X2 , the standard lever positions are set for someone relatively short, I adjusted mine down on my 20th Anniv and have just done them on my 2014 Blade. I must say that this years changes to the riding position are a slight improvement
Numb hands you say, could this be caused by vibration rather than the position? yes the suspension could be hard leading to the vibration not being soaked up so much as if it were softer. Vibration can be caused by many things, I recently test rode a FZ1S for my son and after 5 miles I had white finger syndrome, it turned out to be as simple as a loose fairing bolt. Vibration frequency is a strange thing.
It is race spec suspension is it not? I couldnt commute on my ohlins/ktech as itd be far too hard for the roads. Maybe try a standard fireblade and see if thats better? As for the BMW- my friend bought one and said it was too hard for the road. Said his GSXR1000 was alot better suited. He turned the S1000RR into a race bike
Riser bars arent a bad idea if its the angle hurting you. I have them on my race blade as it was built for the isle of man but you can still get your elbow down on track
The bm was a preregistered cancellation on a race deal .. A 2010 would interest me in a px with the right amount of cash my way
Thanks guys got the numb hand syndrome again tonight and notice that the red paint from the nose cone has run down the side of the fairings not impressed one bit!
Looks like a repaint and maybe not the factory finish ...I wonder if it took a tumble at the showroom.
Never mind Nick! Bring that Crock-O-Shyte bike up to Cheshire in a Van and take my nice comfy 13 Plate Blade away with ya instead! I'll beat the SP in to submission at Oulton for ya, that'll teach it!
Get it sold nick and put yourself outta your misery. I hear the bm1200 rt is comfy . I saw on Facebook you'd booked Ron Haslam race scool in the elite.. Could of done 3 track days on the sp for that
Sorry to hear that your not enjoying your commute Nick, and surprised we have not bumped into to each other down the A13. I think you need a second opinion on the commuting front if I am honest, looks like we need to do a bike swap for a week and a back to back comparison. So its an offer matey, I will trade down and slum it on your SP for a week on the commute, whilst you run my 10 plate, and see if I end up as fooked as you are. I know I am putting my comfort on the line here Nick, but its the least I can do for a biking brother.
HAVS is a horrible thing and important for you to get it sorted as if you are getting white fingers and a lot of pain it is irreversible, do you find you get numb hands / wrist at all when sitting / sleeping ?? If so go get checked out years of riding and I don't know your line of work but repetitive strain injurys are common such as carpal tunnel syndrome, Higher clipons and a good suspension set up and hopefully it sorts it remember that although there ohlins there only a sticker not like the after market ones you buy ! Just my two pence worth but where did you buy it from ? Johns of Romford, belle view as I no your local to me ? Hope you get it sorted
I have a full ohlins setup on my 2013 Repsol and I could not honestly fault it, had it set up by MH racing and its perfect, definitely not to hard for the road like some say, I will say get the suspension setup as soon as you can it will be the best 40-50 pounds you will spend. On another note are you using all the same kit ? I recently got some summer waterproof gloves which seem to fit fine but every time I wear them my right hand goes dead, pins and needles etc change to winter or summer gloves no issues whatsoever ! I know its a long shot but but just thought I'd mention it
I also have an SP and I am 6'2" and 120KG, I play a lot of sport (3 in total) so it's all mostly muscle (not all though haha). In this way I am somewhat similar to the OP. I do not experience dead arm syndrome but I have a couple of ideas. I had an My12, and the difference in handlebar width might be contributing if you are placing any weight at all on your arms (I ride at all times possible with none at all). Because your arms are splayed out a little wider, you may be engaging your pecs a little to hold yourself up (ie: pulling your hands inwards). On the narrower bars of the '12, your arm is a little more vertical. Initially I was a little uncomfortable with the lever position, but it is fine now. Over time, if you ride a lot, the constant engagement of these muscles may mean that they remain 'switched on' a little even at rest and they will tire out easily - ie: you would need a release massage. I do not think that the suspension is at fault here. My opinion is that it is fantastic and a definite improvement over the MY12 in terms of controlling the nose dive when braking hard, and controlling bumps better than the standard suspension (which is still quite good, IMO) at a similar level of 'hardness'. I could be wrong, but it might be worth thinking about?
Thanks for all the advice chaps been thinking over the options last night I'll take some pics of what looks like a paint run see what you guys think? Ordinarily wouldn't be bothered but having paid so much money on something it's hard to just accept various things. I did speak to BMW yesterday and the deal they are offering is certainly tempting they will give me 12k for my bike, put 1k into the deal themselves and give me 1800 quids worth of accessories like akrapovic exhaust, hp4 rear sets and hp4 levers. Daz if you don't mine me asking how come you're selling yours? I hear what you're saying about weight on handlebars dude but it's not that on this thing. I know my chest could handle my body weight easily as I regularly bench 130-140kg and I weigh 90ish kg so can easily handle all my weight and more if it came to it. Maybe it's like the others have said just not built for the commute....
You've got to do what makes you happy mate .. 1 life and call that. No doubt the bm is a great bike. I've had 3 thous and loved them and it would be the bike I change to if i changed the sp..I'm not really advertising mine but I'd sell for the right deal so I could buy a Superstock blade trade trackbike and have one for the road. There's no finance on mine so I've pumped 16k into it which was all my soare cash. I've always usually had a pretty decent road bike and a pretty decent trackbike.. It would take me a year or more to secretly save 7k up for the tracker without the wife noticing. She would cut my balls off f she found me out ha. I love the sp mate. Feel very privileged to have one of only a very very limited number. In 20 years they've ill be worth double id of thought ..the more I ride it the better it gets to be honest.. Wouldn't be my obvious choice for commuting but for fast road riding it's the bollucks . Plenty of my pals are impressed with its corner exit speed on the road. The quickshifter helps abd just makes it that little bit quicker snd smoother on pickup . I think you'll be disappointed with the Bms midrange and bottom end after the sp. The Bms need lightening up to feel the top claimed power but you can't ride it there in day to day use. True track weapon in my opinion Are bm offering you an a straight swap then for you sp plus they will put a grand in plus 1800 worth of bits? No doubt a great bike mate
Hi Nick, I just want to be clear, strength may not be the issue, but the condition of the muscles is obviously in question - you say forearms and hands are sore and numb and you cannot actuate the brake lever. It also wouldn't be your chest strength alone, it would be your core strength that would be lacking if you are weighting the bars. I know you've just said pretty clearly that is not the problem, but I have one further question as the Devil's advocate. Could you be gripping or weighting the bars without realising it? It could be also the lever position as several have suggested, are they too high causing you to engage your forearms to lift your hands up in order to use the levers? I had this problem until my Pazzo levers went on and it wore out my forearms a little. This seemed different to my MY12. In any event, I apologise if I am being pushy and I hope it gets sorted one way or the other and you find a solution (or something else!) to have fun on. Cheers
