I'm currently running the Michelin Pilot Road 3 and did a little outing on one of my favorite roads. The road is really tight, with descending hairpins, slow sweeping turns etc. I guess this is the Austin version of Muholland Drive. Basically a lot of braking and accelerating point but nothings even close to triple digits.

I decided to run 38 F- 36 R and after 25 minutes of fun decided to stop to digest were I made mistakes etc. I felt the tires and couldn't recall having them get that hot. Granted it was a 90 degrees day but...

At no time did I feel the tire breaking loose but my lean angle was conservative and I was focusing more on proper corner entry rather than fast exit.
So my question is, what is acceptable hot tire pressure for street tires? How many PSI should the tire get when hot?

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I've settled on 37/37 for aggressive road riding with the 14, strikes a good balance between turn in and grip. Temp should rise about 4 to 6 degrees. Is your rear tire getting hot enough to get greasy, if not I'd say your fine.
I'm running 34/34 on the smaller machines on the road. Dunlop recommends 32/32 for the Qualifier for track days and slightly higher for aggressive road or canyon riding. This is for liters and 600s however, the 14 is heavier and needs a little more pressure front and rear.

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Hey Kruz,
Yeah the 14 is hard to dial in pressure wise. I have stiff suspensions so I initially thought a low pressure up front was good, but the turning isn't sharp enough! 38 is pretty good, I'm not sure I would be able to tell the difference if I lowered it down to 37. Like you said I should be fine, tire didn't get greasy/blue/slippery but because the PR3 are more on the touring side I don't wanna get them too hot or even close to the limit. I was surprised to get them that hot (their temps definitely rose more than 6 degrees) since I'm running BST's but again they are sport/touring tires but probably don't respond to sub OEM pressure like 50/50 tires.

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My apologies DragKing, I meant 4 to 6 psi pressure rise cold to hot not degrees. I don't have an infrared thermometer so have to work off pressure.

You're right on the money, with that stiff front, she is going to ride high so turn in won't be as sharp. It might be time to drop the forks a bit if not already done or try shimming the rear shock for more height in the rear. I'd go easy though, a few millimeters at a time and check the results.

Also try a Pilot 3 instead of the Pilot Road, profile is more aggressive and she'll be more eager to turn in.

I'm no expert on suspension and geometry though, just trial and error it a bit to see what works for me.

* Last updated by: Kruz on 5/18/2013 @ 11:00 AM *

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Nah... you got it right. My suspension guy had the forks lowered a little bit more but to make the ride a little more comfortable he raised it back a little

She was really sharp with this setting, just wasn't comfortable but I could always raise it back for long trips

Current setting

* Last updated by: dragking on 5/18/2013 @ 4:27 PM *

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whose reservoirs are those in the 2nd picture? very cool looking.

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hmmmmmmm....aren't those the

....Now as far as tire pressure, I would keep the front the same or lower pressure than the back. If one tire is going to loose grip I don't want it to be the front.

* Last updated by: Rook on 5/18/2013 @ 3:24 PM *

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whose reservoirs are those in the 2nd picture? very cool looking.

You must have read my mind, same thing I was thinking....very clean looking cockpit!

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Drag, what's the story on your oil consumption, how much is she using and have you figured out where it's going? I have the 2000 mile oil change coming up and am going to try to get accurate figures this time on how much mine is using....leaking.....burning etc. My end can tips are dry carbon fluff, no smoke and no visible leak but oil seems to be going somewhere.

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How much did your suspension guy drop the front?

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Both are by Rizoma, they're the rizoma next fluid tanks! Way better than the urine sample stuff.

Drag, what's the story on your oil consumption, how much is she using and have you figured out where it's going? I have the 2000 mile oil change coming up and am going to try to get accurate figures this time on how much mine is using....leaking.....burning etc. My end can tips are dry carbon fluff, no smoke and no visible leak but oil seems to be going somewhere.

So far so good. I read on it online, especially from a lot of CBR 1000 guys and the word is that even manufacturers say that motors will burn oil if you run high RPM. I mean even going to work, I was having fun staying at 8000 RPM and up, and blipping hard. I have been focusing on corner entry, and swift steering lately, and after 500 miles, the oil is still clear and at the same level. Also 5000 miles was too much since I was riding it that hard. Your is probably suffering from the same thing which is normal. Also, I check for the valve cover leak often, and it is bone dry, looks like new bolts and gaskets are the ticket!

How much did your suspension guy drop the front?

I'm not sure but quite a lot as you can see from the pics. It has all the data in his laptop and I will try to go see him on tuesday.

* Last updated by: dragking on 5/18/2013 @ 4:43 PM *

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.Now as far as tire pressure, I would keep the front the same or lower pressure than the back. If one tire is going to loose grip I don't want it to be the front.

You right but it takes a lot of lean angle to loose the front and I have never felt like it was pushing...
Though, one thing I find weird with the PR3 is that my front chicken strips are smaller than my rear. I don't wanna run out of front tire before I get to full lean!!!

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You right but it takes a lot of lean angle to loose the front and I have never felt like it was pushing...

No me neither. Felt the back slipping but never the front.

Though, one thing I find weird with the PR3 is that my front chicken strips are smaller than my rear. I don't wanna run out of front tire before I get to full lean!!!

That would seem strange to me too. The Pirelli front must have softer carcass than other fronts.

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That would seem strange to me too. The Pirelli front must have softer carcass than other fronts.

You mean the Michelin (PR3)? yeah they intrigue me a little. Let me know what you think about the Q2's. It only took me two short rides to trust them. I felt like they turned slow but tipped in fast. They hold a line like nothing else. I remember being leaned pretty good and finding out a corner was double apexed... I just leaned a little more sans drama. They lasted just a little over 3k but for their intended purpose, they are hard to beat. After this PR3, I will be back on my faithful Rosso Corsas. They can't be trusted in the wet but they offer a pretty good compromise between, stability, tip and turn in and mileage (4k for me). I will also buy a set of Pilot Power 2 CT, they get great reviews and should be better in the wet. After that, I'm done trying tires, I will stick with one brand/model.

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Hey Dragking..Glad this thread came up. I have my tires set at 37/38 f/r and was tempted to drop them a little bit for a canyon ride tomorrow like at the track but glad I saw this.. I may drop them to 36/36 or 37/36 but no more. Didn't realize you could ride "aggressive" on such high pressure... Lots to learn.. Lots to learn..
BTW.. Dragking stem from the 1/4 mile or refer to knee dragging?..

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I run 42 - 42 as Mother Kawasaki recommends.

Neil

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dragking, why did you change clutch/brake reservoirs from first pic to current ones? Appearance-wise, I like them both but the top pic a little more. Any pros or cons for either style? The "Next Fluid" reservoirs look like they sit higher? Thanks.

Hey Dragking..Glad this thread came up. I have my tires set at 37/38 f/r and was tempted to drop them a little bit for a canyon ride tomorrow like at the track but glad I saw this.. I may drop them to 36/36 or 37/36 but no more. Didn't realize you could ride "aggressive" on such high pressure... Lots to learn.. Lots to learn..
BTW.. Dragking stem from the 1/4 mile or refer to knee dragging?..

LOL I wish, nah, I'm a newbie when it comes to riding. The only thing I rode prior to the 14 is a scooter.
When I bought the bike, I was messing around with my wife and was bragging about the 14, saying stuff like "I own a drag racing monster... the king of the drag strip etc... so in return she made fun of me and she said "So you're a drag queen" LOL... I just thought Dragking sounded better LOL

dragking, why did you change clutch/brake reservoirs from first pic to current ones? Appearance-wise, I like them both but the top pic a little more. Any pros or cons for either style? The "Next Fluid" reservoirs look like they sit higher? Thanks.

No pros or cons. I had heard that the Brembo tubing didn't fit the Rizoma's tight enough and that they could leak. So I sold the MC with the brake reservoir. As it turned out, people where only referring to the rizoma tubing, which I am not sure where they got it from...Also, when I high sided, the bike landed on its windscreen and tank so the brake reservoir had some cosmetics imperfection.
The first ones are more classy but with the Brembo setting I wanted more of a race feel (being able to see the brake fluid) but something better looking than an urine cup. The first one have a sight glass but you can't see much through them and the clutch side sight glass has to face the dash as you can see from the picture. The good thing about the first one is that the sun can't harm the fluid but I have been told that the time it takes rays to mess up brake fluids is longer than the recommended brake fluid change intervals. They also seat lower than the second one, though I'm sure you can use the same brackets for either style. I live close to motovationusa.com and I love to go chill over there so if you want me to go and and find out how to fit the reservoirs (one side requires an extra piece from the bracket so you need to buy three brackets), just let me know.

* Last updated by: dragking on 5/19/2013 @ 9:00 PM *

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I myself are very interested in the resevoirs, but as far as tires i LOVE my michelin 2ct, got them on all my bikes and I have not had any problems with the 900 or the Busa (got a hell of a deal) but two up or by myself they perform in all conditions from cold and rainy to hot and dry, I get about 3.5k out of em and run 36-37 front and about 38-40 rear and no chicken strips!

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Just send me a PM and let me know which one you want and I will find out for you. Or you could call motovationusa.com, they usually have the best prices and selection. Tell them what you want and I'll bring my bike out there so we can check that everything fits correctly

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Thanks for the info dragking. I really like the Rizoma's in the top pic. I agree the sightglass looks difficult to see into. Other thing I don't understand is why the sightglass is so low. The normal fluid level would be above the sightglass(?)Doesn't make sense to me. Maybe the angle of the picture is making the sightglass seem so low?

* Last updated by: KAK on 5/20/2013 @ 7:23 PM *

yeah you're right, the sight glass is low. You don't need much fluid for the clutch but if you're bleeding it, it can get hold fast. They min line seat in the middle of the sight glass, so their reasoning was probably that if you can see some room in the sight glass, you should top of the tank. As far watching the quality of your fluid, that option is out.

* Last updated by: dragking on 5/20/2013 @ 8:52 PM *

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Hey drag! They didn't 'drop' your forks at all. They are sitting at same height in both pics. Someone did however crank your fing preload alll the wayy to the stop in pic two. Also buddy, I hate to say it but whoever adjusted your suspension has the rebound adjusters misaligned. Those two top slotted head adjusters atop your forks should be adjusted exactly the same amount of clicks out from full stiff. They are not aligned in the same parallel meaning your front forks are currently running two different rebound settings. Which is not good.

* Last updated by: Cblast on 5/21/2013 @ 6:45 AM *

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Damn! Now that I think about it sir, you should go through your bike front to back and top to bottom and make sure they 'help' you by misadjusting something else. I would check that your front compression is set correctly and in sync. Same with everything in the rear end! Unless you weigh 288lbs that front preload seems drastic.

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hate to say it but when my fork rebound is adjusted to the same number of clicks the 2 adjusters are not parallel. it's a little detail the drives me nuts.

* Last updated by: toledoUPSguy on 5/21/2013 @ 9:48 AM *

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