DIY: Lowering the front end. Raising the Forks

[zartan]

I just had my kickstand shortened about an 1" 20 bucks at the welding shop. I could not handle the RT blingy one. Some like it but I don't ...

[BlueRaven]

They didn't have the regular black one so they gave me the chrome for the same price. I love chrome and i can tell my bike apart from the others especially now with all the new scratches i got on sunday night. I don't have much confidence in welders even though i know they say they guarantee their work.

[Finder]

Regarding these riser/lowering blocks, can they be installed without raising the fork tubes and not negatively affect the strength of the bars? I'd like to raise the height of the bars a bit but not lower the front end. These seem like a pretty cheap solution.

Cheers!

[kkim]

shouldn't be a problem.

[im_a_ninja]

zartan.....did you also post the pics for the rear links?
I had mine lowered with the roaring toys links and it looks WAY low.
In some picures I saw on he wiki article that I think you posted the pic shows the link in the position where there are 3 other holes below the one being used. One is to the left, center and right. My bike is on the center setting...do you know how low that makes it? Does that seem safe?
Just to clarify....in the pics shown, my bike is in the hole directly below the one used in those pics.

[JaeL]

Originally Posted by im_a_ninja

zartan.....did you also post the pics for the rear links?
I had mine lowered with the roaring toys links and it looks WAY low.
In some picures I saw on he wiki article that I think you posted the pic shows the link in the position where there are 3 other holes below the one being used. One is to the left, center and right. My bike is on the center setting...do you know how low that makes it? Does that seem safe?
Just to clarify....in the pics shown, my bike is in the hole directly below the one used in those pics.

I feel like this post is missing something....

[im_a_ninja]

someone posted a DIY for lowering their ninja with a roaring toyz lowering links that I used too. In their pics they used a different hole on the adjustable links so I was trying to figure out, in comparison to the one in the pics posted, how much lower is my bike.
Im asking bc my bike looks too low...like it's cant even take a turn and I am wondering if maybe they used the wrong hole on the links.
Here, I edited the picture that was posted in the DIY...the DIY is the blue arrow and the box that says "my bike" indicates which hole is being used on mine.

The guy at the shop said that my rear needed to be lowered 1.5 inches but it look lower than that. I'm just trying to figure out which hole lowers the bike what amount.

[noche_caliente]

that's my bike there My understanding is that the top row would give you the stock position, one inch, and two inches, and that he bottom row would give you a half inch and one and a half inches

[im_a_ninja]

Originally Posted by noche_caliente

that's my bike there My understanding is that the top row would give you the stock position, one inch, and two inches, and that he bottom row would give you a half inch and one and a half inches

You would guess that mine is 1.5 inches in that hole I circled then?
Maybe..
Im going to compare stock seat height to current seat height tomorrow.

Thanks!
Did you do the handlebar blocks too?

[noche_caliente]

I did - the only thing I didn't do was the kickstand...
As for height, I would actually think your's is only at .5", as it is still towards where the links are the longest... the shorter end would be the other one, as it is making the link shorter... but it was totally a guess for me as to where it went - we tried to do it with math, and that seemed to get it to the right place. As I'm sure you saw, RT had virtually NO documentation with the kit

[im_a_ninja]

I like your theory....but it can't be right. :P
My bike is in that hole I indicated and it is SO low to the ground that if you went lower it scrubbed the tire in the fender.
Did you see a pic of my bike post lowering?
I'll add it again just in case you didn't. We discussed in a different forum that it may look a little lower since it's tied down....but it is still low.

[zartan]

Originally Posted by im_a_ninja

zartan.....did you also post the pics for the rear links?
.

I did not use a RT kit. My tuner used a dogbone from another model. It was before the kit came out. I got the bike early on. They modified one to work.

I just got the kick stand shortened a couple of weeks ago. It needed it.Glad I finally got it done.

[JaeL]

thanx for the diy! finally got my front end lowered in prep for the clips on wed....?

[im_a_ninja]

ok, so I measured my bike and it is lowered nearly 3 inches! what!?!?
yeah! so, needless to say, it IS low.
I rode 100 miles today by myself out and about in town. Hit a little rain and some curves...no issue with anything that I can tell. I definitely want to raise it up some. But, I like being completely flat footed. I'll get comfy for a bit and raise it up.

[kkim]

The bad thing is if the rear is lowered 3 inches, the front can only be lowered 1.5 inches w/ blocks. That means your steering geometry has changed and most likely are having a hard time turning in parking lots and through fast corners the the bike will be more apt to fight you when doing quick maneuvers. Not the best combo for someone learning to ride, in my book.

[im_a_ninja]

i completely agree...which is why I TRIED to get it lowered 1.5 inches in the rear.
It's just a major pain in the butt to get it back to the shop.
The borrowed trailer has been reclaimed and the shop is 45 minutes away, on the 4 lane highway and I'm afraid to take the highway right now.

ugh!
I live in rural ga and so far I've taken a ton of curves cruising around town. Usually at 55-65 mph and for a first time rider, that seems fast around a curve. lol
I agree that tight turns in a parking lot or something might be an issue.....but I havent run across it yet.
Wind seems to be the biggest issue ive had in general.

[kkim]

Can you post a picture of your linkage? Perhaps we can help you figure out what hole it needs to be moved to to balance it out at home.

[subiegy2010]

Do you guys think lowering the back 2" is safe? I'm worried that it will rub and expose some wires like somebody else's bike on here. I have a 26" inseam and measured 3" from my heal to the ground with the bike between my legs so I'd like to lower it as much as possible without encountering problems.

Sounds like lowering 3" is a bit much so 2" might be the next best thing. On the other hand, maybe I should only lower the back 1.5" to match the lowered front and retain the stock steering.

[kkim]

I'd recommend 1.5" in both the front and back, max.

what's your inseam measurement?

[subiegy2010]

It's actually about 26.5-27", not 26" as previously mentioned.

[kkim]

My inseam is 28-29 and I don't have my bike lowered. I can barely touch the ground tippy toes, but have learned to angle the bike when at a stop. If the angle is not that severe, you can support it without problems if you plan ahead for your stops. You don't need to have both feet, flat on the ground.

I think with your inseam, you should try the 1.5" on both ends and see how you like it first. If you need it lowered more, consider cutting your seat foam down for a bit more lowering.

[subiegy2010]

This is my first bike and I've never ridden before so I feel like if I can flatfoot it (or come close), it will be much easier for me to learn. As the bike stands right now, I'm not very confident on it to say the least. On my first ride, it stalled going up a tiny incline, which was my fault because I didn't know I had to warm it up for so long, and I ended up dropping it. If it was lower I would've been able to put my feet down and prevent the whole situation.

[kkim]

very few people can flat foot on a sports bike. To want/need to flat foot with both feet would be unrealistic. I understand your dropping the bike due to it being too high for you. I'm saying it doesn't need to be as low as you're looking to go to be comfortable with it.

Lower it in stages and find a happy medium.

[SROL]

i had my bike lowered and they accidentally lowered it 3 inches. I havent raised it back up yet bc I like the way it feels. Although, I will say that it DOES NOT take turns from a stop....say at a four way, turning left or right, like I think it should. It just cant do it bc the stock steering is messed up. But, there are no wired even close to touching anything else. I read that somewhere too and double/triple checked. I can't even see which wires they could be talking about.

I dont recommend lowering it 3 inches, but if you feel more comfortable with it being 2 then do it 2....you can always raise it back up. I have the roaring toyz lowering links that have 5 height options in one link.

I say this as a novice rider...but integrity of factory steering versus temporary safety until you get comfortable seems like a no-brainer to me. As long as you are learning your bike and how it handles. I mean, if you didn't know how it handled before and you lower it and learn the bike that way. I dont see how it can be dangerous. Just learn your limits and your bikes limits. But, I felt better touching the ground when I was learning. Now I would jump on a cbr or something without lowering it much quicker bc Im more comfortable on a bike in general.

Good luck
shannon

[SROL]

I just realized that I posted this under the boys user name.......he was already logged in. Sorry! my user name is really im_a_ninja

shannon : )

[subiegy2010]

I think I will try 1.5" first and if I feel that that isn't enough, I will go down to 2".

[subiegy2010]

What cables should I be worried about rubbing against after the bike is lowered?

[kkim]

If you lower the bike too much in the rear, it the rear tire can eat through the plastic under fender liner and eat the cables that run through right above it. One of those cables is is one which can disable the bike. It's happened to others which is why I recommend lowering it only as much as really needed. Nothing is a free lunch and some actions can have disabling results.

[zartan]

Yep I wish I didn't have to lower. I have to pay attention to so much.
Speed bumps. Can't keep my spools on ( will hit the pipe) have to remove them when done working on the bike. Now I just got that Framm aftermarket horn and it is bigger than stock so it hits the back of the front fender. I am going to have to make a bracket for it. Would be so much easier if I could have left it stock.

[subiegy2010]

So on the rear links, which hole is 1.5" and which one is 2"?

[kkim]

Originally Posted by noche_caliente

that's my bike there My understanding is that the top row would give you the stock position, one inch, and two inches, and that he bottom row would give you a half inch and one and a half inches

Originally Posted by subiegy2010

So on the rear links, which hole is 1.5" and which one is 2"?

[BIGT94z]

i cant get my front brake grommet to move up to the new holding clips location. how hard did u mess with yours? im thinking of just ziptieing it due to the fact it doesn't have that much slack anyway

[kkim]

what front brake grommet? I don't remember having to fool w/ anything like that.

[BIGT94z]

take from the tutorial:


Ok now I did have problems with my Brake hose being too tight. So I removed the line from its holding bracket. The grommet had to be moved down a bit and then the hose reattached to the holding bracket.






mine was to short so i had to take it off its holder too but cant adjust it back to its new holder location

[kkim]

ah, okay... you might want to PM Zartan. When I did mine I didn't have to move that.

[EddieNewYork]

Question... is a front stand needed to raise the front end and does it require 2 people?

[JaeL]

No and no. But having a extra hand is always useful.

[EddieNewYork]

Originally Posted by JaeL

No and no. But having a extra hand is always useful.

Thx JaeL, I've worked on smaller bikes but not a full size like this so I was concerned with the weight. So if I loosen the triples, will it be very heavy for a person to lift the triples back up, will it fall and hit the front fender if I'm careful and loosen it too much?

[JaeL]

Oh yes go very slow so it doesn't drop! But I did single handedly lifted one side back up to make them even...

[EddieNewYork]

Originally Posted by JaeL

Oh yes go very slow so it doesn't drop! But I did single handedly lifted one side back up to make them even...

Ok, cool thx.