I've taken the plunge and put down a deposit on an "as new" 2015 GTR, I (hopefully) collect it on Saturday!
I took a test ride today courtesy of the guys at Cradley Kawasaki near Birmingham, sadly I couldn't quite stretch to the very good deal that they offered me on a new bike and I've gone for a slightly used one.
Coming from a 650 Bandit I found the biggest issues to be the height (I fall in to the "vertically challenged" category with a 30" inseam), I was comfortable with the bike but I would be even happier if I could flat-foot it. The other thing I noticed coming from a passively air cooled bike was the heat, hopefully it will be a positive in winter rather than too much of a negative in summer.
I'd never stumbled across this forum until looking in to the GTR but I used to be a fairly active member on STN if anyone here is familiar with that forum? I went by "Ant" there but I see I've lost that username on this forum ;)
Are there any members here in the Cotswolds area of the UK?
Congratulations on the new (ish) bike. :clap:
congrats !
what colour did you choose ?
good luck :punk:
:185: to the forum and good luck with the new bike which I'm sure you will really enjoy
Post some pictures when you take delivery :clap:
Quote from: O.C. on July 22, 2015, 06:59:26 AM
:185: to the forum and good luck with the new bike which I'm sure you will really enjoy
Post some pictures when you take delivery :clap:
:agree: +1
I'm 28 inside leg and picked up a Kawasaki lower gel seat from the forum. Makes a big difference. Especially on low speed wobbly bits. :mfr_lol:
PS :185: :
Quote from: Charlie747 on July 22, 2015, 07:58:48 AM
:agree: +1
I'm 28 inside leg and picked up a Kawasaki lower gel seat from the forum. Makes a big difference. Especially on low speed wobbly bits. :mfr_lol:
PS :185: :
That is interesting... how did you find the relative peg position changed with the lower saddle? The pegs are pretty comfortable at the moment and I worried that the lower seat would just shift the problem. I've been looking at the Sargent saddles as well which lower the seat a similar amount to the Kawasaki gel one.
try the daytona m star boots ,they have a built up insole which will give you another 25 mm lfit ,on e bay but they are very expensive from the british suppiers ,use the german daytona supplier ,around £250 as opposed to £350/ish if they have your size instock arrive in around a week
I was concerned about my knee angle but it's not been a problem. The saddle is far nicer over distance than the OE one plus able to reach floor for better stability at junctions etc
Plus SWMBO finds it better 👍
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Quote from: ant177 on July 21, 2015, 10:06:53 PM
Coming from a 650 Bandit I found the biggest issues to be the height (I fall in to the "vertically challenged" category with a 30" inseam), I was comfortable with the bike but I would be even happier if I could flat-foot it.
Congrats on the new bike :clap:
Check out eBay item 231460424781.
Cheers
Paul B.
Quote from: PaulB on July 22, 2015, 04:51:00 PM
Congrats on the new bike :clap:
Check out eBay item 231460424781.
Cheers
Paul B.
here :yes:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231460424781?ru=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fsch%2Fi.html%3F_from%3DR40%26_sacat%3D0%26_nkw%3D231460424781%26_rdc%3D1
Quote from: O.C. on July 22, 2015, 04:55:02 PM
here :yes:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231460424781?ru=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fsch%2Fi.html%3F_from%3DR40%26_sacat%3D0%26_nkw%3D231460424781%26_rdc%3D1
Thanks O.C. The eBay app on this iPad doesn't seem to let you see or copy item URLs :oops:
Cheers
Paul B.
Quote from: keith on July 22, 2015, 01:36:00 PM
try the daytona m star boots ,they have a built up insole which will give you another 25 mm lfit ,on e bay but they are very expensive from the british suppiers ,use the german daytona supplier ,around £250 as opposed to £350/ish if they have your size instock arrive in around a week
Haha, my wife would love the fact that I'd have built up boots ;) I will look in to that though.
I'm not overly keen on changing the suspension links, never sure what it changes of the bike dynamics and (more importantly) whether it ought to be declared to my insurance. Thanks for the recommendations though guys.
Quote from: PaulB on July 22, 2015, 07:36:43 PM
Thanks O.C. The eBay app on this iPad doesn't seem to let you see or copy item URLs :oops:
Cheers
Paul B.
No probs Paul.. I do it f.o.c too :mfr_lol:
Quote from: ant177 on July 23, 2015, 07:00:08 AM
Haha, my wife would love the fact that I'd have built up boots ;) I will look in to that though.
I'm not overly keen on changing the suspension links, never sure what it changes of the bike dynamics and (more importantly) whether it ought to be declared to my insurance. Thanks for the recommendations though guys.
. Don't tell her she wouldn't know unless you told her!!
Quote from: keith on July 22, 2015, 01:36:00 PM
try the daytona m star boots ,they have a built up insole which will give you another 25 mm lfit ,on e bay but they are very expensive from the british suppiers ,use the german daytona supplier ,around £250 as opposed to £350/ish if they have your size instock arrive in around a week
+1 :punk:
I wear these as I'm vertically challenged too, fabulous best boots I've ever had and totally waterproof too, best mod for a shortie without touching the bike
Thanks everyone for your suggestions, unfortunately the M Star boots don't come in my size.
Having ridden the bike 200 miles back after collecting it yesterday I'm not sure that it is "too" high really, I can put the balls of my feet down and I feel pretty secure.
We will see how I get on with regular riding, I suspect that I will go down the route of a Sargent saddle.
I have a lowering kit fitted and a 30 inch inside leg and I can flat foot it easily both sides.
Enjoy your new ride old fruit .. I'm sure you will !