Hitting the strip...

[1badmax]

Well I finally was able to get the time to get the Max up to Tulsa Raceway Park Friday night. Last time I was on a dragstrip was back in 07 and before that was in the 90's. Was mostly walking through the launch before going. I came away satisfied in one way knowing that this bike will run in the 9's and at the same time not reaching that quite yet. Conditions were nearly perfect, track was pretty good but the 59 year old needs to get the launches down and consistent. Started out with a 10.4 and after about six runs ending with a 10.06. My bike is a 16 with the simple MAB, DD, deleted w/Akra and stock mufflers and Nash flash. All I did before going was pull mirrors off and dropped the rear tire PSI to 20. No straps on the front but would have probably used them if I had. No balling me on reaction times cuz they were all over the place but I don't go to win I go to see what I can do with the bike. Didn't really have much issue with wheelies but spinning was. Heated tire in 2nd gear each time was leaving at 4k rpm's then went up to 4500. Next time up there I am pretty sure I can bring a 9 second home. Time read outs posted, I am number 7.

 

[totalcomfort]

You will make 9 easy with a little more practice. RT is what makes the pro’s so good. It takes practice to get those down and few of us have a track close by to get much. Looks like you had a blast.

 

[VmaXXX]

You running a 200 on the rear? If so, I wonder what difference the 240 would make.

 

[1badmax]

You will make 9 easy with a little more practice. RT is what makes the pro’s so good. It takes practice to get those down and few of us have a track close by to get much. Looks like you had a blast.

Yeah if you are racing to beat the guy or girl next to you RT is crucial especially if the bikes are pretty evenly matched. I am only looking at ET therefore 60' time is what you are looking at there. Actually it's the first 10' to 20' that makes or brakes your ET as Jay Gleason and Ricky Gadson stated. Clutch and throttle working simultaneously to get you from dead stop to full throttle without spinning, wheelieing or bogging. Something that I didn't get a handle on Friday night as my brain was fried by that time of night.

I paired up with a girl(number 9)on a GSXR 750 that was stretched, lowered and who knows what else. Not an obnoxious lookin bike but was a little lighter blue than my Max and she weighed all of 100 lbs. I was bound not to let a girl beat me and not knowing what she had been running I did put more concentration on the tree then. Story goes I did need some tree advantage as we both went red her -.008 to my -.003 and we both ran in the 10.3's. Picked her up again on my last run and I cut a .010 light and smoked her.

 

[1badmax]

You running a 200 on the rear? If so, I wonder what difference the 240 would make.

I often wondered if the tire patch of a 240 would make much difference out of the gate but then you are giving up having more weight on the bike??? I do run a 200-55/18 which almost the stock tire. The 55 sidewall makes the tire a bit taller and just may account for my 60' times not being that great. Mostly just being consistently decent off the line will get your ET where you want. In my case just to dip into the 9's I am happy and on my way home

 

[1badmax]

Back to the strip last night to make that 9 second pass but missed it by .004 of a second. This was the best pass of the night at 10.003, looks like the front was in the air at the 330' beam since I didn't trip it. A couple of passes that way. Well going to break a while and head back in 3 or 4 weeks.
s.

 

[02GF74]

Remove the front indicators, that'll give you the 0.003s.

 

[1badmax]

Remove the front indicators, that'll give you the 0.003s.

If you are speaking of the signals, by law I probably have to have them on the bike. Maybe get a smaller pair closer to the forks.

 

[02GF74]

Yes. You would remove them when you arrive at the strip, and refit when you leave.

 

[1badmax]

Yes. You would remove them when you arrive at the strip, and refit when you leave.

I will check that out and see how easy they are to remove. Thanks for the heads up!

 

[02GF74]

I was half serious /half joking depending on your outlook.

The margin you are down is so small that a random gust of wind or not hitting a couple bees on a run would have made up the difference.

I'll bet the difference between your two best reaction times are much greater than 0.003 secs.

I've never been on the strip so to go faster are my tips off the top of my head, I'm sure there are many more if one searched. Some of these will give tiny margins but they all add up.

1. More power
* use premium fuel, maybe with additive
* go on a cold day as air is denser hence more oxygen content
2. Less power drain
* use fully synthetic and perhaps thinner grade engine oil
* same for rear drive
* disconnect headlamp, no need to use engine power to light it
* disconnect generator so power comes solely from the battery (BTW this may damage the rectifier /regulator so check this)
* add friction reducer to engine oil and final drive (don't call it a diff else midnightmax will get annoyed) - Over here there is a product called Slik 50 that supposedly coats metal parts with PTFE to reduce friction - can't remember if there is a variant for a wet clutch so may not be suitable for motorcycle engines.
3. More grip
* air down rear tyre
* increase front tyre pressure
4. Less air resistance
* remove signals, if the set up is similar to a gen 1, then that is easier said than done, it's awkward getting a spanner in, then there is space for a 1/4 turn, then headlamp needs to be removed in order to disconnecting the wiring, with practice it could be done in less than 1/2 hour
* ensure all zips on jacket, boots, trousers and straps done up, tuck in helmet strap so nothing is flapping in the wind
* if scoops are decorative as on gen 1, remove them
5. Less weight
* remove flasher relay
* instead of bacon, 4 sausages, 3 eggs, toast, grits (whatever they are), gallon of tea for breakfast, have a mediun bowl of porridge and small glass of orange juice
* fill tyres with nitrogen (air is 4/5 N² and 1/5 O², nitrogen being a bit lighter) plus wont contain water vapour.
* run with 1/2 gallon of fuel
* fit lighter LiOn battery
* fill engine oil to minimum mark
* empty pockets of loose change, keys etc
* remove tyre valve caps
* use worn tyres, providing they have same grip, there'll be less rubber to rotate
* fit Titanium brake calliper and rotor bolts
* replace engine casing bolts with aluminium alloy (in non stressedareas areas)

Not sure if you are doing clutchless gear changes but a quick shifter should reduce gear change time even with the additional additional weight.

 

[Dansmaxresto]

Not sure what you weigh but you could go on a strict diet and get down to 145 pounds like Jay (Peewee) Gleason…lol

 

[1badmax]

Not sure what you weigh but you could go on a strict diet and get down to 145 pounds like Jay (Peewee) Gleason…lol

Yes I am there, I weigh 165 suited. Not as light as Jay was, I believe I read where is was 135 when set the record in 85 with the Max. But I am at big advantage being light when trying to get a low time.

 

[Dansmaxresto]

Nice job at the strip. Are you in Tulsa? What did the magazines get when they ran the Gen 2 in the 1/4 mile?

 

[1badmax]

Nice job at the strip. Are you in Tulsa? What did the magazines get when they ran the Gen 2 in the 1/4 mile?

Thank you much I did have my 85 Vmax at the strip on several occasions and it was totally stock, straight from the crate. This was back in the mid to late 80's. Had 3 CBR 1100 XX Blackbirds at three separate times and had the 01 on the strip in 2007 twice, this was the last time I had been to the strip until 2 weeks when going to TRP with the Gen 2.
Yes, my wife and I live in Tulsa now. Been here about 4 years. I am not sure what numbers in the magazines were on the Gen 2, this would have probably been back in 09 when the Gen 2 was first brought out.

 

[1badmax]

I was half serious /half joking depending on your outlook.

The margin you are down is so small that a random gust of wind or not hitting a couple bees on a run would have made up the difference.

I'll bet the difference between your two best reaction times are much greater than 0.003 secs.

I've never been on the strip so to go faster are my tips off the top of my head, I'm sure there are many more if one searched. Some of these will give tiny margins but they all add up.

1. More power
* use premium fuel, maybe with additive
* go on a cold day as air is denser hence more oxygen content
2. Less power drain
* use fully synthetic and perhaps thinner grade engine oil
* same for rear drive
* disconnect headlamp, no need to use engine power to light it
* disconnect generator so power comes solely from the battery (BTW this may damage the rectifier /regulator so check this)
* add friction reducer to engine oil and final drive (don't call it a diff else midnightmax will get annoyed) - Over here there is a product called Slik 50 that supposedly coats metal parts with PTFE to reduce friction - can't remember if there is a variant for a wet clutch so may not be suitable for motorcycle engines.
3. More grip
* air down rear tyre
* increase front tyre pressure
4. Less air resistance
* remove signals, if the set up is similar to a gen 1, then that is easier said than done, it's awkward getting a spanner in, then there is space for a 1/4 turn, then headlamp needs to be removed in order to disconnecting the wiring, with practice it could be done in less than 1/2 hour
* ensure all zips on jacket, boots, trousers and straps done up, tuck in helmet strap so nothing is flapping in the wind
* if scoops are decorative as on gen 1, remove them
5. Less weight
* remove flasher relay
* instead of bacon, 4 sausages, 3 eggs, toast, grits (whatever they are), gallon of tea for breakfast, have a mediun bowl of porridge and small glass of orange juice
* fill tyres with nitrogen (air is 4/5 N² and 1/5 O², nitrogen being a bit lighter) plus wont contain water vapour.
* run with 1/2 gallon of fuel
* fit lighter LiOn battery
* fill engine oil to minimum mark
* empty pockets of loose change, keys etc
* remove tyre valve caps
* use worn tyres, providing they have same grip, there'll be less rubber to rotate
* fit Titanium brake calliper and rotor bolts
* replace engine casing bolts with aluminium alloy (in non stressedareas areas)

Not sure if you are doing clutchless gear changes but a quick shifter should reduce gear change time even with the additional additional weight.

Thank you much and most of your list here sounds like is how I am set up. However as the bike sits it is basically a stock everyday Vmax as far chassis, suspension, wheels, tires and everything else. As stated earlier other than MAB, DD, Akra mid pipe and Nash flash. Yes I do clutchless shifts but not going to get the quickshifter. Thanks!

 

[Dansmaxresto]

I haven’t been on the strip since about 1988. I live about 15 minutes from Edgewater Raceway Park in Cleves, Ohio (suburb of Cincinnati). Best I ran on my stock ‘86 was mid-11’s at 119. No speed shifting and probably short shifting a little. I couldn’t afford to blow it up at the time (just out of college, married, 1 child and one on the way)…lol. I don’t know if you saw my posts but I recently got that ‘86 back 23 years after I sold it. It sat for 11-12 years. With some help from members (Dannymax carb work) and my son it is running perfectly. I don’t ride it like I used to but I still love it. I took my youngest daughter (13yo) for a ride last weekend and got on it in second gear through third and she was hooting and hollering! She loved it!! Sorry for the long reply and thanks for sharing your strip stories.

 

[1badmax]

I have followed NHRA for about 30 years or so and attended many events from Maple Grove, PA, Englishtown, NJ, Richmond, VA, St. Louis(Madison, IL) and more. I have gone to the strip not to try to win money or a trophy but to see what my bike and I can do to get the best ET out of it. I am only going for that reason, basically now to get this Max into the nines. I don't care if it's a 9.999, I am satisfied and headed home.

As we talk about RT(reaction time) it is the reaction time to the light or Christmas tree. Your ET actually does not start from the light but starts when your bike breaks the beam and starts to move after staging. However when in heads up racing on the track say you have two bikes that both run 9.00 flat, one has a .030 RT and the other an .013 RT. Both have run 9.00 and covered the 1/4 in the exact same time but the guy with the .013 RT got a better light therefore getting to the finish line first and winning over the guy with the .030 RT. If you follow drag racing or NHRA this is how a driver wins on a holeshot. His RT was quicker than his competition yet his ET may have been slower, yet if he hit the finishline first and wins with a slower time(ET).

This is why I don't focus on my RT 99% of the time, I am not there to beat the person beside me in my case but to hit an ET in the 9's. Therefore my focus is getting it off the line as quick as possible hooked up and getting it to full throttle without spinning, wheelying or bogging. Therefore what I am looking at is my 60' times which bringing it down will get you to the finish line quicker. If you notice on my 10.003 ET had a 1.659 60' time which is one of the two best 60' times I have been able to get the other being a 1.641 which the front started coming up or else I hit the revlimiter and ended up with a 10.3. This would have been my 9.9x run but that's life.