First long ride, ever!

[Kat600noob]

So today, I rode my 1993 katana 600 for about 4 hours with some family members, was pretty exciting, definitely sore, even more so sun burnt, but worth every second. I did however, have a few issues along the way... Maybe someone can help me out with these issues.

First and foremost, I had an issue happen a few times when I came to a stop, I couldn't shift into first from neutral. Typically I leave my bike in 1st gear at stops unless I know I'm going to be waiting a while, but the few times I did, I believe I downshifted to second then unintentionally tapped it into neutral. At which point I couldnt get it back into first, any tips in case that happens again?

My second issue I would like a tip on is countering heavy wind from open fields or the draft from semis. Seemed a bit rough... Should I tuck in and power through it? Slow down a bit? What do you guys do?

Thirdly, my chain is a bit loose, tips for tightening it up? Also my bike seems to be a bit boggy and hesitant kind of sounds like poop until I hit about 5,000 rpms, kind of sounds like a "wub wub wub wub" instead of a "rawrrrr Rawrrrr" haha, do you think this would be because of the chain? Maybe my rough noob shifting jacked something up?

And finally, when you are coming to a stop or slowing down from high speeds which for me is about 80mphs lol. anyone have tips on down shifting so I don't jack up my gear box? Should I just clutch til the stop? Or downshift according to the rpms?

Any feed back would be appreciated, please be kind as I am a new rider. Thanks!

[skjeflo]

My comments below in red.

First and foremost, I had an issue happen a few times when I came to a stop, I couldn't shift into first from neutral. Typically I leave my bike in 1st gear at stops unless I know I'm going to be waiting a while, but the few times I did, I believe I downshifted to second then unintentionally tapped it into neutral. At which point I couldnt get it back into first, any tips in case that happens again?

Let the clutch out while in neutral and roll the bike a bit forward or backward, less than 1/4 rotation of a wheels worth, then clutching and dropping it into first. Works every time for me.

My second issue I would like a tip on is countering heavy wind from open fields or the draft from semis. Seemed a bit rough... Should I tuck in and power through it? Slow down a bit? What do you guys do?

Open fields, just gut it out, drop your speed if needed and be light on the controls. Wind blast from semis, well, I just don't spend very long near them, always striving to get to the clean air in front of them.

Thirdly, my chain is a bit loose, tips for tightening it up? Also my bike seems to be a bit boggy and hesitant kind of sounds like poop until I hit about 5,000 rpms, kind of sounds like a "wub wub wub wub" instead of a "rawrrrr Rawrrrr" haha, do you think this would be because of the chain? Maybe my rough noob shifting jacked something up?

Bogging down could mean that the carbs need cleaning. Or could be air intake isn't quite right. Vacuum leak, wrong filter, etc.

And finally, when you are coming to a stop or slowing down from high speeds which for me is about 80mphs lol. anyone have tips on down shifting so I don't jack up my gear box? Should I just clutch til the stop? Or downshift according to the rpms?

I just downshift smoothly through the gears so I'm ready to go if something happens around me. Don't drop it into first and anything above a walking pace or you'll hear interesting crunching sounds.

Any feed back would be appreciated, please be kind as I am a new rider. Thanks!

[rschlegel]

Wind = squeeze with knees and light on bars.

Downshifts, while learning just pull in the clutch and come to a stop, downshifting gears as you slow. Don't release the clutch until stopped and in neutral or ready to go. Come to an easy stop. Leave the bike in gear until everyone behind you has stopped. Watch your mirrors when you stop to judge if the vehicle behind you is going to stop I time or not. With the bike in gear, if it looks like the vehicle behind you may not stop you can go forward between cars to keep from getting hit.
As you get more comfortable with the bike you can practice matching rpm's while slowing and downshifting. This means blipping the throttle right as you pull in the clutch and downshift. Think about what you hear and feel when you downshift and let out the clutch, the engine revs and the bike slows dramatically at times. This sudden change can lock the rear wheel and causes stress on the bike. You blip the throttle just enough to raise the rpm as high as it would normally be after your downshift. You do this all at the same moment. When you release the clutch, one of three things will happen.
1) the bike surges forward = you raised the rpm too much
2) the bike slows suddenly transferring your weight onto the handlebars = you did not raise the rpm enough
Or
3) the bike slows similarly to letting off the gas in top gear on the freeway even though you downshifted = you matched the rpm correctly causing a smooth change in speed and caused very little stress to the driveline.

[TRPUT]

You have a few things to sort with the bike (as already addressed) but look forward to the times when you define 4 hours a quick blast.

[Kat600noob]

Awesome feed back, thanks guys. The guy that had the bike before hand put what I believe are some cheap air filters... Could definitely be the problem. When I was riding around, I tried "blipping" the throttle while down shifting sometimes it went smoothly...sometimes not so much, but I'll get the hang of it. I too can't wait for the day when 4 hours is a short ride

[elsueco]

It's great seeing the smile on a noob's face when they have their "OMG, I love this!" moment.

Before anything else, if your chain is loose, get that tightened!! It might seem a bit intimidating at first, but it's pretty easy the third or fourth time around . Measure slack with the bike on the kickstand, and preferably with you on it. A loose chain makes for crappy riding and could be largely to blame for your wub wub problem. Clean and oil it once tightened. Keep it oiled--at least every 500 miles, preferably every 200 or so.

It's tempting to over tighten the chain--the bike is much more responsive to throttle and seems to have a lot more power with a too-tight chain. But... who wants to risk their chain snapping?

Measure the links while your at it and make sure the chain isn't stretched beyond it's limit. Might not hurt to look up the part number of the chain and make sure it's correct for your bike. I bought mine used at a stealership, and they had installed basically a bicycle chain to get the bike out the door. The chain gave me a lot of problems before I got that figured out.

I dislike riding on highways because the wind buffeting gets old quick, so I hear ya. I don't encounter too many semis in the riding I do, but I encountered a bunch on a ride a few nights ago. The more experience and confidence you build, the less you'll worry about semis. As rschlegel said, squeeze the knees and hang on to the bars. He says light on the bars, I'd say firm up your grip, but don't tense up your arms. It also helps to drift to the right side of your lane to open some distance between you and the truck.

There are different ways to downshift and slow. In your example of going from 80 to a stop, if it's a fairly leisurely stop, definitely let the engine do a good portion of the braking. I've had a number of quick stops required in the past month, from about 50, luckily not 80. In those there is no time for me to downshift; I pull the clutch and focus on smoothly and firmly applying both brakes and keeping the bike upright while praying I don't over do the rear brake.

If you can let your clutch out smoothly without the bike lurching, you're doing ok. I've only recently begun practicing the blip, and don't have it down yet myself. My normal downshifting method is to keep the throttle open while pulling in the clutch, shifting, then smoothly letting the clutch out. The engine revs with the clutch in, but if you complete the shift fast enough, it's only high enough to match the new gear. It took some practice, but it's what I'm used to now.

Oh, and lastly, if you're getting sunburn that means you need gear. Cover it up, buddy!

[maniac1886]

My second issue I would like a tip on is countering heavy wind from open fields or the draft from semis. Seemed a bit rough... Should I tuck in and power through it? Slow down a bit? What do you guys do?

Thirdly, my chain is a bit loose, tips for tightening it up? Also my bike seems to be a bit boggy and hesitant kind of sounds like poop until I hit about 5,000 rpms, kind of sounds like a "wub wub wub wub" instead of a "rawrrrr Rawrrrr" haha, do you think this would be because of the chain? Maybe my rough noob shifting jacked something up?

When hit by heavy wind, dont correct with your arms, lean into the wind. Use your body to counter it. Slowing down wont do much but as a new rider, if you feel comfortable dropping 5 mph while countering the wind, probably not a big deal just dont drop too far or you run the risk of the A$$hole behind you not paying attention rear ending you. Keep an eye in your mirror, make sure someone doesnt climb up on your tail end. If the wind is persistant and not just a gust, hunching down behind your windscreen may help a bit. You get used to those blasts with experience IMO.

When you tighten your chain, it would be best to have a buddy. Adjust the chain tension with your full weight on the bike. When you are sitting on the bike you want 1 1/4" or so slack in the chain. The chian adjutsment notches on the swigarm are a joke, use a measuring tape. Measure from the back of the swingarm (not the adjuster plates, put your tape where the plates meet the swingarm) measure each side to the center of your axle. That way you KNOW the tire is straight.

As far as an air filter, get an EMGO paper (thats important, dont get foam) replacement filter. Kats are picky about their air filters and EMGO makes the closest to OEM that you can get.

Oh, and lastly, if you're getting sunburn that means you need gear. Cover it up, buddy!

+10000000000

Get gear bro. Dont skimp on the important shit. Quality helmet, Jacket, Gloves and probably boots at LEAST. Ive seen some nasty pictures of peoples feet and hands ground to the bone. Looked like they were attacked by a flock of cheese graders.

[zuma]

They've just about covered it. My suggestion is roll up a sleeping bag, some rain gear, and do an overnight somewhere. Save enough room for a burger and a Coke, Mountain Dew, I mean. You will be king of the world.
you'll see. Have fun.

[elsueco]

As far as an air filter, get an EMGO paper (thats important, dont get foam) replacement filter. Kats are picky about their air filters and EMGO makes the closest to OEM that you can get.

Oh yeah, the air filter.

+1 to this. A non-OEM-type filter could be a large part of the wub-wub as well.

[Kat600noob]

As for gear, I have a decent helmet, nothing special has enough vents to keep my visor from fogging and to protect my dome in case of an accident, I have been wearing the most durable jacket I have at the moment on that particular day though, the jacket was to much, black and with a built in fleece liner...unbearably hot. I'm waiting to order my armored hoodie when they have my size...not much for leather even though I know it will protect me far better...and I wear DC mids for shoes, a large portion of my riding will be saving me gas money on my 60 mile commute to school, but for those long rides, I definitely need some better gear, unfortunately I am retired army, and in college, so I don't make enough to buy all this stuff, guess I'll be waiting til my next student loan. I really want to mount my GPS to my bike, so I can find ways to got to school with out taking the highway for a bit, but I wouldn't have the slightest idea how to wire in a lighter socket or just hardware the gps it's self. I'm sure there are threads on here though. Just have to find them.

[elsueco]

http://katriders.com/vb/showthread.php?t=134138

[skjeflo]

Slowing down wont do much but as a new rider, if you feel comfortable dropping 5 mph while countering the wind, probably not a big deal just dont drop too far or you run the risk of the A$$hole behind you not paying attention rear ending you.

Get gear bro. Dont skimp on the important shit. Quality helmet, Jacket, Gloves and probably boots at LEAST. Ive seen some nasty pictures of peoples feet and hands ground to the bone. Looked like they were attacked by a flock of cheese graders.

Slowing down doesn't make it any easier to deal with, but it does give you more time to deal with the results of being knocked around in your lane. Or into the next lane...

As for gear, I have a decent helmet, nothing special has enough vents to keep my visor from fogging and to protect my dome in case of an accident, I have been wearing the most durable jacket I have at the moment on that particular day though, the jacket was to much, black and with a built in fleece liner...unbearably hot. I'm waiting to order my armored hoodie when they have my size...not much for leather even though I know it will protect me far better...and I wear DC mids for shoes, a large portion of my riding will be saving me gas money on my 60 mile commute to school, but for those long rides, I definitely need some better gear, unfortunately I am retired army, and in college, so I don't make enough to buy all this stuff, guess I'll be waiting til my next student loan. I really want to mount my GPS to my bike, so I can find ways to got to school with out taking the highway for a bit, but I wouldn't have the slightest idea how to wire in a lighter socket or just hardware the gps it's self. I'm sure there are threads on here though. Just have to find them.

Screw the GPS till you get better gear. DC Shoes will do nothing for you in a get off. A Carhartt jacket (assuming from your description) will last a bit more than a nanosecond while sliding across the pavement. Get some moto specific boots and at least a textile jacket with impact protection. Check Craigslist for good quality used gear, but educate yourself to know what to look for first.

Oh, and why I wear gear:

Rock The Gear

Look up the pictures on your own...gruesome but informative too.

[lastleg]

gear

Oh, and lastly, if you're getting sunburn that means you need gear. Cover it up, buddy!

+1

[maniac1886]

good gear doesn't necessarily mean brand new gear. I just picked up a full leather joe rocket jacket on Craigslist for $60. came with all the padding and the liner. just needed to be cleaned up
keep an eye out for good deals on used stuff. it will at least get you by until you can afford what you want.

+1 on slowing down doesn't help in the wind. the only reason I suggested it was as a comfort level thing. wjen you get uncomfortable you tense up. until you get the hang of the wind if dropping 5 mph makes u feel better you will in turn stay more loose on the controls. but you def do get used to the wind pretty quick.