What is THE Superhawk suspension setup?
 

First post - I'm diving right in.

I'm burnt-out on the never-ending arms race that are track days and looking to get back into having simple fun, meaning lazy afternoon rides in the countryside on a cool piece of machinery then throwing the bike into the back of the truck and heading out for a trackday when I need to get some speed out.

I'm looking at the Speed Triple but there are some issues getting my long legs (36" inseam) to fit. I may have found a Superhawk locally to go try on for size. I weigh 215-lbs so if it fits I'll still need to address the suspension. Is there a most-common suspension setup for the Superhawk?

As an example of the information I'm looking for I previously owned a SV650. Traxxion makes an emulator drop-in kit for the forks but the stock shock is worthless. Transplant shocks (such as from a GSX-R) are a waste of time, mainly because no one will re-valve them. Instead, shops want you to drop $875 for a Penske double-clicker. If you somehow score a used one it will most likely still have to be rebuilt. Once past those hurdles - and assuming you don't get sucked into a GSX-R fork swap or AK-20's costing half the value of the bike - the magic numbers are raise the shock and forks 10 mm and set the rear sag at 30 mm and front at 35 mm.

I anticipate shipping the forks for springs and revalving, but what about the stock shock - can it be rebuilt? If not, is there a reasonably-priced alternative?

I assume there's a length difference between the stock Superhawk and F4i shock lengths. Is the F4i shock shorter or longer than the Superhawk?

Yes, there is a lenght difference, But Jamie makes a billet endpiece that takes that out of the equation, and actually raises the rear a tad, which is just like you want it...

Front, you could go the route with a beefed up spring and re-valve, like Jamie does, but then I really, really recommend getting a fork brace as at your weight it twists noticably... Also a brace from a 900RR swingarm fits to wel on the stock swing, and helps rear end twist... But in all honesty, I'd do a front end swap... You get better stability, better brakes all in one package...

I just found Jamie's site (below, for reference). Looks like $415 for a premium F4i shock as compared to $625 for a Sport Penske from Traxxion. Either one should at least be adequate for what I want to do with the bike.

I appreciate everyone's help. Looks like I need to learn up on the CCT issue. Were rectifiers a problem for these bikes as well? Anything else I need to know?

http://www.daughertymotorsports.com/

Some in the UK as well,in your price range

NEW HAGON REAR MONO SHOCK HONDA VTR1000F FIRESTORM VTR1000 VTR 1000 1997-2008 | eBay

^ I've checked into Hagon before when I had a SV650. I stumbled over a steal on a demo Elka double-clicker but got frustrated I could never get it dialed in. I got frustrated with the SV-cult thing in general and got a F4i trackbike already set up with a Penske double-clicker. As far as brakes and suspension it was a much better bike, but a lot harder on tires so I sold that one, too.

I'm price sensitive - I'll spend $875 on fork mods, a shock and brakes but not one component - but serviceability is important to me, too. I liked how any suspension shop can rebuild a Penske double-clicker. I've heard the Sport model, with no external reservoir, is a different animal.

Holy cow! I'll have to come back to that one! I'm a dumbass when it comes to wiring - I only know you don't want to break any wires because that when the smoke gets out. Is there a plug-and-play rectifier out there or am I going to have to do some splicing?

+1 to Tweety and VTRsurfer
If you aren't doing the work yourself, the most cost effective suspension upgrades are fork springs and valving from Hawkrider or Jamie Daugherty and a revalved F4i shock from Jamie. The front brake calipers, pads and lines can be upgraded fairly cheaply. You're likely to be disappointed with the stock ones.

You can keep replacing the stock type R/R a couple of times, about once in two years seems to be the norm... Or you can do some easy soldering and splice in a Mosfet type R/R and go through the entire wiring for corrosion, and then forget it was ever a problem...

I just replaced my OE r/r this year. 12 years/about 30k miles no issues. With everyone doing the upgrade, pick up a spare or 2. If you have any signs of failure, swap it out. This would probably be the cheapest and easiest way to deal w/ the "problem" part.

And welcome to the board!

A fork spring swap is super easy and probably the best upgrade you can do to the Hawk. And as others have said, the JD f4i shock or scour the classifieds for a while and try to catch an Ohlins/Pensky/Fox. I picked one up for 4oo.

This one might still be for sale!!

That's one strategy for the R/R... But what I was trying to convey without much success apparently, is that once you start having problems, or a first failure, you are most likely experiencing problems from corroded wiring, so then you keep blowing substandard replacements at regular intervalls... But yeah, you can go several years on a new bike without seeing any problems... So to fix the problem, adress the corrosion AND the R/R... Then pick the R/R you like... OEM, aftermarket OEM copy... Or Mosfet... All should work fine, but the Mosfet one are more robust and stable, and have a much longer service life...

I've got a Fox Twin Clicker I'll be selling for $400.00 plus shipping. Just have to pull it off the bike. PM me if you're interested.

^ Thank you. I'm thinking over a Superhawk I looked at this afternoon. I was all exited until it wouldn't start because the seller let it sit too long. Now he doesn't want to reduce the price. I haven't had a lot of luck with carbureted bikes - I'm not sure I want to take on another one.