Dropped the king :(

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

Yes dropped the King while away  But I was so lucky the frame bungs saved the bike not a mark , I was standing still but misplaced my foot  and couldn't hold the bike up so lowered it on the floor really , I really recommend fitting frame mushrooms , they paid for them selfs , 





I have now ordered a lowering kit so I can place both feet on the ground FLAT , dont want it to happen again 


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Suzuki-B-King-Lowering-Link-Kickstand-DISCOUNT-Kit-/160503506865?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item255ec127b1

[dick65 0]

bloody hell Dave  least you both ok the bike will mend m8

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

@dick65 wrote:

bloody hell Dave  least you both ok the bike will mend m8

mel wasnt on it m8 , i was just turning it round

[dick65 0]

that lowering kit sounds a good investment  Dave
you replacing the frame bung?

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

@dick65 wrote:

that lowering kit sounds a good investment  Dave
you replacing the frame bung?

I have polished it up and put a new sticker on ,and it dont look too bad , but will keep a eye out for one 

[bladerunner 0]

@Davehutch wrote:

@dick65 wrote:

bloody hell Dave  least you both ok the bike will mend m8

mel wasnt on it m8 , i was just turning it round

I would be havin a word with Mel, she could have dived under it before it hit the deck

seriously though, theyre worth their weight in gold them R+G bungs, I had them on when I dropped my Blade at about 60 mph ,all I damaged was the alternator cover,rear footpeg that polished out and the crash bung.

If you get in touch with R+G they might sell you one bung, they did for my blade,save you having to fork out for the pair.

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

@bladerunner wrote:

@Davehutch wrote:

@dick65 wrote:

bloody hell Dave  least you both ok the bike will mend m8

mel wasnt on it m8 , i was just turning it round

I would be havin a word with Mel, she could have dived under it before it hit the deck

seriously though, theyre worth their weight in gold them R+G bungs, I had them on when I dropped my Blade at about 60 mph ,all I damaged was the alternator cover,rear footpeg that polished out and the crash bung.

If you get in touch with R+G they might sell you one bung, they did for my blade,save you having to fork out for the pair.

yes I have sent them a email Chris , and will keep a eye out on ebay  too

[madsod 0]

glad not to bad Dave and yep bung.s do work very well ,

[gravelrash 0]

not to bad Dave  I'll keep a look out for some 6" platform boots for you   unless mel has some you can borrow until you get the bike lowered! seriously though, looks like them bungs are a good investment mate! 

[Grumpyowl 0]

I think RG sell all the bits separately. 


Pity Mel wasn't on it she'd have weighed it down so your feet touched the floor..

[Grumpyowl 0]

Would the lowering kit affect the handling?

What about getting a second hand seat off Evilbay and have it reshaped ?

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

@Grumpyowl wrote:

Would the lowering kit affect the handling?

What about getting a second hand seat off Evilbay and have it reshaped ?

can make it a bit harder going in corners , will see , if it does can lowered the front abit , people are saying different things , there are no second hand ones , and what you men have it re shaped ??

[gravelrash 0]

Seat can be re shaped so you sit lower in the saddle Dave might be worth thinking about!but it depends on how thick it is now!

[Grumpyowl 0]

@Davehutch wrote:

@Grumpyowl wrote:

Would the lowering kit affect the handling?

What about getting a second hand seat off Evilbay and have it reshaped ?

can make it a bit harder going in corners , will see , if it does can lowered the front abit , people are saying different things , there are no second hand ones , and what you men have it re shaped ??

A mate of mine had his foam reshaped they took about 2" out and this had the effect of lowering the seat height without touching the suspension.

[stantheman 0]

the sponge padding on the seat can be reduced using an electric sander its easy then staple the cover back on 

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

@Grumpyowl wrote:

@Davehutch wrote:

@Grumpyowl wrote:

Would the lowering kit affect the handling?

What about getting a second hand seat off Evilbay and have it reshaped ?

can make it a bit harder going in corners , will see , if it does can lowered the front abit , people are saying different things , there are no second hand ones , and what you men have it re shaped ??

A mate of mine had his foam reshaped they took about 2" out and this had the effect of lowering the seat height without touching the suspension.

with you now, the seat isnt that thick to start with m8 , a few on the b-king forum have used this kit with no problems ,

[Stue11 0]

God save the bungs  least you were ok weve all done it 

[Chadatious 0]

ahh not good dave, we have all done it thou, rich did it last year, i did it couple weeks ago. sadly crash bungs didnt save mine!

whehn the king is a big old bike so easily done

[lee1 1]

your not the first dave,dropped me old bandit sat on it in the back garden


you plonker

[fr499y 0]

@Davehutch wrote:

@dick65 wrote:

bloody hell Dave  least you both ok the bike will mend m8

mel wasnt on it m8 , i was just turning it round

Same thing happened to my dad in France, brand new 2013 FJR, just over 1000 miles on it and dropped it while he was turning around. We have all done it to our pride and joys and its a right kick in the teeth. As you say, good job you had the shrooms fitted!

[Tony nitrous 0]

Not a fan of lowering kits.
Riden several bikes that have been done,
Bandits, GSXR's, Katana, SV, Hayabusa and never found
one that was as good as stock. Lack of ground clearance
and poor steering (stable, but slow) are normal. 
Done a few for learners or for the drags. 

B-King has quite lazy geometry and making it more so
doesn't do it any favours (if you like "sporty)

Funny enough, most owners seem happy as they either
look nice or feel safer riding. 

Doesn't make it right or wrong.
Whatever works for you Dave.

[smilinjack 0]

Hard luck Dave, but remember it's only a bike  is it easy to lower the fork yokes too? Otherwise you may find the steering goes a bit slow & stiff. 

Sorry Tony-while I was doing something else you'd posted pretty much my reply. Great minds think alike, although fools never differ. 

[Chadatious 0]

@smilinjack wrote:

Hard luck Dave, but remember it's only a bike  is it easy to lower the fork yokes too? Otherwise you may find the steering goes a bit slow & stiff. 

Sorry Tony-while I was doing something else you'd posted pretty much my reply. Great minds think alike, although fools never differ. 

dropped the forks down on the sv when i had it and it was 10x better!

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

@smilinjack wrote:

Hard luck Dave, but remember it's only a bike  is it easy to lower the fork yokes too? Otherwise you may find the steering goes a bit slow & stiff. 

Sorry Tony-while I was doing something else you'd posted pretty much my reply. Great minds think alike, although fools never differ. 

how do you lower the yokes then ? 

[dick65 0]

loosen fork bolts and slide fork stanchions up, maybe about 10 mm makes the steering sharper

[BanditMike 0]

Sorry to hear mate. You did less damage than I did to mine last year so the bungs do work   

[Tony nitrous 0]

Dropping the front has its benifits,
but you mess with rake, trail, wheelbase, ground clearance 
and a few other things. Easy to spoil a bike.


A very short mate with a big bore Spondon Turbo once told me...
"Height and strength are just poor substitutes for ability" 

[ptolemyx 0]

What Tony says is wise sage advice. However from  what I've see of your riding, Dave, the negative effects on handling would be outweighed by the benefits for you in lowering the bike. You won't be radically altering it for the drag strip and, as I've suggested elsewhere, I believe lowering the front (see your workshop manual) up to about 12mm will go some way to compensate for the amount you lower the rear. This will also reduce the seat height so you won't need to lower the rear as much. It will handle differently from stock and obviously you'll have less cornering clearance but you're not a TT racer. As long as your changes aren't extreme you'll still have a safe ride.

Old and Disgraceful

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

still waiting for my soupy kit , but have lowered the front to 12 mm , feel daft now i know how easy it is  the hardest bit was undoing the 2 bolts to move the head light out to get to the top 2 pinch bolts

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

Thanks Brian   and nice to see you back Tony 

[Oldfart 0]

I had a seat reshaped to lower the height but the problem is that if the pegs are not also lowered your knees are more bent.  Gets a bit uncomfortable on long journeys.

[fr499y 0]

a lot of the times its not the seat height that causes the issue, its the width of the seat.

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

All done just got to test ride if it stops raining ,  had to pay £60 customs charge to get my parts from parcel force (have sent soupy a email) also the side stand that comes with the kit is not great ,the bit that sticks out so you can put your foot on to push the stand down is not long enough emailed them about this too

[stantheman 0]

@Davehutch wrote:

All done just got to test ride if it stops raining ,  had to pay £60 customs charge to get my parts from parcel force (have sent soupy a email) also the side stand that comes with the kit is not great ,the bit that sticks out so you can put your foot on to push the stand down is not long enough :(emailed them about this too 




if you send it to me ill extend the rod for you mate did my hornet one last year

[trebor4460 0]

Glad to see the damage was minimal Dave. We all done it, droping the forks should help, also as suggested a seat mod, not so sure about lowering the back though....

[ptolemyx 0]

I think Dave's pointed out that the B-King seat's foam is quite thin to start with and there's not a lot to be gained there.

Customs charges Dave are not Soupy's fault, you should have been aware that importing anything from outside the EU will incur 20% vat and the buggers also often sting on a "handling" charge. With that, and the extra carriage costs anyone from the US like to put on, bits from across the pond aren't the bargain they seem.

Anycase, I'm sure you'll find that lowering the bike will suit you better; though be prepared to now be less able to emulate McPint  And lowering both ends is definitely better than lowering one end only.

Old and Disgraceful

[karlo 0]

Usually end up being stung when you order from the state, I learnt the hard way too.

You could push a bit of rubber tube on to extend the bit that's to short Dave.

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

just been out and test rode my bike , great improvement and if anything handles better , But just doing a good check over the bike now i am back   , and the back tyre has rubbed under the back at some point rubbing the wire for the back light   How can I stop this ? will stiffening the back shock up do it ? if so how do i do that ?  HELP PLEASE

and this is with out a pillion on the back

[Neill 0]

all this messing about, all you needed was to step into a timewarp back to the seventies and got yourself some platform sole boots Dave.
Bike would be unmolested and you would look trendy-ish sort off

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

@Neill wrote:

all this messing about, all you needed was to step into a timewarp back to the seventies and got yourself some platform sole boots Dave.
Bike would be unmolested and you would look trendy-ish sort off

lol,was really pleased with the test ride bike felt really good , gutted that the wheel is now rubbing underneath , must have done it only once a bit worried to take mel out now , just need to stop this happening again and i will be sorted , but dont want to start messing with the shock till i know what i need to do ,

[ptolemyx 0]

How much have you lowered the back? Mine is 65mm lower (for the drag strip as you know) and never gets anywhere near having wheel/ underside contact, even on the bumpiest of Devon roads. There again you are a bit lardier than me  Also I've just realised I don't have all the crap under the seat that you have.

Sounds like you need a bit more preload on the shock............I suggest you try and get the "rider sag" 30mm to 35mm and the "static sag" 5mm to 10mm. Problem is the B-King rear shock is well known for having too soft a spring for heavier riders and you might need a stiffer spring. Once you've set the rider sag to 30-35mm check the static sag, if it is more than 10mm it indicates a stiffer spring is needed. Adjusting the suspension yourself is nothing to be frightened of - learn the principles of the effect of the various adjustments first then taking one step at a time; do the front and rear preload, then front compression and rebound damping and finally rear compression and rebound damping and check the front and rear damping is matched so that both ends compress and return at similar rates. Make a note of the stock settings first and note each adjustment as you proceed. You can always go back to stock settings if need be.


Or you can take it to a "suspension guru" and spend money without learning any more about your bike.

Old and Disgraceful

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

if i measure from top of tyre to under the exhaust box where it is concave it is about 100 mm with me off the bike and with me on it about 70mm if its any help,


and i lowered it about the same 65 mm

[Grumpyowl 0]

I always leave mine to stock settings prefer not to mess but have a look at this


http://www.visordown.com/how-to-do-just-about-anything/how-to-set-up-your-bikes-suspension/15237.html

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

ok i have just stiffened the rear shock up a bit , and raised the bike a little bit too , just been for a test ride and all seems well , got to now try it with mel on and the top box

[ptolemyx 0]

Dave, you know my bike is set for the drag strip. With the rear lowered 65mm and the front 22mm lower, together with my other chassis mods my bike does not handle like a MotoGP racer through the twisties, bargelike springs to mind, though knowing it's limits I feel safe on the road. I would not lower this amount for the riding you do - suggest 50mm rear and 12mm front are the maximum practical lowering figures for a road only bike.

I keep plugging this for helping anyone setting their own suspension. Demystifies the mystic art with clear explanations and advice on step by step progress for optimising your ride:-

http://www.gostar-racing.com/information/motorcycle_suspension_set-up.htm

Old and Disgraceful

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

@ptolemyx wrote:

Dave, you know my bike is set for the drag strip. With the rear lowered 65mm and the front 22mm lower, together with my other chassis mods my bike does not handle like a MotoGP racer through the twisties, bargelike springs to mind, though knowing it's limits I feel safe on the road. I would not lower this amount for the riding you do - suggest 50mm rear and 12mm front are the maximum practical lowering figures for a road only bike.

I keep plugging this for helping anyone setting their own suspension. Demystifies the mystic art with clear explanations and advice on step by step progress for optimising your ride:-

http://www.gostar-racing.com/information/motorcycle_suspension_set-up.htm

Old and Disgraceful

yes thanks for all your help Brian , think i need a stronger spring to start with as i cant get the right sag, and I also need the bike for trips away with the wife , just been for a test ride with wife and luggage and it bottomed out, so had to put all settings back to standard , gutted after spending £300

I can only get to 50mm rider sag , i weigh 107kg with my bike gear on

[Tony nitrous 0]

Dave, can you see why I'm not keen on changing the height with the linkage? 

The links don't just change the height they change the leverage ratio
on the shock.
I'm suprised more folk can't tell this.

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

@Tony nitrous wrote:

Dave, can you see why I'm not keen on changing the height with the linkage? 

The links don't just change the height they change the leverage ratio
on the shock.
I'm suprised more folk can't tell this.

yes i can m8 , putting back to standard i just wound down the new adjustable dog bones till they where the same as the original it was only the last few mm that made the difference and firmed thing up

[ptolemyx 0]

Well aware of effect of longer dog-bones softening the suspension. Lowering the rear 50mm on a B-King via longer dog-bones will soften the suspension about 10% for the first third of the suspension travel; with the effect lessening somewhat as the suspension travel increases.

Old and Disgraceful

[Davehutch-hutchs 0]

some good info here >>

http://www.hyperpro.com/hyperpro/en/node/21