Modding the new Pashnit Busa

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Modding the New Pashnit Busa:
A quick background: This is my third Hayabusa and what follows is the story of Modifying this bike to suit my needs for sport-touring & to lead Pashnit Motorcycle Tours with.


The previous Hayabusa Bike Build Project in 2012.

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I love this kind of tinkering, and enjoy my alone-time in the garage. Won't be doing any engine mods, sorry engine guys, The bike engine is perfect for my needs the way it is. They'll be bolt-on aftermarket mods that are inexpensive and easy to source to make my travels easier. I don't commute on the bike, it's all twisty roads and mountain riding on this bike.

I found this bike in WA

Original Craigs List Photos
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...and my buddy Matt flew up to WA and rode it 1400 miles back to California for me. After getting back to CA on the Hayabusa, Matt bought his own Hayabusa 6 days later.

Matt riding my new Hayabusa through WA & OR back to CA
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So I bought it sight-unseen. It was a long road to get to this point to have this Hayabusa in my garage and start setting it up for Year 16 of leading Pashnit Motorcycle Tours.

First, Read this> History of the Suzuki Hayabusa

For $5900, I got an '08 with 7000 miles on it, it looks to be crashed at some point having some scrapes in the brake reservoir, it does have china plastic which is a bit annoying. Plus it's missing the 'Hayabusa' sticker under the Kanji. I did find this plastic kit on eBay. The China plastic fit is terrible and quality poor with the nose and side panels. It's also missing the intake screens. I need those. But it's mine and I'll take it to get that price and low miles. I can always get new plastic over time.

The previous owner has it all set up as chrome/black and I hate that color scheme (sorry chrome/black fans), so plan is to blue out the bike. Plus sell off the chrome/black parts: rims, exhaust - to help fund this build project.

For posterity, this is what I held onto for ten years in the aforementioned story above.
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Some interesting and inspiring mods planned for that bike. I like the rear rack and those look like RKA bags. What windscreen are you going with and are you raising the handlebars...if so, what method?
 
Can we just get on with it? I'm ready to see the end product. Geez! :lol: Look forward to the build, Tim.
 
Subscribed!!!!! Can’t wait to see you mod this one. There is a guy in Florida that is selling a full set of, what looks like, OEM fairing set with tank and all. They do have the side panels drilled for frame sliders, but looks like everything else is in good shape. Wish you were closer.

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Some interesting and inspiring mods planned for that bike. I like the rear rack and those look like RKA bags. What windscreen are you going with and are you raising the handlebars...if so, what method?

Cali- stay tuned, I've got several windscreens, they change with the seasons. RKA Saddlebags I've used for many years - since 2004. This bike came with a top rack & top case, so I'm diggin' that. My original '08 had a Ventura Rack that I sourced and they had custom painted to match the bike. Likely stick with this rack, once you travel with a top case, so much easier than soft saddlebags. Still have the bags. If you look closely, this new '08 came with Heli-bars & Risers & a cut seat. But changing all that to go back to stock.
 
Some of these items will be pulled off and sold one of you.

FS: Chrome Stator Cover. Going to swap this out with a Woodcraft but someone might like this look with the kanji.

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Good luck im the build! Question: Did you know the bike had aftermarket fairings before you took possession?

I did, but it took me awhile to figure it out.
All I had to work with was the CL pics above. Notice anything unusual?
I asked the CL seller for detailed pics, and the word 'Hayabusa' is missing from below the Kanji. And the color of the Kanji is slightly off. I finally had to review old close-up pics of my other '08. The original kanji is a sticker put on at the factory, this kanji is painted on and then clear coated. A search on eBay finally turned up the fairing kit that matched this one. The ironic bonus is the rear side fairings are painted blue (not stock black) and It's one less thing I'll have to paint later. Painting the side fairings and the dash panels is about $500 and that's a project for 1 year from now. The belly pan though is stock black and that'll have to be painted later to match- It doesn't look right in black. I found a belly pan on eBay that was painted blue for a good price, but there are several Hayabusa blue's, and the '08 is a darker blue and it looked to be the lighter blue- not a match.
Overall, it's like looking at houses with the wife and not liking the color of the kitchen. All that can be changed later on and the miles are so low, it was a good compromise.
 
I did, but it took me awhile to figure it out.
All I had to work with was the CL pics above. Notice anything unusual?
I asked the CL seller for detailed pics, and the word 'Hayabusa' is missing from below the Kanji. And the color of the Kanji is slightly off. I finally had to review old close-up pics of my other '08. The original kanji is a sticker put on at the factory, this kanji is painted on and then clear coated. A search on eBay finally turned up the fairing kit that matched this one. The ironic bonus is the rear side fairings are painted blue (not stock black) and It's one less thing I'll have to paint later. Painting the side fairings and the dash panels is about $500 and that's a project for 1 year from now. The belly pan though is stock black and that'll have to be painted later to match- It doesn't look right in black. I found a belly pan on eBay that was painted blue for a good price, but there are several Hayabusa blue's, and the '08 is a darker blue and it looked to be the lighter blue- not a match.
Overall, it's like looking at houses with the wife and not liking the color of the kitchen. All that can be changed later on and the miles are so low, it was a good compromise.
No luck contacting the guy that has the set for sale in Florida?
 
I love making lists. Its an enjoyable pastime. I had a Hemorrhagic Stroke a little less than 2 years ago so short-term memory is one of the odd things it affects, Making lists is a helpful way to compensate.

Got the time, read about that here.
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Lists of mods, lists of parts on-site, lists of completed mods, Lists of what to buy next.

But overall, here's how you come up with over 100 planned mods:

(why does the software rotate the pics, that's so weird. Try this so you don't hurt your neck:
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7841/46401020744_575b6e4dc0_o.jpg )

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No hurt neck: https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7905/46210587155_4ec0edd19d_o.jpg

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No luck contacting the guy that has the set for sale in Florida?

There's are a lot of Kenny Alvarez's on FB. That's a rather common name. No idea how to reach that person without a phone or email contact.
 
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