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Gearing for leisure city riding? Is this possible?
I bought a 98 Hawk. The PO has it for the past 17 years and the bike seems to be in pretty great shape overall but he lived in northern Michigan and was riding country roads, my test drive was great but I was also riding those same roads and highways. I brought the bike home and took it for a ride today, I live in the city and I really didn’t like the ride.
Does anyone know what the factory gearing is? Or have any recommendations on what I could look into to doing lower it to make it better for getting around town? As of now I have to stay in first to make it through the neighborhood. Any advice would be greatly appreciated 1998 Honda VTR 1000 Superhawk 30k
Love my SuperHawk...not a city bike for me. I prefer a dual sport for city riding...need to jump a curb, see over the car in front of you, replace plastic...I use my '89 TransAlp for city riding. YMMV
16-41 is stock. Some say 16-43 is the sweet spot. I think Mr Marquez runs 15-43. How low do you want to go?
I'm sure others will provide direct input for city riding.
Originally Posted by Wolverine
16-43 is where it @ for me. W/ a 15, you really loose top end and first is almost useless IMO.
Thank you guys for the quick replies. I was thinking if I added a couple teeth to the rear It would be better. I got my plates today and actually went for a decent ride. I wish I would have researched the bike a little more before I bought it, but it mine now and ultimately I would like to keep it. It seems like the issues I am experiencing are quite common. I thought It was running a little hot when I rode yesterday, but I was only in the neighborhood and from what I read if you go slow it gets hot lol. If I stay on roads where the speed limit is above 35 then it seems to run amazing. If I am in the neighborhood or have to stay 30 mph or less it get pretty warm quickly and even stalls out on occasion. I think I need to take her out a few more times to make sure it isn’t me, which I only think it could be because the stalling is getting better as I get more comfortable and learn the bike.
I changed the oil yesterday because the frame was getting hot to the touch and I read that they can be very sensitive with old oil in them. It actually seemed to cool it down quite a bit, the frame still was warm but nowhere near like it was the day before. I used Mobil 1 15-50 and a super tech filter. I am going to order a new radiator cap, flush the cooling system and chase the air out just to be sure. Supposedly it has a K&N air filter on it and that could be part of the stalling. I have a number of things to check out. I am hoping it is something simple, it might be running a little rich, cracked hose, fuel petcock, carbs cleaned or synced.....all this forum reading makes me think I should get the MCCTs installed as well. I would like to wait until winter if I am going to do that.
This is more work than I anticipated, that’s for sure.
Thanks again.
Last edited by EffingHawkSucker; Jun 16, 2020 at 03:56 AM.
Reason: Too long
Regarding the running hot issue, before you change the coolant, check the level. At our shop, many bikes that come in that are running hot have a too-low level. Regardless, I would flush & replace the coolant; coolant is recommended to be changed every 2 years; coolant picks up acids circulating through the the engine and the coolant's performance/ability to cool degrades over time (btw, brake fluid and clutch fluid should also be changed every 2 years as brake fluid absorbs water from the air).
How high does the temp needle get on your bike? On my bike it NEVER EVER goes past the mid-point on the gauge even when stuck in traffic.
Regarding the running hot issue, before you change the coolant, check the level. At our shop, many bikes that come in that are running hot have a too-low level. Regardless, I would flush & replace the coolant; coolant is recommended to be changed every 2 years; coolant picks up acids circulating through the the engine and the coolant's performance/ability to cool degrades over time (btw, brake fluid and clutch fluid should also be changed every 2 years as brake fluid absorbs water from the air).
How high does the temp needle get on your bike? On my bike it NEVER EVER goes past the mid-point on the gauge even when stuck in traffic.
Since I don’t really have a clue when the last time any of it was done, I will definitely get it done. We had a couple days so far that the humidity was really high and it was in the mid 90s. Those couple days I was concerned when the temp gauge was getting up to 3/4, the radiator fan kicks on and cooled it down but i stayed close to home and shut it down before it ever went into the red if it was even going to, it seemed like it might have if I kept going. I was just riding in first and second around my neighborhood with a stop sign every couple hundred feet. It usually stays around halfway but will go up to 2/3 Ish regularly before the fan kicks.
I haven’t been riding much because I was waiting to get the bit to adjust the air/fuel mixture screw as I have been experience some surging And idle hunting. I finally got that but haven’t had a chance to mess with it, I don’t want to make anything worse either
Last edited by EffingHawkSucker; Jun 28, 2020 at 06:26 AM.
I too just bought a 1998 SH and found that I'm only using no more than 3-4 gears unless I'm short shifting it with low revs.
I figured this to be normal and realize this is a beast of a bike compared to my old 1973 KZ400 I rode years ago. 😂😉
Im subscribing to this thread as I too live in the Deep South where it's hot and humid but perfect in the winter.
Im now debating on whether to change the gearing or not but will make an informative educated decision down the road as I acclimate to this banshee of a steed. 🤟
There's a wire at the ignitor that goes straightforwardly to the tach, and there's one more on the ECU outfit that goes to the ignitor. dark/white and blue/yellow IIRC. In the event that you join those two together at the ignitor, you can utilize OEM wiring in the ECU outfit to drive pin 11 or whatever. No compelling reason to run any extra, no compelling reason to do anything at the diag box.
Last edited by Wolverine; Sep 24, 2021 at 09:07 AM.
I'm old and a little dense, and I've been working on bikes for about 50 years, but I have no idea what you're talking about or what it has to do with gearing.
Please clarify.
I'm old and a little dense, and I've been working on bikes for about 50 years, but I have no idea what you're talking about or what it has to do with gearing.
Please clarify.
You're actually changing the final drive gear ratio of the bike to accommodate better use of all the gears available.
Tall gearing comes with the bike and changing the rear sprocket with a 43 tooth over the 41 tooth factory sprocket lowers the gearing so that in city driving you're able to use all the gears on the bike.
With the 41 tooth sprocket in the city you'll never hardly use the last 2 gears whereas the 43 tooth change will now allow all 6 gears to be used.
You're actually changing the final drive gear ratio of the bike to accommodate better use of all the gears available.
Tall gearing comes with the bike and changing the rear sprocket with a 43 tooth over the 41 tooth factory sprocket lowers the gearing so that in city driving you're able to use all the gears on the bike.
With the 41 tooth sprocket in the city you'll never hardly use the last 2 gears whereas the 43 tooth change will now allow all 6 gears to be used.
On the same subject: If anyone needs a 43 tooth JT steel rear sprocket, I've got on that I ran with a brand new EK 3D chain for about 200 miles. I used it because I got impatient waiting for my Supersporx Stealth one.
I've got on that you can have for twenty bucks plus postage.
