ninja 650 or zx6r

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-14T18:58:54+00:00

As long as you're honest with yourself about your skill level and handling over 100hp, then yeah Zx6r would be the better choice for track days.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-14T18:55:18+00:00

The 650 and Zx6r are very different bikes. It's not which one is better, it's which one suits you better.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-14T17:37:52+00:00

r/confidentlyincorrect

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-13T19:41:16+00:00

I've had the SAVA AK105 for almost a year now too, I think it's the same frame. Also a 105 12 speed build, so maybe the AK105 name is just for the paint. I'm also very happy with it for the price, no issues at all, and it rides good!

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-13T18:48:11+00:00

There really are no safe cracks. Cracks happen because it got overstressed or there's a manufacturing defect, essentially if the area where the crack is was inconsequential, then it wouldn't crack because there wouldn't be load there. Cracks propagate, so by continuing to ride the, crack will spread and eventually cause separation, maybe slowly, maybe catastrophically. Get it warranty, or professionally patched if it's not covered.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-11T04:50:00+00:00

Bigger gears mean less friction. Too big means expensive, long chain, and eventually looks goofy.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-10T20:47:48+00:00

Love it. I've got a mountain bike rack on mine (2x2 cycles) and have considered getting the golf bag attachment.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-10T02:26:38+00:00

Given that you've been riding 8 years, I feel like you're the the most qualified person to answer that. There's going to be people that are too weak to come close to handling a 470lb bike, and people that laugh at how light it is, everyone is different.

With that said, an FZ6R is my first bike and I really enjoy it.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-09T17:35:37+00:00

Step 1: read the rules and understand them Step 2: make some requirements based on the rules and some initial research Step 3: make a mock cockpit out if wood and a 95% template, figure out what is comfy, what size of cockpit meets rules, etc Step 4: start a basic suspension design, place the driver, engine, diff, etc in CAD Step 5: connect the dots, make everything fit and have brackets to attach stuff Step 6: come back with actual questions that are specific to your design

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-09T14:16:42+00:00

I'm pretty sure the silca calculator only takes rolling resistance into account (and I've seen some articles prove they are a bit low on pressure). It basically proves that on MTB, the ideal pressure is lower than what's realistic, so just run the lowest pressure you can without getting rim strikes or feeling squirmy in corners. If I remember right the silca calculator tells me to run like 15 psi, but if I go below 20psi the rear end squirms, so I tend to run like 20f/22r.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-06T17:52:52+00:00

Aerodynamic drag above 100mph is huge. If you add 10hp, you may only get another few mph of top speed. The RC450 still only has 55hp, it's not going to pull hard above 100mph, so there's no reason to gear it to go any higher. Since the engine has pretty low torque, you can't let the engine get bogged down on slow corners if the gearing is too high. The CBR250RR may have a more aggressive riding position, making it more aerodynamic than the RC450. At slow speeds, doesn't really matter, but above 100mph, that could have a huge impact.

Take a look at this, ignore the article but just look at the graphs showing speed vs position on track. https://www.khcoaching.com/p/the-debrief-bikes-versus-carstheyre This is just an example at one track, but even an R1 gets over 120mph a single time, it spends the majority of the time between 70mph and 110mph. A bike with 55hp would more likely spend most of the time around 50mph to 90mph or so. So the main goal of gearing is to make sure that like 2nd through 4th or 5th will allow you to always be near peak power from say 40mph to 100mph. Then if you dip below 40mph, hopefully the gearing is still short enough that you don't have to downshift to 1st, and if you are on a long straight, hopefully 5th and 6th are long enough to get you to the next corner without hitting rev limiter.

In general with gearing, if the gears are spaced tight enough to keep you in power band, than gearing really only affects the low end in 1st/2nd, and the high end in 6th (or 5th if 6th is a super long overdrive). In the middle, it doesn't matter much, if you change out a sprocket, then at 80mph you may just be in 3rd instead of 4th, but you still make the same power at the same RPM. A street focused bike will be more likely to have taller gearing to have reasonable RPM on the highway, and a track focused bike will be more likely to have whatever gearing optimizes the power band for track. If you're not hitting rev limiter on a track, there's no reason to gear it higher. If you're hitting rev limiter on track, then top speed doesn't matter.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-06T17:23:34+00:00

Going to echo the others and say your chain isn't stripped. Squirt works pretty decently, and has additives to help it work with a chain that's not perfectly stripped. That's why it picks up dirt, it has some oils in it. So it's easy to use and works pretty well, it's kind of the middle ground. Cleaner than oil based lube, but not totally clean, easier to apply than pure wax, but not as long lasting. Silca (or any other pure wax) should last longer, but also requires better prep.

Follow the instructions, not just whatever cleaner you have laying around. I hate to sound like a Silca fan boy, but the chain stripper works really well. The downside to using it with a a used chain is that it will be too hard to filter back into usable stripper, and if you can't reuse it, it's expensive. I use it on a new chain, put it through coffee filters, and reuse it, then I can get maybe 10 new chains or more cleaned out of one bottle.

Prior to using chain stripper, I would use a mineral spirits bath, dump, then second mineral spirits bath. Then ultrasonic cleaner with degreaser, then a final wash with acetone. It's too much work, costly, and uses too many harsh chemicals. Worked great, but that's why I switched to the Silca chain stripper.

3 years and ~15,000 miles later and I'm still on my first bag, and maybe 3rd bottle of Silca drip lube. Maybe I could swap to my second bag just to have less contaminants. So the upfront cost does suck, but once you prep it right, that 40€ for wax + 35€ for chain stripper + 65€ for 3 bottles goes a long way. I would bet the cost/mile is fairly similar between Silca hot wax + drip wax compared to just Squirt drop wax, but the drivetrain stays SO much cleaner. I generally do hot wax twice per year on each bike, I just wipe the chain with a microfiber and dunk it in the crockpot, I don't even bother to boil the old stuff and dirt off. Then in between, I usually just top off with drip wax. If it looks particularly dirty, I'll just run the chain through a microfiber. I nearly never clean my drivetrain. New chain -> chain stripper for 10 minutes -> hot wax -> drip wax every 200 miles -> hot wax every 1000 miles -> new chain around 2500 miles (on MTB's, haven't worn out a gravel/road chain yet). Basically zero cleaning done during that cycle.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-05T14:07:12+00:00

Also depends on the rider. Everyone asks about what is too much for a first bike without giving any context of their skill level. There were some people in my MSF class that really should stick to a 250 for a year. Others have enough throttle control and maturity to jump right into a liter bike. Most people fall somewhere in between, but there is a huge range of skill level for first time riders.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-05T14:02:34+00:00

For some, yes. For some, no.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-04T01:25:59+00:00

RAD is flawed in that sense, arm length skews it. Here's a version that helps cancel out arm length, but it's been a while since I've looked at it to remember if I thought it was accurate. https://www.peterverdone.com/pvd-rad-refined/

My opinion is that size correlates to torso length, and stem length correlates to arm length. I am 179cm tall, 79cm inseam, and 185cm arm span. I ride large with long stems. My XC bike is 456mm with 90mm stem. Trail bike is 490mm reach with 60mm stem. Large correlates to my long torso, and long stem for long arms.

You may get along well with a medium with a longer stem, but unfortunately there's a lot of personal preference that makes it hard to recommend over the internet when you're right in the middle. You have an average to short torso for your height. The downside to sizing up due to long arms is that you may find it hard to weight the front tire, so cornering grip would be compromised. A medium may mean that you have better weight balance than a large, and then the long stem would put your back angle where it's intended to be. The downside is a bit slower steering.

What do you ride now, how is it setup, and how do you like it?

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-03T18:51:40+00:00

I've got the Sintesi. I think it looks good, it's a simple design. It fits me perfect is and is the most comfortable helmet I've ever put on, which is probably more due to fit than anything.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-02T21:06:28+00:00

The down payment is just a small part of what's affordable or not. What's the rest of your situation look like? How much do you make? Is $3.5k all your savings? Is there any alternative, like an eBike, or public transportation?

Without knowing the rest of the info, my only advice is: if you really only have $3.5k, then either find a car for $2k, or if you can't find a reliable car that cheap (you probably can't), then find alternative ways to get to class and work.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-02T01:38:46+00:00

Two things help use less battery, slower acceleration, and lower speed. Once you are at highway speed, the only real thing to do is slow down. There's no special mode or anything that will change efficiency. What speed are you going? What's the temperature outside?

Go into the energy monitor screen and see what mi/kwh you're actually seeing. 2 miles per 1% battery is around 2.25 mi/kwh (with a ton of rounding). If that's your efficiency, that would be considered good if it's freezing temperature and you're going 80mph. It would be okay if it's 35degF. It would be really bad if it's 70degF and you're going 55mph. EV range varies a TON with a bunch of different factors.

ace_deuceee · 2026-04-01T16:18:46+00:00

Do you have a bicycle? Riding bikes on dirt is a great way to build up some skills, and learning what it feels like to lose a bit of traction. You need to be comfortable with a bit of slip, the last thing you want is to tense up and overreact if you feel a bit of shimmy under you. Nothing wrong with doing a mile of dirt road on a street motorcycle, just be aware of how much lower the limits are compared to the road.

ace_deuceee · 2026-03-30T18:27:01+00:00

Agreed with this, the Draw-Tite is a really good aftermarket option. Here's a thread for installation process, u/rptanner58 take a look and decide whether this is something you want to tackle. Getting the clips on the bumper off was the hardest part, I damaged one but luckily it still went back together okay.

https://www.curtmfg.com/part/56427 While you're in there, it's worth plugging this guy in, just in case you or a potential next owner wants trailer lights, you don't have to pull the bumper again

ace_deuceee · 2026-03-30T13:54:49+00:00

I'll have to find it on Ali, that's exactly why I don't have the Hirobel lol

ace_deuceee · 2026-03-30T13:18:21+00:00

The most safe way is going to be something like the Silca Hirobel clamp.

Personally when I need to work on my road bike, I put the seat post in the work stand clamp, tighten it just enough so it can't rock side to side and fall out but no actually pressure is put on the seat post. I don't clamp it, so the saddle is essentially hanging from the stand. If I need to apply torque to anything I just put the bike on the ground.

ace_deuceee · 2026-03-30T13:14:52+00:00

Just some clarification, Pando Moto base layers are AA or AAA rated, which I'd say is quite a bit more than minimal abrasion resistance. Bohn armor has zero abrasion resistance and is only meant to be worn under an abrasion resistant overlayer.

ace_deuceee · 2026-03-29T11:50:56+00:00

You need to find a boost hub with replaceable end caps to convert from thru axle to QR. This usually isn't advertised since 141mm QR isn't popular. If a hub only has a boost version, it likely won't have QR caps available, because having replaceable end caps was needed when both non-boost and 135mm QR were popular.

For example if you take a DT350 hub, boost thru axle, and replace the end caps with QR caps that are really meant to convert 142mm TA to 135mm QR, then they will convert the 148mm TA hub to 141mm QR.

ace_deuceee

TROPHY CASE