Hey Guys, general discussion on the first generation 900RR's road manners. Pardon my ignorance but I'm seeking enlightenment. While I've riden for a lot of years my experience is limited to just a few bikes. The most modern thing I've any saddle time on is my '94 1000F. I've test rode a few from this decade but have never rode anything that handles like this '93 900RR. Love the power and looks.
Judging by the amount of steering dampers, wheel size changes, and some triple clamp swaps I've heard of, I'm guessing I'm not the only one to find this ride a bit quirky.
Mine is bone stock as far as running gear; shock, wheels, forks. When I take her out for a ride I just have a big problem getting comfortable in the turns with it. I feel a whole lot better pushing my 1000F thru a turn with 150 more pounds than the 900. It feels to twichy and nervous. The steering is so quick it borders on unstable and road irregularities seem to upset it to easily. I have varied the settings on the forks per a thread here with no improvement.
I'm willing to admit it's all me and maybe I just need to grow a pair when I ride it. Some constructive advise or sharing your experience is also appreciated. How does this compare to a late model 600?

 

I love those colors ... my (original owner) '93 is the Captain America version.

It's not you ... at its age now, the bike is difficult to feel confident riding on the street, especially compared to modern engineering. I'm currently running Pirelli Diablo Supersports and it's helped somewhat, but there's no getting around the squirrelly front-end feel. Even the rear squirms a bit, too.

I've upgraded to '97 model forks, which have additional damping adjustment, but it's only a minor improvement. The 17" front wheel conversion is also lackluster, IMO, particularly with the MW0 models ('93-'94), since you lose the speedometer and because premium rubber is still mostly available for the 16" size. I never push past six or seven tenths on the street because I'm afraid it won't hold traction above that. I also have steel brake lines with sintered pads and the stopping power is cautious at best. Not bad, but not modern either.

New 600's, on the other hand, inspire you to drive hard into any corner. You just know it'll stick and get you through. I rode an '07 ZX-6R and couldn't believe the difference. One-finger braking, effortless traction, the works.

I love my bike, and it's a classic performance benchmark, but the geometry fell off a cliff with the advancement of technology. Great power still!

 

I also came from a very heavy bike (VFR 750) and went to the '93 900rr and I can certainly see where you are coming from.

My 900rr felt very nervous and twitchy at the front end and it would pick up every road imperfection and transmit it to me via the clip-ons....however honestly...I didn't change a thing.

I did not add a steering damper nor did I change tires.

I just got used to it. Give it some time, and you will also adjust and adapt.

 

Forgot to add-- the 900rr is an awesome bike!!!!!

I wouldn't change it for the world, nor do I crave a 600 or a modern sportbike.

 

Fireblades = #1

 

Hey MT- As I said I love the power and looks of my 900RR, I just want to get the potential out of it when I ride her. No slam on the bike what-so-ever. I was asking how much of this is me? Thanks for any and all feedback!

 

I've had my '93 for 18 years, and while I've had a number of other bikes during these years, the 900 is still one the best handling bikes out there. It does take some getting used to the quickness of the steering if you are used to a heavier or more sport touring oriented bike. Compared to, say a Ducati 848, the 900 feels slower steering :-)

A couple of suggestions that have improved the bike for me: moving to Metzler Sportec M3s made the steering a bit more sure footed, and adding a better damper in the rear made a huge difference.

Having said all this, ride the 900 and build up your confidence with it. It won't let you down.

 

No worries cb2CBR! The bike really is that twitchy and nervous...at least it is to me.

It just takes some getting used to.

Welcome to the family!

 

I personally have never ridden the 93, I bought my 99 new and love it. It would get a little twitchy in 1st and 2nd wide open, A damper solved the problem. The front wheel was skipping on the road, I did the 17" conversion because I wanted a better choice of tires and personally think it looks better. Just my opinion, Can't go wrong with the 900RR

Both bikes are beautiful, I love the colors. I settled for yellow, I couldn't wait to but it and didn't want to wait for the red or black
Jim

 

I remember going from the 600f2 to the 900rr and I had a very hard time adjusting to the extra torque and power.

I was used to over-twisting the throttle of my 900rr....and would wind up double-shifting.....I'd go from 1st gear....and then shift with too much throttle.

So I would shift to 2nd gear and then quickly to 3rd to avoid shooting away like a missile.


It took a while to finally learn to adjust my throttle wrist so I wouldn't need to double-shift.