swordfish

well I finally got my butt in gear today, and painted the primer colored sharkskinz faring that I've been riding with all season. my bike was stock red before my crash last season. now its gonna have a gun-metal gray fairing. (still red everywhere else) and I've got some throw-back WWII nose art decals going on. I'll try to post pics when I get it all back together.

Mithrandir

Should we interpret "gun-metal" to mean "primer"?

swordfish

well actually, it was primer colored to begin with. I'd been riding it all season and hadn't gotten around to painting it till now. anyway, the color is a much darker gray. actually its not that different than the background color for this site. I can't wait to get it back on, and see how it contrasts the red. hope it doesn't suck.

inderocker

lets see some pics!!

Utah996

Yes I'm going to have to demand pics...since I'm a gunmetal fan.

swordfish

I don't have a digital camera so its gonna take some time on the pics. I know I suck for teasing you guys. ultimately, I did end up with a few runs in the paint, (its my first attempt). but I think it looks pretty good for a pep-boys paint job. I decided to hold off on the decals until I've got the bike back together and I'm sure I like it. I mounted the blinkers and the windscreen tonight, so its going back on tomorrow.

swordfish

well since I can't get pics of the bike now, at least I can show you what it looked like before I painted it. these are pics of me and my superhawk with the sharkskinz fairing pre-paint, as well as the other two bikes my wife and I own, my buddy's 04, R1, and my wife's friend's 04 ZX-636. but I have my doubts about whether this is gonna work, I might need instruction. here goes...

swordfish

ok it worked. this one is the SH, my wife's GS500, and my previous bike; yamaha SECA II in the back.

swordfish

my old SECA II, our friend's ZX-636, and R1.

swordfish

last one, SH profile. now imagine the fairing with just a little bit lighter shade than the engine case. I'm still trying to get a digital camera.

drrty

Is that the street version fairing from Sharkskinz? I'm curious as to how the bolt holes lined up, and what do you think of the weight difference compared to stock? Was it harder to put on than stock? Did it come pre-drilled for the mounting bolts, or did you have to drill?

inderocker

so wheres the finished product?

swordfish

yes its sharkskinz. everything lined up pretty good. maybe a little straining, but not bad. you do have to mount your headlight on brackets that come with the fairing. and attach to your front fairing mount. everything about the sharkskinz fairing is superior to stock. they are lighter, and much much stronger, and more flexible than plastic. my first ride after mounting it, I laid it over lightly in a parking lot. it barely scuffed a halfdollar size corner of the fairing. when I painted it, I was able to sand it out by hand. now you can't tell. I don't know if it was harder to put on than stock because I crashed the bike before I ever hada chance to take the stock ones off. and it came pre-drilled for mounting bolts, and windscreen. one thing to note though is that this fairing eliminates that wierd little light just above the headlight. there is no hole for it. I think it looks better without it anyway. and the whole thing is way cheaper than all the stock plastic.

swordfish

sorry, I was shopping for a digital camera, but then I lost my job. now I have a new job so I can start saving again. bear with me guys I want a camera more than you want pics. believe me. hindle highmounts are on now too, so it'll look even more different. got the pipes the same day I got fired. kinda evened out the day.

drrty

Thanks for the info!!! I'm going to sell my current fairings, and buy Sharkskinz. I was considering doing it before, but I wasn't sure because I hadn't gotten any firsthand input from someone who had the street version.
I was asking about difficulty of installation but your response answered that question just fine. I kind of like the fsmall light above the headlight, but if I have to lose it for a better fairing, so be it. I like the idea of the Sharkskinz being one-piece more than anything. And if I can use my Zero Gravity windscreen, that is just a bonus.
Now I just have to narrow down the paint scheme I want to use....

swordfish

glad I could help. I'm definitely happy with it. one other thing, the air vents have no internal structure, they just fold over on themselves. but they direct the air past the radiators just fine. I've never come any farther than half way on my temp gauge. I loved the fact that it was all one piece. and my little headlight was smashed in the crash that led me to get the fairing so I didn't have a conflict there. :wink: