Hi Guys Not owned my blade long ,but not to pleased with the handling at the moment, it maybe just me not used to it but it seems very hard and tends to patter over rough surfaces which transmit through the bars also the arse end sometimes about shoves your spine out the top of your head is this normal or am I missing something. Also on and off the throttle tends to be a bit snatchy . Advice greatly appreciated Cheers Stu The bike by the way is a 2011 non abs
Sounds like the last owner might have adjusted the suspension and it's needs setting for your weight Ref throttle it might just need the cables adjusting slightly
Try putting it back to factory settings,, always a good place to start. check your tyre pressures too. Just take up the slack in the throttle cable, you ideally want 1-2mm of slack any more can cause a jerky feel.
Cheers Guys Have set it back to standard setting and still don't feel quite right,what tyre pressures should I running,I know standard is 36 front and 42 rear at the moment they are 35 front and 41 rear. Thanks in advance Stu
Strange to hear this as the blade is one of the nicest handling litre bike I usually run 33 / 33 psi front and back You may want to think about getting it checked over by a suspension specialist or Honda just in case it is due to a defective component
Hi Mike07 I,m 13 1/2 stone wouldn't running tyre pressures as low as 33 front and back cause flex in the side walls? Cheers Stu
Stu, Different tyres differ in pressures, what you got? How worn are they? What was your last bike? How was the settings compared to std? Any improvement? The more info I have the more I can help.
I am about a stone less than you and run 36/40 with 023's but have backed off the compression a 1/4 off a turn at each end. I only road ride these days. Would suggest as above go back to std on comp, rebound and preload, then make one change at a time but write everything down as it is so easy to get in a mess. Just a thought, what was your last bike, was it softly sprung ??
As previously mentioned, how worn are your tyres ? My front was nowhere near the wear limit but it had worn down on the outer edges more and gone a kinda v shape a bit and i noticed it just wasn't handling right, and caught me out a few times, so i thought id get it changed. Its amazing the feel of a new fresh profile on a tyre ! Back tyre was only a couple of hundred miles old so still a good shape.. Im trying new pressures too with 36psi front and rear and its handling beautifully !! Id also recommend finding your local reputable suspension specialist and get it set up properly to your weight ! Its all a bit voodoo unless you know what your doing but its one of the best performance mods you can do ! Not expensive either, £50-£80 should do it ! Power is nothing without control my friend...
Hi guys Tyres are the original ones when the guy I bought it off bought it new ,they are Bridgestone 015s fronts ok but rear has squared off quite a lot,also the tyres would be 3years old if that makes a difference.previous bike was a cbr6. Thanks a lot for the replies Stu
If you think the Blade is firmly sprung then never buy a Ducati, the Blade is like I am floating on air after having many Ducati's over the years. My arse was out of the seat more than it was in it, Ohlins models are worst, they are way oversprung, always have been. What you need is my nearly new Dunlops, that will sort it !!!
I have a 2011 non-abs and it is on Dunlop Sportmax 2. Were bridgestone original fitment ? Dont think they were. I run 36psi front and 36 rear ( 26 on track ). These are cold temperatures. Anything lower and i find the steering slow, heavy and unresponsive. Take it back to exactly standard as suggested. If it is pattering a lot it could be limiting the rebound which is 'packing' the front down. Does it understeer on exit when under power ? What does it feel like to you ?
Honda seem to split between Dunlop and Bridgestone on their bikes, never seen any other brand from new on a Honda.
Thanks for the replies Guys These are the original tyres just coming up to 3 thou,rear is well squared off,it does tend to drift a bit if on the power,but like I said still getting used to it.just a bit unnerving when it crashes about,even though the old cbr6 used to do this,guess it's cuz it's new and don't fancy trashing it lol. Thanks again Stu
Hi firstly I'm not an expert at all. But I weigh about your weight and am 6'.00'' on a good day. I had very similar problems to you when I got my 2007 Blade. So I started at 'Stock settings' and frankly found those not bad but more suited to a track than road. I turned everything softer approx 20 o/o, things were much better. I have adjusted things more and am starting to refine things as I learn the bike. This may or may not work for you, and I'm sure you will get better advice here as we have some very clued up guys and girls, that really know there stuff. Enjoy a Great bike Good Luck, .............Mike. PS I Run 42/36 or sometimes 40/34
I'd say there is something amiss. Mine handles like it's on rails. Mind you, it is the newest, most modern bike i've owned. I'm not far from you by the looks of it, so if you want to swap over to see if they are similar, we could arrange something.
