Something to be aware of when upgrading

[howdamnhard]

Well this sounds REALLY OBVIOUS but when upgrading to a presumeably more powerful bike after having been stuck on a 250cc or smaller, one should pay particular care to the VASTLY SUPERIOR rate of acceleration they have.:eek5:
Having just upgraded to a ZZR600(99Hp), from a GN250(20Hp) I have found the warp factor acceleration the hardest to adjust to.It is a rush which means one must be on ones guard not to get carried away with it.Tonight (day 2 on the ZZR) whilst doing the traffic light derby I managed to briefly obtain a speed 30km/h in excess of the speed limit which wasn't so good as Mr Plod also noticed.:spanking:.
Fortuneately not all policeman are out to fill quotas and after explaining that I was only trying to ensure I was clear of the cages and was in the process of slowing down again and was still coming to grips with a new more powerful bike with vastly superior acceleration, he let me off with a warning.:clap:
So for two years of riding and no problems with the law on the GN to two days riding on the ZZR and busted for speeding .:slap:
:msn-wink:
So eventhough the head knowledge is there the heart knowledge still needs to sink in.Lesson duely learned.Good luck when you upgrade and beware that rapid acceleration to licence removing speeds.

[TOTO]

good reminder :yeah:

[jrandom]

ZZR600(99Hp)

:lol: <tenchars>

[nigel]

Something I will try to remember today as I go and do a similar upgrade... hmm must keep speed under control for the 10 minute journey back from palmy to wellington.. no sweet jumps allowed.. wait whaddayamean it shouldn't take 10 minutes? :shifty:

[madbikeboy]

How about I loan you Scoot for a day... Imagine yourself strapped to an ICBM screaming YEHAAA!

Okay, it's about thinking far enough ahead, your brain needs to adjust to the fact that your velocity is 30% faster than you're used to, so you need to think about 100% further ahead in terms of planning.

You would be well served to look up a mentor in your area, and failing that, go find a quiet place to go play with the bike.

The main difference I would have thought would have been how the bike corners and brakes. Go practice your braking somewhere safe.

[madbikeboy]

:lol: <tenchars>

JR, be nice. You probably think your bike is fast... ;p

[stevewederell]

Had similar sensation on the Hornet...yeeehaaarrr!!

[nigel]

Well the journey back took 2 hours with detour over the paekakariki hill road, thanks largely to the spectre of having to claim insurance on the first ride after getting it ;)

Now... where are the sweet jumps in Wellington :D

[EJK]

It's sodamnhard to maintain the legal speed eh? :lol:

[jrandom]

JR, be nice. You probably think your bike is fast... ;p

Define 'fast'.

I'm quite sure that GSX1400s, like every bike ever, don't make nearly as many horse powers at the wheel as their fond owners like to dream they do.

99hp ZZR600, bahahahahahaha chuckle snort.

[howdamnhard]

Define 'fast'.

I'm quite sure that GSX1400s, like every bike ever, don't make nearly as many horse powers at the wheel as their fond owners like to dream they do.

99hp ZZR600, bahahahahahaha chuckle snort.

Whatever,mr jrandom, it's still plenty fast for me.:headbang:

[howdamnhard]

How about I loan you Scoot for a day... Imagine yourself strapped to an ICBM screaming YEHAAA!

Okay, it's about thinking far enough ahead, your brain needs to adjust to the fact that your velocity is 30% faster than you're used to, so you need to think about 100% further ahead in terms of planning.

You would be well served to look up a mentor in your area, and failing that, go find a quiet place to go play with the bike.

The main difference I would have thought would have been how the bike corners and brakes. Go practice your braking somewhere safe.

Thinking ahead is not to much of a problem,it's the rate at which it reaches the legal limit is rather more rapid than the GN, causing me to overshoot.Was much better tonight,pouring rain has that effect.Now paying much more attention to my speed and also content to let it idle along at legal speeds,whereas before the engine seemed to be begging to be revved more.

Yes I agree must work on the braking and cornering.Braking seems fine but haven't tried any serious stops yet.Cornering will need a bit of work,hoping to remedy that with a little practice this coming weekend.:rolleyes:

[naphazoline]

i tried a big break from riding anything,then upgraded to a 750,then to a 1000, in less then six months :eek5:
talk about a lesson in throttle control :sweatdrop

[jrandom]

Whatever,mr jrandom, it's still plenty fast for me.:headbang:

Of course it is! Great bike. Just not 99 horse powers. Heck, neither is mine.

[kave]

I know how you feel, I went from a SRX250 (about the same hp as a GN250) to a SG350 (less hp than a vtr250), and then three months later I moved to my GSXR1100. Suddenly you go from riding around with the throttle open trying to wring every last bit of speed out of your bike and cruising around at 50kph in third, to trying to control the rate at which you open your throttle so as not to hit 100kph in first before ploughing into the back of the traffic that you thought was miles down the road, and trying to accelerate at a rate that is reasonable without looping your bike.

Just remember that your bike will only ever do what you tell it to, and you will be fine.

[howdamnhard]

I know how you feel, Suddenly you go from riding around with the throttle open trying to wring every last bit of speed out of your bike and cruising around at 50kph in third, to trying to control the rate at which you open your throttle so as not to hit 100kph in first before ploughing into the back of the traffic that you thought was miles down the road, and trying to accelerate at a rate that is reasonable without looping your bike.

Just remember that your bike will only ever do what you tell it to, and you will be fine.

Ye thats about it,but don't have any problems with looping,but then again a GSX1100 will have a lot more horses.

[howdamnhard]

Of course it is! Great bike. Just not 99 horse powers. Heck, neither is mine.

Ye considering its age and everything else it is probably around 80 something,but still plenty enough for me.Learning to putter around on it whilst commutting ,as opposed to giving it handfuls to get it going like the old GN.Last two days have been wet so that helps.Also keeping a close watch on speed after my Mr Plod incident.Looking forward to weekend in order to get a feel for her handling.

[naphazoline]

if ya wanna know more about your bikes hp,or torque,this link will give you all the info you want.


http://www.bikez.com/brand/kawasaki_motorcycles.php?page=11

[jrandom]

Ye considering its age and everything else it is probably around 80 something

I think you'd be surprised by what a no-bullshit calculation based off a proper torque measurement would work out at. Like I said, most people have wildly inflated ideas of their bike's power output.

My 1400's going in to TripleZee Cycles in Manukau next week for a BMC filter and dyno tune. They're not 'ego HP' tuners, so look out for the before and after graphs, I'll post them up when I get them. Should be interesting.

[jrandom]

if ya wanna know more about your bikes hp,or torque,this link will give you all the info you want.


http://www.bikez.com/brand/kawasaki_motorcycles.php?page=11

I've never seen anything on that site that had the remotest link to manufacturer specifications, published magazine tests or anything similar.

The majority of their bike specs appear to be made-up bullshit.

:blink:

[naphazoline]

I've never seen anything on that site that had the remotest link to manufacturer specifications, published magazine tests or anything similar.

The majority of their bike specs appear to be made-up bullshit.

:blink:

and so the same can be said for any review.
it's a very rough guide line,but in saying that,i've seen independent tests of my bike, that state within 1 hosrepower,of the spec's on this site.

it's also worth a mention,that the majority of figures stated,are at the crank,not the rear wheel.

i think horsepower is irrelevant.it's whether you like/enjoy the bike, is the most important thing.

[vifferman]

i think horsepower is irrelevant.
It's the shape of the HP and (especially) torque curves that's more important. Most bikes develop peak hp at a bazillion rpm - who rides at maximum revs apart from racers?

[The Pastor]

It's the shape of the HP and (especially) torque curves that's more important. Most bikes develop peak hp at a bazillion rpm - who rides at maximum revs apart from racers?
certainly not I

[marty]

i think horsepower is irrelevant.it's whether you like/enjoy the bike, is the most important thing.


hmm - fat chick, fit chick, they're both great in the sack, which one do you choose?

[OutForADuck]

Its not what you got its what you can use!!!! You'll adjust real quick to the extra weight/power. Soon you'll be wanting more, everywhere except the corners where most people are struggling to use a 600 let alone something stronger.

I toggle back and forth between a 125 Madass and my mental Gixxer 1000 streetfighter.... always takes 10mins to get my brain up to speed and not lagging behind the Gixxer each and every time :niceone: Not to mention the effect of handfuls of throttle for the first few miles of smiles before the wrist adjusts :devil2:

[naphazoline]

hmm - fat chick, fit chick, they're both great in the sack, which one do you choose?


ha ha ha....LOL.
that's a good one marty.but just remember,.....you don't have to shine the mantle when stoking the fire.
or you could turn out the light :lol:

anyway,...i like curves,and not just straight lines.so i guess it's the fat one for me then huh?:(

[howdamnhard]

It's the shape of the HP and (especially) torque curves that's more important. Most bikes develop peak hp at a bazillion rpm - who rides at maximum revs apart from racers?

To true,if your on a race track thats great but normal street riding it's not very helpful having nothing down low and everything at the top.Something I hope bike manufacterers might be finally realising.Having said that I am finding the ZZR600 putters around ( when commuting) quite nicely at 3000-4000rpm with still a healthy turn of acceleration if reqd.Going to be interesting how many kms I can get out of a tankful.

[BANZAI]

So for two years of riding and no problems with the law on the GN to two days riding on the ZZR and busted for speeding .:slap:

How can you NOT get busted for speeding on GN? It's so fast around town and in traffic jam!!!! :lol:

[Whynot]

hmm - fat chick, fit chick, they're both great in the sack, which one do you choose?

The fat one obviously ....
the other one is probably high maintenance :Pokey:

[mctshirt]

Having just upgraded to a ZZR600(99Hp), from a GN250(20Hp) I have found the warp factor acceleration the hardest to adjust to.It is a rush which means one must be on ones guard not to get carried away with it.Tonight (day 2 on the ZZR) whilst doing the traffic light derby I managed to briefly obtain a speed 30km/h in excess of the speed limit which wasn't so good as Mr Plod also noticed.

It's the increase in torque that got you into this situation not horse powers.

Horsepower=top speed (available power)
Torque=acceleration (power delivery)

In terms of torque you have gone from approx. 20 Nm on the GN250 to approx. 65 Nm on the ZZR meaning things happen approx. 3 times faster so all you have to do is think 3 times faster and you're laughing all the way to a higher horse powers enabled top speed (limited by other variables like weight, wind resistance, gearing, and cajones)

Trucks and tractors use the principle of high torque and hp coupled with low gearing to pull large weights at normal speed.

[Counter-Steer]

The fat one obviously ....
the other one is probably high maintenance :Pokey:

Yeah, Nah, aye... Sorta found that out the hard way of late :rolleyes: Time to trade her in me thinks...