How much?

[stevieboy]

No judgements here. I have been following the forum since I got my RC last year and am surprised at how much money is being thrown at these bikes. My question is: how much money do you have to spend to make this a "good" bike? Again no judgements and I know its going to be subjective.

 

[emiller]

No judgements here. I have been following the forum since I got my RC last year and am surprised at how much money is being thrown at these bikes. My question is: how much money do you have to spend to make this a "good" bike? Again no judgements and I know its going to be subjective.

In my opinion if you want to make it safe and reliable you only need new brake pads, change the radiator fan for the spal and maybe a rear shock if you are planning to ride hard. All the other mods are more focused to power and swag.

EBC Brake pads $35
Spal fan: $43
Rear shock can go from $600 - $995 or maybe less if you find a used shock.

 

[zaster]

Depends mostly on how and where you are planning on riding it.

 

[motoputz]

I bought mine with a plan to make it a track only bike. So far the has included just under $2K to rebuild the forks to cartridge type and a new rear shock. Clip on bars were added to give some ability to adjust riding position and a new cast iron 310mm diameter front rotor for better feel and stopping power. Those two things cost about $500. next will be a radial brake master cylinder and lighter wheels. I will probably put another $3K into it to make it the track toy I want.

For an entry level bike I was surprised on how well the 390 handled right off the dealer floor. The stock brakes have terrible feel but do work. They just do not fit well with my deep trail braking riding style at the track.

 

[=maz=]

PCV plus tuning, suspension, air-filter, fan, Rad-guard, rearsets, front MC, pads and better disks...that's not even looking at tyres, Race-glass, spare wheels, spare parts and other little trimmings.

 

[green_bread]

The bike is "good" in stock form. If you want to make improvements, the best "bang for your buck" mods are going to be brake pads, PCV (really smooths out the throttle and gets rid of the jerkiness at lower RPMs), and a rear shock. The rear shock is not really needed unless youre riding pretty hard in some twisties, though. The Rosso II tires are good enough for anyone on the street and novice to slower intermediate track riding. If yours has cooling issues, a SPAL fan and upgraded radiator cap would be good investments.

Usually, you mod a bike to your specific needs. So, let me ask you: "What problem are you looking to fix with modifications?"

 

[stevieboy]

Not looking to "fix" anything in particular. Just thinking about upgrades versus just buying a better bike.

 

[Andy]

Depends what you want in a better bike, there isn't really much in the same bracket as R3, Ninja etc are similar.

You'll get the same whatever group you go in, new ZX10 and you can still spend a shed load to make it better.

 

[green_bread]

Yeah, you're not really giving us anything to go off of. You say you want a better bike. What makes another bike better than this one? I'm just trying to understand what you want so I can recommend the right things.

 

[stevieboy]

Not really looking for anything just now. I have three bikes now. Just curious.

 

[Muckabucka]

My "gold standard" was my '91 RS250. It was light, handled like a dream and made decent power. It takes a few bucks to get a production bike to that level. Street bikes are a different story. Beats wasting money on whores.

 

[CDN Duke]

Not really looking for anything just. I have three bikes now. Just curious.

You do state it's subjective, which it is. I'd probably do the same types of upgrades regardless of bike/brand: brake pads, frame protection, adjustable levers, rearsets, exhaust, air filter, PCV (or other tuning aid).

I like to tinker and customize, not really happy with bone stock anything whether my cars or bikes (pedal bikes included).

 

[stevieboy]

You do state it's subjective, which it is. I'd probably do the same types of upgrades regardless of bike/brand: brake pads, frame protection, adjustable levers, rearsets, exhaust, air filter, PCV (or other tuning aid).

I like to tinker and customize, not really happy with bone stock anything whether my cars or bikes (pedal bikes included).

Exactly. I build my own bicycles up too. I "customized" all my bikes as well. I guess my question needed refinement to differentiate between customizing and making the bike perform properly. Should have been for street riding vs. race/track as well. personalizing vs. correcting factory/dealer set up deficiencies. Probably still difficult to get a good response.

 

[zaster]

Well, in that case I would do the following not necessarily in that order:
EBS front pads
Ohlin rear shock KT303 adjusted to your weight
Race Tech fork springs and oil tuned to your weight
PCV with WBS auto tune
Helix Racing radiator cap
Swing arm spool sliders
BMC or KN air filter
Rear sets if the OEMs aren't putting you in a comfortable seating position
Same goes for clip ons and levers

Hope that helps

 

[Topaz]

My dream list goes for about 6k if buying all new and the best, and is:

For the track:
Shock
Forks
Pipe.+PC
Frame Sliders
Race Fairings
Axle Sliders
Case Savers
SS Lines
Brake Rotors
Master Cylinder
Rear sets
Clip-ons
Levers
Tank pads
Levers Guards


And for street use:
Disc Lock
Ulock
Alarm System
Fend.Elim.

Ahh, dreaming is nice...

 

[Chris The Welder]

I'm not even sure how many bikes I've had over the last 40 years. But, I'm fairly certain I have spent enough money on upgrades and aftermarket parts to ensure my retirement will not be easy. My RC, going on two years old in April, is the first bike I have owned that has and will remain bone stock down to the last part. So, in my case the answer is zero $. And Muckabucka, whores are not a waste of money. Neither is upgrading your bike, it's just that I'm not doing either one anymore.

 

[GOJO]

I don't smoke , i don't snort cocaine , i drink 6 alcoholic drinks a week on average , i work hard , my Family wants for nothing and i really enjoy building and customising from push bike , motorbike and cars Transporter vans and Land rovers the only thing thats standard in our house is the wife's car, i used to be quite a competitve racer so i like to have things just how i want them aside from bling its functional and continuing with the day after a spill rear sets pegs and clip on tubes and brembo levers can be borrowed or bought in any paddock track day or race meet , the rc is just a bit of fun and from the out set its clear that i will blow money doing this but who cares ? Im happy.

 

[cornerslider]

Well, in that case I would do the following not necessarily in that order:
EBS front pads
Ohlin rear shock KT303 adjusted to your weight
Race Tech fork springs and oil tuned to your weight
PCV with WBS auto tune
Helix Racing radiator cap
Swing arm spool sliders
BMC or KN air filter
Rear sets if the OEMs aren't putting you in a comfortable seating position
Same goes for clip ons and levers

Hope that helps

+1 on what zaster said..... I've done all that except the rear sets. I'm not dragging hard parts yet, so I didn't have the need for rear sets


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