gixxie

REAR SHOCKS:

The biggest single factor in getting the ZX7R to boogie with the best is replacing the rear shock. You can get the standard one rebuilt to a better spec, but it's not really worth it as deep down it will always be a standard shock. There aren't that many decent rear shocks around, which is a bit of a surprise really.

White Power, Penske, Ohlins are the best. There's not a lot in the price between them, so it'll be down to personal choice. We at 'sportsbikeworld.co.uk' like the look of gold, so does our bike so we go for Ohlins everytime. The Kawasaki ZX7R has a rear ride height adjuster. Make sure that when you buy a rear shock that it has this facility, it should come as standard. The part numbers for the shocks are as follows.

Ohlins: 46 HRCLS & HRPLS £550 & £600 respectively

White Power:£TBA

Penske:£TBA

When fitting the shock dial in 10mm extra ride height. The Ohlins can go up to 12mm but don't bother. 1mm extra ride height on the shock will equate to 2mm in the saddle. Therefore if we add 10mm extra height on the shock, our seat will be 20mm taller than before. Now, the ZX7R is so stable that you can fit a NWS Rocker Arm (smoothes out the rear shock action but debatable whether you need it if you're fitting a real decent aftermarket shock) and this will add another 5mm to the ride height. The maximum you'll want to go on the road is about 16mm (32mm extra saddle height). Anymore and you'll wash out the front come the 1st bend.

Upping the ride height is THE thing to do. You'll hold a line better and she'll turn a little faster. Don't be scared to do it and make sure you get someone who knows what they're doing (suspension specialist)

TIP:

Adjust the ride height adjuster BEFORE inserting into the bike. Also if you adjust the compression, rebound or preload, only do it 2 clicks at a time and write it in a book. You're bound to forget which way you adjusted it.

FRONT FORKS:

Ok so the ZX7R has the best mass production front end in the business, but did you know that (even on a brand new bike) if you tipped the fork oil out, it'd look like black sludge - not good. We've had our forks stripped, cleaned, put back together again with Ohlins fork oil (strange colour it is) on both our ZX7R's and the transformation is amazing. The infamous stability is still there, but what you now get is information.

The front forks now rebound and compress so awesomely that you'd think you had a set of Ohlins forks up front. The Editor likes to have a look at them sometimes when he's riding and to see them bouncing up and down so smoothly is fantastic (apparently?!). You can feel exactly what the front tyre is doing.

All the big names can do this, to them it's not rocket science. Typical cost is around £100. We always take ours to M H Racing in Corsham, Wilts (all addresses and telephone numbers at the end of this document). Mark can whip the forks out, do the business and put them back in about 1 hour and charges £99. Then he'll dial in the suspension settings for while you wait. Quality service.

If you have binned your bike then it might be worth considering a change to an aftermarket set of forks. White Power and Ohlins are the best. White Power are around £1000, while Ohlins are £1500. If you think that's expensive remember this, the standard forks are £1400 if you buy them new from a Kawasaki dealer. All of a sudden, Ohlins forks aren't so expensive are they?

It does have to be said, going out and buying a set of Ohlins forks just because you can does not translate into making you the fastest, best handling kiddie on the block. Oh no. The tricker the kit, the easier it is to go the wrong way on settings and end up with a bike that doesn't handle as well as a bent shopping trolley. Titanium Nitrating is also popular but not worth the £500 expense. Remember that we don't want to blow the bank!

TIP:

Only adjust front fork settings 2 clicks at a time. Get a suspension specialist (like M H Racing) to wash, clean, reoil and set up the forks. Forks are too expensive to replace / repair just because you got too heavy with a screwdriver or hammer. You'll hate yourself forever, remember, it's only £99 to get a pro to do it.

gixxie

Again, from experience I had my first bike lowered, the front forks and the middle...GUESS WHAT? Bad handling so MPH which Doug Duane Suzuki Superbike Racer for 14 years did everything to my bike since, and we just lowered one of my gixxie girlz bikes and ONLY lowered the middle and she has GREAT HANDLING

camaroguy72

http://www.sportrider.com/tech/146_0...wer/index.html


read this. this backs me up. this actually talks about the proper way to lower a bike. so therefore.. sorry to tell ya... but you DO have to lower both ends if you want the bike to feel right.

DON'T JUST LOWER ONE END-Maintain The Correct Chassis Attitude

Some sportbikes have graduated lines on the fork tubes that allow easy adjustment for raising or lowering front end ride height. If you try to use the lowest mark, always check to make sure that you have sufficient clearance between the lower triple clamp and the front fender.

Any time you lower either end of a motorcycle, you must lower the opposite end an identical amount. Unless you want to change the bike's steering characteristics (which should only be done if you have a comprehensive grasp of motorcycle steering geometry), you must maintain the bike's chassis attitude to avoid handling problems. Changing the front or rear ride heights by as little as 5mm can have a dramatic effect on how a bike handles in the corners.

This is why it's essential to use the correct spring rate when lowering either end of the motorcycle a drastic amount. Shortening the fork requires cutting the fork springs in order to maintain the correct spring rate, otherwise the fork will ride extremely stiff since it will be at the bottom of its travel. It's also necessary to check suspension sag measurements (like you'd normally do) after modifying, using slightly smaller figures to compensate for the shortened suspension travel; that way the bike will maintain the correct chassis attitude during cornering, instead of riding higher on one end or the other.

The majority of current sportbikes use a cartridge fork, which employs an oil damping mechanism housed in an internal cylinder to handle suspension control. Shortening the fork requires disassembling the cartridge; this is a delicate piece of equipment, and taking it apart requires specialized tools and a person skilled in handling these components. Even shortening a traditional damper rod fork requires some mechanical expertise, so this is a job best left to a specialist. On the West Coast, try Lindemann Engineering (408/371-6151, www.le-suspension.com) or Race Tech (909/279-6655, www.racetech.com); on the East Coast, try Fours 'N More (770-851-1018, www.foursnmore.com), or Traxxion Dynamics (770/592-3823, www.traxxion.com).


call one of those numbers listed.. they will tell you what im saying.

RedHot

I agree - the shop that lowered my bike said I only need the back lowered. WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now I have to pay another shop to fix it the right way! It will alter the weight of the bike improperly if not lowered in the front AND back. The weight of the bike needs to be distributed evenly.

-ChaOs-

Whoever told you it was right to lower just the rear of a bike is on crack, and gixxie not to bash your racer buddy but if hes the one telling you to lower just the rear he needs to take up some mechanical courses. Lowering the rear and just the rear of a bike causing even a 1/2 inch of a rake effect will cause the front steering to become unstable at higher speed it will lighten up more then normal and cause it to float out more by raising the postion of the fork tubes and installing lowering links dogbones or the horseshoe bracket on the 600rr (yes it doesnt have dogbones) the chassis dynamics will stay the same on the bike and handleing shouldnt change very much with say an inch drop,

slothy

fawking slam the bia - i did 3" on the ole 600 handles just fine thru the curves

Twice

fawk it, once you get the thing set up let's go ride. I'm right around the corner from you at 23 and Callens and Jim is right up the road too. Congrats on the 6RR. I was so mad when I saw that bike, considering I bought an F4i in 02. What color did you get?

lilbittAtrouble

Hey yall......... wow, i didn't mean to cause an argument!

We dropped the front forks down and inch, and it wasn't enuf, so we got the links to drop the back end an inch... so bothe front and back were dropped an inch (thanks Andy ) Still a lil higher than my other bike, but i'm just going to get used to having it a bit higher. (i was almost flat foot on my 250)

I Rode it all day today, and it handles GRRRREAT! I was so afraid of having a bigger bike, and after taking it on the e-way, i realized that i feel WAY safer on the 600.... no fighting the wind, or having to spend the whole ride trying to stay on one side of the lane

I got the black (the 03', so its almost straight black) and i'm always down to ride.. i'll pm u my number... i'll prolly be out ever day this week
(weather permitting of course )

standy

You're welcome. Now go ride the wheels off that bitch.