Big Shepp

So here's the situation.

I finally finished installing my CCTs and pair plates. It was quite easy with all the walkthroughs on here, thanks a ton to everyone for the advice and knowledge. I was a little confused as to HOW tight the CCTs should be but finger tight plus about half a turn seemed to do it.

My question is this; what should I focus on next on my bike?

It's got 40xxx miles, fresh oil, and I just re-did the cooling system this summer. Besides a few kinks I plan on fixing this next week, I think it's about time to change gears from "repair" to "modification."

I'm probably going to replace the spark plugs soon as well. Suggestions on those?

Other than that what other things should I look into? I bought some exhaust wrap so that's on the list as well. Should I re-jet the carbs?

Also my brake pads and front tire are about 75% worn, so those will be up for replacement this winter.

Anyways, suggestions for immediate projects is the subject, fire away.

8541Hawk

What you "really" need to modify right now is the rider.

Take the money you have and buy good gear and then do some track days so you can learn to ride.

This is in no way a put down, so I hope you don't take it that way.

The best thing you can do is become a better rider, then start making changes to the bike.

I'm just an old guy but I will tell you the best bang for your buck will come from improving your skill set.

Tweety

Apart from basic maintainance, a good set of tires and possibly swapping the fork springs if you are a heavy guy, the benefits of training and experience far outweighs anything you can do to the bike... So, gear up and book yourself a beginners track day (prefferably with an instructor of some sort)

I realize it's backwards, coming from guys like me, who have a long list of mods, but before i started doing that, I rode the bike with nothing done to it but heavier fork springs and a CBR M/C a good while, spending several weekends each season chasing and being chased around a track by riders far better than me, on bikes with considerable better performance... I'm by my own standard "possibly, maybe above average" as far as rider skills go, but experience counts... And well, I like to tinker, hence the end result...

If you do want to make modifications for the sake of tinkering, I'd start with the suspension and brakes first... Speed is useless without control... And braided lines and a pair of used calipers and M/C isn't going to break the bank... Neither will the correct forksprings and a F4i damper worked on by Jamie D...

Cafe Racer

There is no need for header wrap. It looks pretty nice on a "nicely" modified bike. But for your purpose, unnecessary. It actually leads to premature header wear.

Leave the carbs alone. If it runs well now just ride it. (aftermarket pipes would require working on the carbs.) Your don't need the additional power right now.

I you need to "do something" then change the brake pads and brake lines. Use a quality "street" pad and a set of SS Galfer lines. Also look into quality tires. But at your skill level you don't need the stickiest tires. Save your money.

Do you have a pair of riding boots? Motorcycle riding boots? Get a pair. Riding gloves? Get a pair.

Miguel

Old Yeller

The guys above are right on in my book. If you've never been to a track, you don't realize what you're not capable of, and what the bike can do. it was a total eye-opener for me, plus I learned a LOT about how to ride better/faster...and had a BLAST to boot! Cheap leathers, boots and gloves are all you need. Beware though...there's a reason TRACK and CRACK have so many letters in common! :-D

As for changes, suspension is your best bet if you haven't alreaady done these things. Front is more critical than rear. Mine has springs and valves done and it was a great improvement. There are also cartridge inserts that you can do, or you can take it all the way to replacing the front end with another model for more adjustability. Personally, if I wanted to go to that extent, I'd buy an RC51 and use that as the starting point, but that's just a personal opinion.

Big Shepp

Fortunately I already have full riding gear, minus pants, so I'll put those on the list.

Unfortunately, there aren't any circle tracks anywhere near where I live.
I'm pretty sure the nearest one is in Tulsa, which is a little over a 3 hour drive for me. The nearest drag strip is about an hour back in my hometown. Should I hit up the strip first before I go to the road course? I've got a few buddies that race the strip on bikes, so they could teach me that aspect pretty easily.

Here's a link to the road course and the motorcycle class they offer.
Hallett Motor Racing Circuit

Apparently I'm gonna have to order over-the-wrist gloves with my pants as well.

Old Yeller

3 hours isn't bad to get to a track. I've gone 8 hours to ride at Barber Motorsports Park.

By full gear, I mean a full racing suit. If two-piece, it must zip together at the waist all the way around. At least for the companies I ride with.

In my humble opinion, strip racing only teaches you how to pop the clutch and go fast in a straight line. I know there are nuances to learn there too, but doesn't translate to the street for me as readily as curve experience. I've learned things such as how much you can trust tires in an emergency, or when you get into a curve on the street and think you're too hot into it. Instead of bailing, I've learned how much more I can lean and trust the tires.

The Hallett track looks like an enjoyable ride. Trust me though....you'll get hooked!

Big Shepp

Well Yeller, you're my height, even though I'm 230lbs; what track suit should I look into?

Thumper

I just picked up a new Alpinestar RC-1 2 piece from Ridersdiscount for less than $550 to the door. My old one piece had seen its days.

nath981

have you checked the valves yet? if not, you're overdue. When you do, you'll be able to see, as well as feel, how tightly to adjust your CCTs.

Old Yeller

I picked up a 2-piece Joe Rocket suit on sale from this site. I ordered one size larger to fit my back protector under my jacket.

MotorcycleGear.com (the new name of New Enough) :: Motorcycle Jackets, Helmets, Gloves, Boots, Luggage, Parts and More!

Big Shepp

What exactly does checking the valves do/entail?

7moore7

Checking the valves takes a fair amount of time, especially if you need to buy new shims, but it doesn't take too many tools (feeler gauge and basic wrench set) and is a cheap way to keep your bike maintained.

In a nutshell, you take your valve covers off, check a few tolerances, spin the crank a few times, replace some mini metal sweet tarts, and bolt it back together.

Your valves can wear over time and thus do not perform at their optimum open/close rates that the motor was designed (a number of other things can happen too like carbon build up, but . Checking your valves sees how much if at all this has happened to your motor, and if you adjust them properly, your motor will run smoother and last longer.

Big Shepp

Anyone have a thread describing how to do all this?

7moore7

Service manual is the best place to start. There are a few threads that are questions based on the procedure in it. It is a regular check, and the process is covered pretty well in the manual (in other words, I don't know of a thread, but mostly cause it's not really needed)

nath981

i started to buy shims, but this proved a lengthy and relatively costly process, one I wasn't willing to tolerate. I also learned that dealers(yamaha, honda, and suzuki in my area) all stocked only Hot Cams shims. Given that these shims aren't close enough size-wise to set all the valves right at spec, or +1 as I did, I deducted that if you take your bike in for a valve adjustment, you will likely get valves set within the spec range, but not likely the same. One might be right on, two may be +1, while others might be -1. While technically this may be considered within spec, there is no way that this adjustment will stay in spec as long as the original or one that is exactly on the desired setting, plus it is expensive, and who wants this kind of job anyway.

consequently, if you or a friend has a mic, a piece of glass, a piece of emery cloth, and a little mechanical savvy, you can easily sand each shim to the exact tolerance, i.e., set all the valves right on for nothing and in a few hours for the whole job, and learn to adjust the CCTs the real way while you're at it.

7moore7

Agreed on that... that's a few steps ahead of where Big Shepp is though.

Also, check with the dealer, cause I was able to buy the smaller increments at mine (they didn't just use the hotcams kit).

98VTRrider

Last year when I was looking for a suit I stumbled upon www.KobeUSA.com mentioned in some other forum. You cannot get a better deal, it was $500 for the one piece suit, over the wrist gloves, and a back protector. All made in the USA. Extra thick 1.7mm leather

They have three style suits to choose from. Give them a call and ask if they will still do the $500 deal for everything. Their customer service was awesome also.

Old Yeller

that is a good deal, and the thickness of the leather should be paid attention to as well. I've gone sliding on my joe rockets and was very appreciative of the thick leather to protect me!

Shepp, you're young enough to contort yourself into a one-piece. I got a two piece because it's easier to get on, even if already zipped together.