STANDARD STREET BIKES

[Mad4TheCrest]

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[Allred]

Mad4TheCrest wrote

Didn't it have the cat inside the muffler? Easy then to replace with a slip-on and presto, less weight.

I still think you should have kept that bike 😉

And what was up with the CW commenters in 2011? That was a great article and yet only 4 comments?  He should have shared that on the forum 🤨

The smog states had a CAT, it was not inside the muffler, but in the pipe immediately leading to the muffler, so even those who put a slip-on on still had the CAT there. The "rest of the world" had no cat, or oxygen sensor, and you can see the difference in diameter of the exhaust.

I found out that the exhaust was titanium, the shop who chromed my footpegs, heel guards, etc, had a hell of a time with it until they realized it was made of titanium, so then they simply polished it and it was indistinguishable from chrome.

The 954 didn't have a weight problem, well, it did, it was so light that it was hard to keep the front wheel on the ground in anything under 4th gear, so I had no desire to replace the muffler, chunky as it was.

The one thing it did need was a steering damper, I fitted a Scotts and it was wonderful, it transformed the bike, that and changing the stock Bridgestones to Michelins.

The pair of 330mm front rotors were excellent for high speed work, but grabbing them in an emergency would instantly lock the front wheel. Modern ABS would be a good thing.

When I bought the bike new it came with stock black lower fairing panels, the next year Honda switched the paint scheme and had black tank etc and red fairing lowers, so I bought 2003 red fairing lowers and made it ALLRED!


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[Fatfatboy]

Allred wrote

My CBR954RR from 2002, damn that muffler was big!

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Holy Snoob-Dog blunt! That thing is huge.
Was that stock?

[Allred]

Fatfatboy wrote

Holy Snoob-Dog blunt! That thing is huge.
Was that stock?

Yes direct from the showroom floor, that was the norm in mufflers during that period. Yamaha R1s and Suzuki GSXs were the same.

[Fatfatboy]

With its carbon fiber the Yamaha looks a little better.

I guess that’s why the pipes get changed out. I bet there is a lot of weight hanging out there on the stockers.

[Fatfatboy]

[Allred]

Fatfatboy wrote

I guess that’s why the pipes get changed out. I bet there is a lot of weight hanging out there on the stockers.

Yes, I think a slip-on could be around 5-8lbs lighter, but of course a lot noisier, and to get the benefit of the few extra horsepower you would have to have a power-commander tune.

I don't think 90% of riders out there are capable of using the 150hp-200hp of the liter bikes, so the 2-3hp gained by a slip-on isn't going to really be of any extra use. The noisier exhaust note may make the bike sound faster, and in some eyes it may make the bike look faster, and I'm sure it makes the rider feel faster, but I'm guessing weight saving comes pretty low in the buying-decision equation.

I think if there was a serious study we would find that more people modified their exhaust that those who left it stock, and I think that study would find a direct correlation with age, the younger the rider the more likely they would be to modify the exhaust.

I remember when I had my first motorcycle, a 250cc two-stoke twin Ariel Arrow. I hadn't had it very long when I purchased a pair of megaphones for it, they looked fantastic, and were EXTREMELY loud, which was perfect! I took the sensible stock mufflers off and replaced them with these wonderful megaphones and rode the bike home, and as soon as I walked in the door my father announced...."You can take those off!"
"I've only just put them on" I protested,
"I don't care what you've done, they are coming off, right now!" he stated.
And that was that.

Looking back I have to admit that they were loud, and I mean LOUD, they were even louder than no mufflers at all!!!

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[oldironnow]

"You can take those off!"

I love the fatherly 'can' that lands the entire sentence directly in between a question and a threat.

[Allred]

Here's evidence of the 4-pipe craze. This is a Norton Dominator (500cc or 600cc...1958-1962...it doesn't have the downdraft cylinder head of the later 650SS)  in a wideline feathebed frame (so 1959 or earlier) with swept-back headers (definitely de-rigueur at the time) attached to twin muffler exhausts. Copying the factory Hondas, MVs and Benellis, and later the Honda CB750, even British twin owners started putting 2-into-4-pipes on their machines. Paul Dunstall even offered them in his catalogue.

The pillion footpegs are located on the rear shock bolt (locating the passenger footpegs was always a problem with the wideline featherbed) which means that due to the high position he has his front rear-set footpegs, he had to flip the rear brake plate fulcrum arm 180 degrees to allow the rear brake arm a free path...........downwards.........which effectively means the rear brake is working "upside-down" & "backwards"!

Note the "Bacon Slicers"!
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[Fatfatboy]

 I was doing some research on the Z900RS (seat height  ) and came across a good article on the original "New York Steak".

https://www.motorbiscuit.com/the-kawasaki-kz900-ltd-was-the-first-power-cruiser/

[Allred]

Here's a well presented and interesting review of some "Standard"/Cafe street bikes.



The Thruxton RS still holds my attention.




And I have to agree with the presenter's approval of the Rennstall Speed Twin kit, if only for the chin fairing. I had a chin fairing on my 1983 CB1100F and loved the look..............I say "bring back the chin fairing"!!!!



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[Allred]

Fatfatboy wrote

Good comparison vid of the CB750 vs Z1900.

The CB750 was so ahead of its time it is difficult to imagine its impact unless you were there, it sent shock waves around the world, and Honda got it so right, it had everything that riders were looking for, and more.

I remember when I saw one for the first time I was absolutely blown away, and the first time I rode one it was even more than I possibly expected, it was phenomenal.

My apprentice wages meant that I had to immediately begin saving every penny I could to buy one (I would never buy things I couldn't "afford", if I didn't have the cash, I couldn't afford it). My Norton went up for sale, and I eventually had enough money for a shiny new CB750.

The Kawasaki Z1-900 came out a couple of years later and boasted a pretty big increase in horse power, and while I didn't like the "skinny" look of the bike I did admire the styling of the 4 pipes over those of the CB750.

The first CB750s had some very minor "faults", which Honda not only immediately addressed in the subsequent K1 version, but also made free upgrades to all existing machines. The CB750 was pretty much unburstable and had reliability unheard of before, and despite some reporting that it didn't handle very well, I rode thousands of miles on several of them and pushed them to the limit and never had one scary moment.(As long as you replaced the OEM rear shocks with Girlings)

The Z1900 had various reliability issues which Kawasaki took several years and model series to fully address, and I did hear that they had high speed handling issues, but I never rode one myself so cannot comment.

One thing I do know is they were faster than the CB750, and quite a lot faster. One day while out riding I spotted a Z1900 in the distance with a rider and passenger, I determined to "sneak up" behind them at a great rate of speed and flash past them. I quickly started gaining on them, but it became apparent the rider had spotted me and he put on a turn of speed. That's okay, I thought to myself, I'll still catch him and then out-ride him. I was quite shocked when, despite me riding at a high rate of speed, he seemed to actually be pulling away from me, I rode faster, revving my CB750 to the limit and above, riding like a maniac around the bends. He was still pulling away from me! Hoping he couldn't see what I was doing in his mirrors, I resorted to going down on the tank! Me flat prone on the gas tank, absolutely max revs, the speedo showing just the other side of 125mph, and he and his passenger, both sat bolt upright, continued to pull away from me! Completely embarrassed I reluctantly gave up the chase!


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[Mad4TheCrest]

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[Allred]

                          'Nuff said!

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[Allred]

Mad4TheCrest wrote

Every bike I have owned that I thought was the pinnacle of its class had always seen a superior performing bike follow it way too quickly.

Yes, I hated to admit it back then, but the Z1900 had "overtaken" the CB750, but there was no way I could afford to "upgrade" that soon.

The advantage of the CB750 was that not only was it (and still is) one of the best looking bikes ever made, it was ultra-reliable, handled amazingly well despite its bulk, and did pretty much anything you asked of it.  Honda made it in pretty much stock form for almost 10 years, before replacing it with the sportier looking DOHC CB900F in 1979. I almost bought a CB900F, but held out and bought a 1983 CB1100F which was an extremely nice bike that had a lot of low-down torque, it's a pity they only made it for that one year.

The manufacturers were finally catching on to what a lot of the buying public wanted, and that was a "cafe racer" right off the showroom floor. Dunstall, Rickman and Gus Kuhn had been doing this as private suppliers in the 1960s, and Bimoto if you could afford it, but it took until 1984 when Kawasaki produced the GPZ900R that you could buy a true sport bike with a full-fairing, rear-sets, low bars, etc. road tested at 150mph right from the dealership at "regular" pricing.

The GPZ1000R went one step further and became the first production bike to be guaranteed to do 160mph. I bought one and went 160mph for the first time in my life. (I also got pulled over for doing 130mph in a 55mph zone on that bike.....and the cop let me off with a warning!!!!!)

Suzuki got even more race-replica-looking with their GSX-R750 and GSX-R1100s. Honda came along with their Fireblades, Yamaha with their R1. And the rest is history.

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[Allred]

[Fatfatboy]

Allred wrote

                          'Nuff said!

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 I'd love to hear that baby sing!

[Fatfatboy]

Allred wrote

 And the rest is history.

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Man, Allred, I love to read your stories of the past. Your knowledge of the 60's and 70's motorcycling era is treasure.

I was playing with a little Benelli and Briggs powered monstrosities while you were riding and enjoying the good schtuff with bikes that made history.

[Allred]

Fatfatboy wrote

Man, Allred, I love to read your stories of the past. Your knowledge of the 60's and 70's motorcycling era is treasure.

FatFat, wow, I really appreciate your compliment, they are just the out-loud thoughts of an old fart who was lucky enough to have been part of a period that became motorcycle history, it didn't seem so at the time.