You build a dirt bike with a coffin side car.........we have confidence
You build a dirt bike with a coffin side car.........we have confidence
Fuck yea. Me likey.
I'm a little nervy, I've only done about 150kms on the GSXR since I bought it so hope it goes ok lol. I just did all fresh fluids plugs etc chain and tyres are new so shooould be ok. Just hope my fiddling hasn't caused any issues. Hope the Bus meets the Gix on friday all good Russ.
Im in the same boat Gitzy. Road it today up the mountain near my place and found a couple of issues. The speed sensor wire rubbed on the rear disc and broke. Fixed that. Got a bit of a leak on the banjo bolt on the right caliper. I'll fix that tomorrow.
Worst thing is not enough room between the tank and the bum pad. My nads were squashed! So the bum pad comes off and Ive got a bit of thin foam that I'll stick on there for the mean time.
Interesting ride though. Accelerating in third means very bump is a whoolie! I think I'm going to like it
If I had a dollar for every time I thought about you, I'd start thinking about you
Well after this years NFR, about 1,400 k's, I'm convinced that the rear shock has lost its ability to absorb shock. It's without a doubt the worst thing I've ever experienced and almost had me throwing it off the road and hitching a ride home.
So, what shocks do people use/recommend? I'm not after a MotoGP replica, I'd like a smoother ride where the road bumps aren't transferred through my spine, neck and skull!
Alternatively, is the original shock serviceable?
If I had a dollar for every time I thought about you, I'd start thinking about you
you can try and adjust it firstOriginally Posted by Nudie
It didn't seem to be this rough when I first bought the bike.
I know fark all about suspension set ups, so forgive me if this sounds like a newb question. Would losing the bodywork, original exhausts etc, lighten it up enough to make that much difference?
I was going to try losing a bit of preload and see if it made an improvement, but I just assumed that it had gone off(?)
If I had a dollar for every time I thought about you, I'd start thinking about you
play with it before you go spending money....adjust the spring too and this could help you...I'm no expert but i do this until it feels right....
Apart from the shock how was it since its transformation
I'll have a fuck around with the shock, "whats the worst that can happen", right?!
There's some stuff that I rushed to finish in time that I'll go back over and get right, like brackets and wiring.
I need to see about getting the ECU flashed or a power commander. I goes like stink but I get the feeling that it's a little doughy and could be crisper. Though I haven't spent any real time on an IL4, all of my road bikes before this (i.e.: not many) have been/are twins. I may be way off, but I've got a guys number who is apparently a wiz on Busa tunes and I'll talk to him and see what he reckons.
The riding position is fine. Just got to do something with the shock and maybe the brakes (I've been riding a BMW for so long now that I'm used to good quality braking and the stock Gen1 brakes are not top shelf!)
But over all, I'm loving it!
If I had a dollar for every time I thought about you, I'd start thinking about you
them 6 pots are complete shit on the busa....I fucked mine off
and done the brembo upgrade on them.
set the rider sag front and rear, that'll tell you a lot. It will feel harsh if there is not enough sag.
start with 30mm at the rear, and then aim for 35mm at the front. Try and keep within 5-7mm front to rear for balance.
Sag is the foundation, compression and rebound are built on that.
You can get a decent measurements by yourself with some ingenuity. Google suspension set up on fz09.org, the MT09 has really shit suspension, so i have learnt a bit setting up my 09.
From stotec moto on FZ09.org (he worked with penske to get a drop in shock for the MT/FZ) although he's talking about a penske shock just pay attention to the setting sag/rebound/comp parts...
The black collar under the spring (with the drilled holes) is the preload collar. Technically, there is also one at the top of the spring. The red knob is rebound and the black knob on the reservoir is compression. With that in mind, I recommend doing the following...in this exact order.
1. Get a helper or two to set rear sag and put on all of your riding gear. Yes, even the helmet.
2. Unload the suspension (either have your friends lift the rear of the bike or pivot it up with the sidestand). Make a reference measurement to determine your unloaded length. I recommend using a point on the tail section in line with the axle and a corresponding point on the axle/swingarm. Write this measurement down (I prefer to work in metric, but English is OK if you're good with reading the tape and converting). Let's call it X right now.
3. Sit on the bike with your feet on the pegs. This is where friend #1 comes in. Sit like you would normally sit.
4. Have friend #2 slowly lift the tail section up and gently let it lower under your weight. Re-measure the distance between the same two points. Record this as X1.
5. Have friend #2 slowly push down on the tail section and let it gently return. Re-measure the distance between the same two points. Record this as X2.
6. Average X1 and X2; call it X3. These numbers shouldn't be drastically different. If they are, take your measurements again. The difference between X1 and X2 should be a few mm and no more.
7. Time for some arithmetic. X-X3=rider sag. Shoot for ~30 mm / 1.181". Add preload to reduce sag and remove to increase. The leverage ratio of the stock linkage and swingarm is significant.
8. Once you get 30 mm, I recommend setting the front sag. The process is identical, but your X1 and X2 will be further apart due to seal/bushing stiction. Shoot for around 35 mm to get you started.
9. Now that you've gotten the proper sag, you won't be fiddling much with preload unless you feel the need to change how fast the bike steers. Remember, adding preload doesn't make the spring stiffer. The only way to make a stiffer spring is to alter the material, increase wire diameter, and/or reduce the number of coils.
10. Set rebound on both ends of the bike while in the garage. You're looking for a smooth controlled 'return home' when depressed. A few mm of overshoot is ok, but it should settle back. You don't want either end to rocket back up and top out or oscillate. Conversely, you don't want too slow of a return without overshoot. Getting this right takes experience, a keen eye, and a delicate touch. Once you get both ends right, depress the bike in the middle - left hand on the handlebar, right hand at the seat/tank junction, and right foot on the peg. Push down in the center of the bike, where your body's center of gravity would be. You want both ends of the bike to return at the same speed. Make adjustments as necessary to get this right.
11. For someone new to the world of suspension tuning looking to learn, I recommend setting the compression adjustment to full soft.
12. Go for a ride. Take note of what the bike is doing. Bring the tools you need to make adjustments on the road!
13. Start adding compression. On a Penske, I work in 4 click increments since there is a lot of adjustment. Ride some more.
14. Continue adding compression in 4 click increments until you feel harshness; back off 2 clicks. Ride again and take note of performance. You may need to adjust +/- a click.
Some ROUGH guidelines:
A. If either end of the bike feels nervous, add rebound damping.
B. If either end feels sluggish and doesn't respond fast enough to the road, reduce rebound damping. Same thing if you find the suspension 'packing'. Packing occurs when the a series of bumps causes the suspension to ratchet down with each successive bump. With too much rebound damping, the suspension never fully returns to it's rightful starting point, so travel is limited for the next bump.
C. If you feel the bike is squatting too much, add compression. Just be aware that this will also reduce bump compliance (unless you have a shock with high speed compression adjustment - 8987).
D. If you find you're breaking traction at low wheel speeds, reduce compression.
The static tuning you did in the garage will get you about 80% of the way to a good setup. The remaining 20% takes time with the tools on the side of the road. I make a day of it on personal setups.
more titanium than my bike
^^ Great how to. A few weeks ago I knew zero about suspension. Once I had paid for the ZX10 shock for the mt09 I made a massive effort to educate myself so that when I did get it I could make the most of it. I followed a procedure similar to above but not as accurate and the results were fantastic. The whole experience was a lesson and I reckon I now know about 2% of all there is to know on the subject of suspension, but enough for me at the moment. when I get the forks redone I'll go through the whole procedure again, really try to fine tune the bike and hopefully learn a lot more
Get a set of Gen2 forks and calipers, the difference is night and day. I used the adaptors with some radial calipers initially as I had the calpiers laying around, that made them 80% better but the front end conversion is the go. If you like I can see if I can find the caliper adaptors and then you just need to get some calipers off a wrecker or somewhere to try it. Steel lines too.
When I stripped the busa back I found it was a bit harsh too but I put on some flash triple clicker thing filled with witchcraft and voodoo. It's now on the MT09.
^^^ What him said ^^^
I have braided lines, good fluid, good pads and good condition 6-plop callipers on my Busa.
Calling them "average" would be being kind.
My B-King (very similar to a Gen-2 Busa) had 8 year old rubber lines, and old standard
pads and fluid. It's off the scale compared to the Busa. Bloody excellent.
Seen a few Busa's and Kings crashed because inexperienced riders grabbed a big handful of brakes.
If I was offered a dirt cheap front end of a Gen-1 I'd walk away.
I've had a brand new Gen-1, 2nd hand Gen-1 and now a rebuilt brakes Gen-1,
They weren't great when they were new and that was 16 years a go !
Nudie, PM sent
Oh boy do I have some reading to do!
Thanks mate
Last edited by Nudie; 23-11-2015 at 07:29 AM.
If I had a dollar for every time I thought about you, I'd start thinking about you
So I am now a little motivated to sort the suspension on my bike, it has been a while since I played with suspension and it desperately needs something done, Great info. LOVE this build
'Originally Posted by rock hardstock swingarms are for blokes with balls!! ha ha'
I would love to become a professional whistler. I'm pretty amazing at it now, but I wanna get, like, even better. Make my living out of it.
Yella turbo ZX7 Winner VCM Best Streetfighter and SOS encouragement award NFR 2011
http://www.streetfighters.com.au/for...-s-ZX7-project
Tony are the callipers on your B-King the black Tokicos? I've been unsuccessfully searching for the Busa brake upgrade, but all I can guess is they mean the Tokicos and not Brembos. Apparently you can get an adaptor to fit the radial Tokico caliper from the Gen2 onto the Gen1 forks.
If I had a dollar for every time I thought about you, I'd start thinking about you
You've been busy!
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