View Full Version : Hurrah for new tyres!
My SV has been transformed. From an ill-handling pig of a bike to an ill-handling pig of a bike with a new tyre! Rejoice!
Nice gearbox though.
ASM-Forever
08-03-08, 04:46 PM
What hoops did you put on it and how much?
:)
My SV has been transformed. From an ill-handling pig of a bike to an ill-handling pig of a bike with a new tyre! Rejoice!
Nice gearbox though.
And why is it such an ill handling bike :?:
ASM-Forever
08-03-08, 05:16 PM
And why is it such an ill handling bike :?:
Stock brakes/suspension are absoloutely ****e. IMO they attribute massively to the handling. I guess its all relative but if for example you compare it to Nigels previous bike, ZX7, then it probably is gash.
Stock brakes/suspension are absoloutely ****e.
Suspension yes, brakes no. OK they are no six pots from a supersport. But then the SV is no supersport. The stock brakes are fine. My question was a leading question to find out if the suspension was stock or not. My SV handles just fine. But then I have changed both the front and rear bouncy bits. Was wondering Nigel, it you think it's such a bad handling bike, why have you not done something about it. :?:
What hoops did you put on it and how much?
:)
Whatever the replacement is for the D220. The front's still fairly OK, so I just stuck a new matching rear on it. 100 quid fitted to a loose wheel at ride-in in Reading.
I'd forgotten what a pain in the backside it is getting a rear wheel back in. Still, saved me a tenner and let me stay nice and dry in the car...
Suspension yes, brakes no. OK they are no six pots from a supersport. But then the SV is no supersport. The stock brakes are fine. My question was a leading question to find out if the suspension was stock or not. My SV handles just fine. But then I have changed both the front and rear bouncy bits. Was wondering Nigel, it you think it's such a bad handling bike, why have you not done something about it. :?:
The brakes on the SV are absolutely fantastic - just the slightest tickle on the lever and it's like someone's shoved a broom handle through the front wheel. They're far superior to the 6-pot Tokicos I had on the 7R, though they were in a horrendous state and I think they ended up in a skip when I stripped the bike down.
But, as great as they are, it's hard to make much use of them because the front end's so awfully vague. All the suspension is stock, albeit with the preload (about the only adjustment there is) wound up to the top to try and get some semblance of stiffness - before I did that it was like riding a high velocity hammock. I would get it sorted, but the SV was only intended to be a stopgap measure while I rack up some NCB and wait for the points to come off my licence. I needed something for long distance runs and plans B and C (supermoto and a silly two-stroke) weren't going to fit the bill. If I had any plans to keep the SV, I'd consider throwing some time and money at it to sort the springs out, but the moment insurance on something more interesting becomes reasonable, the SV will be gone, gone, gone. It's just taking a while because insurers (understandably) hate me.
Anyway, who's Nigel?
Anyway, who's Nigel?
Sorry, I meant Norman.
Is this an in-joke I'm not party to or something?
ASM-Forever
08-03-08, 06:46 PM
Is this an in-joke I'm not party to or something?
Its you. ;)
I thought the brakes on my sv were ok, worse than my 2 strokes though and definitely worse that on my bike now.
philbut
10-03-08, 02:53 PM
Well I think the SV handles great - but then I am comparing it to a GPZ500 and an ageing ZZR - still, I am going to avoid riding a decent bike so I can maintain my love of the SV's (apparently) rubbish suspension. It also might help that even with kit I weigh about 11 stone, so not really much more than a little jap guy I'm guessing. I set up the preloads on the front for my weight and it's not fully wound in. I never bottom the forks out, even under very heavy breaking (or don't notice if I do anyway)
I weigh about 11 stone, so not really much more than a little jap guy I'm guessing. I set up the preloads on the front for my weight and it's not fully wound in. I never bottom the forks out, even under very heavy breaking (or don't notice if I do anyway)
I never bottom them out either, but that's just preload. The damping on the SV forks is pretty dire - some heavier oil wouldn't hurt and being able to adjust for compression and preload would be good - but, like any bike that's built down to a budget, the more cost-effective solution is usually to just buy a better bike, not throw money at bolt-on bits.
philbut
10-03-08, 05:03 PM
I agree. When I am a bit more afluent (IE actually get a job again) I will no doubt get something better. But I can still have so much fun on the SV. It's almost more satisfying getting a bike like that to go quick as oposed to so super slick race rep - just requires a bit more work. I do aggree that the damping is pretty cr*p, and you do notice it on uneven roads. she quite often goes a bit wayward on corners with potholes etc but you just pre-empt the poor damping and compensate. at least it means you don't have to spend ages tryting to work out the best compression and rebound settings - that really used to annoy me in MX, there were so many possible combinations to play with.
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