Swinging arm heel protection. Has anybody a long term solution to boot heels marking the swinging arm on the 08 on blades? I've tried the protection sticky sheets (from Motrax) and while this seems OK on the road I must dance about a bit more on the track bike (And I'm always on the balls of my feet so my heels are higher and further back most of the time) and so far I haven't found anything that'll last more than a day. I know there are carbon sides available but they aren't cheap or particularly nice looking. Cheers Keith
Ahh OK, so it's not scratching, just dulling the paint? Sorry, don't have any ideas you haven't already thought of.
I have a big square of clear plastic protection that I bought for seat cowl protection... I do not know if this is the same as venture shield?!?! I had a big chunk left over that I put on the swing arm then covered it with an Arai sticker. Now the Arai sticker says "Ar i" but so far so good. Not sure if it can / will grind through the plastic protection strip thingy but if it does, I'm gonna say F that, and leave it... Can anyone on here make a bigger heel plate for the right side that is the same shape etc as the left side?? I think if someone made a bunch of those, he would be able to sell them all easily!!!
Im sure someone on here fitted the soft side of velcro to the heels on there boots. Sticky backing and cut to the correct shape. No more marks!!
When Honda gives you sad heel guards....2008RR : Honda CBR 1000RR Motorcycle Forums: 1000RR.net 600RR heel guard with enlarged bolt holes fitted to 08 1000RR
It's not just Sidi my alpine star rub too, great idea guys, make sure we don't all bid ourselves up on eBay?
I have and make stainless heel guards. Polish to a mirror shine and don't scratch as easily as alloy. If someone posts a drawing of what you want with dimensions I will make some?
I only really have trouble with the track bike and beacause I ride with the balls of my feet on the footrest, even the outside peg, it seems to angle my heel right in and gauge at the swinging arm. Last time I put duct tape on the S/A about 10 layers and it wore through in a couple of sessions. Maybe just need to learn to ride properly! For the Triumph Daytona and Street Triples, Carbon4U does small carbon sections of swinging arm protector - see pic - these are fixed with some silicone sealant and do the job perfectly. Maybe I should ask if they can do for the blade, most people I know have at least a bit of scuffing from heels. Keith
Somehow the left side does not mark for me. Megawatt, not sure if you were talking to me asking if I had a pic of the other side, but if so, here you go... This is the most close up pic I have at the mo... No marking on this side for me, though, personally... But these plates are MUCH bigger than the right side... Basically I think the right side should be about that shape, and just make sure they are not going to touch the swingarm... So must leave a gap by angling them correctly, as well as being long anough to almost reach the place that is being marked as in the below post with the 600RR plates... Also, the 600RR heel plates is a great idea, but will not work for me, as they still would not cover the area that is being marked by my right boot. I also ride on the balls of my feet pretty much all the time... Only move my foot for shifting... I will edit in a picture of the left side heel plate... Also, see below post about 600RR heel plates...
See, in this picture, you can see that the 600RR heel plate will not stop the rubbing on the swingarm... You can still see the marks on the swing arm just under the hugger bolt, which is exactly where I put the Arai sticker in my pics above...
Will take a look this weekend and try to give you some details... I think best bet is similar shape to left side, but obviously the bolts are in different places, so will see if it would still work using the left as a starting point... Maybe a LITTLE bit longer to ensure they cover the right place on the swingarm... Also I will check angles to ensure they won't be touching the swingarm... BUT, I have never done anything like this before so bear with me....
How about bending the 600rr heel plates out a bit? Therefore the heel would rest against the plate before it gets near the swingarm. Could help?
I think I need protection on the S/A, heel plates would need to be about 8" back from the footrests to make a difference with the position of my feet, maybe I should tie a rag round my boot and I'd polish it instead! On other bikes I've seen riders stick a cut-out made from "stomp grip" material but I'm not sure it'd work on the thin rail of the S/A on the left side.
I think this would cause your boot to catch on the heel plate... Midrange's estimate of 8 inches sounds about right to me to COMPLETELY solve the problem...
