Anybody ever do a long tour on there ZX?
I'll be spending about a month this summer touring the states, somewhere around 10K miles. Anyone have any experiences with similar trips?

I've done a lot of touring on my ZX14 and have found a couple of mods make it much more enjoyable.

1. Custom seat, I have a Rick Mayer and love it.
2. Bar risers or an LSL handlebar conversion kit.
3. Buell Pegs, improve the rider triangle for more time in the saddle
4. Aftermarket windshield, Zero Gravity Sport touring or add a Laminar Lip to the stock shield.

The Seat and risers are in my opinion a necessity, the after market windshield will take a lot of pressure off of you when cruising a typical 14 speeds. The stock shield will give you clean air but not relieve the wind pressure. There is tons of info on this site and the Adenture Rider site regarding these mods. With all of this said the bike in stock condition is still a great touring bike, the mods just make it a lot better.

* Last updated by: motordog1 on 5/15/2010 @ 5:56 PM *

thumbs down for the zg touring screen....if your between 6' and 6'' 2" the wind hits you slam in the face...your head is now like a bobble doll bouncing around....i will take the wind in my chest any day with the stock screen...

I took many long rides on my ZX around the Midwest and West Coast. All great suggestions to making your bike comfortable with the previous posts but I had my seat done by Spencers http://greatdaytoride.com/Home_Page.php in Florida that starts at $50. I got the orthopedic gel installed in my seat and turn around is very quick. Besides the seat mod I have a ZG Touring screen which make a difference if you catch the wet weather while traveling. I also installed grip puppies to help the vibration thru the bars http://www.casporttouring.com/cst/motorcycle/hand_cont_$50/GPSMALL.html and by adding throttle rockets http://www.casporttouring.com/cst/motorcycles/Throttlerocker.html , resting your palm for long periods of time is a god sent. Lastly, make sure your dufflebag or luggage including your tank bag has a rain cover or waterproof. Another highly recommended suggestion is adding an extra fuel cell http://www.sampson-sporttouring.com/fjr-fuel-cells.html , it will keep you from worrying between those long stretches when you see no gas stations on the map.

I've got the Buell pegs and handlebar risers.
Tall windscreens don't interest me much, they tend to look goofy, and wind doesn't bother me much. I started with a old naked sport bike, so I'm used to it. I'm 6'2" so it would need to be extra tall and goofy looking to work.
I've spent a few 4-5 hour trips on it already, and the stock seat isn't too bad. I don't feel like spending that much on a after market seat, but that Spencer's seat modding looks very reasonable
I think it's got enough range for anywhere in the states, but those fuel cells do look very interesting.
I'll be running with sealed sidecases, so luggage isn't a prob.

I just put a Laminar Lip on mine, and though I haven't tested it yet, others have posted good reviews on this forum previously. It went on in under 5 minutes, including talking to my nephew.

I'm really liking my LSL bar conversion too. I sat on the bike for the first time last night while I was letting it warm up (first time in 7 months it was started) and the seating position with the LSL and the Buell XB pegs is very relaxed and comfortable.

Reminds me of the old school Kawasakis I had around the time of the GPZ1100 and such.

about 20K touring now on my ZX14. Straight stock everything at first -just threw on some soft bags went for it. It was fine. I now have upgraded to Givi hard bags all around and personally modified my seat and a zillion other things I did not have to do but did cuzz I could.

Givi Top Box and Givi Side Cases (Panniers) are possibly the best additions for touring. Having waterproof storage on the bike is fantastic. There's nothing worse than trying to dry out gear when it's already cold and wet.

I haven't tried the risers yet but they sound interesting. I have a 9000km ride to do in October so may give them a try beforehand. Even though the headlights are pretty good, HIDs can make touring at night less tiring. We don't do much at night here due to the possibilities of hitting kangaroos but I still enjoy my HIDs. Cheers.