Some random questions + advice

[tzrox]

So I just got my FZ6R this Monday. It's my first bike. I passed the MSF and had a blast and wondered why I had not gotten into riding sooner. So far I love it, but am pretty intimidated still driving on the non residential streets. People are RIGHT on my butt and braking, shifting, etc is all a bit un-smooth still. I try and stay off the main streets except to go get gas.

Also, I feel like I accelerate fairly quick off the line, yet cars remain glued behind me, which makes me think I'm going slow and the bike just 'feels' fast. Going faster gets me into the 'uncomfortable' zone. Hopefully this goes away.

Here are my questions. I had more but searching reduced the list .

1. Do our stock mirrors suck? I feel blind ish riding I can look back and around but have a hard time seeing around myself which makes lane changes and passing something i want to avoid because I just feel uneasy doing it. Is it just me not used to a bike period or are the stock mirrors pretty bad? MSF course bikes had no mirrors. I've always driven a car and i check the rear view mirror and the sides every 5-10 sec as a habit so i feel like I know where I am at all times and who is around me. On a bike, the coat + full face helmet + make it feel like my field of vision is tiny. I REALLY miss the rear view. Almost thought about putting a camera facing backwards over the tail light and running a video feed to the the cluster, hehe.

2. What is the normal operating temp of our bikes? Today I shut my engine off using the kill switch after riding around the neighborhood and the fans kicked in. Not sure if I should turn the key and shut them off or let them cool the bike down to some temp first? I think it was around 220 on the temp clock. I wanted to check coolant level but was not sure where and how to do that. Need to download a manual from somewhere tonight.

3. I changed my oil and put in 3 full liters/quarts, and my dipstick still only showed about a 1/3 away from full, even after I let it sit for a few min. The filter was a 2.5 inch one. Does the dipstick indicate oil level when hot?

4. How often do I need to check the chain, and what exactly am I looking for? When hey say 45-55mm loose, what does that mean? A friend scared the crap out of me saying they can break or lock up if not checked/cleaned often.

Anyway... that's all for now. Glad to be a part of the community.

 

[geekmaster]

Here's a link to the owner's manual online. It should help with a lot of your questions.

http://www.yamaha-motor.com/assets/service/manuals/2009/LIT-11626-22-77_FZ6R_1661.pdf

Temperature - My bike is typically around 180-210 degrees F, depending on the outside temperature. I just changed the coolant and put in Engine Ice, which I think is making it run a bit cooler. I think the fan usually kicks in around 210 or so (maybe sooner), because once it hits 212, I usually see the temp drop.

Oil - Should be checked cold. Make sure the bike is standing straight up, and unscrew the dipstick, wipe it off, then put it back in without screwing it in, and just let it rest all the way in before checking it.

Chain - I think the lube interval is about every 600 miles. You can check the tightness at the same time you lube it ...

I'll let others chime in on the mirrors, but I have a somewhat difficult time seeing behind me too, and I'm on the "thin" side.

 

[Fizzer6R]

if not yet, get yourself a can of chain lube, and apply it when the chain is warm - after a ride, not before. having the metal warm will help it stick and stay instead of fling off a cold chain. do once a week, one a month - depends on how many miles you ride

just keep riding, more miles will increase your feel and confidence

congrats on the 1st bike!

 

[Brock Kickass]

Keep riding, the confidence will build. The bike is quick if you push it. Don't let cars intimidate you. If you feel pressured from behind, pull off and let them by; you have nothing to prove. When pushed hard, your bike is as quick as a Porsche 911.
Fans kicking in is nothing unusual. There's no point leaving the engine off with the fans on, the coolant pump works off the engine so if the engine stops and the fans run it will only cool the antifreeze in the rad. When the fans kick in you are still pretty far from overheating, nothing to worry about.

 

[kalend]

Hey go to youtube when i got my bike and was new to all of this i know a lot now from that, looking things up online and just messing around with my bike. But you tube showed me how to do a lot of things. Hope i helped some be safe and it will take some time after a year i was toping my fz6r out at 135mph but be safe

Sent from my SGH-T759 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Nastybutler]

The stock mirrors on this bike are actually well above average for motorcycle mirrors, sorry to tell you. Just get used to moving your head around to get a good look in the mirrors and looking over your shoulder before changing lanes.

That link to the OM should answer your other questions.

And to the OP and kalend, be careful what you read/see on the internet (that goes for info/advice on this forum). Just because someone put up a video on YouTube doesn't make it true...

 

[Detrich]

^ Agree... The stock mirrors on the 6R actually work really well. Just have to dial them in right. The stocks on my R6 let you see ok, but they vibrate a lot. so u often can't tell if the object behind u has lights on the roof or not. lol

 

[redwing-2001]

what most everyone else said.
One thing to add about getting comfortable with a lane change: don't forget your head check that they mentioned in the Basic RiderCourse. Mirror-signal-headcheck-cancel signal.
Also, it sounds like you are applying the BRC building block method to your actual riding, taking it easy and get comfortable before moving to the next step. It will come, stay within your limits and safety margin.

 

[tzrox]

Thats great, thanks for the help everyone! This seems like one of the best communities around. Really appreciate the link to the manual geekmaster.

 

[Superzoom]

Also, I feel like I accelerate fairly quick off the line, yet cars remain glued behind me, which makes me think I'm going slow and the bike just 'feels' fast. Going faster gets me into the 'uncomfortable' zone. Hopefully this goes away.

One of the most fun things about riding a motorcycle in the city for me is blasting away from cars from stop lights. 98% of the time, I end up about fifty yards in front of cars after the light goes green. Cars can only keep up when they are flooring it. And this is at only about 60% throttle. Acceleration on a motorcycle is basically effortless when compared to a car. Don't be afraid to give it gas. Occasionally, I will launch even harder. You're on a very sporty vehicle. Ride it like one!


Here are my questions. I had more but searching reduced the list .

1. Do our stock mirrors suck?

Motorcycle mirrors suck in general, but our stock mirrors are pretty good for a motorcycle. For one, they are clear at any speed. I have mine adjusted to see directly behind me, and maybe half a lane on either side. I favour the rear because I then only need to do a shoulder check for my blind spot when I actually change lanes. Make sure you have your mirrors adjusted so that you can see most of your lane behind you. It might feel like you're adjusting them to only see your elbows, but you will see a lot more of what's coming up behind you. It's a little counter-intuitive, but it works.

4. How often do I need to check the chain, and what exactly am I looking for? When hey say 45-55mm loose, what does that mean? A friend scared the crap out of me saying they can break or lock up if not checked/cleaned often.

Your friend is a fear monger. Modern chains almost never break. You just need to check the tension once in a blue moon, and lube it according to schedule. Over-tightening the chain is bad, but a chain usually grows looser through regular wear. You might get tight spots in a chain if you really take poor care of it.

Enjoy the bike and don't let the tailgating a-holes get to you. Keep riding at a pace you're comfortable with. At the same time, don't be afraid to launch a little harder at traffic lights. It won't hurt the bike.

 

[alaskanflyboy]

I've learned to play with lane positioning. I'm usually in the left "tire track", or as MSF calls it, "position 1". It puts your left mirror about the same position as the left side-view on a car and the right mirror about that same as your rear view. I have my mirrors adjusted so that I can just see about half my arm in the inside edges for spacial reference (same idea they teach in drivers ed for side-view mirrors and a little bit of the side of the car in the mirror for spacial reference). I feel I have a fairly good view behind me that way, but I still keep my head on a swivel in heavy traffic.

 

[buzzbomb]

To the OP. Most everything seems to have been covered except for one thing: How fast a motorcycle feels when you first get one. It's something I'll never forget. 35mph feels like absolute flight. 60mph feels like a rocket off the launchpad. 80mph seems nearly incomprehensible.

You'll get used to that. As your senses grow accustomed to the new input, the feeling of insane speed will wear off. Soon, you'll find yourself leaving a stoplight and having to back off the throttle, once you get up to your desired gear.

Then you'll glance in that mirror and see all the cars are a 1/2 mile behind. THEN you realize you only gave your girl 1/4 throttle, and you weren't even trying to go fast.

I've never forgotten that insane feeling of speed I had, on my first bike. For me it's a great memory. The feeling will fade in time. Hopefully the memory will not.

 

[redprodigy35]

My advice as far as cagers tailgating you... There is only so much you can do.

1.) Move to a different lane. (Prob. best move)
2.) Smash the gas so you can instantly move up a bit. This should be a clear sign to the cager.
3.) If all else fails, take your left hand off the bar, and do a pushing motion to the cager behind you. This will most definitely get the point across however I have seen some people get irritated @ this.

 

[tzrox]

Thanks for all the great tips.

@buzzbomb - hehe, exactly! i'm not sure that feeling will fade anytime soon. Every time i take off adrenaline levels hit new highs. When I first picked up the bike and went for a test drive i pulled back and was like, shit this is fast... why is this person on my ass.. and then i look down to see i'm going 19 miles per hour... lol.

The lane positions really help. I was sticking with the middle because I liked the comfort even though MSF said left or right. Now I'm staying on the left behind the mirror. Seems to help a ton.

A thing i've been doing to stop from getting tailgated if I can't move ahead or the other lane is just as slow, was slooooowly slowing down just a hair below speed limit. Most people switch lanes at some point and then i just hope the next driver doesn't do the same thing.

I'm sure its just being on a bike, but man i NEVER noticed so much bad driving before, lol. On my way home from work I got cut off twice. It was after a football game so it was high traffic and that is to be expected i suppose. Once by an older gentleman that probably didn't see me and it was partly my fault being in the middle of the lane. The other was by a lady who had a cellphone in her right hand while holding the steering wheel and was eating a burger with the left, hehe. Probably lost and multitasking after the game. After she did that I had to turn off so went by slowly in the turn lane and smiled at her (not to be mean, i just found it funny that she was doing all that) and she waved a sorry so it was all good. Neither was too hair raising.

Oh yeah, another realization during a late evening joy ride was that if its below 50, the jacket + long sleeve shirt + gloves = still freeze my ass off. Well worth it though.

Anyway, getting a bit more comfortable, probably put about 100-150miles on the bike over the weekend lol. I still seem to have trouble looking over my shoulder. The size of helmet that I got was after I measured my head (its a scorpion exo-750), but between that and the jacket collar i just cant look behind me like i would like to. Only lets me turn my head so much. Still need to work on this.

 

[buzzbomb]

The head-check isn't so much to look behind you, as to check your blind spot. Our mirrors aren't awesome, but simply shifting an arm or shoulder will allow you to see behind. The head-check is used to make sure no one is in the lane you're moving into, just to the side and/or a little behind.

The head-check should be done anytime one is changing lanes or turning. No need to twist your head around like an owl though, LOL.