Kiwi Rider
Registered
Hey everyone!
Today was a special day for me, I woke to a warm sunny day here in GodZone (NZ) and rode a '89 GSXR1100K!
My riding buddy Mark has purchased a GSXR1100K with low miles and in great condition, stored for years so needed some refreshing.
He is meticulous about his bikes, his main ride is a GSXR1100J, he's had it since '97 and we go riding every chance we can.
A few months ago he found a tidy GSXR750F and is in the process of restoring it, although really there is little to do apart from the usual mechanical checks and servicing.
Then two months ago he found the K model for sale and snapped it up for NZ$3800, in US$2562, a great deal!
He's spent $150 on service items, fork oil, engine oil and filter, brake and clutch fluid, removed swingarm and greased all bearings, spark plugs, air filter etc.
So he called me last night and said he needed a test pilot and I willingly accepted the position.
Now I have owned and ridden 30K miles on a GSXR1100M from '97 to '00, so I thought this would be like slipping on an old pair of shoes. But how wrong was I.
After 19 years and a few different but great bikes later, I had forgotten how these bikes feel and handle!
Here's my buddy, parking it in his driveway ready for me . . .
Test Pilot Kiwi Rider reporting for duty . . . SIR!!
We filled the bikes at the gas station, he paid so that was nice!
We took off around the bays and I felt quite at home on it.
The Busa that I'm used to is way more roomier, on this bike the tanks is skinnier with my legs closer together but the pegs are set a bit higher than the Busa so my knees were bent more.
The seat is smaller than the Busa and way less foam, but not too bad for comfort.
The bars were in exactly the right position and my back was reasonably upright, pretty comfy riding position overall
The suspension was pretty good overall. The roads around the bays are really poorly repaired and bumpy as hell, with multiple tight corners and a few short straights to pass traffic, and there was a lot of traffic today, being so warm, 30degC.
I'm comparing this bike to the Busa, because the Busa is the standard reference marker for us all here, and this will be my opinion, based on a shedload of sportbike riding over 30 years.
The brakes:
The front brake had a lot of lever travel (original rubber brake hoses), almost came into the bars but worked ok, quite soft but also quite progressive stopping power, I HATE a lot of lever travel, my score- average.
The rear brake surprised me with good feel and progressive braking power, lever travel was minimal and firm feel, original rubber hose, unusual for this model but the rotor looked in great shape, have no idea which pads are fitted., my score- Good to Very good
The suspension:
The forks: had good compression and rebound, sag was not set but appeared ok. The fork comp and rebound adjusters were set to standard settings, absorbed the bumps well, front end was overall stable and well behaved, dive was minimal. Score- Good to Very Good
The rear shock: once again, the sag was not set but the spring measurement was at the max preload at 189mm, max is 191mm. Min is 181mm.
Rebound and compression settings were at standard and shock appeared to work really well
The shock felt like it had too much rebound when pushing the back down and releasing, slower to return than to compress. But on the road it worked great, no thumping or ass kicking over the bigger bumps.
The tires:
Front and rear were fitted with matching Bridgestones, unsure of the model, didn't look, approx 5% worn, in near new condition but at least 5 years old.
I was concerned they would be hard and out of useable condition, but the opposite was true! They warmed up with some good aggressive riding and stuck to road really well, never had any moments at all.
The Steering:
The steering damper was removed due to it leaking and being repaired at present. The steering head bearings have just been removed, inspected, cleaned, regreased, refitted and readjusted.
The steering was excellent overall, ok so it's not a Busa but it steering neutral, the turn in was easy and predictable, there was little to no deviation in the corners at speed (100kmh to 180kmh) held it's line nicely with the ability to avoid objects on the road by steering around the object, so I liked the steering, as good as the Busa (well, almost) but with the damper fitted, who knows? I hate steering dampers personally, they tend to slow the steering down too much for me. Score- Very Good.
These bikes of this vintage, '89 K model, are shorter wheelbase than the early G, H, and J model slabsides, they also have 17 inch wheels (the slabbers have 18" front and rear) and a steeper steering angle so slow speed manoeuvers and turns are 'easier' than the older GSXR's and Busas. They are also a bit lighter than the Busa.
Power:
Well, this is where it gets technical, it is a 1127cc oil cooled motor (Toad knows these engines well!) with great top end power good mid range torque and good low end pull.
I found that because it only has 5 gears and the gearing is quite low with wider spaced ratios compared to the Busa, I was constantly going for top gear, even though I was already in 5th gear.
At 160kmh (100mph) the rev counter showed 6500rpm, well the Busa is only 5200rpm
When pulling out to pass cars at 120kmh (75mph) I really needed to go down to 4th gear to be in the right power/torque rev range. Ok, I could just leave it in top gear, but it just did not accelerate fast enough as I am used to with the Busa.
The power is good, don't get me wrong, but it's "old world" power, just less than I require and am accustomed to lol.
The motor was strong and had no misfires at all, plenty of intake roar when under full throttle, OEM stainless steel exhaust was quiet, motor revved cleanly up to 10,000rpm in each gear, power wheelies in 1st, a little wheelie when shifting to 2nd, the gearbox was smooth with no false neutrals or selection issues, and the clutch was good, better than my Busa clutch, no chattering when feeding power through it from take off.
Vibration was there, especially in the mid range, comes through the bars as a tingley feeling up to around 6k rpm, then after that goes smooth as the revs increase all the way to redline, 11,500rpm. Typical of these engines.
Score - Excellent overall.
Chassis:
Great chassis! I love these bikes, have done ever since I saw my old M model for the first time 22 years ago.
The chassis is rigid and taught, no flex at all that I can detect. Light weight, good design, and this particular bike rode as straight as an arrow. Exactly as I remembered my old '91 M model, just fanbloodytastic!
Swingarm is rigid, steering angle/rake and trail spot on, can't fault it.
Score - Brilliant!
So, we had a great day, awesome weather, awesome ride, no cops, stopped at a couple of watering holes and I had a big ol' steak meal, chatted to some other biker brothers, ca not complain at all!
Hope y'all enjoyed my write up, more to come!
Here's a few more pics to wet the whistle . . .
Today was a special day for me, I woke to a warm sunny day here in GodZone (NZ) and rode a '89 GSXR1100K!
My riding buddy Mark has purchased a GSXR1100K with low miles and in great condition, stored for years so needed some refreshing.
He is meticulous about his bikes, his main ride is a GSXR1100J, he's had it since '97 and we go riding every chance we can.
A few months ago he found a tidy GSXR750F and is in the process of restoring it, although really there is little to do apart from the usual mechanical checks and servicing.
Then two months ago he found the K model for sale and snapped it up for NZ$3800, in US$2562, a great deal!
He's spent $150 on service items, fork oil, engine oil and filter, brake and clutch fluid, removed swingarm and greased all bearings, spark plugs, air filter etc.
So he called me last night and said he needed a test pilot and I willingly accepted the position.
Now I have owned and ridden 30K miles on a GSXR1100M from '97 to '00, so I thought this would be like slipping on an old pair of shoes. But how wrong was I.
After 19 years and a few different but great bikes later, I had forgotten how these bikes feel and handle!
Here's my buddy, parking it in his driveway ready for me . . .
Test Pilot Kiwi Rider reporting for duty . . . SIR!!
We filled the bikes at the gas station, he paid so that was nice!
We took off around the bays and I felt quite at home on it.
The Busa that I'm used to is way more roomier, on this bike the tanks is skinnier with my legs closer together but the pegs are set a bit higher than the Busa so my knees were bent more.
The seat is smaller than the Busa and way less foam, but not too bad for comfort.
The bars were in exactly the right position and my back was reasonably upright, pretty comfy riding position overall
The suspension was pretty good overall. The roads around the bays are really poorly repaired and bumpy as hell, with multiple tight corners and a few short straights to pass traffic, and there was a lot of traffic today, being so warm, 30degC.
I'm comparing this bike to the Busa, because the Busa is the standard reference marker for us all here, and this will be my opinion, based on a shedload of sportbike riding over 30 years.
The brakes:
The front brake had a lot of lever travel (original rubber brake hoses), almost came into the bars but worked ok, quite soft but also quite progressive stopping power, I HATE a lot of lever travel, my score- average.
The rear brake surprised me with good feel and progressive braking power, lever travel was minimal and firm feel, original rubber hose, unusual for this model but the rotor looked in great shape, have no idea which pads are fitted., my score- Good to Very good
The suspension:
The forks: had good compression and rebound, sag was not set but appeared ok. The fork comp and rebound adjusters were set to standard settings, absorbed the bumps well, front end was overall stable and well behaved, dive was minimal. Score- Good to Very Good
The rear shock: once again, the sag was not set but the spring measurement was at the max preload at 189mm, max is 191mm. Min is 181mm.
Rebound and compression settings were at standard and shock appeared to work really well
The shock felt like it had too much rebound when pushing the back down and releasing, slower to return than to compress. But on the road it worked great, no thumping or ass kicking over the bigger bumps.
The tires:
Front and rear were fitted with matching Bridgestones, unsure of the model, didn't look, approx 5% worn, in near new condition but at least 5 years old.
I was concerned they would be hard and out of useable condition, but the opposite was true! They warmed up with some good aggressive riding and stuck to road really well, never had any moments at all.
The Steering:
The steering damper was removed due to it leaking and being repaired at present. The steering head bearings have just been removed, inspected, cleaned, regreased, refitted and readjusted.
The steering was excellent overall, ok so it's not a Busa but it steering neutral, the turn in was easy and predictable, there was little to no deviation in the corners at speed (100kmh to 180kmh) held it's line nicely with the ability to avoid objects on the road by steering around the object, so I liked the steering, as good as the Busa (well, almost) but with the damper fitted, who knows? I hate steering dampers personally, they tend to slow the steering down too much for me. Score- Very Good.
These bikes of this vintage, '89 K model, are shorter wheelbase than the early G, H, and J model slabsides, they also have 17 inch wheels (the slabbers have 18" front and rear) and a steeper steering angle so slow speed manoeuvers and turns are 'easier' than the older GSXR's and Busas. They are also a bit lighter than the Busa.
Power:
Well, this is where it gets technical, it is a 1127cc oil cooled motor (Toad knows these engines well!) with great top end power good mid range torque and good low end pull.
I found that because it only has 5 gears and the gearing is quite low with wider spaced ratios compared to the Busa, I was constantly going for top gear, even though I was already in 5th gear.
At 160kmh (100mph) the rev counter showed 6500rpm, well the Busa is only 5200rpm
When pulling out to pass cars at 120kmh (75mph) I really needed to go down to 4th gear to be in the right power/torque rev range. Ok, I could just leave it in top gear, but it just did not accelerate fast enough as I am used to with the Busa.
The power is good, don't get me wrong, but it's "old world" power, just less than I require and am accustomed to lol.
The motor was strong and had no misfires at all, plenty of intake roar when under full throttle, OEM stainless steel exhaust was quiet, motor revved cleanly up to 10,000rpm in each gear, power wheelies in 1st, a little wheelie when shifting to 2nd, the gearbox was smooth with no false neutrals or selection issues, and the clutch was good, better than my Busa clutch, no chattering when feeding power through it from take off.
Vibration was there, especially in the mid range, comes through the bars as a tingley feeling up to around 6k rpm, then after that goes smooth as the revs increase all the way to redline, 11,500rpm. Typical of these engines.
Score - Excellent overall.
Chassis:
Great chassis! I love these bikes, have done ever since I saw my old M model for the first time 22 years ago.
The chassis is rigid and taught, no flex at all that I can detect. Light weight, good design, and this particular bike rode as straight as an arrow. Exactly as I remembered my old '91 M model, just fanbloodytastic!
Swingarm is rigid, steering angle/rake and trail spot on, can't fault it.
Score - Brilliant!
So, we had a great day, awesome weather, awesome ride, no cops, stopped at a couple of watering holes and I had a big ol' steak meal, chatted to some other biker brothers, ca not complain at all!
Hope y'all enjoyed my write up, more to come!
Here's a few more pics to wet the whistle . . .
