CDog Posted May 10, 2015 Share Posted May 10, 2015 Not having owned a bike for a few years I was doing low speen drills in a parking lot.. I am a big guy at 250 lbs but fit.. still heavy though. Lock to lock turns at idle and 10 minutes into practice and "Spin the head other way, snap the bars to other lock and tip in a hair" WHAM.... low side... same as I have done it 20 times just prior but no low side then. Helmet touches down pretty hard for that speed (amazing how little jarring my head actually felt... but RF1000 used up now) My pegs did not touch down.. back end let go not front.. I have been in a turn with bike at speed and feelers touch before I run out of tire so I was counting on them to tell me... nada My deductions are. With suspension not compressed, you can run out of tire before your pegs hit (looking at tire supports this) Shoei makes a fine lid (Sporting gt air now) Be careful... did I mention you can run out of tire first??? I did some research into the tire on the bike after and found sidewalls reinforced with carbon fiber to reduce or eliminate sidewall flex.. I want mine to flex.. New tire different brand coming up I lowered air pressure by 2psi front and back for street to 34/40 then ran a 300 mile day in twisties... better Damage to the nine was broken brushguard left side.. its a 3 peice set, only main arm broke... 24 bucks... some scratches to back of mirror (minor) and engine case (again minor) Not counting helmet cost... 24 bucks.. no fairing damage I need to trust my rubber and I am struggling with that right now... someone said you need to practice when I told them what happened... I said umm I just told you I was doing parking lot drills... duh lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattemike Posted May 10, 2015 Share Posted May 10, 2015 Sorry to hear you dropped your bike but am glad your gear minimized any damage to you. I think parking lot drills are essential to learn steering limits, throttle control, body position, etc. I just received my FJ & ran some low speed practice b4 I even left his lot. Muscle memory helps keep me safe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dmizer Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 I want mine to flex.. Sorry ... but no. You don't want your sidewall to flex. Flexing sidewalls creates unpredictable corner handling and makes your bike feel like it's sliding when it's actually not. The firmer the sidewall, the more control you have at steep angles. That's why a carbon fiber reinforced sidewall is a selling point. It's an easy performance increase. I'm guessing you had a get off because the TCS kicked in and didn't allow you to accelerate out of the turn like you needed to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDog Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 I want mine to flex..Sorry ... but no. You don't want your sidewall to flex. Flexing sidewalls creates unpredictable corner handling and makes your bike feel like it's sliding when it's actually not. The firmer the sidewall, the more control you have at steep angles. That's why a carbon fiber reinforced sidewall is a selling point. It's an easy performance increase. I'm guessing you had a get off because the TCS kicked in and didn't allow you to accelerate out of the turn like you needed to. Could be right.. and I learn something every day... time to look into it... I need to take tcs off and see... so far its been pretty good for me... I run in normal mode.. tried others and they are nice but I had not thought of the tcs..... your explaination of sidewall flex scans but I dont mind backend wiggle as long as it hangs on... I need more something... I never dooubted my FJR's feet... this has me flummoxed... need to learn more.. Thanks both of you.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
couter Posted May 11, 2015 Share Posted May 11, 2015 I want mine to flex..Sorry ... but no. You don't want your sidewall to flex. Flexing sidewalls creates unpredictable corner handling and makes your bike feel like it's sliding when it's actually not. The firmer the sidewall, the more control you have at steep angles. That's why a carbon fiber reinforced sidewall is a selling point. It's an easy performance increase. This is not true. I have had bias ply(rigid stiff side wall) tires and radial tires on a motorcycle(a 1985 sabre), and the radials are the way to go.(radials have flexible sidewalls) They offer a much more confident grip with the road than any bias ply tire. My understanding is they flex very little, but enough that it provides a slightly larger contact patch. Decreasing the pressure drastically can have an adverse effect. a couple psi may not hurt( I found I prefer the way my sabre handles with the pressures a couple psi lower than recommened.) Looking at the tire on my bike, its factory equipped with a radial tire. Honestly, I wouldn't go changing up the tire to a bias, Maybe a different brand. I do agree the carbon fiber does add reinforcement, but that reinforcement is fiber. It will allow the tire to flex like it needs to and to give you more strength. (longer lasting, more resillient to dips and bumps) Now If the sidewall were as flexible as a cheap car tire, then yes, you would have some uncomfortable handling characteristics... In my exp, like riding on a deflated tire or a tire that has a ton of dry rot on it. (puke) This is also why it is ALWAYS worth it to put a good tire(front and rear) on that steel steed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDog Posted May 11, 2015 Author Share Posted May 11, 2015 By running out of tire I actually meant I ran out of tire on the lean angle. The shape. I rode beyond the curvature of the tire for the lean I was at. I had expected the feelers to be my Gage. I have felt the back end step out on pint strips so on but that did not bother me In other news. They are closing Miller Motor Sport park here in SLC... huge loss. Every since the dad died the kids have been running his empire into the ground no more track days unless I can get there before August ** sigh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member jimf Posted May 11, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted May 11, 2015 By running out of tire I actually meant I ran out of tire on the lean angle. The shape. I rode beyond the curvature of the tire for the lean I was at. I had expected the feelers to be my Gage. I have felt the back end step out on pint strips so on but that did not bother me Huh. Given the length of the feelers I'm surprised. That makes me wonder how far you have to go before hard parts are touching. I'm hitting my toes pretty easily if I'm not up on the balls of my feet, which surprised me quite a lot since I've not yet been into the mountains and have not been pushing hard. I have to remember that this is not a Daytona. I've felt some sliding leaned well over too, although I attributed that to the tires being new and not scrubbed in edge-to-edge. Another thing that surprised me is how thin my chicken strips are, on the rear anyway, given the roads I've been riding which are not conducive at all to hard cornering. I think the flickability of this bike, especially compared to the sportbike I have been riding for the last eight years, makes me more apt to push it even in the slow-speed corners. I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing. In other news. They are closing Miller Motor Sport park here in SLC... huge loss. Every since the dad died the kids have been running his empire into the ground That really sucks. I don't get the impression that there are very many other tracks in that area.... 2015 FJ-09 (Mary Kate) 2007 Daytona 675 (Tabitha, ret.) 1998 Vulcan 800 (Ret.) 2001 SV650S (Veronica, Ret.) 2000 Intruder 800 (Ret.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDog Posted May 12, 2015 Author Share Posted May 12, 2015 Yea.. I think TCS made me lowside... but the tire issue for me is real... I dont feel comfy pushing due to that. I will look for a tire with a different profile. My 300 ZMile romp into the mtns was fun.. but I stayed a 7/10th due to tire fears. The FJ is a very capable bike and I trust good rummer but I need it on the ground..LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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