One of them born agains is back out there...
Discussion
Picked up the new (to me) K6 GSXR today. Happy with the purchase, everything looks ok. Weird being back on a bike, really not sure! My brain is hard wired to race pattern shifts, caught me out too many times and was annoyed having to think about it. The last bike I actually rode in anger was a TZ250, this one feels very fat, very heavy but makes a lovely noise.
Not sure what I’ve done.
Tyre wise it’s on a Metz K or Z1 (whatever) front and supercorsa rear. I’ve never mixed tyres so will do some digging. Checked the pressures as it’s been standing and all of 15 psi was in the rear
Set at 40/32 headed off. Leathers fitted, amazingly, didn’t drop it putting fuel in, bonus and the first 40 miles were without drama, apart from trying to pull away in 6th from a stop, Then it pissed down.
Where am I supposed to put my iPhone and credit card, no storage anywhere at the mo.
It has an Akrapovic system, which sounds lovely, the engine and induction noise is mega. Power is linear, just builds. There are no rear pegs, due to the go faster exhaust bracket (faster) and dinky little pazzo levers and some bobbins. Someone has also changed the hoses to braided but kept it black, which is good. Also the rearsets are aftermarket, look decent as well.
The front feels quite soft, the bike generally is like that, no idea of setup but guessing it’s all stock internals. Until I’ve decided if I’m a wuss or not it’ll just go back to a known setting. It’ll benefit from an oil change and setup if it stays.
Maybe I should have gone for a new speed triple, new S1000rr or something, but we’ll see. Just thought everything would be amazeballs and I’d go straight back to being the hero I know I can be*
I’ll resist using the Atom, which feels much more happy and also fast everywhere to bond with my new fat bottomed girl. Anything that’s any good needs work eh?
Had to buy one just to see how it was, there’s only so much reading about things and wondering you can do. One saving grace, insurance was £250. Won’t see it now for a week but looking forward to the next outing, build up slowly and respect the fact it has no safety net For the price, it’s pretty amazing the amount of bike you get, basically less than the deposit for a new litre monster.
well not really*
Not sure what I’ve done.
Tyre wise it’s on a Metz K or Z1 (whatever) front and supercorsa rear. I’ve never mixed tyres so will do some digging. Checked the pressures as it’s been standing and all of 15 psi was in the rear
Set at 40/32 headed off. Leathers fitted, amazingly, didn’t drop it putting fuel in, bonus and the first 40 miles were without drama, apart from trying to pull away in 6th from a stop, Then it pissed down.Where am I supposed to put my iPhone and credit card, no storage anywhere at the mo.
It has an Akrapovic system, which sounds lovely, the engine and induction noise is mega. Power is linear, just builds. There are no rear pegs, due to the go faster exhaust bracket (faster) and dinky little pazzo levers and some bobbins. Someone has also changed the hoses to braided but kept it black, which is good. Also the rearsets are aftermarket, look decent as well.
The front feels quite soft, the bike generally is like that, no idea of setup but guessing it’s all stock internals. Until I’ve decided if I’m a wuss or not it’ll just go back to a known setting. It’ll benefit from an oil change and setup if it stays.
Maybe I should have gone for a new speed triple, new S1000rr or something, but we’ll see. Just thought everything would be amazeballs and I’d go straight back to being the hero I know I can be*
I’ll resist using the Atom, which feels much more happy and also fast everywhere to bond with my new fat bottomed girl. Anything that’s any good needs work eh?
Had to buy one just to see how it was, there’s only so much reading about things and wondering you can do. One saving grace, insurance was £250. Won’t see it now for a week but looking forward to the next outing, build up slowly and respect the fact it has no safety net
For the price, it’s pretty amazing the amount of bike you get, basically less than the deposit for a new litre monster.well not really*
Good to see another back on 2 wheels. I ride a k6 750 on track myself. They are softly sprung as standard and chances are yours need a bloody good service
Depending on location go to a specialist, put a couple hundred foot fresh oil, springs etc and it'll feel like a new bike
I had a Caterham style kit car before I got back on the road bikes myself. It was 300 brake per tonne so fairly nippy but it didn't give me the buzz of 2 wheels so after 10 years off I bought a road bike again in 2015
I'm right now currently in Dunlop grand stand at le mans having started part of a 4000 mile tour on the bikes... So yeah I got the bug
Enjoy it, and drop your rear pressure if you ride keen. 34f 32-34r is a nice setup I find on the tyres you run for summer road riding
Depending on location go to a specialist, put a couple hundred foot fresh oil, springs etc and it'll feel like a new bike
I had a Caterham style kit car before I got back on the road bikes myself. It was 300 brake per tonne so fairly nippy but it didn't give me the buzz of 2 wheels so after 10 years off I bought a road bike again in 2015
I'm right now currently in Dunlop grand stand at le mans having started part of a 4000 mile tour on the bikes... So yeah I got the bug
Enjoy it, and drop your rear pressure if you ride keen. 34f 32-34r is a nice setup I find on the tyres you run for summer road riding
Cheers matey, I just went with what the internet said regarding pressures, I’ve no experience of the bike or tyres but will drop the rear a bit and see how it feels. You’re right about a suspension service, it’s likely that the original oil is in there and the sag etc isn't right for me.
The GSXR is going to be over 190kg wet, compared to maybe 120kg for a TZ250, and the tyres will be much wider which means slower steering. All this requires quite a change in riding style if you want to use the performance (more physcial rider input needed), and skills can get quite rusty if you've been off bikes for a while.
I bet you'll love it once you've had a few weeks to adjust, hopefully we'll get a couple of months of reasonable weather to give you lots of opportunity to use it.
I bet you'll love it once you've had a few weeks to adjust, hopefully we'll get a couple of months of reasonable weather to give you lots of opportunity to use it.
Absolutely, I did have a blade before the TZ but this was a good while ago now, I recall that bike feeling a big old beast when I first had it. It’ll take time and like you say an adjustment in how I ride, the race bike was light and on slicks, very keen to turn. I’m sure once things start flowing and I am moving about on the bike it’ll all be ok. I’m looking at various tyres and which suspension place to visit to help, I’m sure that will bring loads more confidence.
It’s weird being back in leathers, was asked by the other half of this means we’re going racing again.....er no.
It’s weird being back in leathers, was asked by the other half of this means we’re going racing again.....er no.
yonex said:
Tell you what, after today I’ve even more respect for riders. I’ve got a bit of previous but could jump in most cars and crack on. It takes a lot more skill and balls to extend a bike.
I th I with modern litre+ bikes the performance is inaccessible enough for most riders that they would be faster on a lot of tracks on a slower bike.I was on my R1200GS as the ‘ring a few years ago, and was passing a fair few people on R1s, blades and the like as they seemed to be scared of the throttle. Rightly so, of course, when an eighth or a turn is so much extra thrust.
For me the more upright riding position left me comfortable to run right to the edge of the treads, whereas the sports bikes seemed to be far harder for the average rider to get to near the limits.
A bit of a similar thing to off-road bikes, ai suppose, where an average rider is happy to lock the front, kick out the rear, and correct a slide with the throttle. Some people can do all that on an R1, but most of us can’t.
yonex said:
Picked up the new (to me) K6 GSXR today. Happy with the purchase, everything looks ok. Weird being back on a bike, really not sure! My brain is hard wired to race pattern shifts, caught me out too many times and was annoyed having to think about it. The last bike I actually rode in anger was a TZ250, this one feels very fat, very heavy but makes a lovely noise.
Not sure what I’ve done.
Tyre wise it’s on a Metz K or Z1 (whatever) front and supercorsa rear. I’ve never mixed tyres so will do some digging. Checked the pressures as it’s been standing and all of 15 psi was in the rear Set at 40/32 headed off. Leathers fitted, amazingly, didn’t drop it putting fuel in, bonus and the first 40 miles were without drama, apart from trying to pull away in 6th from a stop, Then it pissed down.
Where am I supposed to put my iPhone and credit card, no storage anywhere at the mo.
It has an Akrapovic system, which sounds lovely, the engine and induction noise is mega. Power is linear, just builds. There are no rear pegs, due to the go faster exhaust bracket (faster) and dinky little pazzo levers and some bobbins. Someone has also changed the hoses to braided but kept it black, which is good. Also the rearsets are aftermarket, look decent as well.
The front feels quite soft, the bike generally is like that, no idea of setup but guessing it’s all stock internals. Until I’ve decided if I’m a wuss or not it’ll just go back to a known setting. It’ll benefit from an oil change and setup if it stays.
Maybe I should have gone for a new speed triple, new S1000rr or something, but we’ll see. Just thought everything would be amazeballs and I’d go straight back to being the hero I know I can be*
I’ll resist using the Atom, which feels much more happy and also fast everywhere to bond with my new fat bottomed girl. Anything that’s any good needs work eh?
Had to buy one just to see how it was, there’s only so much reading about things and wondering you can do. One saving grace, insurance was £250. Won’t see it now for a week but looking forward to the next outing, build up slowly and respect the fact it has no safety net For the price, it’s pretty amazing the amount of bike you get, basically less than the deposit for a new litre monster.
well not really*
I'm sure you will be back into the swing of things pretty soon.Not sure what I’ve done.
Tyre wise it’s on a Metz K or Z1 (whatever) front and supercorsa rear. I’ve never mixed tyres so will do some digging. Checked the pressures as it’s been standing and all of 15 psi was in the rear
Set at 40/32 headed off. Leathers fitted, amazingly, didn’t drop it putting fuel in, bonus and the first 40 miles were without drama, apart from trying to pull away in 6th from a stop, Then it pissed down.Where am I supposed to put my iPhone and credit card, no storage anywhere at the mo.
It has an Akrapovic system, which sounds lovely, the engine and induction noise is mega. Power is linear, just builds. There are no rear pegs, due to the go faster exhaust bracket (faster) and dinky little pazzo levers and some bobbins. Someone has also changed the hoses to braided but kept it black, which is good. Also the rearsets are aftermarket, look decent as well.
The front feels quite soft, the bike generally is like that, no idea of setup but guessing it’s all stock internals. Until I’ve decided if I’m a wuss or not it’ll just go back to a known setting. It’ll benefit from an oil change and setup if it stays.
Maybe I should have gone for a new speed triple, new S1000rr or something, but we’ll see. Just thought everything would be amazeballs and I’d go straight back to being the hero I know I can be*
I’ll resist using the Atom, which feels much more happy and also fast everywhere to bond with my new fat bottomed girl. Anything that’s any good needs work eh?
Had to buy one just to see how it was, there’s only so much reading about things and wondering you can do. One saving grace, insurance was £250. Won’t see it now for a week but looking forward to the next outing, build up slowly and respect the fact it has no safety net
For the price, it’s pretty amazing the amount of bike you get, basically less than the deposit for a new litre monster.well not really*
following the last rides slightly disappointing ending I ventured back out. The pressures were dropped to 32fr 34r, it only took a few hundred metres to feel th difference. Maybe because I wanted it to, or because it was such a nice day, but it was nice. Met up with a couple of mates, one on an 06 Blade and the other on a 15 Blade and never felt short changed anywhere. It turns well, seems stable over bumps, pretty decent everywhere. Moving around a bit on the bike, it’s willing to go where it’s pointed, still don’t like the road pattern shift but I was too lazy to swap it today.
Wasn’t sure at all about the tyre combination initially but it seems like it works. The intake noise it makes is lovely, no steps in the power anywhere just lots of drive. The throttle has a bit of free play but not sure if that’s not a good thing on the road, probably 3-4mm or so, is that normal?
I just want to swing my leathers back on again and go for another ride, off to wings and wheels tomorrow so will be in the car, might escape and grab the bike!
For a brief moment the red mist came down but mostly it’s just great leaving it in 3rd or 4th and rolling on and off, it’s way too much for the road but speaks volumes that as a first bike after all these years it’s not that intimidating (cue hospital visit).
I also like it was under £4K, juat seems like a lot of bike for the money. Lastly, I found the rear storage compartment, t
t. Handy for phone and keys.
The one thing I think needs attention are the brakes, they stop but very dull. Pad and Brembo master cylinder seem the way to go. Otherwise I’m going to check the cush drives, bearings and chain, give it a once over, as soon as I get a stand. Which one to go for, used to have an Abba one, anything better?
So. It’s a winner. Time to plan a few trips, Ireland, France and maybe a track day
And getting back to that car vs bike nonsense I have found the following;
Wasn’t sure at all about the tyre combination initially but it seems like it works. The intake noise it makes is lovely, no steps in the power anywhere just lots of drive. The throttle has a bit of free play but not sure if that’s not a good thing on the road, probably 3-4mm or so, is that normal?
I just want to swing my leathers back on again and go for another ride, off to wings and wheels tomorrow so will be in the car, might escape and grab the bike!
For a brief moment the red mist came down but mostly it’s just great leaving it in 3rd or 4th and rolling on and off, it’s way too much for the road but speaks volumes that as a first bike after all these years it’s not that intimidating (cue hospital visit).
I also like it was under £4K, juat seems like a lot of bike for the money. Lastly, I found the rear storage compartment, t
t. Handy for phone and keys. The one thing I think needs attention are the brakes, they stop but very dull. Pad and Brembo master cylinder seem the way to go. Otherwise I’m going to check the cush drives, bearings and chain, give it a once over, as soon as I get a stand. Which one to go for, used to have an Abba one, anything better?
So. It’s a winner. Time to plan a few trips, Ireland, France and maybe a track day
And getting back to that car vs bike nonsense I have found the following;
- I’m concentrating way more on a bike
- feel very vulnerable
- see st driving everywhere, mobile phones, fags on
- look miles ahead, try and leave margins
- it’s uncomfortable going slowly, numb fingers
- it’s boiling hot in traffic
- most cars move over, very pleasant
- motorcyclists wave a lot, I must stop waving at cyclists
- bikes sound epic
- bikes steer with hands, feet and body
- wheelies are good
Loving how you’ve analysed the hell out of it in two rides!! Haha.
Welcome back to biking.
The K5/K6 GSXRs are still brilliant bikes. Where the newer stuff beats them hands down is the suspension and brake technologies.
I totally regret selling my Stealth Edition K5 GSXR 1000, if I got another it would be straight in for updated suspension and brakes. Other than that they’re (for me) perfect!
Welcome back to biking.
The K5/K6 GSXRs are still brilliant bikes. Where the newer stuff beats them hands down is the suspension and brake technologies.
I totally regret selling my Stealth Edition K5 GSXR 1000, if I got another it would be straight in for updated suspension and brakes. Other than that they’re (for me) perfect!
obscene said:
At the very least change the master cylinder to a Brembo/Accosato. Then if needed you can down the R6/Brembo caliper route.
Thought of this, but it's 50/50. It's a great bike, fast enough. makes noise, handles well (for me). If I start buying master cylinders that's £250. Then it'll be better discs, £250. Then it'll be carbon wheels and suspension. At that point i think i've missed the point. Right now, it's better than me, might be forever tbh. It's just an exercise to see if i will use a bike again. i've learnt modifying is an expensive hobby.There's so many bikes to try, I really fancied an S1000rr, then a Superduke, then an R1M. It's a bit of as softy compared to them but you have to start somewhere
Went over to MSG in Long Crendon today on the off chance they could check the suspension over. I spoke to them before and was really impressed about what they knew about GSXR’s.
Last weekend I had a good time on the bike but it still didn’t feel that sharp. I just want confidence from the front, otherwise I can’t enjoy myself.
The good news is that it’s been given a clean bill of health. All appears genuine and not messed with. When their Dyno is up I’ll do a power run and correction, just to see. I don’t need anymore power, it rarely spins over 9K, way enough for the road.
As set the preload was all the way in and the rebound very harsh. Rear end was pretty stock, no mods, which is good. It turns out the rebound is pretty much useless from the factory and you have a very small window to make it work. We adjusted it as much as we could and backed off the preload as the forks had 30mm showing. He said it’d feel different and might be too harsh.
From the off it just turned better, felt like it was 20kg lighter. It’s way better and you can get it into a corner much easier now. It’s still quite soft, not harsh at all. They said they have a cheap fix for the nasty rebound, basically a mix of oil grades to force the thing to work, I’ll try that. First though, is loads of miles to get a feel for things. I’m 80% the main issue, ok in certain corners but if I’m not concentrating it can get a bit full on. Im not a fan of our shirt roundabouts, in the Atom, you can just light the rear up and deal with some understeer, the bike, not so much It’s at its best at 7/10 rolling in and off, lovely induction noise it’s got, just sounds dirty...make me smile.
I had a good look at a new GSXR1000 today, the packaging is truely insane. A non RRRRR (or whatever) is 13K and a blooper etc isn’t had to fit? I’ll stick with this though, if I feel the same in a few months then I’ll do something, if not sell the K6 and say, tried that. Right now though I’m thoroughly enjoying it.
Last weekend I had a good time on the bike but it still didn’t feel that sharp. I just want confidence from the front, otherwise I can’t enjoy myself.
The good news is that it’s been given a clean bill of health. All appears genuine and not messed with. When their Dyno is up I’ll do a power run and correction, just to see. I don’t need anymore power, it rarely spins over 9K, way enough for the road.
As set the preload was all the way in and the rebound very harsh. Rear end was pretty stock, no mods, which is good. It turns out the rebound is pretty much useless from the factory and you have a very small window to make it work. We adjusted it as much as we could and backed off the preload as the forks had 30mm showing. He said it’d feel different and might be too harsh.
From the off it just turned better, felt like it was 20kg lighter. It’s way better and you can get it into a corner much easier now. It’s still quite soft, not harsh at all. They said they have a cheap fix for the nasty rebound, basically a mix of oil grades to force the thing to work, I’ll try that. First though, is loads of miles to get a feel for things. I’m 80% the main issue, ok in certain corners but if I’m not concentrating it can get a bit full on. Im not a fan of our shirt roundabouts, in the Atom, you can just light the rear up and deal with some understeer, the bike, not so much
It’s at its best at 7/10 rolling in and off, lovely induction noise it’s got, just sounds dirty...make me smile.I had a good look at a new GSXR1000 today, the packaging is truely insane. A non RRRRR (or whatever) is 13K and a blooper etc isn’t had to fit? I’ll stick with this though, if I feel the same in a few months then I’ll do something, if not sell the K6 and say, tried that. Right now though I’m thoroughly enjoying it.
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