Lowering an 08

kountrywill

Registered
Question for you guys who have done this already. How much can i safely lower the front and back before I have to cut my kickstand. I have the rear lowered an inch already and i want to lower the front 3/4 of an inch. Would i need to cut the kickstand or will i be ok. Thanks guys.
peace.gif
 
I'm with Elganja since that's the kickstand I use. Get an adjustable shorty and keep the stocker for when you raise it back to factory height. If you cut it you are stuck with it....
 
The first question should be "How far can I lower the front without the fender whacking the nose cowling when I hit a bump"?
 
Just lowered mine today. 3 in the rear and 1 in front. I was surprised but I wont need to change or cut the kickstand. On my 06 I did.
 
i just stretched mine, and while i'm not sure how much lower the back is since I used adjustable lowering links and I have them at the max height (to accomodate the tire being so much further back and I have relocated the license plate... although it is at a potentially illegal tilt towards the front of the bike) I did lower the front 1.2" and havn't had any trouble hitting the front fender. I did the "jump up on down on it while your girl friend sticks her hand between the fender and the front end" test and i have been clear... however I do barely scrape bottom on the speed bumps in my complex, so I had to go around and spray paint a stripe over the speed bumps in the lowest spot so I know where to go over every time. My two cents...
 
Kountry Will and Illusional TA:

Are u both up for a trip to richmond? Weather and all else pending? Anyone in Va. interested at meeting up? I work Saturdays til 4:30pm!
 
A ride up to Richmond on Friday that is? Some restuarant were bikes hang out?! I do not know were it is at?
 
ok tufbusa whats the answer?
There are many things one can do to improve their suspension, lowering the bike is not one of them
wowold.gif


But, if you intend to lower your ride, I would suggest you raise the front by the triple tree and measure the fork travel. Then, measure the distance from the fender to the nose cowling. The difference in the two is how much you can safely lower the front without problems. I do not know what that number is but it's not very much. I did mount a laser jamer under my nose cowl ones that was about 5/8 inch thick and it hit the fender.

A finely tuned suspension adjusted for your weight is as sweet as finding the playmate of the year in your closet. A screwed up suspension is like waking up on Sunday morning with some nasty old heifer to find the only clean spot on her is the nipple next to you
SHOCKED.gif


Just be careful what you do to your suspension as there are no free rides. Every thing you do has consequencies, some good, some not so good!
 
I have been thinking about lowering the bike but don't want to mess up the handling like Tufbusa says, how can I lose say about an inch. Its important because I am a 30" inseam. I want to have both feet firmly on the ground .
 
Unless you're an ex-roadracer, you wont notice any real handling difference with a moderate drop.The bike looks awesome lower. Mine has about an inch of fork sticking up thru the triple tree. IT will kit the fender under a panic stop, but I weigh 300 pounds. If you're 1/2 my weight, there is no worries.

If you're doing a drag bike, lower is better.. you can gain a few tenths lowering your bike as low as it will go.
 
I have been thinking about lowering the bike but don't want to mess up the handling like Tufbusa says, how can I lose say about an inch.  Its important because I am a 30" inseam.  I want to have both feet firmly on the ground .
I would trim the seat before I lowered the bike for the sake of getting both feet on the ground. You can get a full inch from a seat trim.

My woman is 5'8" and she is on her third busa and rides the balls off that thing. I trimed a seat for her first busa and after a month or so put the regular seat back on and she did fine.

Actually I have a trimmed seat hanging on the wall in the shop. If anyone wants it for sixty bucks and a little shipping, drop me a pm.
 
My experience:
Front end risers - 1 inch max
Front end strap- as much as you whant at the time. Good for at least 2 inches. Drag race only
Rear end stock wheel base - lowest hold in three link will not bottom. The battery box will not bottom out on swingarm on lowest hole either. This was a problem with GenI Busas, but fixed on GenII.
Rear end w/ streched wheel base - tricky problem that depends on how much stretch. Needs trial and error. I actually relocated my rear subframe to gain an extra 1.5 inches of clearance at the tail light. It requires custom tail to really slam the rear.
Lowered seat is key. 100% agree with tufbusa.
Hope that helps

busa_ls1.JPG
 
Back
Top