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Bob KellyIII · September 13th, 2021, 01:30 AM

Yah LOL.... but he is missing the point like many of you guys are.... the bike doesn't have to be so tall !!!!!
Lower the darn thing !
though it's true some bikes are so tall that even lowering it to the max and it is still too tall for some one of my stature !
so you either get another bike or start modifying the frame, which I have done
on a few of my machines in the remote past...
but that gets into a can of worms real fast and usually is uglier than sin !
and it's not much short of just re making the bike with the available parts...
.... when I first got my Honda 305 Dream when I was Just out of High school
the first thing I did to it was modify the seat ... it had a metal frame with springs in it and then a plastic layer so the springs could flex and a thin layer of foam and then the cover... the seat Added 4" of height to the bikes frame, it just set on top of it and the rear shock mounts... what I did was take the spreader bar that was right at the center of where you sat on it and I lowered it to the bottom rail of the seat then hooked the springs up to form a deep "V" in the seat right where my butt was placed... when I got the bike it was a tip toe affair for me, after the seat mod I could flat foot it easily, so I never had to do anything else but ride the thing.
....
Tallness on a motorcycle is dangerous because your putting unnecessary force on the extremities ...like your pointed toes, and when the bike does lean enough to where your flat footed on that leg ,the inertia of that bikes weight will try real hard to bend your leg for you......
.... and the hassle of dealing with a tall bike is totally unnecessary !
because if you take the front down 2" and the back down 2" the geometry of the suspension is still the same
the only thing that changes is the slight downward angle of the rear swing arm it's now horizontal not angling down and this really has no major effects on the bikes performance or handling
you do loose 2" of ground clearance though, and many people do not lower their bikes thinking they need that 8" to 12" of ground clearance...but they Ran Hair and Hound desert races with hopped up normal street bikes with knobbies on them and won and their ground clearance was about 3" or 4"
.....
for years I hopped logs on the ranch with about 6" of ground clearance and never touched the frame, you simply get the front up and goose it...the trajectory will make the rear tire hit before the frame does ...hehehehe !
and most of the modern bikes have way too much ground clearance to begin with, the Ninja included ..there is at least 4" of plastic hanging down under the frame on my 2012 Ninja... ...
....
bringing DOWN the ground clearance has a few benefits, it lowers the center of gravity ..( NEEDED on the Ninja)... which is the biggest advantage of a high COG bike. and it lowers where you put your bottom, because the whole bike is lower. It also makes ground handling much easier and less likely to fall over . I've dropped my Ninja 3 times because it has so High of a center of gravity ! .... that and I'm a clutz ! LOL
.... but there are disadvantages too... you may drag stuff on corners that you never did before. yes I had scratches on both the alternator cover and clutch cover on 2 of my bikes before I realised they were the first thing to touch with folding foot pegs....it was like, move your weight to the inside of the corner dummy and keep the bike more upright !.... never had the problem again.... it taught me something...<grin>
....
A friend of mine that worked at a bike shop, where I did in Reno,Nv. said when Kenny Roberts went by him , he saw sparks from the side covers on both sides and then he was gone.... he was the manager of the service department of the bike shop i worked at, his name was Mitch... and he was really fast on 2 wheels. but Kenny Roberts was just INSANE !!!
and before you ask who Kenny Roberts is he was a Racer... before 75% of you were born !

.....
No... it's not the complete answer to a motorcycle's problems but for me it is a major one.... as I said I will not ride a bike I cannot flat foot on...and I mean that !.... I'm too old to be crawling out from under a bike that fell over at a signal light ... and have 4 ambulances and 12 cops show up trying to help because of cell phones !

...
later all.
Bob........

September 13th, 2021, 01:30 AM	#29
Bob KellyIII Retired motorcycle Mc. Name: Robert Location: Weed, California. Join Date: Jul 2021 Motorcycle(s): 2012 Kawasaki Ninja 250R, 2021 CSC TT250, 1977 Triumph Bonneville 750cc,2001 Honda XR650L. Posts: A lot.	Yah LOL.... but he is missing the point like many of you guys are.... the bike doesn't have to be so tall !!!!! Lower the darn thing ! though it's true some bikes are so tall that even lowering it to the max and it is still too tall for some one of my stature ! so you either get another bike or start modifying the frame, which I have done on a few of my machines in the remote past... but that gets into a can of worms real fast and usually is uglier than sin ! and it's not much short of just re making the bike with the available parts... .... when I first got my Honda 305 Dream when I was Just out of High school the first thing I did to it was modify the seat ... it had a metal frame with springs in it and then a plastic layer so the springs could flex and a thin layer of foam and then the cover... the seat Added 4" of height to the bikes frame, it just set on top of it and the rear shock mounts... what I did was take the spreader bar that was right at the center of where you sat on it and I lowered it to the bottom rail of the seat then hooked the springs up to form a deep "V" in the seat right where my butt was placed... when I got the bike it was a tip toe affair for me, after the seat mod I could flat foot it easily, so I never had to do anything else but ride the thing. .... Tallness on a motorcycle is dangerous because your putting unnecessary force on the extremities ...like your pointed toes, and when the bike does lean enough to where your flat footed on that leg ,the inertia of that bikes weight will try real hard to bend your leg for you...... .... and the hassle of dealing with a tall bike is totally unnecessary ! because if you take the front down 2" and the back down 2" the geometry of the suspension is still the same the only thing that changes is the slight downward angle of the rear swing arm it's now horizontal not angling down and this really has no major effects on the bikes performance or handling you do loose 2" of ground clearance though, and many people do not lower their bikes thinking they need that 8" to 12" of ground clearance...but they Ran Hair and Hound desert races with hopped up normal street bikes with knobbies on them and won and their ground clearance was about 3" or 4" ..... for years I hopped logs on the ranch with about 6" of ground clearance and never touched the frame, you simply get the front up and goose it...the trajectory will make the rear tire hit before the frame does ...hehehehe ! and most of the modern bikes have way too much ground clearance to begin with, the Ninja included ..there is at least 4" of plastic hanging down under the frame on my 2012 Ninja... ... .... bringing DOWN the ground clearance has a few benefits, it lowers the center of gravity ..( NEEDED on the Ninja)... which is the biggest advantage of a high COG bike. and it lowers where you put your bottom, because the whole bike is lower. It also makes ground handling much easier and less likely to fall over . I've dropped my Ninja 3 times because it has so High of a center of gravity ! .... that and I'm a clutz ! LOL .... but there are disadvantages too... you may drag stuff on corners that you never did before. yes I had scratches on both the alternator cover and clutch cover on 2 of my bikes before I realised they were the first thing to touch with folding foot pegs....it was like, move your weight to the inside of the corner dummy and keep the bike more upright !.... never had the problem again.... it taught me something...<grin> .... A friend of mine that worked at a bike shop, where I did in Reno,Nv. said when Kenny Roberts went by him , he saw sparks from the side covers on both sides and then he was gone.... he was the manager of the service department of the bike shop i worked at, his name was Mitch... and he was really fast on 2 wheels. but Kenny Roberts was just INSANE !!! and before you ask who Kenny Roberts is he was a Racer... before 75% of you were born ! ..... No... it's not the complete answer to a motorcycle's problems but for me it is a major one.... as I said I will not ride a bike I cannot flat foot on...and I mean that !.... I'm too old to be crawling out from under a bike that fell over at a signal light ... and have 4 ambulances and 12 cops show up trying to help because of cell phones ! ... later all. Bob........ __________________________________________________ Its too late when you've gone too far !