $38.50 -Tires (I am using a VERY low number as some guys run a new set and then the take offs the following weekend, etc or SVs vs 1000s, etc...) $300 -Food $20 -Water $5 -Gate fee $10 -Fuel and maintenance for the car/truck $60 On a bare bones operation and you living close to the track and camping at the track, you will have about $800-$1k a race weekend. EASY. THIS IS IF YOU RUN NELSON. Add Hotel for some of us for Nelson, extra fuel for some of us, extra maintenance for some of us, extra food since we may eat out or similar, etc... You add in the Putnam rounds and you have a high fuel bill, higher maintenance on your truck/car and more food. You won't be able to do this series if doing both days under $8-$10k a year. No way. And even at that, the little costs add up and will surprise you. My tire bill alone is over $5k!!

How many miles on this thing?