MerlinPV12
13-06-2014, 09:54 AM
All the mechanical mods came together very nicely during my 10 day TT indulgence - 14-42 Renthal 521 sprockets kept her spinning nicely over the mountain and I found that I had the right gear more often - cruising is 86mph at just under 4.5k in 6th and no annoying vibration (on one way mountain section...) No issue with ABS after the sprocket change, but it has hit fuel consumption - but that could have been down to where I was as well!
Maxton front end is great, you still feel the bumps quite hard, but it doesn't unsettle the bike like it used to, Ohlin rear is 101% improvement on stock. Rear is now properly planted and I spend more time in the saddle! RCS with Bendix pads really made a difference to braking power and feel, Bendix pads are in the rear but have still to fit the RCS rear cylinder so not a massive change on the rear yet.
Sub frame and wheel weight reduction - I'm now used to it so its hard to remember what it was like stock but to me it feels a lot lighter - I've not found it necessary to push it so the TC kicks in and I've not spun up the back wheel yet, but I think that has more to do with the ratio change as first is now a "token gesture" to get you under way with a fairly short shift into second, from there you can pin it back and the rev limiter reminds you to again short shift. I think the most impressive change is the "roll on" acceleration when in 3rd and above, its now really eager to please! All in all very pleased with it and the clear clutch cover gets quite a few comments. Now having lived with it for a few weeks the cover only mists up if you do a short run and stop before the engine is warm. As soon as the temp is up, no more misting.
http://i1373.photobucket.com/albums/ag389/Duke1100evo/KingoftheCastle_zpsd3fb432d.jpg (http://s1373.photobucket.com/user/Duke1100evo/media/KingoftheCastle_zpsd3fb432d.jpg.html)
Maxton front end is great, you still feel the bumps quite hard, but it doesn't unsettle the bike like it used to, Ohlin rear is 101% improvement on stock. Rear is now properly planted and I spend more time in the saddle! RCS with Bendix pads really made a difference to braking power and feel, Bendix pads are in the rear but have still to fit the RCS rear cylinder so not a massive change on the rear yet.
Sub frame and wheel weight reduction - I'm now used to it so its hard to remember what it was like stock but to me it feels a lot lighter - I've not found it necessary to push it so the TC kicks in and I've not spun up the back wheel yet, but I think that has more to do with the ratio change as first is now a "token gesture" to get you under way with a fairly short shift into second, from there you can pin it back and the rev limiter reminds you to again short shift. I think the most impressive change is the "roll on" acceleration when in 3rd and above, its now really eager to please! All in all very pleased with it and the clear clutch cover gets quite a few comments. Now having lived with it for a few weeks the cover only mists up if you do a short run and stop before the engine is warm. As soon as the temp is up, no more misting.
http://i1373.photobucket.com/albums/ag389/Duke1100evo/KingoftheCastle_zpsd3fb432d.jpg (http://s1373.photobucket.com/user/Duke1100evo/media/KingoftheCastle_zpsd3fb432d.jpg.html)