New female rider from California

[bbbrandy19]

Hello everyone!

I have recently bought my first street bike! My 250 ninja! woo!!
I recently had it lowered as I am on the shorter side so now i am more confident and ready to go!
I cant wait for the weather to get nicer and go out and ride ride ride!!

My ninja is a 2008 and it is red. I call her BEAST

I am pretty excited to check this forum everyday for new tips and ideas!

see you around!

[Alex]

[wvninja]

Welcome to the site!

[bbbrandy19]

thank you!!

[kkim]

Aloha and welcome.

I hope whoever lowered the bike did both the front and back? also, how much was it lowered?

have you taken the MSF and have all your gear?

[bob706]

Welcome to the forum

[bbbrandy19]

Originally Posted by kkim

Aloha and welcome.

I hope whoever lowered the bike did both the front and back? also, how much was it lowered?

have you taken the MSF and have all your gear?

well i did take it to a mechanic so i would have hoped he lowered it the way it is intended to be lowered. I know he lowered the back but we never discussed having the front lowered as well. what is the benefit or cons of lowering the front as well?

I believe i lowered it about 2 inches.

Yes! i did take the MSF course and currently getting gear slowly.

I have my boots and i have my gloves on order. They should be here tomorrow.
I am still looking for a jacket. I believe i want this one.

[scotty]

Hi

[kkim]

when lowering the front and back needs to be lowered so the handling doesn't get affected. if only the back was lowered, it will make the bike slower/harder to turn. also, lowering the bike 2 inches can lead to problems. most that the rear should be lowered should be about 1.5 inches. others have had problems with the rear tire touching the underside of the rear fender under liner, wearing through it and ripping electrical wires on the other side of it out, stranding them.

with a lowered bike, be careful of speed bumps as some bikes touch on higher speed bumps.

if the front were lowered, lowering blocks would have had to be added right under the handlebar mounting area. check to see if something was added there or call your mechanic and see if it was done.

http://www.ninjette.org/wiki/Lowering

another thread you might find interesting...
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=5586

[bbbrandy19]

Originally Posted by kkim

when lowering the front and back needs to be lowered so the handling doesn't get affected. if only the back was lowered, it will make the bike slower/harder to turn. also, lowering the bike 2 inches can lead to problems. most that the rear should be lowered should be about 1.5 inches. others have had problems with the rear tire touching the underside of the rear fender under liner, wearing through it and ripping electrical wires on the other side of it out, stranding them.

with a lowered bike, be careful of speed bumps as some bikes touch on higher speed bumps.

if the front were lowered, lowering blocks would have had to be added right under the handlebar mounting area. check to see if something was added there or call your mechanic and see if it was done.

http://www.ninjette.org/wiki/Lowering

oh wow. you have me all paranoid now.
I am almost positive that i did not have the front lowered.
As for it hitting speed bumps, My mechanic said it wouldnt be a problem unless i was going up high and coming down fast and hard and i dont see myself doing that. Im not a racer. this is only my first bike and it is for fun not for speed.

I will have to ask him about what you are saying about slowing it down and such. He too owns a kawasaki so i am sure he will know what is right and what not.

BUT having it lowered has made me 100 % more stable.
I actually dropped the bike in my driveway the 2nd day because i was not stable enough on my feet. Thankfully, i pinned myself under the bike so the bike had no damage.

Myself, i was soooo sore the next day from straining to keep it up!

[bbbrandy19]

Originally Posted by scotty

Hi

hello!

[maxwellca21]

welcome! have fun riding the BEAST lol

[bbbrandy19]

Originally Posted by maxwellca21

welcome! have fun riding the BEAST lol

thank you!
i will have some fun!
you have a beautiful bike btw! Black was the color i wanted but i settled with red

[slolane]

Welcome

[AMMOCAN]

[Sixringz]

Welcome!

[Snake]

Hello and welcome. You found a great site with great people.

[ricochet08]

What it do! Greetings from the Lou

[Boom King]

Originally Posted by bbbrandy19

I actually dropped the bike in my driveway the 2nd day because i was not stable enough on my feet. Thankfully, i pinned myself under the bike so the bike had no damage.

Welcome to the site! It's the best one out there dedicated to our bikes. It sucks dropping your bike for the first time. Glad you hear you weren't hurt and the bike suffered no damage but try not to make it a habit of using your own body as a human shield if you ever drop the bike. It's kinda a gut reaction thing to sacrifice yourself in an effort to save your bike but you're also setting yourself up for potential injury and/or getting trapped underneath it. Your safety > bike damage. Anyways, welcome again and enjoy!

[vnranger]

and glad to hear you weren't hurt trying to save your bike.

[Yasko]

[KJohnson21]

[maxwellca21]

Originally Posted by bbbrandy19

thank you!
i will have some fun!
you have a beautiful bike btw! Black was the color i wanted but i settled with red

thanks! black is nice...but red is the fastest color.

[Sailariel]

Welcome, You chose a great bike. My new bike is also red.

[TenaciousD]

Welcome! You got the right color.

[bbbrandy19]

Originally Posted by Boom King

Welcome to the site! It's the best one out there dedicated to our bikes. It sucks dropping your bike for the first time. Glad you hear you weren't hurt and the bike suffered no damage but try not to make it a habit of using your own body as a human shield if you ever drop the bike. It's kinda a gut reaction thing to sacrifice yourself in an effort to save your bike but you're also setting yourself up for potential injury and/or getting trapped underneath it. Your safety > bike damage. Anyways, welcome again and enjoy!

thank you! yes i understand i am more important but at the same time, it was my 2nd day! there was no way i was going to let my baby hit the cement! if i knew i was hurting myself, i would have slipped out and let it crash down on the cement.

Thankfully i had someone race over and pick it up off me within 10 minutes! LOL

but thanks for the warm welcome!

[speedgsx98]

Welcome. I understand that you wanted the bike lower for confidence. Once you get yourself nice and familiar with the bike, I'd recommend a different link in the rear that would lower the bike only about 1 inch. It would be a nice compromise and give you more clearance over speed bumps and better handling. You may be able to gain some of that advantage back with a pair of boots that has a bit more of a platform as well.

Enjoy!

[bbbrandy19]

Originally Posted by maxwellca21

thanks! black is nice...but red is the fastest color.

haha i guess so!

[bbbrandy19]

Originally Posted by speedgsx98

Welcome. I understand that you wanted the bike lower for confidence. Once you get yourself nice and familiar with the bike, I'd recommend a different link in the rear that would lower the bike only about 1 inch. It would be a nice compromise and give you more clearance over speed bumps and better handling. You may be able to gain some of that advantage back with a pair of boots that has a bit more of a platform as well.

Enjoy!

what kind of link?
I did it get it lowered and am extremely happy about how it fits now.
I feel so much more comfortable on it.
how would the handling be effected with it lowered?

[bbbrandy19]

Originally Posted by TenaciousD

Welcome! You got the right color.

thank you!

[speedgsx98]

You should be able to find a different link similar to the one you got that was a 2" drop, but only 1" instead.

My friend is 5'3" and rides a ZX-10R that is stock height and that has a 32.5" or so seat height (about 2 inches higher than your bike stock).

It could rub on the under fender on a large bump or pothole as mentioned in a post above which if it happened in a corner, could cause you to crash...rare chance but just a friendly warning.

As far as how lowering the rear affects handling, it just makes the bike slower to turn/react. It will also make it more likely to drag the footpegs or exhaust once you get comfortable leaning it over.

Enjoy the bike for now, but think as the 2" drop in the rear a temporary solution until you get confident on the bike.

[bbbrandy19]

Originally Posted by speedgsx98

You should be able to find a different link similar to the one you got that was a 2" drop, but only 1" instead.

My friend is 5'3" and rides a ZX-10R that is stock height and that has a 32.5" or so seat height (about 2 inches higher than your bike stock).

It could rub on the under fender on a large bump or pothole as mentioned in a post above which if it happened in a corner, could cause you to crash...rare chance but just a friendly warning.

As far as how lowering the rear affects handling, it just makes the bike slower to turn/react. It will also make it more likely to drag the footpegs or exhaust once you get comfortable leaning it over.

Enjoy the bike for now, but think as the 2" drop in the rear a temporary solution until you get confident on the bike.

i am not too worried about it hitting. we discussed that at the mechanic shop and he said i wouldnt have any problems. I dont knwo that i dropped it 2 inches. It just feels like 2 or something. I dont remember how much he dropped it.

yea i will take off the lowering degree when i become more confident then.
If it poses alot of problems, i will keep it in mind and ask questions when i take it to the shop for an oil change (coming up!)

Thanks!

[wvninja]

2 inches is the recommended max drop height. make sure you adjust your front end ride height also. I do almost agree with moving it back to the one inch drop. It would seem the 1 inch give you a lot more room to play with. I did a LOT of research on dropping the ride height. Doing it 100% full out can become considerably expensive if your not wanting any effect. While lower will increase or decrease the turning capability, it seems on most bikes, that the one inch drop is about right if you plan on moving it at all.

[bbbrandy19]

Originally Posted by wvninja

2 inches is the recommended max drop height. make sure you adjust your front end ride height also. I do almost agree with moving it back to the one inch drop. It would seem the 1 inch give you a lot more room to play with.

you guys have me worried!
i will have to go talk to the mechanic when the weather clears up!
its storming here in california. I just want to ride!!!

[wvninja]

Originally Posted by bbbrandy19

you guys have me worried!
i will have to go talk to the mechanic when the weather clears up!
its storming here in california. I just want to ride!!!

Well the front should have been lowered to match the rear. Otherwise it negatively effect turning. While it won't hurt the bike physically, it will make it turn horribly.

If you are comfortable with the 2 inch drop stick with it. You can always move back to one inch once you become more comfortable on the bike.