Table of contents for August 2016 in Performance Bikes

2016 KTM SUPER DUKE GT JOHN McAVOY heads and internals that arouse me. I spent last summer on a Super Duke R, and its power delivery lacked refinement. In isolation, you wouldn’t notice it, but ride an R back to back with a Ducati Monster and the delivery feels almost agricultural. The GT’s new cylinder heads, crankshaft and revised engine mapping work together with a new Euro 4-compliant exhaust. The engine is literally and metaphorically cleaner in its power production, with all the hallmarks of the Super Duke R, including an excess of power and torque that renders first gear useless. coals and let it rev right through. But in the GT there is a smoothness and refinement that is lacking in the R. If the engine is exactly like…

THIS YEAR’S TT was harder than most. Racing the TT knocks it out of you and I’m feeling pretty banjoed to be honest, which isn’t surprising considering the number of laps we all completed this year. The weather was so good it was like someone picked up the Isle of Man and dumped it in the Mediterranean! I was expecting to sell a load of McGuinness bobble hats, but the weather scuppered that. The organisation this year was brilliant, too. Every practice session started bang on time and we were all getting five or six laps in a night, which is unheard of. Everything was fucked by the end of practice week – engines worn, riders knackered! I must have done 36 laps in practice, which is nearly 1400 miles,…

BEFORE EVEN CONSIDERING the future of the two-stroke, we should first take a moment to mourn its demise as a mainstream performance offering. It’s 13 years since a brand-new Aprilia RS250, the last of the proper two-stroke sportsbike breed rolled out of a UK showroom. And you haven’t been able to buy a two-stroke roadbike in the US since 1984. So a whole generation of riders have missed out on the visceral thrill of a stroker hitting its powerband. If the two-stroke doesn’t re-emerge as a serious performance option soon, it risks becoming an irrelevance. After all, if no-one misses them, why bring them back? The words ‘two-stroke’ and ‘emissions’ have become conjoined, for it is the stroker’s filthy smoking habit that led to it being legislated out of contention…

EVEN MOTOGP RIDER Scott Redding, who rode an ex-Schwantz RGV during a Spa-Francorchamps classic event, would rather a 1990s 500 than a 21st century MotoGP bike! “The 500 is more enjoyable and more about the rider,” said Redding. “We’ve got traction control nowadays but it’s not always a safety thing because you’re trusting it and if that trust breaks then it’s not going to happen. With the 500 you don’t have traction control, so you don’t have to trust it. You’ve got to be one step ahead, expecting something all the time.” Schwantz still gets to ride his old 500s now and again, as well as various MotoGP bikes, and he’s still a two-stroke man at heart. “Two-strokes are by far my favourite machines,” he says. “I recently got to…

‘If you can buy an RC45, do. You can’t understand until you’ve thrashed one’ THE RC45 IS the benchmark for HRC-built roadbikes. I refuse to count the SP-1; it had a pillion seat and cost under 10 grand – this is the last time Honda put a truly trick racer on the road, and a V4 at that. This one belongs to PB reader and forum moderator, Rompy McPoot. We borrowed it a few years ago for a feature, but I couldn’t resist taking it for a spin on the TT course. It’s not the prettiest or most original RVF750RR – it had been dropped and neglected before he bought it. But who cares when there’s an Öhlins shock adding vital extra inches of rear ride height, Brembo calipers shaking…

TELELEVER As seen on: Boxer BMWs, Triumph racebikes, Brough Moto2 bike. Istead of a conventional headstock, this system uses two fork-like structures clamped in a single pivoted top yoke with a wishbone pivoting from the engine joining them at their lower point. The forks contain no damping, instead using a single shock on the wishbone. BMW say this system reduces dive under braking by 90% and suspension forces are fed into the frame rather than the steering. + Better front end feel, reduced dive – Unsprung weight is increased HOSSACK As seen on: Britten V1000, Ariel Ace, BMW Duolever machines. Designed by British inventor Norman Hossack. Like the Telelever, it lacks a conventional headstock but rather than ‘forks’ uses a set of solid arms to hold the front wheel. These…

CLEANLINESS IS CRUCIAL My workshop is small and the walls close in fast so I need to keep on top of cleanliness. The dyno room, where I strip carbs, is always spotless as even the smallest bit of crap can cause havoc in a carb’s jet. BE ORGANISED I’m a big one for laying out parts in order when taking something apart. I’ve recently stripped a motor and will put all the valves and springs back in the same location and order they came out. If you have a fault it is easier to find and doesn’t spread. DON’T RUSH I don’t remember the last time I took a set of carbs apart that had all their idle screws set at the same number of turns. That’s just people rushing…

LONGEVITY Our soft/medium combo have lasted 10 track sessions. There’s still performance left for the same again. PERFORMANCE Grippy and confidenceinspiringenough to g get PB’s Bandit 600 round Oulton in sub-two minutes. HOW LONG TWO PRACTICE DAYS, ONE RACE COST £220 CONTACT TYRE DEALERS OR ONLINE RETAILERS WE TOOK A gamble on these tyres: not so much with the grip, but the fitment. Our Bandit 600’s combo of 195kg weight, and a 3in front rim poses a problem, as tyres to fit the rim are all for lighter bikes. Tyres to suit the weight are all 120s for a 3.5in rim. We gambled on pinching the front Conti slightly. The profile isn’t unduly affected, and both tyres performed fantastically. We shouldn’t be surprised – in larger sizes on a S1000RR…

HOW LONG 2000 MILES COST £360 CONTACT WWW.KABUTO-EUROPE.COM KABUTO, FORMALLY KNOWN as OGK, are the third, and lesser-known Japanese helmet brand. They are competing for space in the mid-price sector of helmets where there is a lot of choice for £300-£400. This RT-33 is hard to fault. It’s really light, comfortable and doesn’t mist up, which takes care of my top three priorities. I suppose if I wanted to be picky, the lining could be a bit plusher, and the vents could have more of a ‘snap’ to them when you operate them with a glove on. But, the quality of the shell’s finish is great, with a generous layer of lacquer over the transfers giving a high-quality feel. It’s really stable at high speed, too. There’s nothing worse than…

MATT WILDEE EDITOR matt.wildee@pbmag.co.uk Mine would be a Suzuka 8-hour-spec Honda RC45 and a pile of HRC spares SIMON RUSSELL ART EDITOR simon.russell@bauermedia.co.uk Two Desmos. One to ride, another for the living room. Who needs a telly? CHRIS NEWBIGGING FEATURES EDITOR chris@pbmag.co.uk Gardner’s ’88 NSR500, cos it’s violent and sexy, just like me. (Twat – MW) JOHN McAVOY ROAD TESTER editorial@pbmag.co.uk Superlegerra, it’s as rare as hen’s teeth, but I’d be happy with an RSV4 Factory MICHAEL RUTTER TRACK TESTER editorial@pbmag.co.uk My old HRC BSB Fireblade. Nothing has come close in quality or engineering MARK WHITE TECHNICIAN editorial@pbmag.co.uk I’d have to build it myself but a 230bhp BMW S1000XR‘R’. I know, I’ve changed KAR LEE FORUM EDITOR editorial@pbmag.co.uk A pink CG125 with a sidecar and some leather panniers. With tassels…

BESPOKE | GERMAN | BOINGY WILBERS 643QS SHOCK ABSORBER Germany’s Wilbers shocks, from the base model Ecoline (starting at £295) to the top-of-the-range 643QS (from £950), are all hand-built to each customer’s spec. When you place your order, Wilbers will ask your weight, whether you take a pillion, what you intend to use the bike for (track or road) and then tailor the shock to your requirements. The 643QS has 22 clicks of rebound, high and low-speed compression adjustment, variable spring preload and ride height. Plus, every Wilbers shock comes with a five-year warranty and is fully rebuildable. Price: From £950 Contact: www.revsracing.co.uk TIMEFRAME The shocks have a two-week turnaround, however you can shorten this for a small additional charge. SPRING The standard spring gcolour choices are black or blue,…

NAKED AND PROUD You missed out the Triumph Street Triple in your recent review of nakeds. But you included another 600, the Honda Hornet. I had a Hornet in 2002, changed to a Triumph Daytona 675 in 2006, and then bought a Street Triple R in 2012. While my Triple R was being serviced last year I rode a demo Speed Triple on familiar roads. It is heavier, requires more effort to change direction and I could not use the extra power, but then I am 77. In my youth I loved pushing my Velocette Venom and all the crazy things the indestructible young do, but my Street Triple is better in every way. The pleasure of concentrating through a series of known bends, using a middle gear and that…

I’M A PROPER TT nut and have been from an early age. During TT fortnight all the radios in my shop are tuned into Manx radio and turned up full blast. I’m not letting the guys stop work, but there is no way we are missing out on the action. I have split loyalties when it comes to who I support. John McGuinness is a mate and I have a very personal connection to him and the TT, but the shop actually sponsors Peter Hickman. Peter is a great lad and certainly one of the new guard when it comes to future TTs. That said, I also love the way Hutchy rides, as well as Michael Dunlop, and anyone else who takes to the TT course for that matter as…

‘We learnt as much in two weeks as we would in two months of circuit testing’ “WE HAD NO large problems, but small ones – problems with mapping, a crank seal burnt out because of the prolonged high-rpm running and sucked the gearbox oil through the cases... But one lap of the TT is the same distance as half a Grand Prix. If you have a problem, you have to do a full 37.73-mile lap, and then make a change. “We were surpised we had no problems with tank range – it was close at the start, but the mapping improvements we made to improve the character also made it more efficient, and we had fuel to spare. “We learnt as much in two weeks as it would take us…

ONCE AT THE forefront of two-strokes, what’s stopping Kawasaki leading their resurgence? Kawasaki Europe’s Martin Lambert explains... “Given that much of our reputation was built on two-strokes it might seem strange that they feature so sparsely in our current range. The KX65 continues as an entry-level off-roader, plus the KX85, but that’s about it. “The main reasons are emissions, noise, economy and expected performance. In the days of the Mach III 500, when petrol was cheaper and people were less environmentally conscious, MPG was often in single figures and non-synthetic two-stroke oil wasn’t burnt efficiently. This caused smoke and the need to ‘de-coke’ exhausts and piston crowns, a regular exercise many owners took as a rite of passage but which most modern riders would baulk at. “Our four-strokes require less…

“TO BE HONEST, my RC45 was awful at the TT! The Medd bike in 1994, then the V&M and Honda Britain bikes I rode in 1997/1998 were terrifying around the Island – we’d come in as white as a sheet because they wobbled from one side of the road to the other. “It needed some big changes. The single-sided swingarm wasn’t ideal – every time it was adjusted, the wheelbase and ride height changed. It was never the same bike twice. “They were very stiff – a short circuit bike, really, but they won because they had the best riders on them, not because they were the best bikes. The engine was the best bit – very smooth and strong all the way through, and that worked well on the…

THE TWO THINGS that impressed me the most about the Monster 1200R are its overall engine characteristics and the way the chassis maintains stability. The engine really is brilliant. More power than you’ll ever need on the road and, at Mallory at least, I wasn’t left wanting. It’s got beautifully set up fuel injection and a really nice throttle action, which may sound like a strange thing to pick up on, but the benefit of having the perfect connection from the throttle grip to the injectors seriously can’t be underestimated. Give me a racebike with well set up, easy to use, uncomplicated fuel injection over excess horsepower any day. The chassis is a strange one for me because there were occasions when I didn’t feel right there with it and…

1997 SUZUKI BANDIT CHRIS NEWBIGGING WHITEY LOOKS ALMOST bored on the practice day at Oulton Park. The Bandit is performing great – the only minor problem has been the exhaust headers easing on their gaskets, causing a slight blow. A run over the header fasteners is enough to sort it. And the needle has dropped off the tacho. It’s a habit old Suzuki dials have. No big deal. It’s uncharted territory for a PB race project’s first run – it’s... working. And working well. An extra turn of preload, a little more low-speed compression damping and it’s handling how I want. The motor is pulling well and clean, and the brakes are working. There’s plenty of ground clearance, the tyres suit it, and I’m comfortable on it. What’s there for…

‘It’s the first time the bike has been properly ridden in anger, and it’s glorious’ 2015 APRILIA TUONO V4 FACTORY KAR LEE FOR THE LAST six years I’ve been making an annual pilgrimage to Cartagena circuit in Southern Spain for some kneeslider-scraping, occasional apex-kissing track-time. The first trip was in 2009 on a Street Triple R and despite the fact that bike doesn’t even break the 100bhp barrier, it was an absolute blast. The following visits were on my GSX-R K6, which just got better and better as it was modified over time. So here we are again, this time on a brand new bike, another naked. I have high hopes for the Factory. It is after all a £15k performance bike, one that PB’s Michael Rutter can hustle around…

HOW LONG DONKEY’S YEARS COST £75 SECOND-HAND (£160 NEW) I BOUGHT THESE from a mate retiring from the paddock in 2009. He’d used them for two seasons after being given them as damaged cast-offs, and got them repaired. They could be well over a decade old. They’re still going strong – a bit dog-eared, but reassuringly reliable and rugged. There’s no temperature control, so you need to be careful using them on wets, but for dry tyres they’re just the job. I’ve seen identical sets stand abuse that would set fire to others – if you do knacker one, the repair service is cost-effective enough that you wouldn’t just replace them. The drawstrings on mine are a bit fiddly, but they’ve since switched to elasticated edges. A temperature control would…

HOW LONG 1 YEAR/5000 MILES COST £1299 CONTACT WWW.DAINESE.COM WHEN IT COMES to on-bike comfort and performance these are some of the nicest leathers I’ve used in the last 15 years. Made from kangaroo hide, they’re much lighter than cowhide and more supple, too. You really notice the difference – they let you move about on the bike easily and have a break-in period of minutes. Part of my job means regular 12-hour days in one-piece suits and these have proven comfy off the bike, too. The level of protection is good and there is enough stretch to give room for a chest protector. One downside is they’re a little short in the leg (and I’m a bit long) meaning I couldn’t use Dainese’s ‘inner’ boots. For trackdays and road…

2015 SUZUKI GSX-S1000F CHRIS NEWBIGGING MARK BREWIN DOES not hold back on his opinion. In the case of the GSX-S1000F and the outstandingly loud Yoshimura system we fitted, he didn’t even wait to turn the bike and dyno off before mouthing: “What the hell is that about?” Subtle it is not. Pleasant... some like an unsilenced inline four, but personally I’m not digging the ear-piercing noise. And neither is Mark. But it does work: without fuelling mods, we’ve gained 5bhp at peak and up to 10bhp at points in the midrange, and kept a smooth curve that mirrors the shape of the original. The downside of that is that it’s not immediately noticeable on the road – it’s doing the same thing, just slightly more so. And it’s now running…

2016 BMW S1000XR MARK WHITE “SO HOW ARE you going to make the XR more ‘PB’?” Everyone keeps asking me... Matt, Chris, even my mum. But here’s the thing: I think this is the most PB bike I’ve ever ridden, in lots of ways. Hear me out while I make sense of that statement myself because I need to come up with an explanation for the future questioning I’ll no doubt have to face. unit where the torque is moved lower down the range and more realistic for shoving itself through national speed limit signs. I finished my mouthful, got out my phone to find a photo of my XR to help explain... only to walk straight into that familiar question upon revealing the giant BMW’s silhouette. “Why are you…

WILD WILDEE I took out a subscription to PB after recently buying a new S1000RR and... WHOAH! So that’s where ‘Wild Bill’ Wharton has ended up (July issue, page 8)! From Death Row to editor of PB magazine. How did that happen? Even more spookily, ‘Wild Bill’ rides a Big Green Kwacka down the Green Mile to Le Mans on page 66. I love my S1000RR, I am now a riding god (or rather it makes me feel like one). Really enjoying your periodical. Keep up the good work. Alan Rogers As Matt isn’t here, and you made the rest of the office laugh like a drain, have some cleaning gear on us. But don’t blame us if he turns up on your doorstep with a blunt object. CN…

SUCCEEDING AT the TT is not the end-game. Neither is selling trackbikes (though 12 orders are confirmed). Ultimately, Suter wants to sell high-tech roadbikes. A road-going MMX500 is the first step – a direct-injection version of the V4 is in development with the Graz Technical University. Moreover, these bikes won’t be snuck on to the roads with single-vehicle approval – they’re aiming to pass Euro 4, and they reckon they’re close to cracking it, too. From there, more roadbikes – four-strokes too – will follow. We expect CRT bike derivatives, maybe some high-spec, lightweight sportbikes... We’re dying to find out.…

THIS BIKE’S OWNER, Kevin Wood, explains why he loves his RCV... “All my life I’ve had the best sportbikes – I’m not brand loyal, I just bought the latest and greatest. I went to the NEC show for a general look round, and saw the RCV on a plinth next to Marquez’s bike. I spent ages comparing parts directly, looking for the con-job. There wasn’t one: it’s truly an RCV with lights. I knew I wanted one then – and I had to have the race kit on it. There’s no point in having a MotoGP bike on the road without the power. “It’s beyond description – to me, my old S1000RR is 20% the bike this is. It’s so much easier, more precise – you almost don’t need talent…

HEADSTOCK Aymen cut the original headstock off then ground the frame ends flat using a milling bed before welding on his own design of headstock with mounting points for his upper wishbone as well as all the bearings, etc required for smooth movement. He built a jig to hold the headstock in place while the weld cooled, to ensure it retained its strength. Two rose joints on the lower section of frame mount the lower wishbone. STEERING SYSTEM Aymen modified the R6 top and bottom yokes so when you turn the bars they pull and push on two rose-jointed tie-rods. These links are connected to the uprights. Two tubes act as mini-forks, bracing the top and bottom yokes together. SHOCK The single centrally-mounted shock is an Ikon unit and is…

AFTER RIDING THE 1200R on the road pretty hard for a few days, and being left a bit underwhelmed by its handling, I wasn’t exactly counting the days until I got to ride it on track. So it is with great pleasure that I am now in a position to be able to write about the Monster with a much larger slice of affection. It really did make a lot more sense on track. Being able to ride it fast for sustained periods, loading up the suspension, throwing it at apexes, burying its forks on the brakes, making the slipper clutch earn its keep and using all of the revs, all of the time without any of the uncertainty you get on a bumpy shitty road is where the chassis…

‘The Superstocker was a different story; I was happy each time I sat on it, and set my fastest lap on it’ IT WAS A good TT for me, but as you’ve heard from Alec over the last few pages, it took some work to get there – and if we’d have got the bikes working a little better, I think I could have done better. The Superbike was the biggest problem and the one we lost our way with. I’ve been riding the Superstocker all year, and the Supersport bike is the bike I rode last year, with some updates, but it took us a long time to work through some problems with the big bike. We had a problem with head bearings working loose, and it cost two…

1 HARRISON M300 LATHE “I try to make as many parts as I can and I use this a lot on racebikes to make aluminium fasteners, where the roadbikes use heavy steel ones. A lathe is just a brilliant tool to have kicking around and the beauty of my set-up is that I have three-phase power, which makes buying lathes even cheaper. Very few home mechanics have this so used three-phase lathes aren’t very sought after.” 2 TYRE CHANGING MACHINE “A workshop has to have one to get passing trade. I take a lot of care when changing tyres as I’ve had my own wheels scratched in the past and it is so frustrating. All the jaws have plastic guards and I take my time.” 3 IDLE MIXTURE ADJUSTMENT SCREWDRIVER…

KEITH CHAMBERS “I’VE BUILT A naked and a faired bike to promote the class, but I don’t see an advantage in the fairing, so I use that as a wet bike. I’ve made riser plates for the standard footrests, fitted a GSX-R750 K4 shock, different bars and race bodywork. They’re both running the exhausts that came on them – I think they’re Micron or Motad. I come from a production racing background, and the idea was to take a cheap, cheerful bike and create a series where you can be competitive without spending a lot of money. The pair owe me £1500.” GARETH SUTTON “I’D BEEN DOING trackdays on my R1 for years, and not learning anything – it was too fast really. I wanted to start at the bottom,…

‘You probably think I’m mental for spending a grand, but it’s worth it’ DAMPER ROD This is the bit you might be familiar with: those big holes control rebound damping in a basic way SPRING TRIAL That’s a cast-off SV650 spring: it was better than the stock spring, but far from ideal CAP IN HAND Old fork caponlyyallowed preload adjustment. Not much help when damping was the big issue SEAL THE DEAL Damping goil has to pass through the two damping valves at either end TURNING THE SCREWS Rebound dampingis accessible from the fork cap, and comp from underneath 1989 SUZUKI RGV250K CHRIS NEWBIGGING I THINK I know what sort of father I’m going to be to my first child, which is currently in the prototype and development stage. The…

HOW LONG 2 MONTHS COST £20 CONTACT WWW.WESTCOUNTRYWINDNGS.CO.UK WHEN I ACQUIRED an Öhlins steering damper with a polished mount for my old R1 I had to do something about the finish. The plan was to get it clear anodised at a local plating company, but the end result was terrible. So I went to West Country Windings, who, as well as specialising in ignition repairs, run a vapour-blasting service. The process gives a blast of water, infused with minute glass beads which shatter on impact. It’s much less aggressive than soda-blasting for example and gives a lovely smooth satin finish on all metals. It took off the poor anodising and gave the metal a smooth ‘factory’ look, ready for coating. Or you can leave it bare, as I have –…

NICE TO HEAR FROM YOU The noise is deep, bassy but cultured and not too loud. It’s good in every sense but power – we’re hoping to sort that. It’s £1028 from www.veloxracing.com. 2016 YAMAHA YZF-R1 CHRIS NEWBIGGING IT’S HARD TO know where to start with fettling the R1. It’s so damned good as it is, there’s nothing that leaps out as really in need of help. The suspension was very harsh to begin with, but I’ve got a handle on that with some simple adjustment. The brakes are oft-maligned in tests, but mine seem to respond well to harder use, and they’re as sharp and tactile as I want. If you’re after a cutting-edge sportsbike, there isn’t much to complain about. The one thing that does need sorting is…

 2016 DUCATI 959 PANIGALE JOHNNY McAVOY ‘At least half the mileage has been flat-out; the rest has been riding to racetracks’ WELL THAT DIDN’T take long. 1600 miles to eat a rear Pirelli Rosso Corsa would normally count for a mark against a bike (or the tyre), but in the context of the month I’ve had with the 959, it’s not bad at all. Two track days at Donington Park, one at Silverstone and an appearance at the Coventry Motofest means at least half of the Panigale’s mileage this month has been spent flat-out, and the other half has been riding to and from racetracks. On the road, the 959 is happiest when it’s tramping on with its traction control switched off. Taking the bumps and rearing up its front…