Author Topic: My maintenance observations  (Read 1058 times)

Offline BrianK

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My maintenance observations
« on: February 02, 2019, 01:55:09 PM »
So most know about my key issue which is resolved and popped up when I tried to start my bike after overhauling my brakes and clutch which were both giving me issues so I figured I would post up here everything I did, why I did it, results and maybe some feedback from everyone because I pick up a lot of valuable information from forums. First I decided to do all of this based on mileage and issues I was having. This is everything I did....
 New front rotors (EBC), pads (EBC) and stainless brake and clutch lines (galfer).Front caliper rebuild kit. New clutch discs and springs (EBC). Flush coolant, change oil and filter, air filter (HiFlo) and new skins (Pirelli Angel ST). I also removed the flies.
 It's a toss up on the most noticeable change between the brakes and removing secondary flies both are "WOW"  I had the dreaded warped rotor syndrome when I decided to take the bike offline and do these things. I've read that it might not even of been warped rotors causing the shaking when applying brakes issue but mine was really bad at this point and I like aftermarket rotors anyhow so I didn't really spend any time investigating the cause and after all the new parts my brakes are now fantastic.
 The clutch was slipping at high rpms and after looking at that the theory was the previous owner put the wrong oil in it causing this issue. The new discs and springs have solved the issue and inspecting the old discs and seeing how much life they had left I'm thinking the wrong oil theory was correct.
 The Pirelli Angel St tires I bought online for $196 for front and rear and they are gripping and feeling as nice as my previous Pilot 4s which cost double so I am pleasantly surprised  by them.... we'll see how long they last.
OK I saved the best for last...removing the flies. I've owned 2 ZX14s before the Connie and I removed the flies from both of them and all I can say is wow what a difference it's truly just a whole new bike after they're removed. I see a lot of people talking up the reflash and I'm sure it's a big difference maker also but I don't need that many tweaks to my fuel map, timing and whatever else is modified. Just unleash some raw power add a little fuel (PC3) and my bike is fine I don't care about decel popping, every ounce of fuel economy, or if I can be in 1 gear higher tooling around town. I just feel like every bike is a little different and what someone spent 20 hours on to massage their bike might not necessarily be best for my bike so just give me less restriction on my air/fuel flow and my wrist can do the rest.

Offline connie14boy

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Re: My maintenance observations
« Reply #1 on: February 03, 2019, 09:54:46 AM »
So most know about my key issue which is resolved and popped up when I tried to start my bike after overhauling my brakes and clutch which were both giving me issues so I figured I would post up here everything I did, why I did it, results and maybe some feedback from everyone because I pick up a lot of valuable information from forums. First I decided to do all of this based on mileage and issues I was having. This is everything I did....
 New front rotors (EBC), pads (EBC) and stainless brake and clutch lines (galfer).Front caliper rebuild kit. New clutch discs and springs (EBC). Flush coolant, change oil and filter, air filter (HiFlo) and new skins (Pirelli Angel ST). I also removed the flies.
 It's a toss up on the most noticeable change between the brakes and removing secondary flies both are "WOW"  I had the dreaded warped rotor syndrome when I decided to take the bike offline and do these things. I've read that it might not even of been warped rotors causing the shaking when applying brakes issue but mine was really bad at this point and I like aftermarket rotors anyhow so I didn't really spend any time investigating the cause and after all the new parts my brakes are now fantastic.
 The clutch was slipping at high rpms and after looking at that the theory was the previous owner put the wrong oil in it causing this issue. The new discs and springs have solved the issue and inspecting the old discs and seeing how much life they had left I'm thinking the wrong oil theory was correct.
 The Pirelli Angel St tires I bought online for $196 for front and rear and they are gripping and feeling as nice as my previous Pilot 4s which cost double so I am pleasantly surprised  by them.... we'll see how long they last.
OK I saved the best for last...removing the flies. I've owned 2 ZX14s before the Connie and I removed the flies from both of them and all I can say is wow what a difference it's truly just a whole new bike after they're removed. I see a lot of people talking up the reflash and I'm sure it's a big difference maker also but I don't need that many tweaks to my fuel map, timing and whatever else is modified. Just unleash some raw power add a little fuel (PC3) and my bike is fine I don't care about decel popping, every ounce of fuel economy, or if I can be in 1 gear higher tooling around town. I just feel like every bike is a little different and what someone spent 20 hours on to massage their bike might not necessarily be best for my bike so just give me less restriction on my air/fuel flow and my wrist can do the rest.

Pretty sure the bike had a previous hard life and/or an inexperienced clutch operator if the clutch was slipping- not an oil problem. There are guys who do track days and drag racing that say the clutch is bulletproof, and I have not heard of any issues on the forum even with bikes over 200k. My own '09 has over 93,000 miles of 'spirited' riding and not a hint of problems. Also, after hard riding and braking, let off the brakes as soon as possible when stopped. The pads and rotors 'bake' at the hot pad location on the rotor if still applying pressure- this will leave pad 'deposits' and warp the rotors IMHO.