wordsmith Posted January 8, 2019 Share Posted January 8, 2019 (edited) I'm not a fan of bling for bling's sake, but having seen many pix here of bikes with wheel rim stickers/ decals thought might consider it. I do lurv the Lava Red of my bike and a little more wouldn't hurt. But - seeing that they come as a 'kit' of (seemingly) several pieces that are applied to the rim, may I ask how tricky it is - or is not - to get the perfect circle? I wouldn't want anything less than perfect! Thanks.. The pic below shows what I mean, though this isn't necessarily the brand I'd buy, just to illustrate the question. Edited January 8, 2019 by wordsmith Riding a fully-farkled 2019 MT-09 Tracer 900 GT from my bayside home in South East Queensland, Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member estell Posted January 8, 2019 Premium Member Share Posted January 8, 2019 I added red wheel rim stickers to my red FJ-09. I applied them by hand and I did not get perfect circles. If you insist on perfect circles then you may need to use a tool or a guide. If you are standing back far enough to take a photo of my whole bike then it is not obvious that they aren't perfect. You have to focus on the wheel alone to notice that they aren't perfect. I do not insist on perfection in regards to bling so I am satisfied that they enhance the appearance of the bike. By the way, I added a red front fender from a 2017 FZ-09 to increase the red content. It is a perfect match to the FJ-09 red. I'll add a photo of it to my gallery soon. 2015 red FJ-09: Cal Sci screen, Sargent seat, ECU flash, slider combo, cruise, Rizoma bars, Matts forks, JRi shock, slipper clutch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member texscottyd Posted January 9, 2019 Supporting Member Share Posted January 9, 2019 1 hour ago, estell said: By the way, I added a red front fender from a 2017 FZ-09 to increase the red content. It is a perfect match to the FJ-09 red. I'll add a photo of it to my gallery soon. Following with great interest... been thinking of either the red FZ fender or a carbon fiber. Look forward to seeing how it looks on your bike! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member betoney Posted January 9, 2019 Supporting Member Share Posted January 9, 2019 4 hours ago, wordsmith said: I'm not a fan of bling for bling's sake, but having seen many pix here of bikes with wheel rim stickers/ decals thought might consider it. I do lurv the Lava Red of my bike and a little more wouldn't hurt. But - seeing that they come as a 'kit' of (seemingly) several pieces that are applied to the rim, may I ask how tricky it is - or is not - to get the perfect circle? I wouldn't want anything less than perfect! Thanks.. The pic below shows what I mean, though this isn't necessarily the brand I'd buy, just to illustrate the question. I put silver rim stripes on my red FJ. They come as a kit like you said, 4 stripes per each side of one wheel. I waited until I had the wheel off for new tires so I could have the wheel on a work bench for the install. I used very soapy water on the rim and installed one stripe and got it positioned then squeegee'd the excess water out, then repeated with the remaining stripes. Up close, my application isn't perfect but you have to look for the imperfections, they aren't readily obvious. The kit I bought came with a few extra stripes for trial and error, the first one can be frustrating until you get the feel for it and then the rest are pretty easy to apply. ***2015 Candy Red FJ-09*** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsmith Posted January 9, 2019 Author Share Posted January 9, 2019 13 hours ago, estell said: I added red wheel rim stickers to my red FJ-09. I applied them by hand and I did not get perfect circles. If you insist on perfect circles then you may need to use a tool or a guide. If you are standing back far enough to take a photo of my whole bike then it is not obvious that they aren't perfect. You have to focus on the wheel alone to notice that they aren't perfect. I do not insist on perfection in regards to bling so I am satisfied that they enhance the appearance of the bike. By the way, I added a red front fender from a 2017 FZ-09 to increase the red content. It is a perfect match to the FJ-09 red. I'll add a photo of it to my gallery soon. Looks pretty good to me, estelle - and who is usually a bigger critic of our work than ourselves, so if you're satisfied... I too am interested to see the red front fender. Even before I got this bike I've been contemplating painting the pannier lids (as I did on my last Tracer, with good results), but the colour match would have to be excellent, so strong and striking is the Lava Red paintwork. The front fender might be a good place for me to trial both technique and paint colour... Riding a fully-farkled 2019 MT-09 Tracer 900 GT from my bayside home in South East Queensland, Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsmith Posted January 9, 2019 Author Share Posted January 9, 2019 28 minutes ago, betoney said: I put silver rim stripes on my red FJ. They come as a kit like you said, 4 stripes per each side of one wheel. I waited until I had the wheel off for new tires so I could have the wheel on a work bench for the install. I used very soapy water on the rim and installed one stripe and got it positioned then squeegee'd the excess water out, then repeated with the remaining stripes. Up close, my application isn't perfect but you have to look for the imperfections, they aren't readily obvious. The kit I bought came with a few extra stripes for trial and error, the first one can be frustrating until you get the feel for it and then the rest are pretty easy to apply. Thanks - but the wheels won't be coming off - at least, I hope not! But I didn't realise that the technique is as you described - I assumed they had some sort of adhesive backing which might 'grab' the rim at first approach. Here - one lives and learns every day! Riding a fully-farkled 2019 MT-09 Tracer 900 GT from my bayside home in South East Queensland, Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member betoney Posted January 9, 2019 Supporting Member Share Posted January 9, 2019 9 minutes ago, wordsmith said: Thanks - but the wheels won't be coming off - at least, I hope not! But I didn't realise that the technique is as you described - I assumed they had some sort of adhesive backing which might 'grab' the rim at first approach. Here - one lives and learns every day! The ones I bought were indeed "stickers" with an adhesive backing. However the instructions that came with them suggested using soap and water to be able to "locate" the sticker in place before patting it dry in its final position. ***2015 Candy Red FJ-09*** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsmith Posted January 9, 2019 Author Share Posted January 9, 2019 Cunning! Riding a fully-farkled 2019 MT-09 Tracer 900 GT from my bayside home in South East Queensland, Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bugie Posted January 9, 2019 Share Posted January 9, 2019 (edited) If you are doing a simple red stripe don't buy those as they are quite difficult to align. You can buy rolls of rim tape that come with an applicator tool. Super easy and shouldn't take you more than 5 mins each wheel as they are 1 piece. The tool just rests on the rim so the tape remains equally spaced in the wheel. It also separates the sticky backing from the decal as you apply it. You can see the roll in question and how the applicator works in the pic i attached. 1 roll should do an entire bike. Just make sure you clean the rim properly before application using alcohol I would only recommend rim tapes that come in multiple parts when they have graphics. Edited January 9, 2019 by bugie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsmith Posted January 9, 2019 Author Share Posted January 9, 2019 (edited) Thank you very much, bugie - this sounds like the answer to a maiden's prayer! I can buy this kit locally for $22.95, might even be enough tape to put a stripe along the bodywork in the shadow-line under the tank! Bit worried about wasting alcohol in this way, though! Edited January 9, 2019 by wordsmith 1 Riding a fully-farkled 2019 MT-09 Tracer 900 GT from my bayside home in South East Queensland, Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
koth442 Posted January 9, 2019 Share Posted January 9, 2019 Oh that applicator would have saved me loads of squiggly lines on all my other bikes!! '15 FJ09 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brewhaha Posted January 10, 2019 Share Posted January 10, 2019 On 1/9/2019 at 2:16 AM, bugie said: Are these reflective? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bugie Posted January 10, 2019 Share Posted January 10, 2019 (edited) The 2nd bullet point on the box says they come in reflective or fluorescent finish Edited January 10, 2019 by bugie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsmith Posted January 10, 2019 Author Share Posted January 10, 2019 (edited) I'm gonna buy a kit today - will let you know what choice seems to be available. I don't know if I want reflective, but the red colour must be compatible with the bike's Lava Red paint job. No oranges or pinks here, thanks! Edited January 10, 2019 by wordsmith Riding a fully-farkled 2019 MT-09 Tracer 900 GT from my bayside home in South East Queensland, Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsmith Posted January 11, 2019 Author Share Posted January 11, 2019 (edited) Went to a nearby accessories shop, and they have the Oxford kit but only orange tape. Checking to see if red is available. But I'm not sure I want to proceed - I'm by no means poor but I do like value-for-money, and $23 or thereabouts for a short roll of tape and the tiny applicator-tool the size of my thumb seems like a lot! But in the mail today is a roll of nice red 6mm tape to put into the horizontal shadow-line under the tank, as many here have done - I'll do this later as it's far too hot to work in the garage right now.. Edited January 11, 2019 by wordsmith Riding a fully-farkled 2019 MT-09 Tracer 900 GT from my bayside home in South East Queensland, Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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