Stonesie New Bike

[Stonesie]

I do enjoy wiring but it has to be done right, even the crimp terminals with their own silicone boots got some heat shrink to re enforce them.

I just enjoy tinkering and perfecting things I suppose.

[Stonesie]

Swift update

The bike was in for it's first MOT at Doncaster Motorcycles on Friday and passed with flying colours, he did mention that one caliper was dragging a bit but not enough to cause a problem and that the pulsing was down to the pattern of the discs, no detectable warp in either of them. In the afternoon they were stripped and cleaned with a toothbrush/brake cleaner and pistons lubed with silicone spray, worked in and out until all as free as each other and put back together again, then I bled them and found a few bubbles.

EBC seem to be happy with that and that means if I want to replace them it will be at my expense. I have bigger fish to fry so will get used to it until I can afford to splash the cash on some Brembo discs and SBS pads, a combo that made the heavy KTM stop really well.

Although, I am more than happy with the stopping power, even torturing the brakes until I could smell them the EBC HH pads never faded so they have been working on the compound and improved it since last time I tried some.

[Stonesie]

I love doing jobs twice apparently, The EBC Vee rotors are OUT! and Brembo Gold Series are in.

Problems with the EBC's were the pulsing vibration which I can only put down to the pattern of the cutouts in the discs, and they are too thick on the carrier/hub which pushed the ABS ring in to the sensor, I should have picked that on up on installation but I didn't think to check and even my MOT guy missed it and he was looking for a problem with the front brakes.

I got the micrometer out and the EBC's are 5.75mm at the hub and the Brembos are 5.00mm so the ABS sensor now has clearance. And I am glad that I kept that old tyre, it makes working on the front wheel so much easier having a non-slip stand for it





I checked the EBC discs and pads, I found no grooves or scoring on either so as they are so new I have left the HH pads in place.
I have a long ride tomorrow but if I find any issues then I will turn back at the first fuel stop.

[Kwacky]

Is there much weight difference between the two sets of discs?

[Stonesie]

Not that I noticed, which bodes well for the Brembo's as there is a lot less air in the pad contact area. I used these discs on the KTM and the thing stopped really well once they were bedded in.

[Blade]

Stonesie, its normal for the abs sensor to have a few shims fitted. If your having clearance issues you should be able to make adjustments as required by adding or removing shims to set the gap to manufacturers specification.

From what you say, I would suspect your pulsing issue would have been related to the abs sensor clearance, or lack of it.

The Brembos look good

[Stonesie]

There are no shims on this bike and they are not mentioned in the service manual, also when I first fitted the discs I had them lined up and it was way worse, as soon as I got home I unbolted and rotated the right disc by 1 bolt hole to stagger the cutouts, which made the pulsing faster but less severe.

[Blade]

If you've still got the discs maybe keep them as spares and a make a little shim to set the abs sensor clearnance correctly, now you know the issue.

[Stonesie]

300 miles today and the brakes are fully bedded in and smoooth, a simple thing that I have always taken for granted. Also very nice feeling with plenty of power on a good squeeze of the lever.

Also need some parts for my neighbours bike, he forgot to put it in gear when he parked it up pointing down hill these bikes do not topple well.

[Kwacky]

SX owning the fast group

[Stonesie]

Oof a 2020 model too, I think I need to show this bike a few laps of Cadwell Park next year, it's got the power, no question...
The chimp on its back is the weak link.

[Stonesie]

Today I looked at it, it fell over a few weeks ago and it landed on a low wall, the nose has already been replaced but it has been sporting this battle scar.


When I rode with a friend to trade his SX for a BMW the salesman spotted my bike first, being BRIGHT LIME GREEN rather than all black and said "That's a few hundred off to sort that out" I just laughed and pointed to the black bike and said that's handy because that one's the trade-in.

So today I rang Kawasaki original parts and after some detective work as the system said that my bike should have grey upper fairings, I ordered a new panel and the decals.

I was going to get a motografix kit to cover it up but I don't really like the look and 3/4 of the locating pegs are damaged anyway so I may as well do it right.

Thoughts of trading this one in keep floating around my brain but then common sense kicks in with the objective question "What is actually wrong with this bike, what does it not do that you want it to?"
And I can't come up with a decent answer, plus I have just spent money on the brakes and not even bedded them in properly yet.

[Kwacky]

I think it's a biker thing to be constantly looking at other bikes and to think about changing what you've got for something else.

[StMarks]

I think it's a biker thing to be constantly looking at other bikes and to think about changing what you've got for something else.

Hmmm....
I think I must have always known, deep down, that I'm probably not a real biker...

[duke63]

Bikes are not like cars.

They are so many different types with vastly different characters which i think is why so many of us are always wanting to try new bikes.

[Stonesie]

It's not helping that my enforced time off (my holiday blocks are allocated) in tier 3 is giving me too much time to watch YouTube reviews, and I seem to want to try all the different engine layouts, I like the torque of twins over the top end of a IL4, the SX is pretty grunty for a IL4 though.

In an ideal world I would keep the SX as a long range sporty tourer and get something light and punchy for shorter days on twisty lanes... I am still working on that lottery win

[C00kiemonster]

Bikes are not like cars.

They are so many different types with vastly different characters which i think is why so many of us are always wanting to try new bikes.

I think thats a good summary.

Plus you can fit more in a garage

[Stonesie]

Just had an offer from Superbike Factory over in Wigan, £4800

My neighbour with the GS now got £6600 trade in for a bike 6 months younger with 4K less miles in very similar condition but bone standard so I was expecting £5500 minimum.



From other threads, short version.
I am trying to get my debts knocked out ASAP and the only thing of any real value I have is the bike, which is now paid off as part of a consolidation loan.

I did not consider the card at 0% at the time, now I calculate I need to pay just about £300/month to clear it in time.


I won't leave bikes, I have my eyes on the VFR800 so I have been putting a lot of research in to them and have decided that a 06-10 bike is for me, because of the clear indicators (fekin TART!) and the beefed up charging system... I looked at the price of a genuine stator for a 2005 bike £389.50

[Kwacky]

That does seem very low for yours
You've not had it long

[duke63]

Wrong time of year for selling unfortunately.


I gad a chat at JHP the other day about bike prices. They said the market for newish s/h bikes is not great these days and the biggest issue is its very hard for them to get competitive finance on them so they are often hard to move on as a new bike can often work out cheaper if bought on finance