Yeah, gearing has nothing to do with it. I just want it shorter so it doesn't take as much effort to downshift.

 

Take as much effort to downshift??? What??? It takes minimal effort to downshift. You dont even have to touch the throttle when you downshift.

 

Yeah, you're supposed to blip the throttle on a downshift, and if it's going into higher rpm range, it actually does take a fair amount of effort to do it. Especially say 3rd>2nd gear downshift. Then factor in holding the front brake at the same time, I just don't want as much throttle travel, that's all.

Under hard braking when I blip the throttle, my wrist has to move pretty far and my glove won't slide on the brake lever like I want and as a result I end up grabbing more front brake than I intented. May just be the gloves or lever that I have though.

 

How about moving the brake lever in closer?

So you don't have to reach as far.

 

It's already as close in as can be.

 

i hear what your saying, i had the same problem, when i down shift, into higher rpm, i can only have my finger tips on the brake lever, so i can get the engine rpm up high enough, with out grabbing the brake

 

For starters and i hope i dont stand on anyones toes here but racers dont use full throttle a lot, they use 75% at most, full throttle is too hard to handle but is there for dire moments of need as in overtaking for the line when risks can be taken. They use 1/5th throttles so they can control the throttle response with less hand movements. your problem is more than likely your gloves. You'll find that you inner lining on your glove is staying with your palm and the outer is moving with the throttle. Thus making it harder to open the throttle and use brakes etc. I use a technique were i roll mypalm around the throttle which means i can use a little brake properly and still control the throttle slightly. With a 1/5th throttle this allows me to use more of the range of the throttle without having to take my fingers of the brake.I was shown it by my instructor who is an ex racer himself. Its hard to describe without sitting and having a bike with me and you but essentially you put your fingers on the front brake, put the rear of your palm on the throttle and flatten your hand. Your fingers shoudl stay where they are and your palm should roll down the throttle. After all we shouldn't be gripping our bars too tight and this helps with throttle control and overall riding. All i do when i need to back off is roll my palm up the throttle. Hey presto, a little brake and a little throttle. I must stress i'm not responsible for any mishaps anyone wanting to try this may have as you all do whatever you listen to at your own risk. All i'm saying is with proper tuition and a bike to sit on and someone who's done it for years showing me,i can do it. I wont be held responsible for anything anyone wants to try or any injuries or damage sustained as a result. Essentially if you can ride it properly you dont need fancy gimmicks to ride better. Dont forget if Honda thought it was essential for a road bike it would be on there, look at the new blades, they have what we call a steering damper as standard, but not a 1/5th throttle. Save your cash and try other riding methods. Try two finger braking as dirt bike riders do, they need throttle control and brakes. Just cos your riding a race faired superbike doesnt mean other riding styles dont help, they are all motorbikes. I am only expressing my opinion on this and i'm expecting a few people to shoot me down but hey thats what freedom of expression is all about.

 

Well I remembered a thing I did awhile ago, and tried it again and it seemed to work out pretty good. I kept my fingers in the same position on the brake lever, and just positioned my palm farther forward on the grip and it seemed to give me the travel I needed without compromising the braking. I'll have ride more and get into some real heavy braking before I can see if it's really making a difference.

Oh, HRC does make a 1/5 turn throttle conversion for the RC51 and I believe that kit also works with the 600rr, 1000rr, and the F4i (with modifications). I'd imagine a 1/5 is a tad on the rediculous side for a streetbike, which is why they don't come fitted with it from the factory.

edit: looks like a place makes one for the F4, which probably fits, too bad it's $190 And it's adjustable to different ratios

 

Wow, it was amazing to read so many posts that didn't answer your question, and half the time didn't even understand the question.

There are various reasons for wanting a 1/5 or even 1/6 throttle. I just modified the one on our CBR600 powered F2 sidecar as under racing conditions the driver found himself wanting to grab a second handful of the throttle to get to full throttle after easing off in to corners. I'm surprised that anyone suggested you change your riding style.

"racers don't use full throttle a lot" - hmmmm - do a lot of racing ceeber6? Watch the pretty little dials at the side of Moto GP or F1 or Indy Car or pretty much anything similar. The throttle bar is on 100% nearly every time they accelerate. To take a road race extreme - at the TT Dave Molyneux (sidecar racer - has won about 12 times) reckons that he is on full throttle 90 percent of the race.

Adapt the bike to you for maximum comfort, not yourself to the bike. As you found out, the HRC ones and similar are a tad expensive.

Now - how to modify your throttle. Please note that I did this on a push-pull type throttle - it could be slightly different depending on your exact throttle. Please, please test it thoroughly before riding and make sure nothing binds and stops the throttle closing. I am not responsible for what you do with this information.

Lets start with the theory. If you understand this (and it is simple) then you can pretty much figure out the mod yourself. Inside your throttle is a cam (a wheel or disc basically) around the outside of this runs - in the case of a push-pull - the 2 throttle cables. Now if you make the disc bigger, then a quarter turn results in more movement of the wire. Imagine you have a yo-yo - dangle it on it's piece of string then turn the yo-yo through 90 degrees. Measure the amount of string wrapped up by this. Now get a car tyre. Tie or tacka piece of string to it on the outer edge- rotate the tyre through 90 degrees - measure string. Spot the difference? That's the basic concept, but massively exaggerated. The downside of the shorter pull is a slightly heavier throttle action - you are moving the throttle less to take up the same resistance from the throttle return spring.

Now all I did - Cut a couple of strips of thin plastic to make a shim or spacer. This sits underneath the throttle cables on the cam. What you effectively are doing here is increasing the diameter of the cam/disc in the throttle, so less turn for same travel. It is important that the shims don't bind on the sides, have too much space to let the cables slide down the side of the spacer, push the throttle cables too high and cause binding on the outer cover around the cam or push the throttle cables out of the groove if your throttle has a groove (mine doesn't).

I used plastic from a spray can lid. I cut it as 2 seperate strips (one on top of the other) as it was easier to cut and bent to the shape of the cam easier.

I hope this helps you out with this. If you are unsure as to the safety of the mod, look on eBay at the standard quick twist turn mod they sell for Suzukis. It's the same thing - just a plastic shim to increase the diameter of the cam. Please, please test it before you start the bike. If anything binds - take it apart, sand or file the plastic some more, reassemble and test again. If you make any modification to your throttle and don't thoroughly test it then you are taking a stupid risk.

 

take the slack up in the cable by turning the adjusting screw that goes into the throttle housing.(at the end of the little metal 90degree where the cable slips thru)