The New Ninja 300

[Navin]

I've been chasing a decel wobble that I thought was tire/balance related but after retightening the roller ball bearing headset more than I wanted to, it has gotten less severe. I'm going to point the finger squarely at those as the cause. Maybe they got hammered when they got loose? Who knows? I don't feel any notchiness or binding but I'll be revisiting this when I get the roller bearings. I've been setting tension on steering heads for a long time but have been spoiled by non budget foo-foo hardware since the crap-bike pee-wee days of my kid's MX racing adventures.

Meanwhile, both hands on the bars on decel from 50 to 40 MPH!

Oh yeah, both top triple clamp pinch bolts dissappeared. I recall tightening them by hand as I figured being too tight wasn't a problem like on lower clamps with inverted forks. Well, the torque wrench came off the wall and a pair of Husqvarna bolts went in. How long they stay is yet to be determined.

The high frequency vibration is alive and well now, I admit I didn't feel it the first several hundred miles, probably numb from the KTM 950?

I expect more stuff to get loose and fall off. When the fairings come off next week I'll be checking the engine mount bolts and adding lock tite everywhere. Hopefully a mount came loose and I wasn't imagining the totally vibe free smoothness I thought it had day 1.

[Navin]

Came across a track day vid of a rider on a 300. The later part is shot from the top if anyone wants to see the relation of RPM/speed and the effective midrange pull the bike has. Skip past the pit stop.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDxN6...layer_embedded#!

[scooterspirit]

this guy make an interesting point- that the extra power of the 300 pushes it over a "usability tipping point," so you can ride it like a normal bike and not like a '250.'

[Navin]

Nonsense IMO. The bike isn't overpowering the chassie with 39 HP, and my son rides along with me at "sporting" speeds on a 2012 250. The 300 has slightly better dampers stock. The bikes are close enough to call it a draw for all practicle purposes, same fork diameters, same swingarm, same linkage, same triple clamps, etc... Yes, I can pull away from a stop if I choose, but it isn't even close to lifting the front wheel off the ground. It has more torque but it ain't far from just adequete where the 250 wasn't quite almost so.

My point, the engine is stronger but not so much that you step off and say it must be a 500-600 and the steering bearings aren't suffering from too much accelleration. I'm 60 lbs more than my kid, they are suffering from my weight (not obese at 210) and the forces of potholed scrabbly roads at the same speeds I rode my 950 SMR KTM at. I've ridden the 250 at the same speeds too. It just takes a lil longer to get to them. The 250 would suffer the same fate IMO. HP isn't playing a factor at all.

Now, you drop a 90 HP mill under the hood and start twisting the chassie on corner exits, OK. But the problems I'm having are from running a cheaply outfitted bike on real roads at a good clip. Ball bearing steering heads are for $59 K-mart bicycles. I've got 1300 miles of rough back roads already despite a hurricane and cold, salty roads. Most of these bikes won't see 2000 miles in their lifetimes.

[scooterspirit]

from what I hear the power difference between the 250 and 300 is significant. I think the guy meant it in a good way, at least that's how I took it. With a top box, my honda 250 goes about 80mph, but it likes to cruise about 67. The 300 sounds like a big step above that.

[Navin]

It is significant and the rideability is way up over the 250 which really needs to be above about 7K to get going. The 300 pulls well from down around 4k and hits its stride at 6k. IDK what that dealer guy was feeling at 8.5k, the bike has really linear delivery and goes a little flat up top.



I mistakenly took your comment as a suggestion that the 300 was overpowering the rest of the hardware. I don't see that at all. It makes more power, still not alot of power. It does make it much easier to ride as you don't have to be in the right gear at the top of the tach. I find myself staying under 8k RPM in all but the most aggressive riding. The 250 just lugs at that range. You can ride it all day under 6k and never be going slow, except in top gear.

[Cortez]

Originally Posted by scooterspirit

from what i hear the power difference between the 250 and 300 is significant. I think the guy meant it in a good way, at least that's how i took it. With a top box, my honda 250 goes about 80mph, but it likes to cruise about 67. The 300 sounds like a big step above that.

+1

[Cortez]

How about 650R vs the 300R?

I was never happy with suspension and brakes on my 650R
(ok, the brakes were adequate, but the suspension, especially
rear - sucked).

Would be nice to hear a comparison between the two, other then
the obvious difference (performance).

Would be fun having this little thing to zip around on.
That or the Duke 390.

[LuciferMutt]

Sport Rider had a ride review of the Ninja 300 in their most recent issue which I got on Saturday. They really like the little machine. Said it's better than the 250 in every way, and not just because of the extra power -- but the frame, suspension and brakes all work together as a package much better than they used to. Sounds like Kawi has nailed it with this bike.

[Cortez]

Originally Posted by LuciferMutt

Sport Rider had a ride review of the Ninja 300 in their most recent issue which I got on Saturday. They really like the little machine. Said it's better than the 250 in every way, and not just because of the extra power -- but the frame, suspension and brakes all work together as a package much better than they used to. Sounds like Kawi has nailed it with this bike.

That's why I'm asking about the 650R comparo, seems like the 300 might be
a better bike, and people wanting more power then the 300 need to look
at another brand..

[Navin]

I did some research and found the older Ninja 250s were pretty famous for the no hands-front wheel death wobble at around 50 MPH too. Nothing has changed in that regard I guess! My ZZR1200 used to do it too, decel no hands wobbles. I always hated that and still do.

Can't help with the Ninja 650 comparo, haven't ridden one since they came out. Compared to my buddies ER6-n it's a wash. The 300 might have better valving for me but each can get easily confused in hard pressed cornering. The 300 holds its own power wise. Under "normal" spirited riding it depends on the rider. Over 75 the 650 can pull along at will, the 300 isn't jumping ahead at that speed in a roll on.

[cls]

My wife has had 2 Ninja 650's but I've only test ridden the new 300. Well more torque and power on the 650, as you'd imagine; gas mileage to the 300 (I'm sure. The 650 averaged about 55-57 w/my wife commuting.); handling to the 300 for flickability; and suspension is a very personal, adjustable, modding sort of thing. The 300 is also smoother feeling. That may be good or bad, depending on how you like your "character" and what you consider character. If I were just running around back roads and looking for economy, I'd go 300. If I were looking for street power, highway, two-up, etc., I'd go 650. That'd leave me w/the 300, were I to do it again. Whether or not that helps...

[Navin]

I'm getting anywhere from 53-60 MPG for my regular riding. I am sure I can get better but I can't behave that way for a full 200 miles to check it.

[Navin]

Still searching for the cure to my 50-40 MPH decel wobble with no hands on the bars so I bought a HF balance stand. Wheels static balanced and the same thing, bike feels the same too. Same vibes, nothing different. I own it now so I guess I'll use it but it seems to make no difference at all.

[Gryphon12]

Navin, didn't you change to a different shock? Perhaps tweak the ride height (and hence steering geometry) and see if you can influence when the wobble happens. If so, then it's not a wheel balance / tire issue, but a chassis tuning issue.