Comfort/commute mods

[Davey]

After a year of lovely alpine mountain road twisties, my poor Fazer is now having to suffer being used as my way to get to work in Paris. Neither she nor I are overjoyed about this but money must be earned to pay the bills!

My commute to work involves an hour of filtering in the worst traffic I have ever experienced (with people seemingly out to get me in their cages - ATGATT most definitely applies, and I've taken to wearing a High Viz vest too) and long high-speed motorway runs. The weather is sometimes crap, and I need to carry stuff. So with all this in mind, I am trying to make things as pleasant as possible for me and the bike! Things I have got so far:

Centre stand is back on.
Top box is back on (also got soft luggage if I need the extra).
Heated grips.
She's also had a good bit of TLC with oil and filter change, Pilot Road 2's in the next week or so, chain cleaned, lubed and adjusted etc.

Any other ideas? I am thinking comfort seat and hand guards would be money well spent.

What about a sprocket change though? Would this help me on the motorway? Would I get better mpg? Would it have any disadvantages for filtering in the traffic?

What about suspension (the forks are feeling particularly poor at the moment)? I'm not up for the R6 fork mod but maybe a fork oil change?

Would shorty levers help (seem always to cover the brake and clutch in traffic and it makes my hands ache)?

Any 'crappy weather' mods I can consider?

A lot of questions, and any input is appreciated! As long as it isn't to sell my beloved Fazer and buy a car instead! :spank:

 

[RJ2112]

I would most definitely replace the fork oil...... at the same time, I would drop in single rate fork springs. .8, .85, or .9 Kg. The stiffer the spring, the harder the front will ride. But regardless, it will be a LOT more precise, and the 'dive' on braking will be significantly reduced. The handling will improve drastically.

Braided brake lines will reduce how much lever travel is involved in engaging the brakes. That will make the hands less stressed.

A bigger windscreen would provide more coverage, to get you out of the weather... but that will add wind noise.

If you haven't already bought a Balaclava, I would make that a very strong recommendation. Ear plugs, too.

A new seat will help..... harder and flatter is IMHO a better move than getting something that will lock you into one position.

 

[Davey]

I would most definitely replace the fork oil...... at the same time, I would drop in single rate fork springs. .8, .85, or .9 Kg. The stiffer the spring, the harder the front will ride. But regardless, it will be a LOT more precise, and the 'dive' on braking will be significantly reduced. The handling will improve drastically.

Braided brake lines will reduce how much lever travel is involved in engaging the brakes. That will make the hands less stressed.

A bigger windscreen would provide more coverage, to get you out of the weather... but that will add wind noise.

If you haven't already bought a Balaclava, I would make that a very strong recommendation. Ear plugs, too.

A new seat will help..... harder and flatter is IMHO a better move than getting something that will lock you into one position.

Thanks for the input! Good advice on the fork oil and springs. The dive is really starting to grate on me - especially when stupid cagers pull out in front of you with no warning! Braided lines are a good idea too. I've got a touring screen but hated it and swapped it for a Puig double bubble. It look loads better but is just as crap for wind noise. Already wear a buff neck tube thing, and ear plugs too - invaluable!

 

[Erci]

From my personal experience, shorty levers will NOT help. They will make it worse in traffic. It requires significantly more effort to pull the clutch in with a shorty lever. I love mine, but I never ride in traffic and even generally only make few stops.
On the rides when I do go through busy towns and have to crawl in 1st and come to full stop a lot, my left hand/fingers pay for it.

 

[bd43]

From my personal experience, shorty levers will NOT help. They will make it worse in traffic. It requires significantly more effort to pull the clutch in with a shorty lever. I love mine, but I never ride in traffic and even generally only make few stops.
On the rides when I do go through busy towns and have to crawl in 1st and come to full stop a lot, my left hand/fingers pay for it.

I would agree, as I do most of my riding in the city and I have the longer Pazzo's and find that, when I'm sitting in traffic or moving slowly, going up and down on the gears my hand moves further out on the lever for better leverage and lesser effort.

We don't have a whole lot of twisties near by so I actually quite enjoy the city commute. I purposely go out of my way to take as many turns as I can to where I am going instead of the direct route. :thumbup:

 

[RJ2112]

Thanks for the input! Good advice on the fork oil and springs. The dive is really starting to grate on me - especially when stupid cagers pull out in front of you with no warning! Braided lines are a good idea too. I've got a touring screen but hated it and swapped it for a Puig double bubble. It look loads better but is just as crap for wind noise. Already wear a buff neck tube thing, and ear plugs too - invaluable!

Wind noise is a part of the '04-'06 fairing design. The '07 and later fairing/windscreen design don't go far enough with the size of the hole needed to reduce the vacuum behind the screen.

Erici made a bunch of holes around the edge of his '07 screen, and finally got it to be quieter, when he had four holes with at least as much area as a sheet of note book paper.... 8" x 11" or more.

Once you get the fork sorted out, you'll start to notice how marginal the rear suspension is as well. I wouldn't bother doing the back until after you see that for yourself; it's a fair bit of coin to invest. Adding the weight of the top box all the way off the end of the bike, it's going to magnify the issues with springing and damping.

 

[Erci]

Erici made a bunch of holes around the edge of his '07 screen, and finally got it to be quieter, when he had four holes with at least as much area as a sheet of note book paper.... 8" x 11" or more.

Yup, this got rid of a lot of buffeting and made it quieter, but majority of the air was directed to my neck.. not ideal. Someone should try to this this on Puig screen. I think combination of taller screen and pressure relief may yield very good results.

 

[Davey]

I've got an 06 so the fairing and screen are different. As far as I can see the only thing that'd help is to actually cut the screen down (as already extensively covered here on the forum).

I am seriously considering the fork oil and springs, but if it'll only highlight how poor the rear is perhaps I'll leave it! I tend to have the rear set very hard, even though I'm not that heavy (I think it's on 6). I'm due for a fork oil change so maybe I'll start with that as a minimum. There's some good threads on here about changing fork oil and springs!

 

[mxgolf]

Lots of good ideas guys thanks. I might want to go to the longer levers myself. I have done the rear suspension Ohlin and love it. This winter is the front end. New fork springs for sure and probably All Balls steering head bearings. I have the -1 on the sprocket and love it. Unless you are really doing high speed traveling that would work just fine fo you. You can do the -1 front and +2 on the rear and pick up the top end if top speed is needed. Not me. Once I hit tripple digits on the speedo it's time to backer down. :thumbup:

 

[Gcontroller]

Was going to suggest heated grips but I now see that you already have them. I've been thinking about a horn upgrade to wake up some people that seem to want to kill me.

 

[fzme]

After a year of lovely alpine mountain road twisties, my poor Fazer is now having to suffer being used as my way to get to work in Paris. Neither she nor I are overjoyed about this but money must be earned to pay the bills!

My commute to work involves an hour of filtering in the worst traffic I have ever experienced (with people seemingly out to get me in their cages - ATGATT most definitely applies, and I've taken to wearing a High Viz vest too) and long high-speed motorway runs. The weather is sometimes crap, and I need to carry stuff. So with all this in mind, I am trying to make things as pleasant as possible for me and the bike! Things I have got so far:

Centre stand is back on.
Top box is back on (also got soft luggage if I need the extra).
Heated grips.
She's also had a good bit of TLC with oil and filter change, Pilot Road 2's in the next week or so, chain cleaned, lubed and adjusted etc.

Any other ideas? I am thinking comfort seat and hand guards would be money well spent.

What about a sprocket change though? Would this help me on the motorway? Would I get better mpg? Would it have any disadvantages for filtering in the traffic?

What about suspension (the forks are feeling particularly poor at the moment)? I'm not up for the R6 fork mod but maybe a fork oil change?

Would shorty levers help (seem always to cover the brake and clutch in traffic and it makes my hands ache)?

Any 'crappy weather' mods I can consider?

A lot of questions, and any input is appreciated! As long as it isn't to sell my beloved Fazer and buy a car instead! :spank:

You might want to look into a louder/deeper horn. The high-pitched beep on most stock bikes sometimes doesn't cut it. Some of the aftermarket horns are a little overkill, but you might like a Fiamm low-tone. I have one on my FZ6, and I love it.

Also, you might look into ways of improving your visibility. Bright colors for your gear, larger/brighter/additional (even LED) lights, or maybe some 3M high-reflective tape on different places on your bike. The tape goes on clear, so it doesn't look bad.

 

[Davey]

You might want to look into a louder/deeper horn. The high-pitched beep on most stock bikes sometimes doesn't cut it. Some of the aftermarket horns are a little overkill, but you might like a Fiamm low-tone. I have one on my FZ6, and I love it.

Also, you might look into ways of improving your visibility. Bright colors for your gear, larger/brighter/additional (even LED) lights, or maybe some 3M high-reflective tape on different places on your bike. The tape goes on clear, so it doesn't look bad.

Yes the horn is maybe a good idea. It's crazy how bad some of the drivers are here. They'll have their music blasting in the cage, oblivious to anything going on around them, and of course will spot that gap in the next lane which may get them an extra 2 car lengths in front and whizz into it without looking (or indicating)! They are definitely out to get us!

Visibility is so important for safety. I've got reflective piping on my clothing but as it's all black I wear a high visibility vest over the top. When filtering I put my hazard lights on also (most bikers here seem to do that). I like the idea of some 'invisible' reflective tape too. My top box has massive reflectors on the back which is helpful too.

 

[SANGER_A2]

When you change the oil, try a heavier weight than the stock 5w. It will make the springs feel harder and reduce dive for no cost. Also, the more oil you put in, the more damping you get.

 

[deeptekkie]

Sometimes new fork oil feels like a rebuild. I would lube the clutch cable well, (both ends). Check ALL of your lights too. Be careful!

 

[Davey]

When you change the oil, try a heavier weight than the stock 5w. It will make the springs feel harder and reduce dive for no cost. Also, the more oil you put in, the more damping you get.

Yes this seems definitely the way to go! I've seen what came out of the fork on some other thread on here - looked more like dirty water than oil!

Can anyone recommend a viscosity? Does it depend on my weight? I am about 85kgs.

Also, is it not better to keep to the recommended amount of oil? I see the sense in what you're saying, but surely there is the danger of overfilling and damaging the fork (or at least screwing up the handling of the bike)?

This is fast turning into a fork oil thread! All good advice though. Anyone have any other commute/comfort mod ideas? I'm looking mainly for advice on the bike as opposed to gear (as I have some good gear already), but safety too is welcome! :Flash:

 

[wolfe1down]

A better than stock seat is a must - Top Sellerie, or Corbin make awesome ones. A Scottoiler would be good too! Maybe an intercom system for rider-to-pillion or bike-bike communications.