sam

as a newbie to this sight and a new 99' SH owner im looking for a little advise and some answers to a few questions. first, my SH is a very recent purchase for me and its still winterized and in storage at the local dealer so im trying to get things set up for some mods, ( its bone stock). it has just over 16,000mi. and the CCT's were changed already, with some new stock / factory replacements. im thinking about the R/R replacement with a R1. any suggestions on clutch and brake handles? also the rear tire may only have a season or so left on it, is it possible to go any wider than a 180 with stock equipment? since the back tire is off im thinking about changing the sprockets and chain. i think stock is 16t front and 41t rear, should I change both or just the rear sprocket and whats better, aluminum, steel, or bi-metal? i do alot of riding and working in the city so i'd really like the low end torque. also i know there are a million to choose from but im interested in some slip-ons, some on the louder side because i love the v-twin sport sound, any suggestions on those. now finally, if i pipe and jet it, do i have to do any mods to the air box or will a hi flow air cleaner be enough. sorry to ramble on and with so many questions, i just get so stoked about the bike and can't wait to finally ride it in the spring.

sam

oh yea, and as far as the slip-ons go,(some loud ones) do they determine weather or not it gets high mounted or do i have to replace the whole system for that look? are there any draw backs or down falls to the high mount exhaust ends compared to normal?

comedo

I'm very glad you're excited about your Superhawk. All of your questions have been dealt with at length on this forum. Why don't you make a list of things you're considering doing, research them here and wait until you've ridden your bike before you decide what to do? You've already got a rideable motorcycle. Enjoy it when the weather's improved. You may find that there's nothing you really want to change or you may decide, for instance, that improving the suspension and brakes is a higher priority than installing slip-ons.
You, like me, have to deal with a very long, cold winter. One way to cope with it is to explore the enormous amount of helpful information on this forum.

8541Hawk

First of all welcome and a bit of a tip for you. If you use the search button you will find all of these topics have been very well covered. With that I will give you some of my opinions but there are others also.

Whichever ones make you happy. I believe ASV makes some and there are also a ton of Chinese copys of them on E-Bay.

Yes you can run a 190 on the rear but the bike will not turn as well.

Yes stock is 16\41. I personally run 16\43 some folks run 15\43 and if you search you'll find a multiple page thread discussing this topic from a couple of months ago.

Slip ons are a personal choice and another good search topic.
Air for air box mods and a high flow air cleaner..... don't bother with either.
All you will end up doing is make holes in the power band and have a poor running bike.

Just remember search is your friend.

8541Hawk

The mid-pipes or the pipes the connect the header the the muffler determine if the system is high or low mount. High mount systems are getting harder to find.

As for draw backs, there are 2. The first is the high mounts are heavier, not that much but because the pipes are longer they are heavier.
The second is you lose between 1-2 hp with the high mounts. The reason for this is you are lengthening the exhaust system which causes a power loss unless you adjust the cam timing to take advantage of it.

Neither is all that big of a deal but as you asked. The high mount systems are mainly for looks as there is no real advantage to one other than the aesthetics of them.

sam

thankyou for the advise, i will take a look around. i'm still trying to find my way around on this forum. if you guys or anybody has anything else please feel free to let me know.

7moore7

For riding around the city and such I'd avoid aluminum sprockets- no reason to try to save a tiny bit of weight at the expense of longetivity.

Consensus seems to be that D&D exhaust will be some of the louder easily available brands.

Stephan

I´d avoid chinese copies, know the case brake system bleeded air because of bad angle when pushing on master cylinder piston. Hope my explanation is understandable

Anyway, these levers are not bad (as lot of others), but I´m not sure about distribution in US.

http://www.titax-usa.com/titaxbrakeandclutchlevers.aspx

sam

thanks again for the tips on the levers and the sprockets. i was reading some past threads on the gearing and for my city and some freeway riding i think i decided to leave the stock front (16t) and just go up 2t in the rear to a (43t). That way i may also be able to save a little bit of $$$ and keep the stock chain if it doesn't need to be replaced.