I have a 03 Hayabusa. Thinking of painting the Maita the same color.

 

You guys are gonna **** yourselves, but I just figured out that my MSF instructor was the host of Chain Reaction on GSN.

 

Heh. That was the worst part about owning an SV650 and having it parked in the garage next to my car. It was so much brighter and, well, redder than the Miata, it made the car look sickly pale by comparison.

 

Keep in mind, cafe racers aren't meant to be comfortable, just fast and beautiful. And technically those aren't drag bars, they're clubman bars. Drag bars are flat with a little kick back.

If it were me, I'd have my bike or something like that cb as a project/beauty queen and something a little more practical and comfortable like a 750cc Japanese cruiser. But hot damn I laid mine down farther then I think I ever have on a freeway off ramp yesterday and there is no words to describe the feeling of euphoria I experience when doing something like that! Unfortunately it's just like my miata, uncomfortable and practically undriveable unless driving at 8/10 or higher.

 

And for your consideration, a lot of the suzuki guys I talk to make their own version of "cafe racers", where they take an 80's bike, slap 90's or later suspension and wheels on, and call it a day. AKA, street fighters. You can do this with full faired modern sports bikes, but IMO they're ugly naked.


All the power and glorious carburetored sound of the 80's, with braking and handling of the 2000's.

 

Just a word of caution though on updating old bikes.

I've had gixxers, Z650 Z1300's etc and thrown no end of modern front ends and swinging arms at em.

Problem is with modern forks, brakes and tyres the frames just start to tie themselves in knots.

My Z650 was pretty much unridable on all but the slowest of rides.
The thicker forks, head down **** up position and braced swingarm caused so much twisting and vibration in the frame you could actually see it while riding.

A fair bit of extra bracing later and it reduced the flex but still didn't improve the ride at all.
Ended up selling it and buying a 100% stock version that i've not changed anything on since.

So if your considering buying a 70's 80's bike and modernising it that's something to be wary of.
Yea the forks, brakes, swing arms were *****, but only because the frame was ***** as well.
Frame flex used to be considered part of the "handling package" back then.


Cheers
Mark

 

^ I probably wouldnt go so far as changing any body related pieces because then its not the same bike any more, but I would consider updating the brakes, at least the rear to a disc if its not.

 

FWIW my race SV-650 has a GSXR 600-750 front end on it with radial brakes. Awesome. The SV frame is known for being stiff. It is basically a cast knockoff of a Ducati tube trellis frame.

 

I'd ride it first.

Every bike i've ever had with a rear drum brake has been fantastic.
Certainly more bite than most sportbike rear disc brakes.

The other thing is i think in the years i've rode bikes i've only really used the rear brake in emergency's (except off road).

My ZXR750H1 had a bitch of a vibration from the rear, so i disconnected the rear brake to make sure it wasn't that catching.
It stayed like throughout the summer


So i think it's best just to see what the bikes like then change stuff as it wears out with better stuff.
As i say though just be careful as 1 component that's far better than the rest of the bike can really fooook up the rest of the bike.


Cheers
Mark

 

I know this is a subject of much controversy, and I honestly don't know what they taught at the class you went to, but I almost never use the rear brake.

Yes, I know that it can be done. But my line of reasoning is that since most modern bikes have sufficient tractive force on the front wheel to actually lift the rear tire off the ground with the front brake, using the rear brake is not only redundant, but potentially dangerous. It is relatively difficult to precisely modulate the amount of force being applied by your foot to the rear brake, and the amount of available traction at the rear diminishes sharply as the front brake is applied. Thus, it is much easier to cause the rear wheel to lock up than the front, with the resulting loss of gyroscopic stabilization and the potential for fishtailing.

In all the years I have ridden, I have had precisely one use for the rear brake. I step on it when I'm sitting at a stop to prevent the bike from rolling as I take my hands off the bars to open my visor and sit upright to relax in relative comfort. (Insert note here about how, when at a stop, the conscientious rider should always be in first gear with the clutch pulled and the right hand on the grip, ready to react instantaneously to the sound of tires skidding behind you.)




That's the understatement of the century. You could use the SV frame as a plinth to rest a bridge piling upon. It's an amazingly solid piece of metal, doubly so for something that seemingly weighs about six ounces.

 

They taught to use both brakes.

Not all bikes will let you lift up the rear tire with the front brake so it makes sense to use both for maximum braking. We practiced plenty of quick stop drills, and I used both brakes with success. Only one time did I lock the rear brake and that was when it started raining, however the bike continued in a straight line. There is def more control present with using both brakes.

 

FWIW most guys when they are racing, including me, do not use the rear at all. You brake hard enough to where if you use it, it just locks up the rear. Apparently the pros use it to adjust trajectory when they are 'backing' it into a corner. Definitely and advanced skill.

 

and on the street?

 

I use the rear all the time. More braking is more braking. Technically I don't need it, I could just squeeze the front lever a little harder, but I don't.

And to the doubters of updated 70's and 80's bikes, if you do it right, it's great.
Stiffen the frame, ala this:

And a general rule of thumb is to keep the lower frame rail level. My upgrades have made a great bike even better, no doubts about that.

 

don't think i used the rear brake on the track, if this thread is still alive i'll update adter my track day on the 6th. I do use the rear brake on the street, of course you can't just jam on it or you're in for a ride but you can use it. a lot of bikes like harleys rely on the rear brake a lot more, but it seems with supersports they've sized the brakes so that they're not very strong anyway.

 

Or just buy one that's already stiffer than Hustler's dick at a family reunion:

 

In my experience it comes down to a point of diminishing returns.

You start with a bike that you already know is not up to modern sportsbikes in speed and response.
You spend a fortune upgrading the forks, brakes, shock, swing arm, wheels and then frame, but then you realise in the process of improving the bike all you've done is foooooked it up and spent thousands doing it.


For me, on the projects i used to do, i found that in "upgrading" em i deleted the character and therefore the thing that attracted me to the bike in first place.

Each to thier own, but i now prefer a bog standard Z650, CBX, CB etc with warts an all.
The more warts the more charcater (as long as i only ride when i want to rather than needing to).



Cheers
Mark

 

This thread brings back memories. I had an '81 CB750K back in '85 when I was in high school. There were no sport bikes back then (I'm thinking the Ninja came out in '86 but it might have been '85), so I was the **** as all of my buddies had chopped CB350's. Only mods were a Kerker header and a Barnett clutch, but it was as fast as pretty much anything in the area.

I'd love to pick up an old RZ350, but they are going for damn near what they went for new.

 

Never had more fun on any other bike.

Not riden me RZ (RD over here) since the injury but it's never once not had me giggling like a school girl with a ferret in her pants.

Of course when it does eventually seize i usually cry like a school girl as well though





Roberts colours and i actuallymanaged to get KR to sign the tank as well.







Cheers
Mark

 

Nice!

I just checked ebay. They are $7,900 - $8,500 for a nice one now. WTF?