The Vision is gone, welcome 2005 Ninjette

[greenaero]

Yesterday I traded my 1982 Vision for a 2005 Ninja EX250. It was a bit sad to part company with the Vision as I was the original owner and had a lot of great rides and experiences with it. I just wasn't riding it much as I usually am testing and playing with my streamlined Ninja. The Vision was a great bike and served me very well. The new owner seems to appreciate it and will give it a good home.
My new Ninja is beautiful! It's silver and in very good condition. it runs strong but needs the valves and carburetors adjusted. I'll be leaving for a weeklong work trip to Kentucky but wil get to work on it as soon as I get back. After that I'll do some base line testing to see how it compares to the older Ninja.

[Alex]

A multi-ninja household!

[Mocha Man]

Pictures when you can please!

[Snake]

Congratulations on the new bike.

[greenaero]

Thanks guys! I just got back from KY and will check the valve adjustment and possibly clean the carbs. I'll take some pix and post them. The bike looks great with only a few minor scratches.

[choneofakind]

Vic, do some science for us. See if it's possible to ride the snot out of this one and cancel out all that awesome mileage from the other one.

My worst mileage was 35-ish mpg at the track.

[greenaero]

A picture of the "new" Ninjette. I adjusted the valves; it idles and run much better now.

[choneofakind]

Totally stock, except the windscreen. Nice! Everything look nice in there when you had it open for a valve adjustment? opening everything up is always the tell to know how it's really been treated.

[greenaero]

All I found after taking off all the bodywork was that the headlight/gauge mounting was damaged and missing a nut. Everything looked good inside the valve covers. The previous owner had installed a fuel filter and when I tested the bike after the valve adjustment I found it was leaking around the clear filter. I replaced it a new section of fuel line, resumed my testing and stalled out about a mile away from home. I had a hard time restarting the bike until I checked the petcock position and found that it was in the "off" position.
It restarted easily and ran great after that .

[ZeroG]

Wow! It looks gorgeous! Planning on doing any upgrades to her, or keeping her stock?

[greenaero]

Thanks Erik! After I complete the baseline testing I'll definitely raise the gear ratio but will keep it stock looking for now. I do like having a non- radical motorcyle around to complement my streamliner.

[Mocha Man]

How do you like the windscreen? I've heard they work well but I just don't prefer the looks

[greenaero]

Nolan,. Sorry about the delay in replying, the windscreen is OK , probably a bit better than stock but I'm not a big fan of it and probably replace it with one I'll be making that will be more aeodynamic.

I did my first official test run after adjusting the valves and got 80 mpg on the official Alan Smith/Greenaero test run ( backroads from Livermore to Patterson, 105 miles round trip) . I bought a 15 tooth front sprocket and Alan gave me a 41 rear sprocket so I will be installing those next. Then I will be making a fully faired front wheel fender. I'll probably make a rack for the rear for holding more cargo or quickly attaching a tailbox. I won't be doing anything for a while as I'm getting ready to take the streamliner to Ohio for the next Vetter Challenge on 7/19/13 at Lexington OH.

[Dano]

Please Please keep this one as a normal ninja for backroads carving!!!!! oh and power wheelies.


Your quest for higher milage is awsome but would drive me insane.

[greenaero]

I installed the new sprockets ( 15T front/ 41T rear ) and will do some testing shortly. After that I'll probably make a new more aerodynamic windscreen and fully-fair the front fender. It will look similar to what JeffM has done with the Alan Smith aero parts.

[parox91]

congrats on the new ninja

Originally Posted by Dano

Please Please keep this one as a normal ninja for backroads carving!!!!! oh and power wheelies.


Your quest for higher milage is awsome but would drive me insane.

wouldn't you need a 13/48 or something like that to power wheelie?

[Lychee]

What will you do with the windscreen?

[greenaero]

Parox91, Thanks! Power wheelies are not part of this mission.

Lychee, I plan on removing the current extended one and then attaching one that is longer but angled lower so that the passing air stays attached as it moves toward my torso and head. I may play around with some plastic for the new windscreen. I'll probably sell my old windscreen.

[greenaero]

I took my first ride with the new 15/41 gearing. Actually it doesn't feel that much different until you compare the RPM difference. Previously I would turn 5000 RPM in 6th gear at 40 mph, now it is 4000 RPM in 6th gear for 40 mph. First gear is now actually somewhat useful. And , yes, I could still wheelie the bike if I wanted to.

[Lychee]

Originally Posted by greenaero

I'll probably sell my old windscreen.

drop me a pm when you get to this point

[LiquidShell]

Originally Posted by greenaero

A picture of the "new" Ninjette. I adjusted the valves; it idles and run much better now.

That is one clean looking bike.

[greenaero]

Shell, Thank you!

Alan and I took our unstreamlined Ninjas out for a ride on our fuel economy test loop today. He was testing some cam timing changes and some taller gearing ( 15/37) while I had raised my gearing also ( 15/41) . The weather was nice and hot with some occasional winds; a great day for riding. We enjoyed a nice ride on the twisties of Patterson Pass Road and then on to Hwy 33 to Patterson. On the return trip we detoured over to an old WWII era emergency landing field that Alan had tested remote controlled planes on. Then we returned to Livermore and the refueling. We stayed near the posted speed limits and stayed under 60 mph for the most part.

We both did great: Alan got 105 mpg and I did even better. I only needed
.77 gal. of gasoline to top off my tank to go the 110.6 miles. I did use some hypermiling techniques ( engine-on coasting, minimal braking, etc.) but still this seems inordinately good ( 143mpg). Possibly a short fill though I did use my usual refueling procedure. The next fill-up will show whether I can back up this great run or not. Still this shows that even non-radically streamlined bikes can still get very good fuel economy without a lot of work.

[greenaero]

I installed my new windscreen, fully faired front fender and have made a detachable aerotrunk for the SiverAero Ninja. Check out my thread in the Cargo section for more info.

[choneofakind]

Was Alan making the timing changes that he was thinking about when I met up with you guys at Mid-Ohio?

[greenaero]

Hi Chris, Yes, Alan was already getting his other Ninja worked on while we were in Ohio. It pulls very well at lower rpms and seems to be pretty fuel efficient.