The New Ninja 300

[HONKR]

If you will, give us a run down on the gauges that thing has, all of em'.

[Navin]

Lets see, digital speedo, analog tach, an incredibly accurate fuel guage with the final flashing bar and warning light signaling .9 gallons left. Turn sig indicators, neutral light, high beam light... oh yeah, a tri circle "good economy" indicator lights up when you are riding with high MPG according to the ECU. A digital clock too.

No temp guage, not that I really miss it. I think thats it. If you wanted a gear indicator there is one that plugs right into the harness. A temp guage would be an easy addition too but I'm fine without it.

Last tank showed 59.9 MPG and I wasn't being especially kind to it.

Rear GSXR shock is great, and a set of HH front brake pads went in today. Much more bite and power, though I'm finding a 3 finger pull is needed to really clamp down on them. I'll be looking into a different master cylinder next to bring that down to a 2 finger, lower effort pull. As it is with SS lines and these pads the rear wheel doesn't really stay on the ground much under braking.

It is really coming along performance wise.

Cheap POS!!! When I turned the caliper bolt the "why did they even bother to paint it" black lower fork coating flaked off like it was road dirt. The caliper bolts were also barely tight so they are corrected with locktite too. Something to check right away for new owners!

[Gryphon12]

Navin, do you know the alternator (stator) output rating for your new 300R?

[Navin]

That has been the one stat I can't find. Not in the mini manual and on the bike specific forums nobody knows. I'll post it when I find out.

My EBC "HH" pads have kept getting better over the last 150 miles, it stops really well for what it is now. A right side 02 GSXR caliper is enroute though, 4 pistons, should match the (I believe) 12mm stock master well. I'm tempted to try a 11mm master with the stock caliper but the 4 pot should really be alot better assuming it clears the wheel.

I did the penny tech zip tie mod to shorten the throttle pull, it is a stupid long twist. I got it about 6mm shorter which is better but a 07 R6 throttle/cables was sourced to get a true 1/6th turn and no crazy glue in the housing.

I'll post up how it goes. Cracked 1000 miles, bike has come a long way between the tires, brakes, gearing and exhaust. I'm tossing it around pretty good, even with cold pavement these days. So far it is a good purchase. I hit 60 MPG without any intention of frugality and it'll cruise at 80 effortlessly.

You gotta get a ride on one but remember, it gets a good 25-30% better with a CS sprocket, tires and brake pads/SS lines.

[Navin]

Cheapo bike alarm rang again today.

At 1060 miles today I felt the headset bearings clunking. Great.

I got in there as soon as I got it home to see what was up with grease before snugging it down. I found a swipe of grease, which was better than none I guess but...

Fuggin ball bearings? Seriously? WTF? Is it 1975 again?

I'm looking into tapered roller bearings and expect this to be a first step towards a full blown front end conversion.

For now a healthy dose of Bel Ray WP grease was smeared on the LOOSE FRIGGIN BALL BEARINGS and I torqued it down.

Bike runs great, holds the road like a champ, has that light flickability of the Ninja 250 but is seriously built to Chinese playbike standards. A cheap bicycle bearing set was not what I expected to find in a 2013 street moto. Budget or not.

[Navin]

Ah, the positive side of owning these clunkers is that the R&D has been done by those that went before you!

http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Steerin...ng_replacement

I'd have rather spent another $10 for the bike to have them as standard but I will be able to upgrade the next time I pull it apart.

All balls bearing conversion for 2012 Ninja 250, should be the same for the 300.

http://www.allballsracing.com/22-1014.html

I'll verify when I know for sure.

[Gryphon12]

Navin, I just read through the Ninja250.org FAQ for replacing the steering head bearings. Quite the dissembly job required. With that much work required, I'd definitely swap in any new front end parts (you suggested WP components earlier) or a complete new front end (from a ZX-6R or GSX-R?) - now! Doing that much work twice will suck.

[Navin]

Yeah, it looks like alot but I owned a KTM Adv for years and had that in a thousand pieces once in awhile so I'm not too worried.

I think I can pull it apart without touching the fairings, if not its just another 20 minutes to strip, and an acre of storage to keep it all safe!

I'll plan it out for at the very least a Race Tech emulator install. I have a set of KTM triples on the shelf too... I can eyeball that and a set of shortened 48mm forks or a set off a SuperDuke with a single radial caliper and KTM wheel are an option.

It depends on how well the Tokico 4 pot works out. I can't say I feel the forks flexing, but they get a bit confused in really stuttery conditions. I'm thinking they pack due to flow restriction and the emulator should fix that.

[sniper1rfa]

Originally Posted by Navin

I found a swipe of grease, which was better than none I guess but...

FWIW, rolling element bearings don't actually require much grease. The whole "pack it to the gills" thing is wrong and can actually lead to early bearing failure due to excessive heat or seal failure.

Doesn't really matter on headset bearings, but it's something to keep in mind.

[Navin]

I'm thinking more here is better as they look like they would rust pit within a few minutes if left to their own devices.

[Navin]

Top speed in each gear at the rev limiter;

1st=37 MPH
2nd=57
3rd=72
4th=88
5th=?
6th=?

I've been to 100 in both 5th & 6th, gotta find a spot to stretch it to the top of the tach soon.

I'm still running a +1 CS which seems to have correctted the high reading speedo. (edit) GPS confirmed!!! Speedo is right on the $ every 10 MPH up to 70 MPH.

[Chaplain]

Originally Posted by FlySniper

VERSYS 300, NOW!!!

This +2

I am an avid advocate of the TU250x standard single. But, as much as I love my 250 single, it really is working hard on 65mph highways with all my gear acting as an air brake. I don't really like the plastic clad sport bike look for a general purpose street bike. But, in White the Ninja 300 looks good. (looks like quite a bit of damage could occur with just a parking lot tip over. Stuff happens.)

This being said, after swinging a leg over the 300, it is not too far removed from a standard riding position. A 300 water cooled FI twin will likely have enough juice (very technical term 'juice' = the subjective compilation of hp and torque that makes a bike 'feel' good) to move along on the interstate.

Since a 300 versys is not likely in the cards, the 300 ninja is about the only game in town. FI I'm sure plays a big role in changing the torque & Hp curves. I am intrigued.

[Navin]

The kinda goofy three circle fuel miser idiot light can be activated up to 73 MPH with a light touch on the throttle, no heavy winds or hills. That means it isn't working all that hard at that speed and I've cruised at an actual 85 with no real effort felt from the two hamsters driving the crankshaft. Roll on accelleration in top gear at 50-70 is good enough for regular passing on a two lane road!

This thing has got the juice just right!

Its got alot of "stuff" going on under the skirt. It would be pretty nasty undressed as is, but maybe a full blown bedlining job would mask the coolant catch and emissions gunk, bolts and tabs? Eh? Hopefully I never need to find out!

[vicster]

Originally Posted by Gryphon12

Navin, do you know the alternator (stator) output rating for your new 300R?

I'm not Navin, but MCN has alternator output at 294W at 5000 RPM.

[Navin]

Originally Posted by vicster

I'm not Navin, but MCN has alternator output at 294W at 5000 RPM.

Not a bad number! Thanks for posting, I've been looking for it since I heard about the 300.