Well the Busa got home yesterday! Man it took the shop a long time but I must admit they did a good job. I think I told you all about the Healtech QS fiasco but basically Blue Monkey is no longer the HT rep. in the States and the shop had to order the correct harness from over-seas. Apparently HT did not know the harness does not fit the Busa but gave a new part number that was on back order forever. I was a little pissed because the shop didn't tell me right away the trouble they were having, I would have told them to forget it and get the bike done. Was looking at Dynojet anyway because of some features. Revzilla could have gotten that here overnight.
They did get the thumb break to work, which I had sort of given up on. They had to remove the clutch MC and change the line with a different banjo bolt to get everything to play nice together. Glad I let them hassle with that, would have been a bear without the brake line capabilities. The front wheel turns lock to lock and the only conflict is a slight touch on the inner fairing by the thumb brake lever. I'll need to get a blue reservoir from Rizoma for the TB. Also the rear brake can be operated from the TB or the foot lever.
Anyway, the TB is pretty cool. I can apply the rear brake with the same feel and subtlety as I do the front. It's hard to believe the Brembo rear caliper is making this difference, but the feel and control is through the roof. On the other hand, it requires a very complicated physical coordination to use it and I haven't yet figured out how to do it smoothly (only spent 2 hours on the bike). You don't realize how busy the left hand can be until you add another task to the process. Working the clutch works best if your hand is gripping the handgrip and the fingers work the lever (for me anyway). But working the TB requires me to lift the hand from the bars and reposition them. But if you think through it, as you go into a turn you usually are down shifting through the braking zones - which essentially means you need them in 2 places with the TB. Also in braking you do put more weight on the arms and hands and usually brace this against the bars. It's quite odd braking with the right hand on the bar and front brake, and the left unbraced and working the TB. It feels like braking one handed. I need to get the TB adjusted so I can stick the thumb out and work it while still covering the clutch. Looks like this might be tough because of the tight clearances.
The bike feels quite a bit different than a normal Hayabusa now. It has a smooth and subtle feel to it that is confidence inspiring. I don't know what is giving it the amazing feel specifically, but it's probably a combination of everything. I was worried about all these pieces adding up to a greater whole but I am pleasantly surprised at the resulting ride quality.
I have no idea if the TI axles do anything but weigh less, sorry to report. One day I might put the OEM axles back in and see if I feel a difference or maybe
@c10 or
@ROADTOAD1340 can give an opinion on that. But at what the 2 axles cost, I would safely put them in the parts for "the bike that has everything" category.
Well that's it for now. I hope to ride a bit in the morning, maybe another couple hours. We are getting a lot of rain this weekend so I haven't been able to ride it hard in this finished condition.
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