SV Comfort

[hongman]

Hey all

Just looking for suggestions really, as most of the threads on here about comfort are about tall people having issues.

I'm the opposite (short)! 5'4, slightly lowered seat (dont know by how much)

Just took the SV for a 50 mile round trip, 25 miles of motorway and 25 miles of A roads.

Now I know I am going to experience some aches here and there as I adjust to riding in general but I wonder how much I can attribute to this?

I am keeping as relaxed as possible, conciously gripping only has hard as I need to. This is a lot harder though when you cant feel your hand ;)

What I have found is:

My right hand goes numb. On the way back I had pins and needles to the point of not being able to feel the front brake, lol.

Left wrist is still aching. I can change gears ok now, the pulling motion of the clutch doesnt hurt anymore. Its from weight on my wrist, pain from the base of my little finger in a striahgt line just past my wrist.

Now I am trying to make my trip to the AR as comofrtable as possible.

I am going to try another ride later/tomorrow with my winter gloves on, as they are thicker and offer more padding.

Gong to invest in some stomp grips, heared they work well.

Would raising the bars / bar kit help with shorter people?

Where on the seat should I plant my ass? Is there a proper way? Right now I tend to sit balls to the tank, tried shufling back a bit but I'm not sure if I like it. Wondering if my posture is to blame for some of this?

Thoughts, comments.

Thanks

[dyzio]

I'm about 5'6 and found it comfy (after I got used to it), with the Ape now, I get a numb hand only when going slow.

I found that when riding the curvy long distance, a tank bag helped a lot as I could rest my belly on it and hide behind the fairing.

Another tip would be, adjust your brake and clutch levers. If that doesn't help you could try look for some Heli bars.

[hongman]

Oh yeah, I forgot to add I had to go from a double bubble to the standard screen after my off, as I broke it :(

So another one of those is on the cards when funds permit.

I have adjusted both levers to be at a better position (were too high up).

[CLARKYsv]

How are the vibrations on the bars? If they are quite high... maybe some weighted bar ends would be useful.

Grip more with your thigh on the tank than your hands on the bars... you'll find the more you squeeze that tank... the less weight you put on your hands.

Have you got adjustable rear sets? Are they set to standard or have they been set for another rider prior to you? Mine came with an adjustable add on and are set too high for me really. Means less weight will go on the pegs and more to the front.

For another one (and this is a question as well as a possible answer) check that your suspension isn't hard at the back and soft at the front.... otherwise weight will tend to want to go forward sometimes (however this may be drivel....)

[MattCollins]

I am not a short rider, but bar angle is the wrist killer for me. They are always set too far back and raising them does diddly until they are straightened out.

[hongman]

Thanks.

1) Vibrations on the bars...I dont know if its abnormally high, to be honest. I have feck all to compare to!
2) I do grip with my knees, however now and then I find I have relaxed them and holding my weight on my hands, and have to re-adjust.
3) Standard rearsets.
4) Now this is interesting. My front forks are very, very soft. The rear shock seems ok to me if I'm honest, but maybe thats becuase I'm light?

I wonder if sorting the forks would resolve at least some of this (vibrations and the last point)

The bar angle - not sure. Again, first bike I have rode with bars like this, I think they are ok but who knows.

Are standard bar ends "weighted"?

[Owenski]

check the line of your hand/wrist in relation to the levers.
Its generally worse for taller people, they often ride with their risk at a steep angle to the thier forearm, but maybe yours have been adjusted by someone and its now causing you the same issue.
Personally I like to point my levers down as I ride pretty much sat on the tank.
The wrists will hurt for a while regardless just while your body adjusts to the possition, once you've got a tollerance for it and developed the right muscles then it goes away.
(Thats an assumption mind fella, I know mine used to hurt then they stopped. Then I got the pointy and they ached again... then they stopped I therefore assumed it was more to do with the time it takes to adjust to the bike.

[Dicky Ticker]

Hongman, I am of the belief that you are a fairly new rider,possibly only to the SV and a lot of the problem is you are gripping the bars to tight,try and relax your grip a little.
Even I get numb fingers sometimes and I find tapping the finger ends on the tank helps and wiggle your fingers when holding the bars.
If you are going to the AR it might be more than your fingers that are numb:)

[TazDaz]

The wrist pain lasted about 2 months for me before it seemed to vanish. I think it just takes a bit of time for a body to adapt to the new experience.

[Messie]

Squeeze the thighs together Hongman. You are thinking and focussing far too much on your hands and wrists. Instead think about your legs. The best bits of advice I got for this sort of problem (and others :0 ) was to try to keep your knees together!

And do check the angles as well. Make sure the angle of the clutch and front brake levers are parallel to the full length of your arms. Simple twiddle and makes a big difference.

[hongman]

Hongman, I am of the belief that you are a fairly new rider,possibly only to the SV and a lot of the problem is you are gripping the bars to tight,try and relax your grip a little.
Even I get numb fingers sometimes and I find tapping the finger ends on the tank helps and wiggle your fingers when holding the bars.
If you are going to the AR it might be more than your fingers that are numb:)

Your belief's are correct DT - to riding in general, not only the SV.

I do conciously try to lessen the grip of death, but I do squeeze up on turns and stuff.

I am going to the AR, excited as hell although nervous as well (about the riding, not meeting you crazy lot!)

Now taking applications from females to help un-numb my bum by means of a massage. Please form an orderly queue!

The wrist pain lasted about 2 months for me before it seemed to vanish. I think it just takes a bit of time for a body to adapt to the new experience.

Yeah, agreed. I just dont know how much of it I can attibute to the getting used to it. Maybe after a month or 2 I will have no pain/aches without any modifications - lets hope.

[hongman]

Squeeze the thighs together Hongman. You are thinking and focussing far too much on your hands and wrists. Instead think about your legs. The best bits of advice I got for this sort of problem (and others :0 ) was to try to keep your knees together!

And do check the angles as well. Make sure the angle of the clutch and front brake levers are parallel to the full length of your arms. Simple twiddle and makes a big difference.

Yep, did this the other day (managed to snap a perch bolt too, lol).

[Specialone]

Make sure the gloves fastenings are not tight as well as the cuffs on your jacket, they can cut off circulation.
Ride with your forearms as close to parrallel with the road as possible, this works, it will be weird at first but will reduce the numbness.
When braking especially grip the tank with your knees, it will transfer some of the load onto the tank and not all on your wrists.

[hongman]

Thanks mate.

Funnily enough I did notice that when I take the glove off my bad wrist, I can almost feel the blood rushing back into my hand lol. Doesnt look swollen but maybe internally?

Something to keep in mind.

ta

[barwel1992]

i found gloves were a big problem, the type that have a thin strap around the wrist make my hands numb

other than that i have all ways been relaxed on a bike so that might help

[Jackie_Black]

It's the lower body thing that takes getting used to. Once you can grip with your legs subconsciously, you can steer round corners one handed with very little effort and no death grip (don't try this at home kids). Also the lower body can help to keep some of the weight off your wrists when braking. Practise, practise, practise!

I had heli bars on my sv and they were ok, but i was actually comfier when i went back to the clipons. It's a fairly sporty bike so you will always ache a bit unless you are hard as nails!

[barwel1992]

get some stomp grips, they help greatly

[Specialone]

Or get a pointy ;)

[hardhat_harry]

Ah the death grip of a new rider I remember it well, some time ago now though.

Eventually you will stop thinking about what you are doing when your riding and just ride and funnily enough the pain in your hands / wrists will disappear at the same time.

I know its easier said than done.

Funnily enough this applies to snowboarding and pain in the feet as well.

[Owenski]

Ah the death grip of a new rider I remember it well, some time ago now though.

Eventually you will stop thinking about what you are doing when your riding and just ride and funnily enough the pain in your hands / wrists will disappear at the same time.

I know its easier said than done.

Funnily enough this applies to snowboarding and pain in the feet as well.
first time back on the pieste at Easter in about 6years for me, an GOD THE PAIN!!! I ended up finding the best solution was to wear 3 pairs of socks forcing my feet to flex rather than tense up. Didnt enjoy the first few days at all, kept taking off my boots and standing barefoot in the snow to sooth them. (Then not too long after back in to the boots cos my tootsies were getting a chill).

[dyzio]

Or get a pointy ;)

Being serious here, most people find them less comfortable.

[maxinc]

As a new rider myself I'm blaming the most of the discomfort on the V2 engine vibrations and I tend to get the numb hand more often at certain revs (5-6k). There isn't much I can do about the engine but there were things which dramatically improved my comfort.

1. adjusting the levers and pedals.
2. adjusting riding position as mentioned many times already.
3. using my core and lower body to support rather than hands.
4. some physical training to straighten those muscles as well as wrists exercises.

I've raised my threshold from 15-20 miles to about 100 miles until I start to feel uncomfortable. I never got a numb hand on my mate's ZX6R.

[Owenski]

Being serious here, most people find them less comfortable.
+1 had both and more often than not choose to ride the curvy.
Then when I converted the curvy into a pile of parts I had no choice... havnt looked back the pointy (now im adjusted to it) is a much easier bike to ride.

[hongman]

Some great tips here.

Will update later, going on a 25 miles twisty road to client site and back later today, with my winter gloves.

Big straps, lots of padding.

[Luckypants]

Make sure the gloves fastenings are not tight as well as the cuffs on your jacket, <snip>

Thanks mate.

Funnily enough I did notice that when I take the glove off my bad wrist, I can almost feel the blood rushing back into my hand lol.

Definitely good advice from Specialone, I still find that I do up my gloves too tight on my right hand. I takes a concious effort to not cinch them up tight for me. These days I c0ck my wrist to make it thicker while I do up my gloves, then they seem to be about right while riding.

If the pains / tingles don't resolve themselves, it may be down to your stature. I'd suggest you speak to Speedy Claire at the AR, who is of similar height and find out if you suffer similar pains to what she did. Then have a sit on her bike and see if the higher bars she fitted feel better.

[hongman]

Thanks.

Well, 25 miles through twisties and it started aching just towards the end - which is an improvement.

No numbness with the winter gloves, at all, and it definately felt more comfy overall :)

I already have a lowered seat, but I was thinking about lowering it some more. Bit more confidence and I realised at the petrol station this morning that I cant actually paddle back on my bike, lol. Never tried before today.

[barwel1992]

just remember lowering the seat makes the leg position more cramped, although some strange people like me actually prefer it like that :D

[hongman]

Noted, thanks.

[philbut]

Just keep putting the miles on mate. You will get use to it eventually and then it won't hurt. Your body adjusts eventually even if the bike isn't set up perfect. All the comments about bike set up have already been made, so I just wanted to say keep at it. The SV is a very comfortable bike (I had exactly the same as you - best colour, nice choice). You wanna try a ZX7R - now THAT is hard on the wrists!

[Specialone]

Being serious here, most people find them less comfortable.

I wouldnt know, i havent rode a curvy (bike anyway ;))