Inconsequential ramblings of an Old Git

[A_morti]

The Viffer is about the same poundage as the ZH2. Manufacturers seemed to struggle now getting anything below 200kgs.

There are no secrets in this, it's well known that we weigh things differently (properly) now.

An original fireblade was quoted as weighing 185kg. That was revolutionary at the time, being done 34kg lighter than a Yamaha fzr1000. But that figure is dry, meaning without oil, coolant, brake fluid, or petrol. The real number as it would be weighed today with a full tank is more like 209kg.

A 2023 cbr1000rr is over 10kg lighter, even with ABS and a catalyst.

"Oh but that's just super sport bikes". A 1998 cb500 (naked) was quoted around 173kg. Again, dry. It's nearer 198kg fully fueled. That's heavier than an nx500.

[Skub]

There are no secrets in this, it's well known that we weigh things differently (properly) now.

An original fireblade was quoted as weighing 185kg. That was revolutionary at the time, being done 34kg lighter than a Yamaha fzr1000. But that figure is dry, meaning without oil, coolant, brake fluid, or petrol. The real number as it would be weighed today with a full tank is more like 209kg.

A 2023 cbr1000rr is over 10kg lighter, even with ABS and a catalyst.

"Oh but that's just super sport bikes". A 1998 cb500 (naked) was quoted around 173kg. Again, dry. It's nearer 198kg fully fueled. That's heavier than an nx500.

My 04 ZX10R weighed a hair over 180kgs fully fuelled. Yes it had a few extras,but I doubt we'll ever see a stock superbike as light ever again.

[Supermofo]

Dad_morti had a red 1998 vfr800 for years. He always claimed to never really love it, but for that claim it hung around chéz Morti for a surprisingly long time.

Yes, they're as much of a 'head' as a 'heart' purchase, but their plain old goddamned reliability, dependability and competence just wins you over. They are also surprisingly able to keep up with supposedly much quicker bikes.

Had an epic ride over some Spanish mountain following my brother on a mates TL1000 when I was on my dad's VFR800. The TL would leap out of corners and down the straights but every corner I'd reel him in by multiple bike lengths....we eventually got pulled by a cop trap at 130mph... in a 50kph

[KungFooBob]

The Viffer is about the same poundage as the ZH2. Manufacturers seemed to struggle now getting anything below 200kgs.

There are no secrets in this, it's well known that we weigh things differently (properly) now.

An original fireblade was quoted as weighing 185kg. That was revolutionary at the time, being done 34kg lighter than a Yamaha fzr1000. But that figure is dry, meaning without oil, coolant, brake fluid, or petrol. The real number as it would be weighed today with a full tank is more like 209kg.

A 2023 cbr1000rr is over 10kg lighter, even with ABS and a catalyst.

"Oh but that's just super sport bikes". A 1998 cb500 (naked) was quoted around 173kg. Again, dry. It's nearer 198kg fully fueled. That's heavier than an nx500.

I weighed my 98 CBR900RRW at Cadwell during a trackday, it had a Remus end can, other than that all the bolt on tat just added to the weight. On the corner scales that EMAP used at the time (My mate worked at MCN), with maybe a quarter tank of fuel, it weighed 186kg.

[A_morti]

I weighed my 98 CBR900RRW at Cadwell during a trackday, it had a Remus end can, other than that all the bolt on tat just added to the weight. On the corner scales that EMAP used at the time (My mate worked at MCN), with maybe a quarter tank of fuel, it weighed 186kg.

They claimed 180kg dry for that model year. I always understood dry to mean bone dry, so let's start from 180, add 2.8 for coolant, 3 for oil, 1 for fork oil and brake fluid, deduct 2 for the can, and with 1.2kg of fuel we're already at 186kg. Maybe you also fitted lighter tyres, maybe the wheels were on the ground not the scale's level and it cheated a bit... but anyway 186kg does sound plausible as a ready to ride (to the petrol station) weight.

These days you have to weigh it brimmed for the spec sheet though, so this sounds more likely given she had an 18l tank:
The 1998 Honda CBR900RR (SC33) has a wet weight (or curb weight) of approximately 203–204 kg (448–450 lbs), which includes all fluids and a full tank of fuel.


That's just over what the 2020+ SP weighs, but compared to the 98 it has a catalyst, ABS, a fuel pump, and nearly 90hp more on tap.

[mangocrazy]

Dad_morti had a red 1998 vfr800 for years. He always claimed to never really love it, but for that claim it hung around chéz Morti for a surprisingly long time.

Yes, they're as much of a 'head' as a 'heart' purchase, but their plain old goddamned reliability, dependability and competence just wins you over. They are also surprisingly able to keep up with supposedly much quicker bikes.

Had an epic ride over some Spanish mountain following my brother on a mates TL1000 when I was on my dad's VFR800. The TL would leap out of corners and down the straights but every corner I'd reel him in by multiple bike lengths....we eventually got pulled by a cop trap at 130mph... in a 50kph

Happy days, eh? I owned one of the very first (full fat) TL1000S in the country and before long it had a custom stainless full system. It sounded epic and went like stink. I still miss it even now...

[Cousin Jack]

I've had 2 VFR750s, a 95 and a 96. They are really capable bikes - not outstanding in any one area but good all rounders. Sunday morning rides, commuting, two up touring even trackdays. Not very good off road and they are heavy lumps though

I even rode mine off-road, only once mind! Road closure somewhere in Germany, a local told us of the local re-route. Back 1/2 a mile, turn left into field, follow the track across the field, turn left onto lane, through the farmyard and back onto the road just past the closure. They didn't mention that the field had been ploughed recently, and the track had been made by 2 trips in a Landrover! The VFR coped, the rider was not happy.

[IccyV2]

I had a dreamm last night that you'd only got two weeks to live, and being the kind and benevolent bloke that I am instantly wondered about whether you'd sell your LC and/or the 888 cheap?

My bike mojo has well and truly left me so I'm not even sure I want another bike, but in my dream you said you wanted £500 for it and I could stretch to that

[mangocrazy]

I had a dreamm last night that you'd only got two weeks to live, and being the kind and benevolent bloke that I am instantly wondered about whether you'd sell your LC and/or the 888 cheap?

My bike mojo has well and truly left me so I'm not even sure I want another bike, but in my dream you said you wanted £500 for it and I could stretch to that

To quote Iggy Pop: 'calling sister Midnight, what can I do about my dreams?'

[mangocrazy]

It's been a couple of months and in that time I've been to France, had the van's clutch go pop on me in fairly drastic fashion, had it repaired at painful expense, and drove it back to the UK. And recovered from said journey (it takes longer every year).

Now I'm back in the land of the semi-sentient I thought it would be a good idea to get the Falco MoT'd. The Duke is in France, the LC is in Stafford and with the sale of the VFR I haven't got a bike to ride in Sheffield. First problem was that my MoT station of choice didn't seem to be responding to phone calls, emails or Facebook messages. This is more than a little annoying as they're a scooter emporium and so have no interest in failing an MoT to try and drum up work. They're also very nice guys. So while I investigated that further, I took the bike to the next nearest station, which happens to be an MoT only outfit.

Fairly typically, the trusty old Falco blotted its copybook and failed. Two out of the 3 failure points are easily rectified; no reflector at the back of the bike and the EU headlamp the bike came with needs to be 'corrected' with some black tape to stop it dazzling other road users (not that I ever ride at night).

The third fail was a little more serious. Front Brake indicates excessive fluctuation of brake effort; i.e. excessive pulsing at the lever, probably caused by warped disc(s). This bothered me, as I've not noticed this when riding and replacement of front discs would not be cheap. So I decided to remove the discs from their carriers (not a difficult job with PFM ductile iron discs), strip them and give them a clean and a good coat of looking at. And on Monday I'll be taking the discs to a local engineering firm to verify whether or not they are actually warped.

Herewith the obligatory pictures:

DSCF5392.JPG (851.49 KiB) Viewed 201 times

DSCF5394.JPG (713.06 KiB) Viewed 201 times

[Eclipse]

They might find it easier if the discs were on the wheels as all they have to do is put the spindle through the bearings and lock it up
in a vice and use a Dial Indicator on the discs.

[Rockburner]

If you have a dial guage you could do it yourself.

Hell, all you really need is a good vice and a straight edge.

[KungFooBob]

That tyre was made in the 38th week of 2018.

[mangocrazy]

Thanks for the comments. I do have a decent vice and a steel rule should provide a good enough straight edge, so will give that a go. My only concern about getting the discs tested for flatness when mounted in the carrier/wheel is that the whole setup is designed to be 'floating' which might skew the results.

The tyres are scheduled for replacement at the end of 2026...

[Rockburner]

Thanks for the comments. I do have a decent vice and a steel rule should provide a good enough straight edge, so will give that a go. My only concern about getting the discs tested for flatness when mounted in the carrier/wheel is that the whole setup is designed to be 'floating' which might skew the results.

The tyres are scheduled for replacement at the end of 2026...

Mount it flat (ie the wheel flat, not vertical like it would be in the bike). That should mean that gravity takes care of the floating skew.

[mangocrazy]

I took the discs (unmounted from the carriers) yesterday to my tame local engineering firm and using a flat plate and feeler gauges they thought there might be one thou of run-out at one spot on one of the discs, but couldn't really be sure. In their opinion there would be lots of people running around with a lot more than a thou of run-out. But of course it's the MoT tester who has the final say...

So I busied myself with scotchbrite, scrapers and all manner of other things to remove any possible corrosion or foreign material from all the component parts and carefully reassembled them. When finished, both discs had just the right amount of float and I'm pretty sure they'll pass muster. If not, I've retrieved a spare pair I had in Stafford and can fit them. I'm hoping it doesn't come to that, though...

[ZRX61]

My 04 ZX10R weighed a hair over 180kgs fully fuelled. Yes it had a few extras,but I doubt we'll ever see a stock superbike as light ever again.

My ZX11-D3 with all fluids & a full tank makes me grateful that a lot of the fuel is below the seat height, it's an absolute barge. It is NOT the bike for the twisties when the tank is full. It's gotta be 600lb.