Lowering your bike

[reggiebusa]

Loads of questions. I lowered it for the look. I don't need it to be lower-i'm 6ft 3. In Ireland there are'nt to many stretched bikes!!! So with the 8in over swingarm and it lowered it will draw a  crowd where ever it's parked up. I also plan to take it to the Isle of man TT races in June and probably run it up the drag strip. I suppose it the question that has been asked so many times on here. You either like long and low or you don't-each to their own.

 

[High-Gain Busa]

Aahhh!

The plot thickens

So it's stretched. We were wondering how the hell the tire hit the light.

Well, here's the fix... An 8" stretched tail. The pic is of a stock and a 6" stretch. I don't have a pic of the 8" stretch but they are available.

 

[The Big Red One]

It`s there bikes, they can do anything they want to them.  

Oh, without question! As long as the owner is happy, everyone else can go pound sand... there are only 1001 ways one can enjoy his/her Busa; to each their own, etc.

I was just curious why it seems so pervasive in the Busa community to lower their bike on the street.... if we were all short little dudes, sure, I could see it. But from reading the various Busa forums over the past 6 months, suspect many a lowered street Busa has little to do with one's inseam length.  

But again, I'm not trying to slight anyone who does this... it's your machine to do with as you please....!  

I have a bike that was slammed when I got it....it sucks bigtime to ride, its just eye candy

I'll never lower a street bike, I do too much 2 up and long distance riding.

 

[Tufbusa]

Ok, I want to ask but don't want to cause a big screaming debate; rather, I am genuinely curious: what is the end effect people are trying to achieve by lowering their Busa on the street?    

I understand lowering it for dragstrip purposes; I am referring to lowering it but still doing street riding... this just seems like a problematic course of action, to effectively reduce suspension clearances, etc. I surely am not seeing a performance advantage.... is it basically little more than a perceived "coolness" factor?  

I am with you on this one dude! I have never understood why anyone would take such a technologically well refined machine and fooker it all up so it rides like a pig in a barnyard for no apparent reason?

I have no problem with folks that chop the legs from their busa, just don't understand their reasoning? But then I remember having a pocket watch when I was 8 years old and I just had to take it apart to see what made it work. It never worked again

 

[busa1300nut]

Well, for me, I lowered mine the first time for the look, then rode it a while, then I put it back, and then I noticed it,t was much more comfortable for ME, lowered. So I slamed it again, and as for the handeling part, again, for ME, I can get into the turns a lot better. But yes, to each, his, or her, own.

 

[fishhook]

I was thinking about raising mine up an inch, keep scrubbing the pegs in the corners!!!

 

[bigmac0331]

well we lowered my wifes busa so that she could touch flat foot.....I rode her bike the other day and I really liked the feeling of it lowered....I'm not a huge twistie kind of guy....I like long staight aways where I can open her up.....So I ordered lowering links and I'm about to order a new triple tree....."to each his own"

 

[BigRod1300]

Here is your issue: You extended the swingarm with out stiffening your suspension. The longer arm has tossed out the geometry of the suspension. Lets see.....the wheel is now further away from the origan of the hinge point causing softer rebound with less force. Need to adjust your suspention tention stiffer....good thing you where not riding two-up, you realy would have slammed that thing. Sorry about yout tail section. I stetched mine to 10 over but went with Dapincci air-ride.

 

[woodwheel]

Here is your issue:  You extended the swingarm with out stiffening your suspension.  The longer arm has tossed out the geometry of the suspension. Lets see.....the wheel is now further away from the origan of the hinge point causing softer rebound with less force.  Need to adjust your suspention tention stiffer....good thing you where not riding two-up, you realy would have slammed that thing.  Sorry about yout tail section.  I stetched mine to 10 over but went with Dapincci air-ride.

Looks like I have to make the switch to AIR... I just crack the bottom of my tail light...

 

[BigRod1300]

The air-ride lets you cruise in town low, set it high for the twisties

, and roll into parking and drop the air out, last....just answer all the questions from the crowd moving your way.

Air-ride must in my mind..is have one that lets you adjusting rebound.

 

[BigRod1300]

...I'll show you mine at Woodbridge.

 

[woodwheel]

...I'll show you mine at Woodbridge.

i should have done it when they told me to but i was being a hard head

you live and you learn...

 

[Double D]

I had no choice but to lower mine since I am only 5'2. She is lowered 3 inches front and back so my turns are done very slowly.  

See how low she is to the ground....

 

[screamin kanji]

Should I start another TOPIC? It would seem to me that the bike would handle better of lowered. Yes, the susp. would hafta be stiffer, but it would lower the center of gravity , thus, making handle tighter or just feel that way.

 

[High-Gain Busa]

Air ride up...

 

[High-Gain Busa]

Air ride down....

 

[Charlesbusa]

lower = faster

Ummm, not in the corners

Lower=slower

 

[Double D]

Air ride up...

That is so sweet.......

 

[Charlesbusa]

I was thinking about raising mine up an inch, keep scrubbing the pegs in the corners!!!

I've done that, it rocks

 

[Charlesbusa]

Should I start another TOPIC? It would seem to me that the bike would handle better of lowered. Yes, the susp. would hafta be stiffer, but it would lower the center of gravity , thus, making handle tighter or just feel that way.

The bike will not handle better lowered.  Biggest reason is you are shortening the amount of travel in the suspension.  Making it stiffer will keep it from bottoming out, but the bumps are going to be harsh and there will not be enough suspension movement to keep the tire in contact with the ground.  Your tire will skip across bumps.  And when it skips, it will loose traction and down you go.
The other reason is ground clearance.  A lowered bike will scrape the ground before a stock bike.  And a stock bike will scrape the ground before a raised bike.  When your hardparts touch the ground, the bike's hardparts will lift the tires off the ground causing you to crash.

Lower center of gravity is completely meaningless if you don't have suspension travel or ground clearance.

Basically this is a given.
Lowered is better for acceleration and braking.
Raised is better for cornering.

I read an article that asked MotoGP's crew chiefs if there were no limits what kind of bike would they build to be the fastest bike. The answer;
A bike that raises up and shortens the wheelbase during cornering and lowers down and stretches the wheelbase during acceleration and braking.
Now that would have the best of both worlds