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ktk_ace

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Posts posted by ktk_ace

  1. Yamaha's (not a fan but hey, gotta give them pts for upping the ante) XSR 900 has alo of electronic and mechanical goodies too
    TCS (VERY BASIC , 2 modes plus off, ripped off the old r1 parts bin)
    ABS
    slipper+ASSIST clutch
    450 pounds fueled.

    ....under 10K USD

    I agree on RChase's points , 600cc's are not financially viable for all pts, power , r&d , sales , weight and etc etc

    PS. BMW is partnering with TVR india for the G310 series single cylinder bike.

  2. Aside from coolant level and engine modes as prescribed above , I'd flush the coolant and replace it with fresh premixed 30/70 coolant (ie collant is only 30% , 70% is water) if your area doesnt drop to freezing during winter.
    Shop had a 6r that has foamy coolant due to anti-foam additives being used up; it runs much cooler in traffic with fresh cololant.
    also, redline water wetter as an additive to the coolant for 3-7 deg f drop. (i beleive its 10ML per L of coolant)

  3. I heard IMU's are going at 100 USD a unit but ditto on how to connect to mostly analogue bikes...
    (the only thing digital on my bigger bike is the fueling, its a fuel injected bike, no electronic gizmos maybe ceopt for the LCD fuel gauge on the speedo , my smaller bike is carburated )
    any on the matter of data logging, if you guys are really into the kindergarden grade type (read, near ghetto) there is an app for that:
    Pirelli Diablo Superbiker
    Remember to set your bike tupe up and the software will do the rest for you :)

    PS. how do i attach images ? this forum really needs a better native image uploader imho - -

  4. So I've only taken CSS level I and II. I think knee to knee and hip flick must be a level III topic but I sure could use an understanding of how its done. I also feel I am putting way to much weight on my inside peg when cornering. I mean after I have positioned my body in preparation for the corner I still have an extreme amount of weight on the inside peg even at mid corner. Its not until I am picking up the bike on exit that I *think* I'm easing up the pressure. I did n't realize I was doing that until a few weeks ago.

     

    I met a few friends of mine who ride sport bikes and we spent the day riding on and around Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah area of Virginia. I ride a Yamaha FJR1300 which is a "Sporty" touring bike, but obviously no sport bike. Its pretty heavy (600+ lbs) and does not have the greatest amount of ground clearance. On the way up the mountain there are some nice twisties and our lead rider (on an S1000RR) picked up the pace to have some fun. Nothing too crazy, but brisk. I found that I needed to hang off a bit more than I would like to on a public road to keep up with him, mostly to keep from scraping the pegs (the road is crowned so lefts are off camber). Now scraping the pegs is not that big a deal. It happens occasionally on that bike and the pegs are the folding type. Its an indication to me that I've reached the maximum safe lean angle and I either need to hang off more to keep the bike more upright, slow down or both. I usually just slow down.

     

    Now this time though, with the brisk pace, I was already hanging off in an effort not to scrape. What surprised me was just how much weight I was putting through the inside peg when it finally did scrape. I had very little weight on the outside peg, in fact I could easily adjust my outside foot placement. I was trying my best to lock my knee in but the tank is slippery and does not have a grip pad. My inside peg was a different story all together. I was putting a lot of weight through the inside peg. After the ride my legs were sore and fatigued. Obviously I am doing something very wrong (asside from spirited riding on the road). I was trying to be smooth and lift my butt up using my legs to slide across the seat, but I was still using the bars to move around (wrong thing to do) on the bike. In fact it felt more like I was squatting on the pegs with my bum off the seat and then trying to move the bike underneath me when setting up for a corner. I guess I was quite surprised when I scraped a peg and found I was still doing the squat thing even while leaned over, just now all on the inside peg.

     

    So here is my question. How much weight would one expect to have on the pegs, inside peg in particular, during cornering? I'm thinking that if I was comfortably locked onto the tank with my outside knee, I would not be effectively standing on the inside peg trying to keep myself in position. I was thinking that I should be light on the pegs and the bars with my weight on the seat unless I was transitioning from side to side. Still when transitioning I should not be pulling myself across with the bars nor should I be trying to push the bike up with the bars.

     

    Maybe its just the ergos of my touring bike. Its not a sport bike so maybe the ergos are all wrong for the occasional hang off or maybe I need something to help grip the tank better. I thought I understood the knee to knee thing but I think I am obviously not doing it. Time to dig out my TOTW II book and re-read it. Funny thing is I don't recall this being an issue when I took CSS II this summer. Then again I just might not have noticed it.

     

    I got a sport touring bike a month ago (2006 Z750S) and IMHO you NEED tank pads and if your budget allows, redone seat covers with texturized rubber cloth for more friction to hold yourself into the bike properly when the pace gets fast.

    before I got those 2 (my seat is already customized thanks to the prevous owner)

    I was like accelerating from 15-50 MPH from 2nd gear and my butt is literally pressed against the back of the seat.

    Deceleration means Im ramming my family jewels against the fuel tank thanks to the bone stock wide and slippery tank !! (OUCH!! brings new meaning to blue balls and squished sausage lol)

    After I got the tank pads (DIY FTW) , had no problem keeping up with the litre bikes (in my bike friends group) on the mountain twisties~ when your lower body is stable , your upper body can relax much more and sensitivity goes up quite some notches.

     

     

     

  5. I just got some theory that I am going to try on my bigger 2nd hand bike soon:

    Rake / trail + body size in relation to aerodynamic steering

     

    IMHO

     

    Rake trail part:

    My Kawasaki bike came with a lowered triple clamp and hence the figures are more like 24 degrees of rake and less than 100mm of trail (stock is 24.5 / 105mm)

    I can easily oversteer the bike and I have to use the body to actually stabilize the bike into and out of corners .

    > that might explain the body steer as there is already too much oversteer present hence using the body to "steer" the bike becomes a " primary " way to steer.

    compared to the small bike have which has tonnes more rake (at least 25 degrees) , countersteering works better on that small bike as i need more effort to break the gyro forces for the bike to turn.

     

    The small bike is aready set up to be too oversteering on stock settings hence i set it up to slightly understeer at the front as the short wheelbase will make up for it once i commit to the corner after CS-ing

    Aerodynamic steer part:

    Im 175cm 75Kg with gear , anything higher than 60MPH and my helmet will try to rip my head off if i dont stay tucked in the bubble

    that brings to upright aero braking ; I can use my chest and arm area to effectifly act as a faux parachute to "pull" the bike's front up during heavy breaking (yes my conv forks rebound damping sucks , its a street bike tuned for comfort first)

     

    Arms are STILL limb and fingers on the front brake , I created the front "pulling" effect using tank pads and clamping on the gas tank.

    and also use the air resistance to help slow the bike down who knows how much ?

     

    hanging off also creates a faux stepping out effect on the rear wheel (i was hanging off at 40-50mph and the rear wheel ran over a leaf, instant slide for 0.5 of a second, good throttle control prevented a disaster!)

     

    As for hotfoot , she has much less area for aero braking / stabilization / aero "rear steer"

     

     

    Simon Crafar is a HUGE guy on a small bike relatively speaking
    -(he has to brake VERY VERY LATE compared to smaller riders to gain any sort to competetive advantage , more of a "block" rider)
    hence the "body" steer parts... imho its more like body aero assist to me and im trying to integrate it into my cornering skill toolbox

  6. You would be wise to consult with the local mountain carvers to see what type of bikes rock on the uphills and downhills... It could be 2 very differnt bikes.

    I had the opportunity to go mountain carving with a R1 and a GSX-R on my local mountain roads ;

    barring rider skill, the veteran who was on the GSX-0R 1000 in our group says he goes the fastest on a certain UPHILL stretch with a CB400 spec2 on 2 bike virtues:

    1) shorter wheelbase as there are ALOT of low to medium speed corners , less body positioning and countersteering needed . Less of the 10$ of attention needed.

    2) Higher torque range/plateau = much less gear shifts esp coming out of uphill corners; he can floor it coming out of corners and get ready for the next corner without a gear shift

    again , Less of the 10$ of attention needed.

    The S1000RR is built for racetracks with medium/high speed hence the low end torque would be relatively "weak" for a hill climbing task without some small hardware mods.

    The longer wheelbase and swingarm that is designed for high speed will also "get in the way" at places with alot of low to medium speed corners too in the form of much more effort in terms of body position and massively more lean angle on public roads ...

    You could drop a teeth on the front sproket or go up 2 teeth in the rear or so I've heard to squeeze more torque out .

  7. Nice writeup!

    Some links of mine:

    http://www.risingsuncycles.com/bikespecific/suspension.htm > HRC stuff!!

    http://www.gostar-racing.com/club/motorcycle_suspension_set-up.htm> not sure if its 100% correct in there

    and preload as a % of your total fork travel (I'll just keep it on the front side as the rear... too many varieties and I dont have the luxury of a bike with rear linkage suspension so to speak)

    "A general rule of thumb is that the front sag should be about 30-35% of travel, while the back should be at about 25%. That works out to be 30-40mm at the front and 25-35mm at the back, for most bikes."

    taken from here:

    http://www.promecha.com.au/sag_preload.htm

     

  8. I think the basic point he's trying to make with this article, and it actually kinda lines up with the curriculum at CSS, is that there's a place for using lots of "body English" and there's a place where it isn't really needed. If your only using 20-30 degrees of lean angle anything you might gain from massively hanging off the bike could be done much easier by simply using a few more degrees of lean angle. But if your using 40-50 degrees of lean and your dragging hard parts, the only way to go faster is to use more "body English". If your a beginner or new to the track, "getting off the bike" isn't the first thing you want to focus on, in much the same way CSS doesn't really work on it till level 3-4, there are lots of other fundamentals that you should focus on that will net you much more gain.

     

     

    Tyler

    X2

     

    I would also like to add that some bikes are naturally more biased towards CSS ciriculum , namely BMW and kawasaki bikes (stock ones that is) as their forward and aft balance are more 50:50 + longer wheelbase so to speak

     

    Do the midcorner "front part hangout" with a Suzuki and you risk oversteering and upsetting the rear. (Suzuki GSXRs are more 55:45 + a far shorter wheelbase in comparison in simple english )

     

    longer wheelbase = more stable

     

    shorter wheelbase = more nimble

     

     

    wheelbase lengths

     

    ZX10R 2015 1,425 mm

     

    GSXR 1000 2015 1,405 mm

     

    S1000RR 1432MM (i heard its even longer for the 2015 model)

     

    PS. WSBK would be much more relevant due to the virtue that all aids and modifications on paper should be avaliable to the public (but that is not always the case, eg custom frame rigidity)

  9. Watching them come down the long straight at Qatar, it seems they time the sitting up with the hip shift and getting on the brakes....like all three in one move?

    like clockwork , wonder how many hours they have to put in to achieve such precision and consistency!

     

    its like running a preprogrammed macro 20+ times over a maze with other unexpected factors chipping in (eg a race)

  10. If i were you

     

    1) change brake pads that deliver confidence and are more linear , linear pads make trail braking much more manageable (ie eats much less of your $10 worth of attention)

    2.1) tune if possible the engine braking characteristics to be a bit more aggressive IF the suspension is really dialed in

    2.2) add more rebound damping if the suspension isnt dialed in properly

  11. I'd say adrenaline is only part of the equation and only after I beat someone by seconds does the adrenaline kick comes in (in FPS terms: DOMINATING!!!).

    The most "fun" part for me is using all my skills at hardware tuning and software (riding sklls) to beat/ match a richer opponent in terms of gear
    (as in I have total 200 USD front/rear sus job, he has a 3-900 dollar race grade suspension package).

  12. It's the tires. Pol's hit the nail on the head. I was talking with a guy I met last night about his '70 Triumph Bonneville. The bikes of that day had a solid steel bar that was welded to the bottom of the bike for footpegs. I showed him that, even on my EX-650, my pegs collapse up in case I get that far over (which I don't on my EX). I told him about the tire advances and how that's the reason for the progression in leaning. The guys standing around were amazed when I told them they're dragging elbows now-a-days. I also showed them what a friend of mine does (see below) and they about lost it.

     

    Im sure the fat tires with the racing compounds help you get (mathematically) closer to the tarmac too... now whos got a degree in engineering for a diagram?

  13. Quick post while I still unwind from a 10 hour drive, the last 3hrs ice and snow. Relax drill is wonderful even driving, just use the fingers instead of flapping your wings. Comments on the video; hmm, ok, hmmm, I'm not going to say not so polite things about another school. I may one day attend their school because there may be that one little tidbit of information that may save my bacon. Now looking to far ahead can get you lost, make you miss your apex ( Turn 2 at Barber's; run off the inside, over the curbing!!! Thanks Hotfoot for the corrective action; look at the curbing [step 2] before looking at the exit [step3]). Looking to far ahead ( Museum turn at Barber's; looking at the turn point for the S-turn and not letting the bike run out to the outside exiting; Look to the turn exit first and let the bike go there. Thanks James!)

     

    If you have to look to see where you are then you are lost! By the time you know where you are, the it's old news and you are lost.

    Know where you are and know where your going, if you don't then your lost; lost = slow :P

     

    Back to the relax drill B) ; can't find the one for Beer so.... :D

     

    Do tell me if you find the drill for beer! :D

  14. It does happen that sometimes riders look TOO far ahead (probably due to the common advice to "look through the corner"), which can make the rider feel lost (losing track of their turn point, for example) or can make the rider inaccurate with the apex - for example, think of a sweeping 180 degree corner, if you look too far ahead you can end up unintentionally pointing the bike too far to the inside and have to make a steering correction to keep from running off the inside of the corner.

     

    While I get the idea of the advice in the video and see how it could help a rider, I find the 2-step and 3-step drills from CSS more useful, since they VERY specifically tell you WHEN and WHERE to look, instead of just telling you to "look ahead more" or "don't look too far ahead"; statements like that are a bit vague and you hear them at track days a lot.

     

    I agree with csmith that glancing back to "where I am now" negatively affects my riding; it interrupts my visual flow and slows my pace. If I have to move glance back at my turn point or apex to keep track of it, that usually tells me my visual timing was wrong - I looked ahead too early or too far, or skipped a step in my 2-step or 3-step. Following 2-step, then 3-step and ultimately wide-view gives the rider a very specific progression to nail down visual timing exactly, and ways to tell if the timing is off - which can happen to anyone when they get fatigued or distracted or are learning a new track; knowing when your visual skills aren't working and how to correct them is very important!

     

    That explains alot in conjunction with the newest code break :

     

    http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/less-more-visual-experiment-code-break

     

    No wonder the faster I go , the more everytime I commit a mistake , the more of the $10 of attention the mistake eat into.

     

    0.7s is alot , I dont look at the speedo anymore when im into a corner where i think it is high speed ; more time to buffer against mistakes and unexpected things i guess.

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