Tips for a new player?

Marknz · Post by **Marknz** » Wed Dec 04, 2002 7:30 am

Hi Folks,

Great forum you guys seem to have going here. I hope you don't mind having a Kiwi who lives in Australia mixing it with you all!?

I've put the deposit down on a brand spankers 2003 Firestorm (in matt black) and will be picking it up on Friday avo'.

Anybody have some really good tips as to what I could have done at the 1000K serice as far as performance parts go i.e. pipes, cans, carby kits, filters, braided lines, pads and chain?

Anything else you can think of, please let me know

essexbloke · Post by **essexbloke** » Wed Dec 04, 2002 8:30 am

have the whole lot done !!!!!!!!

(wallet depending...)

Welcome to the board.......

Post by **firestorm_al** » Wed Dec 04, 2002 8:43 am

For a bike so new the only thing I'd bother with are the cans ( although braided hoses make a huge difference

).

What is bucket racing anyway???

Marknz · Post by **Marknz** » Wed Dec 04, 2002 8:55 am

Bucket racing essentially relates to 'Buckets of Shite' We race old Jap commuter bikes with 2 strokers limited to 100cc and 4 strokers limited to 150cc. Bl#$dy great, cheap fun and the fastest bike in a strait line has just topped 100mph this season and is a CB150T dynoed at 28hp! And it's not mine!

Have a look at some of these pic's here if you like...

http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmstrong/roguesgallery/

mine is #67

essexbloke · Post by **essexbloke** » Wed Dec 04, 2002 12:15 pm

some seriously strange racing going on there.............

still, looks like a right laff......(and cheap) .....

mind you...100mph !!!!!!!! scary...

Marknz · Post by **Marknz** » Thu Dec 05, 2002 8:15 pm

Any tips on exactly what gear I should replace these things with? e.g. is Goodridge the best way to go with the braided lines?

Post by **firestorm_al** » Thu Dec 05, 2002 9:33 pm

Not sure who my hoses are made by but make sure you get a 2 line kit for the front and get them with stainless steel connectors. I think they are have a plastic coating over the braid these days. I went for the clear coat but you can pay extra for colours.

I've probably not given you any more information than you already know but there you go!

Marknz · Post by **Marknz** » Tue Dec 10, 2002 8:02 am

After three days with the new steed and 917km on the clock I thought it'd be a great time to let you know my initial thoughts.

Well after moving up from a VTR250 of course the first impression was the physical size and the enormous amount of power this beast can deliver if you want it to. I'm restricted within the first 1000km to stay below 5000rpm, but as you all know there is plenty of mumbo available even at that level. All I have to do now is get more work on that clutch hand... coming from a cable operated clutch on the VTR250 it really is quite a strain at the end of a 300km ride. Very sure footed on the road and so so easy to ride in almost any gear, but of course even the standard pipes sound better with some good rev's up don't they!

Oh well, first service is booked in for this Thursday, so it'll be time to open it up 'a little bit'

So what am I going to do with it now?

Here's what:

Leo Vinci SBK pipes (Alloy)
Carby Kit
K&N Air Filter
Goodridge Braided brake lines front & rear in yellow with stainless steel connectors (thanks firestorm_al)
MRA double-bubble full tint screen
CF Hugger

I'll be sure to get some before and after pic's up on the net at some stage for you all to have a perve.

Cheers

essexbloke · Post by **essexbloke** » Tue Dec 10, 2002 8:16 am

top man.........

did you rob a bank then.....

throwing some serious wedge at the old gal...... (not that i blame you......)

good to see your having large amounts of fun.......

Marknz · Post by **Marknz** » Tue Dec 10, 2002 8:28 am

nah, I'm just a little luckier than some blokes in that I just sold a house in New Zealand and didn't have to share the proceeds with any of the fairer sex.

Make hay while the sun shines I say!

essexbloke · Post by **essexbloke** » Tue Dec 10, 2002 8:30 am

Damm Right !!!!!!!!! (dont let my wife see this tho.....)

Post by **firestorm_al** » Tue Dec 10, 2002 9:25 am

Funny you should say that about the clutch. In normal open road type riding the clutch feels good with plenty of feel. In those situations though I tend to only pull the clutch in slightly which makes my gear changes a bit smoother which is appreciated by your passenger should you be carrying one. I've been on the bike on very long rides before ( puncuated by fuel stops of course

) and never found the clutch to be a problem so you'd better start gripping balls to strengthen your hand mate!

However, in town when there's traffic and I'm stopped I pull the clutch right in. After a wee while riding my and and wrist really ache. Probably a combination of and old injury and the hydraulic clutch.

Most of the miles I do at the moment are on the run to and from work so I guess I'll soon be able to see how the Bandit compares to the VTR as a commuting tool.

Al.

essexbloke · Post by **essexbloke** » Wed Dec 11, 2002 8:08 am

lets be honest.......no comparison....

i've not had a problem with the clutch, but do suffer hand aches.... (i travel about 100 miles per day, but mainly due to the fact that i've broken both hands 3 times....