I ain't no mechanic, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night!

[Vonderbach]

Like the title says, I'm no mechanic. Heck, I do well to change my own oil. So with that in mind, I have a question for you gear heads.

I had an 883 Harley and it was a real slug on the highway. It was quick enough off the line, but it was a pig overall.

My question : What factor makes my 883cc such a wuss when my wife's 600cc GSXR can move like it's standing still? (Insert pointing and laughter here)

Mind you, this is why I traded it in for my Busa, but the question remains.

 

[pbghost]

my guess would be weight of the bike and gearing coupled with the fact that the inline 4 will hit higher rpms than the v twin

 

[miserycaptain]

Japanese technology VS American technology?

 

[Salty]

Gearing mainly...the 883 is on a much heavier weighted bike than the 599 in the GSXR, the engine is geared very differently than a standard inline 4...Not too mention the weight ratio of the bikes...

 

[Vonderbach]

If it's in the gearing, then I suppose the next logical question would be, why? Why would Harley gear a bike to be essentially ineffective at any speed? It was no firestarter off the line and it strained to break 100mph.

But yes, I guess weight would account for a lot, it wasn't terribly light. About 200+ lbs more than the GSXR.

 

[Mr Bogus]

torque curve as a function of engine design (bore/stroke)...

how does a 250 hp caterpillar move 80,000lbs down the road and a 400hp BBC Rat motor be lucky to get it rolling..

 

[Salty]

If it's in the gearing, then I suppose the next logical question would be, why? Why would Harley gear a bike to be essentially ineffective at any speed? It was no firestarter off the line and it strained to break 100mph.

But yes, I guess weight would account for a lot, it wasn't terribly light. About 200+ lbs more than the GSXR.

Really the 883 is a very beginners bike for the typical Harley Riders or women...it is by no means a performance machine...You have to think of the general purpose most Harley Riders use their bikes for as well..they are designed around being cruisers...not sport bikes...its a whole different mentality...Even some of the largest Harley motors will be shamed by your average 600cc sportbike...

 

[DEMMYM]

I think you answered your own question

I had an 883 Harley

 

[CWCobra]

Very similar comparison is my Honda VTX1300 versus my 'Busa: both have 1300 cc engines, but one has 60 hp, and tops out at about 115 mph. The other has more than twice the hp, and tops out at a speed well above anything I will ever see!The Honda is a very comfortable bike for a slow leisurely cruise on a Sunday afetrnoon, but the 'Busa, well, the 'Busa is pure adrenalin!

CW

 

[afterhours]

the 883 harley is a 40hp v-twin....pusching around 600lbs of motorcycle. two big cylinders make much more torque than four smaller ones, and a torque motor can giv ethe impression of good accelertaion...however it still only has 40hp.

the 600 is a few hundred pounds lights and makes more than twice the hp

 

[brandont70]

the 883 harley is a 40hp v-twin....pusching around 600lbs of motorcycle. two big cylinders make much more torque than four smaller ones, and a torque motor can giv ethe impression of good accelertaion...however it still only has 40hp.

the 600 is a few hundred pounds lights and makes more than twice the hp

+1000 Exactly what I was going to say.

 

[AJAY]

the 883 harley is a 40hp v-twin....pusching around 600lbs of motorcycle. two big cylinders make much more torque than four smaller ones, and a torque motor can giv ethe impression of good accelertaion...however it still only has 40hp.

the 600 is a few hundred pounds lights and makes more than twice the hp

The 883 is a whole lot lighter than that, probably around 440 lbs and with most of it's weight down low. It's rather interesting that the 1200 version of the same bike is about 10 lbs lighter because the cylinder walls are a LOT thinner - yep, just a bigger diameter piston and different heads.

While the 883 is not a powerhouse, it's pretty easy to uncork some decent power. Set of pipes, a cam (yep, just one), and some new jets in the carb and you'll have it up to 60 hp. Bore it and replace the heads and you'll get it into respectable 85-90 hp territory.

As it comes stock, the 883 is a wonderful gas sipper, easily breaking 50 mpg. I remember my wife once got over 70 mpg on one ride, at least until I bored the engine, added cams and pipes. Even with that mild hotrodding she could get around 60 mpg, the product of a light rider with a gentle throttle hand! Big bore engines turning slowly, lots of torque, easy on gas. I still haven't broken 40 mpg on my Busa, but she ain't really built for economy.

 

[skydivr]

Difference: 400 lbs. and 10,000 RPM

 

[kml]

Really the 883 is a very beginners bike for the typical Harley Riders or women...it is by no means a performance machine...You have to think of the general purpose most Harley Riders use their bikes for as well..they are designed around being cruisers...not sport bikes...its a whole different mentality...All of the largest Harley motors will be shamed by your average 600cc sportbike...

Fixed that for ya!

cheers
kien

 

[Spudley]

Bore (big piston / small piston), stroke(short stroke / long stroke), camshafts (Big lift / long duration), induction (Big carbs / fuel injected), exhaustion(stock diameter/oversized tuned diameters), map(stock / modified), gearing(stock / close ratio), drive and driven ratios, and tire diameters........883 can build HUGE horsepower....it was designed for mellowness and drive-ability.......when you mount a Harley you know it'll be a bit loppy (v-twin), and it won't go bananas underneath you.....unlike a Hayabusa which comes with warning stickers..... :oldcool:

 

[Justyntym]

It's easy...harleys suck.

It's not just weight, the 883 weighs 563 and the gsxr 600 is 432.
Although 131 lbs is a little bit, it's not the world.
If you could phsically swap power plants the 600 motor would still smoke
the harley twin.

The harley is using 100 year old design and technology to make power
while the gsxr is fairly cutting edge.

Most people that buy harley havent riden a lot of other bikes and have just
bought into the marketing (wild hogs) myth and succumed to presumed peer pressure.

Harley makes one of the most underpowered overpriced V-twin on the planet.
Their customers should demand more not be hommies and buy any piece of
crap with a logo on it...kinda like the sports fans who buys seasons tickets
every single year even though their team continually SUCKS...there is no
reason for the owner spend bucks on free agency and build a winner,
cause the idiots keep filling the stadium for a loser....

 

[Busa1166]

883 is just set up improperly, set it up right you will be fine, it just needs a few mods to smoke any jap bike. In the end this pretty close to what it will look like.

This is one priced at 150,000 with the turbo and the 18 inch wide street tire, price may jump just a bit Handling maybe some what of a challenge for ya, as matter of fact no one that has tried to corner one of our bikes has ever returned or been heard from again so you will have to pay up front before a demo ride No matter how much it weighs you can always get the hp to weight ratio to the perfect balance to take on any jap bike