new guy, saying hi
08-17-2009, 01:49 PM
#1
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SuperBike
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Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: thorold ontario
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new guy, saying hi
hey guys, new here, was sent over here by a member of gta motorcycles and ive found all the info i need. names mariusz but i go by uchi. after some hesitation i picked up my first bike, a 2001 honda firestorm vtr 1000. had my license 2 years ago but let it expire because i ended up buying a 5 liter mustang. but thats gone and so i needed a new toy 
bike is basically stock. has the solo seat cover and a k&n thats getting tossed this week. other than that the bike is virtually un modified. its become a bit of an obsession for me i guess, ive put over 750 km on it in the course of a week and just cant seem to get enough of it.
im from the niagara falls canada area aswell just incase there are other members that wanna do a group ride with me and some buddies.
bike is basically stock. has the solo seat cover and a k&n thats getting tossed this week. other than that the bike is virtually un modified. its become a bit of an obsession for me i guess, ive put over 750 km on it in the course of a week and just cant seem to get enough of it.
im from the niagara falls canada area aswell just incase there are other members that wanna do a group ride with me and some buddies.
08-17-2009, 02:22 PM
#5
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SuperBike
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Richmond, Virginia
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BT-021s on there are great tires. Keep the rear inflated to 42psi & they won't wear as bad down the middle. I wasted a lot of rear rubber on this bike running 36psi in the rear. Stupid me!
08-17-2009, 05:51 PM
#6
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SuperSport
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08-17-2009, 07:04 PM
#7
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thanks guys. 
thanks for the tip ill raise it up a little. what should i run the front at? i notice something it feels like im smacking the rim when i come into a parking lot a little too quick. 2 other questions, is the gas guage supposed to go back to full when it goes into reserve? mine will drop to the last notch and when i fill it up it only takes a little over 9 liters to fill. also at about 3000 rpm and higher i get a weird vibrating rattle grinding type sound when i touch the throttle, but goes away when i let off, hear it the worst in 6th gear. with 47k on the old girl i can expect to hear noises im sure, just paranoid about them i suppose
love the forum, learning lots, keep up the good work
thanks for the tip ill raise it up a little. what should i run the front at? i notice something it feels like im smacking the rim when i come into a parking lot a little too quick. 2 other questions, is the gas guage supposed to go back to full when it goes into reserve? mine will drop to the last notch and when i fill it up it only takes a little over 9 liters to fill. also at about 3000 rpm and higher i get a weird vibrating rattle grinding type sound when i touch the throttle, but goes away when i let off, hear it the worst in 6th gear. with 47k on the old girl i can expect to hear noises im sure, just paranoid about them i suppose
love the forum, learning lots, keep up the good work
08-17-2009, 08:14 PM
#8
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MotoGP
Join Date: May 2008
Location: San Clemente, CA
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The "smacking the rim" feeling coming into parking lots is due to the weak fork springs. How much do you weigh. I'm 155 and I avoid hitting the brakes hard when entering a parking lot. Greg (Hawkrider) does fork rebuilds, by the way.
I run 36 psi front and 38 psi rear, and I get at least 7,000 miles out of a rear Dunlop Qualifier. I'm on my 4th rear Qualifier now, and about to replace the 2nd front.
Oh, and
I run 36 psi front and 38 psi rear, and I get at least 7,000 miles out of a rear Dunlop Qualifier. I'm on my 4th rear Qualifier now, and about to replace the 2nd front.
Oh, and
08-18-2009, 04:37 AM
#9
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thanks man, i try to enter slowly, the first couple times i didnt know it was gonna do that and came in like i used to in my lowered car, still faster than the bike wants to go in. im about 250 of solid man muslce mixed with man fat, lol. i dont think ive come close to finding the limits of the stock suspension yet but wouldnt mind upgrading the front just to be safe.
08-18-2009, 06:09 AM
#10
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SuperBike
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Richmond, Virginia
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I have 8000 on the current BT-021 rear & there's still plenty of tread. I expect to get another 2000 to 4000 miles out of it the way it looks now. I've kept this one at 42psi the whole tiime.
Also, currently running a BT-016 on the front. Great tire. Very neutral handling. Even one stint in the rain was better than I expected, given the lack of void area in the tread. The bad news is that after only 4000 miles I'm now riding on a "slick". It has worn very evenly side-to-side, but I'm used to getting like twice as much mileage out of a front tire as I do a rear. With the BT-016/BT-021 front/rear combo that has flip-flopped!
Last edited by L8RGYZ; 08-18-2009 at 06:30 AM.
08-18-2009, 09:26 AM
#12
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at 250 you need either new springs in the stock forks or a fork swap.
Here on the forum Greg (Hawkrider) and Jamie (JamieDaugherty) both do fork rebuilds for reasonable prices. I'd contact them to find out who could get it done quicker.
As for a fork swap, a 954 setup is probably the easiest, and even that takes some doing. In retrospect I think I'd have been better off sending one of those guys my forks and getting a fork brace instead of the swap I ended up doing.
Here on the forum Greg (Hawkrider) and Jamie (JamieDaugherty) both do fork rebuilds for reasonable prices. I'd contact them to find out who could get it done quicker.
As for a fork swap, a 954 setup is probably the easiest, and even that takes some doing. In retrospect I think I'd have been better off sending one of those guys my forks and getting a fork brace instead of the swap I ended up doing.
08-18-2009, 10:27 AM
#13
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thanks ill have to loook into that, maybe over the winter. im sure i could find a local place to do it for me as shipping the entire fork would probably cost me a pretty penny from out of canada.
checked my air pressure, went to 39 in the rear from the 36 it was, and turns out the front was 24, a little low. not sure how my mechanic let it go with the pressure the low but its back up to spec now
i think springs are probably my best bet, how much can i expect to spend on springs? also should i adjust the dial on top of the forks at all ?
checked my air pressure, went to 39 in the rear from the 36 it was, and turns out the front was 24, a little low. not sure how my mechanic let it go with the pressure the low but its back up to spec now
i think springs are probably my best bet, how much can i expect to spend on springs? also should i adjust the dial on top of the forks at all ?
08-18-2009, 02:05 PM
#14
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Well just the springs are $109 from racetech. A valve kit costs more but is probably worth doing as well.
http://old.racetech.com/evalving/eng...ngname=english
and if you notice the stock rates are .585 kg/mm and for you on our bike .977 kg/mm is recommended.
So you can try adjusting your preload up but considering you need a spring that is about twice as firm to get it to ride right don't expect much out of that.
Greg is in New York IIRC so depending on where you are in Canada shipping might not totally kill you. He has also walked a few people through doing it themselves here so if you search around I am sure you can find those threads and see if you want to try it yourself.
http://old.racetech.com/evalving/eng...ngname=english
and if you notice the stock rates are .585 kg/mm and for you on our bike .977 kg/mm is recommended.
So you can try adjusting your preload up but considering you need a spring that is about twice as firm to get it to ride right don't expect much out of that.
Greg is in New York IIRC so depending on where you are in Canada shipping might not totally kill you. He has also walked a few people through doing it themselves here so if you search around I am sure you can find those threads and see if you want to try it yourself.
Last edited by lazn; 08-18-2009 at 02:08 PM.
08-19-2009, 04:39 AM
#16
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thanks guys. ill have to get in touch with him oer the next little bit and talk some numbers
i just aired the back up and the front aswell, front was at 24 psi, would explain why it sometimes felt a little loose in turns.
i just aired the back up and the front aswell, front was at 24 psi, would explain why it sometimes felt a little loose in turns.
08-19-2009, 11:11 AM
#17
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Squid
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Tacoma, Wa.
Posts: 4
Ya im a new superhawk owner as well and after buying and riding mine home the first day I found my mpg was horrible and handling was so so. I went home and checked the air pressure the next morning and found it at 21 front and about 31 in the rear. So I pumped em up to the recommended 42 rear and 36 front and wow what a difference in performance and mpg. Love the site and info. Good luck with the new bike and welcome.
08-19-2009, 02:19 PM
#18
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thanks man, same to you
if you havent yet done the bafflectomy i suggest it. the bike seems to run smoother through the power band and feels peppier not to mention sounds 100 times better. i drilled 11 3/8's holes into the baffle at the end of the can and man does it ever sound wicked. 4 wasnt enough and sounded ok.
i figured out my gas milage after a spirited night of driving, hiway pulls and such i still managed 38 mpg
if you havent yet done the bafflectomy i suggest it. the bike seems to run smoother through the power band and feels peppier not to mention sounds 100 times better. i drilled 11 3/8's holes into the baffle at the end of the can and man does it ever sound wicked. 4 wasnt enough and sounded ok.
i figured out my gas milage after a spirited night of driving, hiway pulls and such i still managed 38 mpg
08-19-2009, 07:21 PM
#19
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Squid
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Tacoma, Wa.
Posts: 4
Thanks for the suggestion on the bafflectomy but mine already had aftermarket exhaust done. I still haven't figured out my mileage yet but i swear it almost doubled just airing up the tires from what they were at!
I think you could say "I'm the 1st!" Welcome aboard.
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