Track day set up

[Basil the Labrador]

Hi All

Any tips for track daying an R1100S? Gromit has suggested droping tyre pressures to 33/32.

Got Metzeler M1 Sportec tyres on it at present..any comments on grip levels?

Any other experience of pressures?

How low before the cylinders touch down? ....can you get away with it or is a wheel lifting job...

All advice gratefully recieved.

Thanks

Simon

[Neil178]

Hi Simon,

there may be some help and advice here ............... http://forums.pelicanparts.com/forumdis ... forumid=24

Have fun on your track day.

[Ade B]

If its your first track day - wouldn't worry too much, drop a couple of psi from each tyre - remember to put it back again afterwards.

I did four track days on the S with Pilot Sports and never touched the cylinder head down. (Wasn't trying hard enough even with knee down)... but plenty do.

You might have centre stand issues first if there is one attached. Bear in mind once a hard bit goes down, it will lift a wheel very shortly after. You'll probably find your toes touch first.

Take some oil, as it'll drink a bit with merciless thrashing.

Two Dear races his, he could perhaps chip in..

Enjoy the day.

Ade

[gus]

Good advice on tyres regarding pressures.Dont forget to take it easy for a few laps to get them up to temp.The pegs/rear brake lever will touch just before the cylinders touch down.It will lift a wheel if it hits hard.Best to hang off more and keep the bike a bit more upright to maintain corner speed and clearance.
Have fun
gus

[Basil the Labrador]

Thanks for the advice and replies...

So pegs touch before cylinder heads, thats good to know. Should be OK then I hope...only ever managed to get the pegs down once on the zx7R through barn corner at Cadwell and I thought I was about to see God!

Has anyone tried jacking the preload up a bit on the rear shock to increase ride height. A quick play suggest I can get another 6-7mm that way.

[gus]

Thanks for the advice and replies...

So pegs touch before cylinder heads, thats good to know. Should be OK then I hope...only ever managed to get the pegs down once on the zx7R through barn corner at Cadwell and I thought I was about to see God!

Has anyone tried jacking the preload up a bit on the rear shock to increase ride height. A quick play suggest I can get another 6-7mm that way.

Your zxr7r didnt have a pair of whopping jugs hanging in the breeze , so to speak.
Does your bike have the sport kit.Ie taller/short paralever arm etc?
If it does you shouldnt encounter much clearance issiues.You may want to firm up your suspension and factor in loss of damping as shocks get hot and bothered.
gus

[Ade B]

Hi Basil

Not sure how many track days you've done (so forgive me if I'm going over familiar ground), on top of the above, I used to remove the mirrors and numberplate and hanger and tape up the speedo and lights aside from that I suggest that you leave the bike alone to start with and perhaps fiddle with it on the day after a few sessions - then you might be able to see what does what to the handling.

I found that the biggest improvements (and fun) come from getting the lines right and finding your braking and turn in points. You'll be able to cane much more powerful bikes on the brakes and by getting on the gas early.

The S is a bit of a barge for the track and wheezy on long straights, I found that it tended to do strange things to the steering when hard on the gas (something to do with the rear wheel trying to climb up the shaft drive) which would make it run wide, and the rear would lock up under heavy breaking - which was fun. Still had a hoot with it though.

After 4 trackdays on the S I was hooked and bought a race prepped R6 with Ohlins and Rennsports/Racetechs (now sadly somewhere up north) until I found I couldn't find the time to actually justify having a track only bike.

HTH

Ade

[twodear]

Hi All

Any tips for track daying an R1100S? Gromit has suggested droping tyre pressures to 33/32.

Got Metzeler M1 Sportec tyres on it at present..any comments on grip levels?

Any other experience of pressures?

How low before the cylinders touch down? ....can you get away with it or is a wheel lifting job...

All advice gratefully recieved.

Thanks

Simon

Simon,

Your S will not touch the heads down without some effort, especially if you're leaning off to the sides during cornering.

Set the rear ride height as high as it will go, this helps speed up the steering and delays the point at which the heads touch down. I've always had the ride height right up so I've never touched the pegs down.

I've never had much luck fiddling with the rear damping adjustment, it never had any noticable effect during acceration or braking.

If you get aggressive, down shifting when coming into the corners may cause the rear end to hop as the engine has a big flywheel effect. I've addressed this to some degree by raising the idle RPM to just over 3000, but it is still a problem. This is probably just a problem with my riding style; I never use the rear brake, just a combination of front brake and downshifting and it is something I need to work on.

The Lizard wears Pirelli Diablo Corsas (it has the 5.5in rear rim) and they are fantastic for grip. As suggested in another response use tyre pressures at about 34/32 front/rear psi. I would suggest that you take along a bicycle tire pump and a pressure gauge to adjust for experimentation, this will help you get a feel for what effect tyre pressure has on the road as well. I've never had a problem with side grip (as long as I don't get too ambitious with the throttle), the bike simply can't lean over far enough.

Unless you really stuff up in a corner, the front wheel won't actually lift off the ground as there is enough suspension comliance to keep the front in contact. The bike will be a tripod however and your first indication something is wrong is that your turning circle suddenly got bigger. At this point you are dramaticly pushing the front but it is nothing major. Don't button off!!! Keep the throttle steady and just shift your weight, the bike will pop right back up on the wheels. It is quite exhilarating actually. Your plastic valve cover protectors will gain some remarkable wear patterns, good to brag about at the pub.

Trust your front brakes; you are able to brake much deeper than bikes with traditional front suspension as front end dive is almost non-existent. You'll also find that you'll gain confidence braking mid corner at silly lean angles.

Have a blast and remember to let the young pups go, you'll catch them up at the next corner.

Jim

[Basil the Labrador]

Thanks Jim and others for advice.

The idle raise you mention...could you point me in the direction of the adjuster..had a quick look and can't see an obvious knob to turn..probably just being dim.

Assuming the weater is good (not going if its pissing down!...fell off at Donnington on 7r on a very wet track day..put me rigfht off!) I will try and post an update on how it went.

Cheers

Simon

[Ade B]

which track you going to?

Ade

[twodear]

Thanks Jim and others for advice.

The idle raise you mention...could you point me in the direction of the adjuster..had a quick look and can't see an obvious knob to turn..probably just being dim.

Assuming the weater is good (not going if its pissing down!...fell off at Donnington on 7r on a very wet track day..put me rigfht off!) I will try and post an update on how it went.

Cheers

Simon

Simon,
Unless you have a air balance meter it is best to leave the idle alone, the idle screws to the cable wheels on each throttle body have to be adjusted independently. I don't know if there is an adjustment screw on the cable splitter located at the head stock below the forward end of the fuel tank.

I'm not sure what the consequences are of an imbalance but at the very least you'd have trouble getting back to square one after track day.

Riding in the wet is no fun for sure; you might learn how to judge grip levels for the street but the margin for error is pretty small.

Jim

[Basil the Labrador]

Hoping to try Darley Moor on the 24th May (if as I say the weather is OK).

It's only about 35 mins from me and I have never been there before..I used to race a 250 MZ about 12 years ago but we never had meetings there for some reason....Mallory, Cadwell (lots) , Three Sisters, Snetterton, Donny and even Pembrey.

[sproggy]

Unless you have a air balance meter it is best to leave the idle alone, the idle screws to the cable wheels on each throttle body have to be adjusted independently. I don't know if there is an adjustment screw on the cable splitter located at the head stock below the forward end of the fuel tank.

On a temporary basis (i.e. for a track day) it's easy to raise the idle using the throttle cable adjuster under the RH switch gear. This has no effect on throttle balance at all. All you need is a 10mm spanner (in the tool kit) for the lock nut. I had my idle running just over 2000rpm which made a big difference on track. The only thing you have to watch is that taking all the slack out of the primary cable can mean that turning the bars to full lock (to the left in my case) will increase the idle speed further. Only an issue when manouvering in the paddock.

Before you leave the circuit get the 10mm spanner out, put the adjuster back where it started and you're ready to ride home with a normal idle speed.

[Basil the Labrador]

Excellent tip thanks Sproggy.

Simon