lowering a f4i
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Joined: May 2013
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lowering a f4i
I bought my f4i a yr ago and I am thinking about lowing it. I am only lowering it for the look, not out of need to. my question is how much will it affect the handling of my bike? im new to bikes this is my first bike, I have put over 13,000 miles on it, so I have some experience riding I guess lol.
I have read a little of everything, some say it makes them unsafe and a lot easer to lay down?
also just so I don't have to do another thread anyone know why the clock wont hold time and the trip meter wont work?? they reset every time I turn the key off. is there a fuse or does anyone know what color the constant hot wire to the panel would be??
I have read a little of everything, some say it makes them unsafe and a lot easer to lay down?
also just so I don't have to do another thread anyone know why the clock wont hold time and the trip meter wont work?? they reset every time I turn the key off. is there a fuse or does anyone know what color the constant hot wire to the panel would be??
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Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 138
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From: Bloomington, IL
Taken some the "Rubber Soul Motorsport" facebook page.
Hope this helps.
Does adding lowering links hurt my bike’s performance?
When motorcycles are designed they have very specific geometry creating the tuned race chassis that we love. Some of the factors going into design is rake, trail, wheelbase, swing arm angle, axle height, ect... Even the angle of your chain in respects to the ground affects how your motorcycle “squats” coming out of a corner.
We are only going to look at basics, kinda like a motorcycle geometry 101. The 2 biggest adjustments people make to their street bike’s geometry is adding lowering links to lower the rear or dropping the triple tree lower on the forks to lower the front. Some people do this for looks and some because they aren’t tall enough (shaving the seat if possible is a better option) to be flat footed on the ground.
We will start in the front. When you lower the front it makes the bike turn into a corner easier/quicker. But, everything comes at a price. High speed stability is lessened and hard braking can cause the rear tire to break loose and be unstable. However, when you raise the front end the bike is slower/heavier to turn into a corner but more stable at high speeds and on the brakes.
The rear is an inverse of the front. When you raise the rear it makes the bike turn in easier/quicker but negatively affects stability. When you lower the rear it makes turning slower/heavier but the bike is more stable.
When motorcycles are designed they have very specific geometry creating the tuned race chassis that we love. Some of the factors going into design is rake, trail, wheelbase, swing arm angle, axle height, ect... Even the angle of your chain in respects to the ground affects how your motorcycle “squats” coming out of a corner.
We are only going to look at basics, kinda like a motorcycle geometry 101. The 2 biggest adjustments people make to their street bike’s geometry is adding lowering links to lower the rear or dropping the triple tree lower on the forks to lower the front. Some people do this for looks and some because they aren’t tall enough (shaving the seat if possible is a better option) to be flat footed on the ground.
We will start in the front. When you lower the front it makes the bike turn into a corner easier/quicker. But, everything comes at a price. High speed stability is lessened and hard braking can cause the rear tire to break loose and be unstable. However, when you raise the front end the bike is slower/heavier to turn into a corner but more stable at high speeds and on the brakes.
The rear is an inverse of the front. When you raise the rear it makes the bike turn in easier/quicker but negatively affects stability. When you lower the rear it makes turning slower/heavier but the bike is more stable.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 68
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From: Oklahoma
I lowered my f4i out of need, I can tell you that it won't want to turn in quite as well as if it was stock height, however if done right they do look really good. The front wheel won't want to come up that often either, which I thought was a good thing. Personally, if I was taller I wouldn't have lowered mine at all but thats just me.
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