Stability - Lack of

[ST.George]

G'day ST-ers,

My apologies for not turning up at the Grey Gum Cafe on Sunday.

Saw the photos and could see that we would have enjoyed meeting these people. My good new mate Atoyot thought so much of the ride he did it twice!

Terese and I had an altercation with a gutter on Saturday with Terese left with a bruised chest and me with bruised confidence. Basically my brakes locked up just a metre before the stop sign and somehow the whole bike was off-balance and toppled to the side and threw us off.

I am still trying to get to terms with this fecking bike. I don't seem to be able to control the brakes perfectly and the FI surges piss me off at other times. I hope Casey Stoner didn't retire because he heard I was on the comeback.

Spent an hour and half yesterday practicing stops. Terese has forgiven me because I convinced her that the best accidents happen at 3kph!

So we won't be seeing you until I get my act into gear but am looking forward to it.

[Brock]

Where abouts were you positioned on the road?? If you were near the middle there may have been oil contamination on the road. Some times near the corners, are diesel spills, they can be nasty.

I tend ot use the engine for braking when I can, and if using brakes, I will ease up on the front brake slightly as if there is oil or sand on the road, the front wheel will tuck under and off you go.

[sargent]

Same thing brock just explained happened to me some 12 years ago, I was still going too quick when coming up to a Stop sign, I admit it was a rookie mistake ( and yes I have had a few of them ). 

In the blink of an eye I found myself laying on the road beside my bike in the middle of a dual carriage way after sliding through the Intersection.
First thing my eyes focused on was the car tyre leaving a rubber tyre mark on my visor whilst passing my head in an 80 zone.

The poor bugger thought he had killed me, we exchanged nothing more than handshakes and large heart beats.
The bike exchanged a little paint with the bitumen.

We are all still learning in life.

[Streak]

Gregory, it might be an idea to catch up with a couple of the other ST Owners, and spend some time on a back road, they might be able to off er some advice 

Or maybe a rider course might be worth looking at, my brother in laws father has just done one at the age of 70 something, he did it just to give himself confidence he was doing the right thing, the instructors he had also gave him pointers with his bike (BMW 1200R), he didn't look at as a negative, he just looked at it that it made sure he was in control and doing everything right, as he had not been riding for a few years.

Just thoughts :)

[saaz]

One tip that I try and use all the time (from a Stay Upright course) is to transfer braking to the rear brake only when near walking speed and coming to a stop.  Far less chance of the front washing out, and if the rear does lock a bit far easier to control. Usually at corners and stop signs the road is more likely to be slippery.  Try practicing this all the time until it becomes a habit. 

[alans1100]

One tip that I try and use all the time (from a Stay Upright course) is to transfer braking to the rear brake only when near walking speed and coming to a stop.  Far less chance of the front washing out, and if the rear does lock a bit far easier to control. Usually at corners and stop signs the road is more likely to be slippery.  Try practicing this all the time until it becomes a habit.

All well and good but for ABS equipped bikes from 1996 onwards it's a little different as you have braking on both wheels regardless of whether you use hand or foot brake. Just takes a little practice to learn what the foot and hand brakes do on their own and using them both together.

[pluschinoz]

Look on the bright side Gregory, nothing fixes bruises better than Hirudoid Ointment rubbed on frequently  

[atoyot]

Hey Gregory. I smashed my RH mirror, and scratched the RH pannier and edge of the topbox on Sunday when I took the ST down a 4WD trail! So much for shortcuts! (if anyone has ever wondered about the Old Bells Line from the top to bottom of Kurrajong; don't do it! It's 4WD only! - actually no through road) I almost made it as Sargent 71 can attest to, but almost wasn't enough

Anyway, I'll be on the lookout for parts with you. I see some Chinese made mirrors in red for about $200 pair; did you break your LH mirror? If they're any good, we might be able to split the costs.

I reckon if you get to a ride soon, a few of us can help you with this, as I too find that I don't pull up as smoothly as I like to either. I was wondering if it's something to do with the linked brakes, as I can pull up on my MT01 and balance for a few seconds before putting my feet down, so my balance is ok on that, but I find the ST sometimes just isn't as balanced at low speed. Then again, maybe it's just about getting to know the bike better around town, as on the road, it is beautifully balanced.

[alans1100]

but I find the ST sometimes just isn't as balanced at low speed. Then again, maybe it's just about getting to know the bike better around town, as on the road, it is beautifully balanced.

We know our STs are heavy but after about 10-15kph that weight seems to go away and the bike becomes more stable and the weight comes back when you slow down to those speeds. At least that's the impression I have with the my 1100. 

 

[ST.George]

Thanx SToppers, 

Lots of good advice. I was a little too close to thé Kerb. Speed was perfect. I was using front brake only.

After much thought on the incident I have come to the conclusion that the front brake locked up a half metre before my intended stopping point. This caused a large lurch to the left because I must have been leaning slightly that way or, being a little too near the kerb the camber of the road was greater there. I didn't get a chance to even put my foot on the road b4 Terese and I had to roll away from the bike.

The aftermarket brake lever has a cam adjuster where at setting 1 the lever is 4 cm from the grip and setting 5 is 10 cm. I had it set at 3. After the crash I went to a parking lot and practiced stops and manoeuvres for an hour and half and found the setting that best suited stops was 1 but this setting didn't feel safe at highway speeds so I settled on setting 2.

I also checked the front wheels freedom of rotation and was surprised at how much effort I had to make to get the wheel to spin. I went to my nearby Honda STealer and spun the front wheel on a new ST and it rotated just a little more freely. The mechanic said brake pads on a new bike are tight and my ST might benefit from a brake bleed and a new set of seals because dirt might have gotten into the calipers causing undue friction. I mentioned that the brake fluid is milky and the mech said that this also indicates the need for new fluid.

So, in conclusion, I will change the brake fluid and practice stopping using the back brake - something I have never done before at stop signs or traffic lights. I have always braked with a feather touch in car or on bike but this is not easy to do on my ST.

BTW : Andrew thanks for the offer to go halves in new mirrors. I cut myself out a new mirror from a mirror tile and then realised that the new mirror is optically different to the right-hand mirror. But I like the new setup because I see the left traffic now at actual distance which seems safer to me. However I also cut out a first mirror back to front by mistake. If you like I will spend some time grinding its edges to the exact shape and send it to you if you ask nicely. However, having a close mirror on the right side might not be the ideal way to go. Also, I have found my DIY mirror vibrates more than the OEM.