Race Upper with OEM Lowers?

[Mechanikrazy]

Is anyone running a fiberglass upper with the OEM lower fairings on the Ninja 300? I read that the stock exhaust can't be used with an enclosed fiberglass lower pan as the cat runs too hot. As I'm just trying to get up to speed, I have no desire to drop another few hundred on a full exhaust.

If you did the mix and match, how did you mount up the OEM lower with its tabs? Did you trim the tabs on the top of the stock lower? Or did you just bolt it up as close as possible, with the tabs on the outside of the fiberglass upper?

I have a set of Catalyst fairings on order so I don't bin the expensive OEM fairings next year, and I am trying to plan ahead a little bit.

Thanks

[tgold]

I don't know any race organization where that would be legal. Your lower has to have oil containment capability. You may be able to apply heat reflective blanket in the affected area of the catalyst lower. I've also riveted a small aluminum patch inside the fairing as well.

[Mechanikrazy]

Originally Posted by tgold

I don't know any race organization where that would be legal. Your lower has to have oil containment capability. You may be able to apply heat reflective blanket in the affected area of the catalyst lower. I've also riveted a small aluminum patch inside the fairing as well.

Thanks for the thoughts. The aluminum patch might be something I consider down the road.

But for now, I'd like to keep the kickstand as this bike is just going to be a trackday bike for now. At most, I'd run it in TPM's light club racing series down the road, and they don't require oil containment on the lower.

[gogoKawi]

Originally Posted by inapexveritas

Thanks for the thoughts. The aluminum patch might be something I consider down the road.

But for now, I'd like to keep the kickstand as this bike is just going to be a trackday bike for now. At most, I'd run it in TPM's light club racing series down the road, and they don't require oil containment on the lower.

You shouldn't have to worry about exhaust heat. I've never heard of anyone's exhaust on a 250/300 melting the lower, unless it was making contact. And if it did, they just cut/shaved it so it didn't touch anymore.

To keep the kickstand, you can cut the fairing. Or you can get Hotbodies, which already has the cut out.

Good luck with the build. I may see you at one of the TPM events.

[toEleven]

To keep the kickstand, you can cut the fairing.

Definitely. Expect some cutting in your future.

Or you can get Hotbodies, which already has the cut out.

It's may just be my lack of effort, but I'm pretty sure I couldn't actually lower the kickstand with my hotbodies fairing on. The return spring and it's attachment point on the kickstand hit the fairing with the stock cutout. So if my memory serves, yes you can keep it, but you still can't use it without more cutting. It's the tiniest issue ever, but it never hurts to be informed.

[Mechanikrazy]

Originally Posted by gogoKawi

You shouldn't have to worry about exhaust heat. I've never heard of anyone's exhaust on a 250/300 melting the lower, unless it was making contact. And if it did, they just cut/shaved it so it didn't touch anymore.

To keep the kickstand, you can cut the fairing. Or you can get Hotbodies, which already has the cut out.

Good luck with the build. I may see you at one of the TPM events.

I have no idea. I'm just going off what Sharkskinz has told others. Maybe it was because the Sharkskinz makes contact? I had just assumed if this was a problem with one of the more reputable sets, it'd likely be an issue with other manufacturers.

From another person:

If you have an aftermarket exhaust that gets rid of the catalytic converter you can use our lower if your bike has stock exhaust and you plan to keep it that way our upper will work with stock lower. Our tail is for racing and is a solo tail, we have no plans to make a street tail.

Jason at Sharkskinz

Which I guess leaves me with a second, new question then:

Is anyone here running a stock w/ cat midpipe with a lower pan fairing?

[Sirref]

I know one of the guys ran one in the TPM series with the lower pan fairing. Then he got worried about his exhaust dragging on the ground and swapped the whole thing

[tgold]

Unless you're racing a lower isn't required and at your level there really isn't much to be gained by it (other than looking cooler in pictures )
So why not just leave the lower off the bike and run it like that?

Catalytic converters do run very hot and that's going to affect any fairing that gets close to it.

The kickstand bracket on a 250 Ninja becomes a major issue that can cause crashes even at relatively mild lean angles. That is why race organizations allow cutting it off. If you have stock suspension it will cause issues sooner than a stiffer racing setup. I realize that this is your streetwise and cutting off the kickstand bracket isn't a viable option. Not trying to scare you, just saying: be aware.

Aftermarket fairing-dragging is an issue on many bikes and that again is exacerbated by a soft stock suspension.

In thinking about your original idea of attaching an aftermarket lower to the factory upper, two thoughts come to mind: 1st, there's no guarantee that you won't damage the upper in a crash, and 2, the aftermarket companies don't necessarily make the fairing lower where you can easily attach it to the stock fairing upper. This is because factory fairings are typically made from several pieces where aftermarket fairings are usually only two, so locating the separation line of the aftermarket fairing where the factory part lines up with it isn't always practical.

[Mechanikrazy]

Originally Posted by tgold

Unless you're racing a lower isn't required and at your level there really isn't much to be gained by it (other than looking cooler in pictures )
So why not just leave the lower off the bike and run it like that?

That's clearly the most important part of a trackday.

Originally Posted by tgold

In thinking about your original idea of attaching an aftermarket lower to the factory upper, two thoughts come to mind: 1st, there's no guarantee that you won't damage the upper in a crash, and 2, the aftermarket companies don't necessarily make the fairing lower where you can easily attach it to the stock fairing upper. This is because factory fairings are typically made from several pieces where aftermarket fairings are usually only two, so locating the separation line of the aftermarket fairing where the factory part lines up with it isn't always practical.

At this point, I will just have to wait and see on fitment. I was planning to run the stock lower because 1) it looks cooler and 2) I figured the odds would be higher that the bottom edge of the upper as well as the engine covers would hit the ground and get damaged sliding without the lower than with some lower--oem or fiberglass--covering the edge.

It seems like the anecdotal experience for the 300s is that the cat doesn't run hot enough to burn through the fiberglass, but I'd rather play it safe for now.

But yes, if it doesn't match up, the backup plan is to just run without a lower. The main plan is always to not crash, and have this all be moot. Haha.