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Lowering kit for Versys.

138K views 236 replies 110 participants last post by  MaverickAus 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
I got my bike on March 3rd and I was busy customizing it to my liking. Because I'm only 30.5" (77.5 cm) inseam I started with designing and making a lowering kit. Being mechanical engineer and an owner of a machine shop, I thought it would be more fun making a lowering kit than buying a $400.00 gel seat.
At this point, I can say that it was sheer joy , and now I know that I will be building more custom parts in the future. I put a lot of effort into making it right. It is as mechanically streamlined as can be. The main component is made out of clear anodized 6061-T6 aircraft aluminum, so it’s resistant to corrosion and stronger than a casted gull-wing of the rear suspension of the bike. My kit lowers the seat to 31.25” (79.4 cm), which is 1.85” (47 mm) lower than the original seat height. The kit also addresses the issue of the rough rear suspension by making it a tad softer.
 
#151 ·
High All,

I'm 6'1" (and 230 lbs) and can stand flatfooted on both feet while on my stock V, but don't like it's awkward handling at low speed. Would lowering my V by 1.85" improve low speed handling to make it turn more like a sport bike? Would I loose stability and comfort on the highway? How would my ride change with an occasional passenger at another 170 lbs (for 400lbs total)? How far can you lean at this point?

Thanks. -Mike
 
#152 ·
Hey Mike,

I lowered the bike, then brought it back by installing a new to me sidestand etc, and then I lowered it again :)

I found that the bike is much more composed when lowered, and it turns in a tad quicker. However, I don't ride two up anymore, but when I did, we didn't reach 320lb combined and with the proper adjustment on the rear I still have a mark where the spring touched something (can't remember exactly what). But this was during some spirited riding with catching air a bit.

Leaning, I didn't find that I lost much, although in theory you do. By moving in the saddle I can pull away from friends on sportbikes, who in theory have as much experience if not more.
 
#154 ·
Generally, these mirror extenders were not designed to reduce vibrations, but in some cases they did. This is due to the fact that for some reason the engines of the bike resonate at different frequencies.

You've also asked me if I can ship to Australia. Yes, I ship (international mail) all over the world with few exceptions of the countries to which the mail never seems to reach the recipient:devil: Australia is on my good-to-go list, so no worries mate.

Speedy
 
#155 ·
hi Speedy,

can you make a lowering link that would lower the bike a little less then your lowering link does now ?

i want to lower the bike, but want to get a better match with the front.

the front can't get lowered as far as what the back drops to with the lowering link.

thx,
dave
 
#156 ·
HEY SPEEDY,
I Just wanted to say thanks and give you a big thumbs up.
I'm 6' tall, and I can handle the stock height just fine, but I bought my V for road touring; I'm not planning to go Baja with it. I had a chance to get you block used from a guy down south who included a complete lowered kick stand with Flatfoot. Since I knew I could go back if I didn't like it, I jumped on it.

I love it! The bike still has plenty of suspension travel, but I like the way it looks and the way it feels much better being just a bit more street bike than Motard. It suits me perfectly, and even though I don't need the extra height, it's a lot easier for my wife to climb up on the back.

The Flat foot: Coolest idea for motorcycles EVER! Why doesn't every bike in the world come with this from the factory? I'll never have to carry a stinky old beer can crushed flat in my tank bag again...

Many many thanks for a very fine product.
Chris
:yeahsmile:
 
#158 ·
Lowering kit installed!

I just installed my lowering kit with the flat foot and it's perfect. I have a 30-1/2" inseam and with my modified lower seat I'm not on my tippy toes but also not flat food and feel a lot more comfortable. The install took me less than an hour including adjusting my front forks also didn't need to re-adjust my chain.

Thanks Speedy for the great product and fast delivery.
 
#160 · (Edited)
looks good if you lower the back do you have to do the same withe the front
I lowered mine yesterday. I lowered the front after lowering the rear and installed the flatfoot kit. It keeps the bike closer to the same angle as before.

If you have a triple tree front stand (the kind that has a pin) and lifts the bike by the bottom of the triple tree like the photo below, it makes the lowering of the front a breeze if you have two people. It literally took us 5 minutes. See Warning Below!



I used a stand like above and slid a 2X4 under the front wheel and made the 2X4 a lever to hold the wheel from dropping when my buddy loosened all 6 fork clamp screws. After they were all loose, I easily lifted the forks up to the new location with the 2X4. While I held in place, my buddy tightened up the fork clamps and we were done! If you do not have a front lift that uses the triple tree pin and a helper... DO NOT USE MY METHOD OF LOOSENING ALL THE FORK CLAMP BOLTS OR YOU WILL DROP YOUR BIKE ONTO THE FRONT FENDER!!!

If you do not have a front stand with pin, follow Speedy's instructions to lower the front.

Inspect your chain slack after lowering the rear, mine got tight and I had to adjust the tension per the owners / maintenance manual. This was my first chain driven bike so I had a little learning to do but it was not bad at all.

FYI if you adjust chain tension, you will need new cotter pins (5/32 X 1.5" Lowes has 'em) as well as a 22mm and 27mm socket for the rear axle bolt as well as two 12mm open end wrenches to adjust the tensioner screws.

Good luck!
 
#161 ·
Hi all and thanks Speedy for the lowering kit. I've had my V for less than a week now with 200 miles on the odo.

I just installed it this afternoon by myself in my carport, but while I was lowering the the forks I put one side 1mm below the smooth area by accident. Since I was working on this alone and it was getting dark, I didn't have time to correct this issue in time. The difference is 1mm or even possibly less. Is it safe to ride the bike with a minute variance of height in the front forks? I plan to fix it ASAP, but I'd like to know what this does to the handling.

Also, I'd like to know what is the correct height in millimetres above the non-smooth section of the forks it should be set at to be set perfectly with the lowering link? I want to retain the most neutral geometry as possible. I took it for a brief ride around the block and it seemed fine, but since I'm not an experienced rider its hard for me to know how different things will feel at speed. Should I make any changes in the damper settings relative to OEM? I weigh 175lb and ride mainly on asphalt, what damper settings are ideal for both front/rear?
 
#162 ·
I've installed Speedy lowering kits on 2009 and 2010 V's. In each case, I the front forks were slightly different - 1-2 mm - from each other. The 2009 has over 1100 miles, no problem. The 2010 has 200 miles, no problem. I'm not advocating setting them at different heights, but a small difference doesn't seem to cause difficulty. I recall that the proper height is 30 mm from the bottom of the washer on top to the top of the top bracket. It's in the V Maintenance Manual, which is on line here in the Forum.
 
#165 ·
When I did mine, I used my Harbor Freight rear spool stand in conjunction with my Harbor Freight motorcycle jack.

http://www.harborfreight.com/1500-lb-capacity-atv-motorcycle-lift-2792.html

Start by pulling the cowls up front and the right rear trellis (not sure you even NEED to do this)

For the rear, I put the bike on the rear spool stand and then put the jack under the muffler (rearward) with a piece of wood. I lifted until the spools were just touching the rear stand, taking the weight off the swing arm. I installed the lowering kit (whistling while I worked) and l slowly lowered the bike until I could install the allen screw in the kit. Snugged everything up tight.......DONE. Ten minutes.

For the front, I left the bike on the rear stand and moved the jack forward, positioning the wood block under the lowest point of the exhaust header and took up the slack (front tire still on the ground). Loosened all of the triple clamp bolts and slowly lowered the bike to the desired level. Snugged the trees and....DONE! Ten minutes

Reinstall the cowls and trellis.

One man alone, stable bike, 30 minutes tops. This is a great kit.

V-Zee
 
#170 ·
Just want to put in another good word. Quick delivery, great craftsmanship, easy install, and a HUGE difference in how comfortable the bike feels. :thanx: :thanx: :thanx: !!!
 
#171 ·
My method was even easier, I have a overhead storage and support beam, parked the bike underneath. Took the seat off and used some flat nylon webbing attached to the seat cross member, also have a cheap cable hoist, picked the back up first , then after the kit was installed did the same thing on the front using the handlebar mount and lifting up the front.( used to pull bell telephone cables into duct)
 
#172 ·
reminder to self #47283:
My next house WILL have a garage...
 
#174 ·
I installed the lowering kit today and all went well. Used a rear stand to hold the bike and then a scissors jack and a 4x4 between the rear tire (in gear) and rear subframe and jacked it up until the tenson on the bolt released.

I bought a Ninja 650R sidestand on eBay ($20 delivered) and swapped it with the Versys stand. Perfect.
 

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#176 ·
The cam gear pump works fine for filtered WVO or used motor oil Babington heaters and I have installed it on my Babington style heaters. Ldu Company's stock number is 450516 , The only thing about the cam gear pump is that the fire kind of pulses as the cam gear rotates. If you use the spur gear pump that is LDU's stock number 450512 then you get a steady non-pulsing fire. The WVO pump website is http://www.***********.com/subpages/oilpump_1.htm or you can click through to the tools section from the home page at www.LDUcompany.com

LDU Company also has other parts that I use for building my waste oil burners, like gear reduction motors. I find it best to turn the pump slower because you really don't need a whole lot of oil dripping on the atomizer ball.
WTH??:dgi:
 
#175 ·
So I did mine on saturday and it went well. My single biggest problem was finding a freaking tool to cut the bottom off the foot peg to put the new flatfoot on. Apparently there isn't a single hacksaw on the farm and my brother wore the angle grinder blade down to almost nothing so it was a challenge to cut the peg. However with that done....

I used a jack stand on the right hand side and a 2 ton hydraulic jack on the left foot peg to life the bike while I installed the lowering kit. That was surprisingly easy and I think anyone could do it.

The foot pegs were pretty straight forward though I was lazy initially and didn't move the pedals, after I drove home from the farm I pulled some wrenches and moved them though.

All in all I am thoroughly impressed with Speedys craftsmanship and will be watching for anything else he can come up with.
 
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