[Zloikish]

New member here, We got a new Ninja1000 for my wife and she is on her toes when sitting on the bike. I need to lower it, I intend on lowering the front just by moving the forks up in the tripleclamp.

Have any of you lowered the rear by changing the linkage? If so what did you use? Thanks

-Z

 

[troydba]

These bikes come setup pretty stiff in the suspension.
If you adjust the rear to have 25%-30% rider sag (lower pre-load)...
And if you adjust front sag...You may gain valuable inches in addition to better suspension/performance setup...

 

[Zloikish]

These bikes come setup pretty stiff in the suspension.
If you adjust the rear to have 25%-30% rider sag (lower pre-load)...
And if you adjust front sag...You may gain valuable inches in addition to better suspension/performance setup...

I did that first thing, got her so she can have two feet down instead of choosing one. But I want her to get flat footed, hopefully that isn't too low to the ground.

 

[rcannon409]

I lower it with the seat foam. I know theres not much there to begin with, but its abetter way.

Or, have a decent suspension shop lower the thing. I've never ridden a lowered bike that handled with a darn due to suspension limitations.

When you start with only four inches of travel, you dont have a lot to eliminate.

Or, taller shoes.....Dont all ladies have these? I believe we may own a separate house that hold only my wifes shoes.

Plus, my wife evne called my riding gear, "My outfit"...but thats another issue...

 

[shadowproject]

To lower the bike dont you need to get a set of dog bones and a new side stand, each being adjustable of course? I have been looking into the possibility of doing this for myself, I am on the balls of my feet, not quite tippy toes but enough that Id prefer to come down even a half inch to be more firmly planted on both feet for better tight corner maneuvering or getting it into and out of my driveway which is steep and has tighter corners. A recent drop has me thinking this might be helpful (I know, I could have killed a man that day

Here is what I have been looking at:

T Rex Kawasaki 2010 2013 Z1000 2011 2013 Ninja 1000 lowering Links Fully Adjust | eBay

T Rex Kawasaki Z1000 Ninja 1000 Adjustable Kickstand | eBay

 

[Black Sheep]

These bikes aren't cruisers... you don't need to have both feet on the ground. The N1K doesn't have enough ground clearance as it is, lowering it will only make it more dangerous in a sharp turn. I'm 5' 8" with a 29" inseam and I can only get my toes down. If you're short, you just need to learn to adapt and not get yourself into situations where you can't reach the ground. I learned my lesson after dropping my first bike twice because I stopped over a dip and couldn't reach the ground before the bike was leaned too far over for me to hold up. That was 9 years ago... I learned to pay attention and identify and avoid trouble spots. Toes down are all you need...

 

[rcannon409]

These bikes aren't cruisers... you don't need to have both feet on the ground. The N1K doesn't have enough ground clearance as it is, lowering it will only make it more dangerous in a sharp turn. I'm 5' 8" with a 29" inseam and I can only get my toes down. If you're short, you just need to learn to adapt and not get yourself into situations where you can't reach the ground. I learned my lesson after dropping my first bike twice because I stopped over a dip and couldn't reach the ground before the bike was leaned too far over for me to hold up. That was 9 years ago... I learned to pay attention and identify and avoid trouble spots. Toes down are all you need...

BlackSheep, had to quote this as what you said is correct, right, and how its done.

The "Both feet flat on the ground" is an old Harley campaign, and sales tool.

It was invented back when Harley had its sportster and Honda released its first cb750. Obviously, it was 40 years ahead of what HD had. However, due to Honda using real suspension components, its seat height was 31 inches..

Instead of modernizing, Harley decided to make this seat height the end all, do all.

Did it work? LOL 40 years later, the sales campaign became carved in stone.

No big deal except lowering a machine ruins the handling, cornering clearance, and is usually done in such a half assed way, it ruins the suspension.

Sadly, knowing this , and mentioning this, will not sway the opinion of 99.999999999% of those who believe you need "both feet down, flat footed." They will pay good money to ruin a sportbike.

 

[BAZININJA]

These bikes come setup pretty stiff in the suspension.
If you adjust the rear to have 25%-30% rider sag (lower pre-load)...
And if you adjust front sag...You may gain valuable inches in addition to better suspension/performance setup...

Good to know. I just rode a '12 today and it felt way too tall and stiff. I'm looking at a new overstock '13 and was wondering if a lowering kit needed to be part of the deal (5'2", 28" inseam). I've been riding a '10 Honda NT700V with a 31.9" seat height for 30,000+ miles and run the rear at the fourth or fifth click of 20. I'll talk to the dealer about softening up the suspension and see what happens.

 

[Chevy Fan Attic]

These bikes aren't cruisers... you don't need to have both feet on the ground. The N1K doesn't have enough ground clearance as it is, lowering it will only make it more dangerous in a sharp turn. I'm 5' 8" with a 29" inseam and I can only get my toes down. If you're short, you just need to learn to adapt and not get yourself into situations where you can't reach the ground. I learned my lesson after dropping my first bike twice because I stopped over a dip and couldn't reach the ground before the bike was leaned too far over for me to hold up. That was 9 years ago... I learned to pay attention and identify and avoid trouble spots. Toes down are all you need...

So if the bike was lower are you saying that wouldnt have helped?
What about occasionally when your bike is head in parked against a curb and the front of the bike is down hill. Worse yet your chick is on the back with you.

Not everyone is out tearing up the corners and you need all the travel the bike has in its stock config.

 

[cooldaddygroove]

The N1K doesn't have enough ground clearance as it is....

I'm curious to know what exactly you mean......I've tracked mine a few times, and even when dragging a knee and a toe slider I've never experienced an issue with ground clearance. Unless of course you mean doing a slow roll over a square edged curb, or flying over a speed residential speed hump, where exactly does the ground clearance issue come in to play?

 

[rcannon409]

So if the bike was lower are you saying that wouldnt have helped?
What about occasionally when your bike is head in parked against a curb and the front of the bike is down hill. Worse yet your chick is on the back with you.

Not everyone is out tearing up the corners and you need all the travel the bike has in its stock config.

It's far easier not to park like that. Back the bike in, and drive away.


We've learned quite a bit in the 4 years since this thread was started, right?

 

[angelo112233]

Lowering has a lot of downsides. But you can get some supersport tires with /50 series and it will have almost the same profile as the /55. You'll get the handling without gaining ride height. Most people here speak of a /55, but from my personal experience on the Q3, the /55 and /50 difference were negligible, I have used both sizes. Now, if they were touring tires, I would definitely go /55.

I agree with the seat option. You can get a custom seat done. Sometimes it's not the height of the seat, but how thick the seat is. If you can get a seat done and tell the maker that you want a "nose-job" for the seat, or make it plush on the sides to the chasi, it should give you more room to get your feet on the ground. With this kind of seat you have to move forward to the seat when you anticipate stopping, and move to other side of the seat when you are riding.

 

[Hwy]

I'd try moving the forks up and maybe flipping the eccentric rear axle spacers too, that should lower it an inch or so

 

[kenors]

I've known a couple of short bikers (man and woman) and both had boots with thick soles. Not "high heels" but regular molded good gripping soles that were 1.5-2" thick. That buys you a lot and doesn't degrade from the protection, walkability or useability of the boot.

The kneedragging, pegscraping fast boys all say that lowering a bike makes it handle awful but in my experience, some of us will notice nothing. I've lowered my pegs an inch to accommodate old knees and have only touched down a peg feeler once while at (my) max lean and hit a whooptedoo in the the road.

If you plan on lowering the bike a lot, as has been pointed out, you only start with 4" of travel to begin with. You'll be in for a pretty stiff ride if you remove much of that. Backing off on preload will buy you some so try that first. Same with raising the forks but that only gets you 9mm(?) or so. It speeds up handling a bit and makes the bike feel lighter as well.

Rotating the chain adjusters 180 degrees lowers the rear but will really slow the handling of the bike. But it doesn't cost anything to try so why not?

Removing foam from the stock seat won't buy you very much seat height but if you narrow up the front, it will make it a little easier to get feet down. Then again, it might be worth giving the big time seat makers a call and see if they have any ideas (products) for what you need, Sargent, Seth Laam, Corbin all come to mind.

I just noticed this was a really old thread and probably irrelevant now but I didn't see the end result of what was done and if the original wife ended up happy or not. Be nice to see that.

 

[RobertL]

Not sure why people seem to be bashing this idea. People lower bikes all the time. It is their bike and if they want to lower it, more power to them.

Now, does it affect the handling? Of course it does.

What is more important though, actually riding or the bike sitting there because the rider doesn't feel comfortable?

I lowered a ER6N about an inch. It made the rider feel much more comfortable and given I rode it probably more than she did I never noticed a difference in handling.

Another friend lowered her FZ8 2 or more inches. It was a bit drastic and definitely stiff ride but she likes it and feels comfortable on it. I don't believe she's ever dragged it on anything but super easy for me to drag my boots.

I like the TRex kit b/c it is adjustable. That's what I would buy if I wanted to lower mine.

NOTE: I'm not saying it has to be lowered to the flat foot scenario, just saying a little lowering might make a world of difference.

Also, if you want to adjust seat height (because the stock seat sucks anyway), this guy will replace the foam for comfort and also lower: Spencers Seat Mods - Home Page - Custom Motorcycle Seats, Motorcycle Seat Modifications, Motorcycle Seat Mods

 

[rcannon409]

Many people do not take the time, or spend the money, to do a decent, safe job when they lower a motorcycle. Using a lowering link changes rear suspension geometry. That's not good. If you don't lower each end by the same 1 inch, or whatever, it turns their motorcycle into a chopper and handling will definately suffer.

Also, I've seen a lot of people do this lowering thing to cover for poor riding skills. You guys know what , or who I'm talking about. The rider who makes every stop look like a crash waiting to happen. At the same time, I do understand and see where this might help a rider who is short. If it meets that rider ride, instead of watch, it can't be that bad.

 

[Biddles]

I lowered mine 1 full inch with a Pro Tek lowering link. Measured it before hand and measured it as I lowered it to get an accurate adjustment. I also swapped in a Renthal Fatbar, and top yoke from a Naked Z1000 so the entire bike feels different, and she turns in so easy now. Very different, but nothing I would consider a negative. The wider bars just might give me more leverage when turning which makes it easier, but being lowered even an inch makes me feel more comfortable with the bike in general. After my accident the right ankle didn't like to "tip toe" at lights and what not. It also helps a ton when having to back the bike up into certain spots. I would sometimes have to hop off and use the grab rails to back it up, now it's a breeze.

I could be wrong about this, but it was something I thought of when I lowered my bike. Sit on the bike and take note of where your feet are. Then have the girlfriend sit on the back and take note of where your feet are. They're probably flat or close to it. My thought is you could lower your bike safely down to that position without any real drawbacks. I could be completely wrong, but if we ride fine with a passenger, there's no reason we shouldn't be able to lower it to that passenger sag height without any serious drawbacks.

 

[rcannon409]

Biddles, id love to see a side shot of your bike. If you think about this idea.....

Imagine buying a car and we were not abke to adjust the seat, or the steering wheel? Ill bet that would be awesome...At the same time, we are supposed to buy these 13k motorcycles and have non adjustabke bars and seat, and its hreat for all of us? That does not make good sense.

 

[Histaminium]

I lowered mine 1 full inch with a Pro Tek lowering link. Measured it before hand and measured it as I lowered it to get an accurate adjustment. I also swapped in a Renthal Fatbar, and top yoke from a Naked Z1000 so the entire bike feels different, and she turns in so easy now. Very different, but nothing I would consider a negative. The wider bars just might give me more leverage when turning which makes it easier, but being lowered even an inch makes me feel more comfortable with the bike in general. After my accident the right ankle didn't like to "tip toe" at lights and what not. It also helps a ton when having to back the bike up into certain spots. I would sometimes have to hop off and use the grab rails to back it up, now it's a breeze.

I could be wrong about this, but it was something I thought of when I lowered my bike. Sit on the bike and take note of where your feet are. Then have the girlfriend sit on the back and take note of where your feet are. They're probably flat or close to it. My thought is you could lower your bike safely down to that position without any real drawbacks. I could be completely wrong, but if we ride fine with a passenger, there's no reason we shouldn't be able to lower it to that passenger sag height without any serious drawbacks.

But the idea is to also adjust the preload when you have a passenger so it does not sag that much.
But hey. If the lowering links work for you, that is a good thing. You should do what works for you and what works for your application.

If ever you would like to remove the lower links, you can try the low seat for the 2018 model (Item# 99994-0892 - $150 from Kawasaki parts warehouse on ebay), I have a 2016 and it fits perfectly. I had to buy motowerk lowering pegs though to compensate and it has been a great help with ground clearance.