I agree on the battery fully

Guys have shown gains on the track with little bikes using light sprockets. Maybe it doesn't make sense on these bikes.

Rotational mass is what they are talking about. Like a light flywheel on a car.

On a car, you get a light flywheel and its immediately noticeable. even with the rotational mass of the crank, rods and pistons and all the assorted hardware.

Add in light wheels and lug nuts, along with a light set of engine pulleys and you can easily datalog the differences.

Log engine rpm and time. Select 2nd gear and do some pulls. totally noticeable.

 

My eye opening experience was an article in Sport Rider comparing heavy, stock wheels to aftermarket wheels. I remember an aluminum Marchesini (kind of heavy for the big bucks) and Airtech Dominator Airweights, which weighed nothing, being made of a carbon fiber rim and a triangular, aluminum hub/sprocket.. (It was discontinued due to catastrophic failures.) There were perhaps six wheels in the test.

The magazine used a 1/4 hp electric motor running for 10 seconds. Each wheel spun up to a different rpm, based on it's rotational inertia.

The difference between the heavy, stock Suzuki and Kawasaki wheels and the lighter Marchesini were in the ballpark of 980, 1020, 1120 rpm, respectively. Just going from 25 year old memory here so forgive me if the numbers aren't exactly correct.

The Airtechs spun up to significantly higher rpm, maybe 1300, not sure. They were the best by far.

It turns out that 1000 rpm is about 71 mph.

However, did you notice it was a 1/4 hp motor running 10 seconds? Like, those wheels would make a difference in a 10-second, quarter-mile, drag race? Doubt it.

After many years passed, I was accidentally sent the wrong tires when I placed an order at Chaparral. They sent me the stock, H rated tires for my fzr400. They were each 3 pounds lighter than Z rated. Yeah baby!!! That's like spending $1500 on carbon fiber wheels. Turning was so quick my front wheel actually popped off the ground. I would literally pop wheelies during rapid direction changes. It was truely amazing. But, I actually saved money.

I then tried some 0-to-45 runs. That's redlne in first. I didn't notice any difference. I tried nose wheelies. No difference. Oh well.

H rated tires, huh? All I had to do was keep it under "115 mph all day". No problem. I think I hit 115 in the desert near Death Valley chasing an F-18 that straifed me, figuratively speaking, flying 600 mph on the deck directly at me, straight down the highway. As he banked away at the last second, cranked over all the way, probably pulling 6 g's, I could count the rivets on his underbelly. Rat a tat tat!!!! I pumped his fuel tanks full of lead with my 50 Cal.

I went full throttle, hit 115 in no time, and I had that evil succubus in my sights for all of 3 seconds. Then he was gone. Literally, my eyes couldn't focus that far away. He was just a blur. Or she.

Anyway, the point is, the tires were fine, my engine sploogied oil on the exhaust and it smelled like a retired race bike that burns 3 quarts of oil every 3000 miles, and was "put out to pasture" like the old horse he was. Yep, just a stud horse now, squiritng fluids all over. Yeah, I got rid of that engine shortly thereafter, installed a 600 engine, and haven't seen 115 mph since!

I may go back to H rated tires for this bike, too.