Constant struggle
Thread Starter
Member
Squid
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 67
From: Bellevue, NE
Constant struggle
About 2 weeks ago I bought my 2nd hawk and my 11th sport bike, I regretted every getting rid of my last hawk with 48,000 miles. I am obsessed with riding and could not stay off even after going off a cliff at 80mph 4 years ago. Out of all the bikes I owned, for some reason this damn disease of a bike was the only one that continues to put a smile on my face when I am riding it. Except when I ride with friends......they all seem to have the new triumph 675 or the gsxr POS and although I stand by my hawk I cannot keep up. My hawk is beautiful and tastefully modded and I love riding it when I am alone but then I think what if I had a 636 or another ZX7. Then I could drag my knee around back roads at speeds that would make my mother cry. I lay awake at night for hours thinking about tearing apart my SH and dumping every spare dollar I have into it and then emerging from my garage with a track worthy V twin monster that will make my buddies disappear in my rear view. Of course I soon realize my wife would divorce me for spending our savings. Then I realize the bike looks better with the solo cowl any ways................
evil man of nothing
MotoGP
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 4,516
From: Boynton Beach, FL
Yeah welcome to the club...That's why I owned a lightly modded ZX12 for a year. I could **** on anybody I wanted with it and now i can say been there done that...If you're really looking to smoke everybody else powerwise this isn't the bike to do it on no matter how much you want to spend. If you're talking going around turns then even stock it's going to mostly come down to the rider. But we know how you feel 
I've piled enough aftermarket crap on mine and I'll never ride it as hard (aka stupid) as I used to on a stock bike. Whatever I'm having fun and I'll never see another one like it at a bike night.
I've piled enough aftermarket crap on mine and I'll never ride it as hard (aka stupid) as I used to on a stock bike. Whatever I'm having fun and I'll never see another one like it at a bike night.
Senior Member
MotoGP
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 4,138
From: Austin, Tx
I think the most important part of what you wrote was "it's your fun". Let the other guys have theirs. I was in a shop this afternoon with a guy that owned the gixxer on the stand. He looked like an experienced rider and described the bike as "scarey quirky". Certainly a bike I would like to own. Don't get me wrong - I hung out for a long time on Suzuki dirt bikes - so it's not a "brand" thing with me. I own Yamaha Quads. Neither brand brings what I want in a sport bike or sport tourer. I hear the R-1's go by and I see the squids on their gixxers and I think to myself - after all these years - I still own the best bikes on the planet.
Senior Member
SuperBike
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 1,806
From: Atlanta, GA
A well ridden Hawk can keep up with anything on twisty backroads. You don't need to upgrade your bike.
(Remember, this advice is worth what you paid for it and comes from a guy with high compression pistons, ported heads and a 954 front end. Stock shock, of course.)
(Remember, this advice is worth what you paid for it and comes from a guy with high compression pistons, ported heads and a 954 front end. Stock shock, of course.)
Senior Member
Superstock
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 406
From: Trussville, Alabama
Agree w/ the 2 posts above.
Remember, the SH is essentially 10-12 year old, pretty generic technology, making about 100 HP, on a moderately heavy bike.
The bikes you mention in comparison are more current technology, more HP, lighter weight, etc.
If you are talking top-end, where HP is the big factor, good luck. Not gonna' happen. At least IMHO.
If you are talking lowers speeds, where torque reigns, then it's a whole 'nother ball game.
Remember, much of this is a trade off. The SH makes good torque an is great in 2nd and 3rd gear stuff. The others make good HP and are going to come out on top.
As Sgt. Rock said, a SH can keep up with them in the twisties, just takes a little more work.
Last weekend at our Deal's Gap get together, I had a chance to ride w/ 3 guys late in the afternoon on Saturday. The road was really emptied out and we turned the wick up.
It was me on the SH, an R6, CBR 954RR and a CBR 600RR. Nobody left anybody and it was a VERY spirited ride.
I'd suggest a nice exhaust system and a proper jetting afterwards. I'd then look at suspension setup, tires and brakes.
Gearing change is a big help, and all I did was drop one tooth in the front.
Have fun and ride your ride!
Brian
Remember, the SH is essentially 10-12 year old, pretty generic technology, making about 100 HP, on a moderately heavy bike.
The bikes you mention in comparison are more current technology, more HP, lighter weight, etc.
If you are talking top-end, where HP is the big factor, good luck. Not gonna' happen. At least IMHO.
If you are talking lowers speeds, where torque reigns, then it's a whole 'nother ball game.
Remember, much of this is a trade off. The SH makes good torque an is great in 2nd and 3rd gear stuff. The others make good HP and are going to come out on top.
As Sgt. Rock said, a SH can keep up with them in the twisties, just takes a little more work.
Last weekend at our Deal's Gap get together, I had a chance to ride w/ 3 guys late in the afternoon on Saturday. The road was really emptied out and we turned the wick up.
It was me on the SH, an R6, CBR 954RR and a CBR 600RR. Nobody left anybody and it was a VERY spirited ride.
I'd suggest a nice exhaust system and a proper jetting afterwards. I'd then look at suspension setup, tires and brakes.
Gearing change is a big help, and all I did was drop one tooth in the front.
Have fun and ride your ride!
Brian
Member
Squid
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 48
It really must come down to the rider. Jose Plamenco, a good friend and control rider for NYSBC in NYC, sold his 600RR and R1 trackbikes recently and picked up a bone stock SV650 (two kids now so he had to temper the toyz).
He still manages to outride nearly everyone one in the 'A' group. He then commutes the next day on the SV650 to work as an architect, lol. This is despite having a Honda Shadow 1100 and a '02 RC51 in the stable. (I almost bought his old '00 RC51, but opted for the Superhawk). I love the RC as my brother and close to 15 out of 40 guys in the trackclub owned one at one time or another, but they just aren't that fun being stuck in that position while in traffic and for normal every day riding.
An '03 Yamaha R6 was the fastest bike I've ever owned for any lenghty period of time, but when I look back and think of the bikes that I've owned it is one of the most forgettable. My instant thoughts about that R6 is the immediate shot of adrenaline that comes to mind when you go WOT and the motor winds up at lightning speeds. You get a grin from ear to ear, but that's about, quickly fading with each reminder of how much pressure is being put on my wrists. Then immediately I remember how uncomfortable the bike was after only riding for 30 minutes.
The '99 YZF600R and '99CBRF4 were my two favorites, and that was because these were genuinely fun bikes, that didn't make my back feel like a pretzel at the end of the day. Both of these bikes while not at the top of the pack in terms of top speed for 600s had really good midrange power surprisingly. But outside of the Hawk those were my two favorite bikes, for the fun factor first and foremost.
The Superhawk is a different beast all together, it sounds like an RC51, if I changed the gearing it would pull almost like an RC51 I'm certain (my Hawk is stock so I can't say for certain).
At the end of the day, I think as Americans we just have too much time on our hands, lol and we're always taking a peek at what the guy next door has. But as an American, I say save up and find a salvage 636 somewhere and build it up!!! I love the all black color scheme. Its a fantastic bike so why not? ??!!!
He still manages to outride nearly everyone one in the 'A' group. He then commutes the next day on the SV650 to work as an architect, lol. This is despite having a Honda Shadow 1100 and a '02 RC51 in the stable. (I almost bought his old '00 RC51, but opted for the Superhawk). I love the RC as my brother and close to 15 out of 40 guys in the trackclub owned one at one time or another, but they just aren't that fun being stuck in that position while in traffic and for normal every day riding.
An '03 Yamaha R6 was the fastest bike I've ever owned for any lenghty period of time, but when I look back and think of the bikes that I've owned it is one of the most forgettable. My instant thoughts about that R6 is the immediate shot of adrenaline that comes to mind when you go WOT and the motor winds up at lightning speeds. You get a grin from ear to ear, but that's about, quickly fading with each reminder of how much pressure is being put on my wrists. Then immediately I remember how uncomfortable the bike was after only riding for 30 minutes.
The '99 YZF600R and '99CBRF4 were my two favorites, and that was because these were genuinely fun bikes, that didn't make my back feel like a pretzel at the end of the day. Both of these bikes while not at the top of the pack in terms of top speed for 600s had really good midrange power surprisingly. But outside of the Hawk those were my two favorite bikes, for the fun factor first and foremost.
The Superhawk is a different beast all together, it sounds like an RC51, if I changed the gearing it would pull almost like an RC51 I'm certain (my Hawk is stock so I can't say for certain).
At the end of the day, I think as Americans we just have too much time on our hands, lol and we're always taking a peek at what the guy next door has. But as an American, I say save up and find a salvage 636 somewhere and build it up!!! I love the all black color scheme. Its a fantastic bike so why not? ??!!!
Senior Member
Superstock
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 442
From: 58 miles from Deals Gap
I have actually toyed with the idea of changing up my gearing so I get more bottom end power and less on top. It's very rare that I ever put the SH into sixth gear. For me anyone can go fast in a straight line and if that's your cup of tea then I would opt for a different bike. Where the riding really begins is knowing and understanding the full capabilities of what the bike can do and pushing them to the limits.
Thread Starter
Member
Squid
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 67
From: Bellevue, NE
I guess what it comes down to is I need to learn my bike inside and out. I felt uncomfortable in the twisties and the bike didn't feel sure footed but it could have just been me after not riding for a year. There are no switch backs or canyons here in Nebraska just farm country with rolling hills and 100mph sweepers for miles and miles. I want to get totally comfortable with this bike before going to tail of the dragon in August.
Senior Member
SuperSport
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 731
From: MICHIGAN
I totally agree here. I can keep up with mostly anyone on the backroads. I ride with a lot of road racers and I keep up just fine, even on the highway. Wanna go faster, hone your riding skills. I learned that on the track. I have seen people on an SV 650 smoke R1 and gixxers. It's 80% rider.
Senior Member
SuperSport
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 731
From: MICHIGAN
I guess what it comes down to is I need to learn my bike inside and out. I felt uncomfortable in the twisties and the bike didn't feel sure footed but it could have just been me after not riding for a year. There are no switch backs or canyons here in Nebraska just farm country with rolling hills and 100mph sweepers for miles and miles. I want to get totally comfortable with this bike before going to tail of the dragon in August.
Senior Member
Superstock
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 406
From: Trussville, Alabama
Do yourself a favor:
Do a proper suspension setup.
Laden and unladen sag as well as damping.
It is not hard and will likely make things better for you.
Based on your weight and aftermarket parts, a suspension setup, good tires and good brakes should put you in the running with most bikes on the road today. You will not be as fast top end, but unless that is what you are concerned with, you should be able to do well with what you have.
IMHO, the SH is not a modern sportbke, but it can sure fool you into believeing it is in a lot of situations.
Do a proper suspension setup.
Laden and unladen sag as well as damping.
It is not hard and will likely make things better for you.
Based on your weight and aftermarket parts, a suspension setup, good tires and good brakes should put you in the running with most bikes on the road today. You will not be as fast top end, but unless that is what you are concerned with, you should be able to do well with what you have.
IMHO, the SH is not a modern sportbke, but it can sure fool you into believeing it is in a lot of situations.
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