phochief Posted January 30, 2009 #1 Posted January 30, 2009 I had my dealer lower the front of my 09 RSV about a week ago. The bike does seem to feel a bit lower on the front and maybe handling is a little better, although I didn't have much problem with slow speed riding before. The main reason I wanted to lower the front 1" was to help flat foot at stop lights. Unfortunately I don't really notice much difference after the mod. I could always put one foot down flat and the other foot was touching except for the heel which was still about 1/2" off the pavement. I'm 5' 11" and not sure what my inseam is. Now I'm wondering if my dealer actually lowered the front (paranoia setting in). I can't remember how they looked before but the top of the fork tubes (air valves) are about 1" above the triple tree....would that confirm that the bike was actually lowered? Thanks guys, David
rod Posted January 30, 2009 #2 Posted January 30, 2009 If the forks are above the trees, he lowered it. Lowering the front does not change the seat much. Moving forward on the seat will get you flat footed. Lowering the back changes the seat hight but affects the ground clearance of the bike. Rod
Jerry W Posted January 30, 2009 #3 Posted January 30, 2009 If the fork tubes are 1" above the triple tree, the front end has been lowered. The forks are flush from the factory. I have lowered mine and am going to lower the rear end using the barons kit this weekend, I will let you know how much difference I notice.
Squidley Posted January 30, 2009 #4 Posted January 30, 2009 I'm kinda surprised you being 5' 11" and not touch the ground flat. I'm within a half inch of you and I do, my inseam is 32". You might want to consider the Barons lowering kit for the rear if your concerned about it. That or have Rick Butler Mod your seat and shave some of the center out of it to lower you further.
KiteSquid Posted January 30, 2009 #5 Posted January 30, 2009 Another option that does not change the handling of the bike is to get the seat reshaped. Maybe narrower or to shave a little off the top. In RLAP V DVD the instructor talks about this.
Sleeperhawk Posted January 30, 2009 #6 Posted January 30, 2009 I'm kinda surprised you being 5' 11" and not touch the ground flat. I'm within a half inch of you and I do, my inseam is 32". You might want to consider the Barons lowering kit for the rear if your concerned about it. That or have Rick Butler Mod your seat and shave some of the center out of it to lower you further. I am with Squidley on this, I am 5'10 and I flat foot at the stops, except when the road has pot holes. I have no mods on my bike, in fact glad it is not lower to the ground.
Ponch Posted January 30, 2009 #7 Posted January 30, 2009 I'm 5'8" and have no problem sitting flat footed now. I never lowered the front or the back. Seat height was a more of a problem when I had the leveling links. Had to tip toe to get both feet on the ground. I had Rick take an inch off the seat foam and all is well. Almost everyone I've talked to that had the Baron's lowering kit regretted it. You suffer dragging the floorboards much too easily. You can lose control dragging the floorboards in a curve either by over reacting or leaning so far as to lift the rear tire. Having said that, as long as you drive appropriately (slower in the curves) you should be able to handle it. Just my . Please don't anyone be offended, just my opinion. Ponch
N3FOL Posted January 30, 2009 #8 Posted January 30, 2009 I'm kinda surprised you being 5' 11" and not touch the ground flat. I'm within a half inch of you and I do, my inseam is 32". You might want to consider the Barons lowering kit for the rear if your concerned about it. That or have Rick Butler Mod your seat and shave some of the center out of it to lower you further. Quite surprised on this end too. Me at 5'5", I can almost flat foot my Venture, but I can live with it with no lowering mods. Some say that the rear may cause some erratic handling of the bike, when lowered on the rear. At any rate, I do have the Baron's lowering kit for the Venture FOR SALE still in its unopened package. PM me for details, if you are interested
phochief Posted January 31, 2009 Author #9 Posted January 31, 2009 Hmmm, if some of you guys who are shorter than me can flat foot your bike....then maybe it's the extra few inches of fat in my ass. This may be the final nudge I needed to go on that diet! David
Squidley Posted January 31, 2009 #10 Posted January 31, 2009 Hmmm, if some of you guys who are shorter than me can flat foot your bike....then maybe it's the extra few inches of fat in my ass. This may be the final nudge I needed to go on that diet! David We have a mass diet going on right now http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=30853 http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=31174
mm482 Posted January 31, 2009 #11 Posted January 31, 2009 How much air pressure do you have in your shocks & forks? I run 3lbs in front & 20 in rear. I am 5'6" and I can flat foot my bike. Earl 00 RSV
Jerry W Posted February 1, 2009 #12 Posted February 1, 2009 Ok, I lowered the rear of my RSV and here are my thoughts. I had already lowered the front and noticed some difference in handling and a little difference in seat height. After I lowered the rear, I didn't notice much difference in handling but the difference in seat height is very noticable. I rode about 75 miles today after the modification and do not plan to go back to stock height. I am not trying to talk anyone into or out of making this modification, just giving some feedback based on experience. I don't ride as agressive as some and had a 1996 Royal Star for 10 years before buying the 2006 RSV. The Royal Star sits quite a bit lower than the RSV and I really liked that bike. Maybe if I hadn't had the Royal Star before buying the RSV, I would have been fine with the height. Anyway, I just like the feel of the bike being a little lower and have not notice anything that gave me any concern. I rode the bike about 8,000 miles at stock height. Another 6,000 miles with the front lowered and now have lowered the rear and am very satisfied with the results. Again, this is my experience and do not care to get into an argument on whether it is a smart thing to do or not. I stated I would post when I got the mods done and here it is.
N3FOL Posted February 1, 2009 #13 Posted February 1, 2009 Hmmm, if some of you guys who are shorter than me can flat foot your bike....then maybe it's the extra few inches of fat in my ass. This may be the final nudge I needed to go on that diet! David The next time you go to your local gym, don't forget to do 'Squat' exercises. It really work the buns:Bunny:.
phochief Posted February 4, 2009 Author #14 Posted February 4, 2009 How much air pressure do you have in your shocks & forks? I run 3lbs in front & 20 in rear. I am 5'6" and I can flat foot my bike. Earl 00 RSV Right now I've got zero in the front and 25 in the rear. That's really wierd that you're 5'6" and can flat foot your RSV. Are you fully sitting on the seat? If I scoot forward on the seat I can flat foot it too, but I'd rather stay in a sitting position at the lights. Thanks for you input, David
Who Dey Posted February 5, 2009 #15 Posted February 5, 2009 I lowered the back of mine and i love it. I also just had Rick Butler do the seat mod and now it's even better. I now am much more flat footed when coming to a stop and i don't feel the rear lowering kit affected the handling at all. The bike will bottom out if i hit a hard bump a little with no air in the shockes so i put about 25 pounds in them and that problem is resolved now. I love this bike!!!
mm482 Posted February 6, 2009 #16 Posted February 6, 2009 I have a Travelcade seat which may be lower than yours. With the stock seat I could flat foot it if I moved up front a little. I have a 28” inseam. Earl
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