[no_fear]

Originally Posted by gururajrv

In the coming days, I will not be surprised if you put up a thread displaying the museum

@gururajrv - many thanks for the kind words. I go overboard. I think its my OCD that kicks in when it comes to bikes.

I don't plan to have a museum, but I will try to bring my bikes out more in the limelight. If you are in Delhi, feel free to see the bikes.

[gururajrv]

Originally Posted by no_fear

@gururajrv - many thanks for the kind words. I go overboard. I think its my OCD that kicks in when it comes to bikes.

I don't plan to have a museum, but I will try to bring my bikes out more in the limelight. If you are in Delhi, feel free to see the bikes.

Sweet of you to invite me, sir. If I get a chance to visit Delhi, my Google maps will have your location as my first destination. Would love to see those beauties

[no_fear]

A Rearset Story

A pet peeve of every sportbike rider is the riding geometry. Everyone has their sweet spot and try out different things to reach riding nirvana.

A lot of focus is often put on handlebar clip ons and ride height setting. But I seldom see articles on rearsets, except for track days. I had seen BHPian Krisnaprasadgg talk about rearsets in his Yamaha R1 thread. Beyond that not much.

We don't discuss much about rear sets on the forum, so I wanted to write this section to highlight the choices that are available in the market and how they look on a bike.

I quite dislike the wonky looking aluminum rearsets on the Ducati V4. The Italian / German conglomerate sculpts one of the sexiest bikes, and then tacks on this very plain Jane rear sets. The worst part is, the sets are fixed and have no mobility or flexible settings. The V4SP has adjustable settings, but the R or even the S has fixed rearsets.

The issue with fixed rearsets, as the name suggests is that they are fixed. The foot peg to operate the rear brake lever and clutch is fixed, the heel rest is fixed. What this means is that your whole body load rests on 2 fixed objects and you need to keep adjusting your body, rather than adjust the rearsets to get the comfort you need. Long rides become uncomfortable and I often keep shifting my body weight to avoid my legs going numb.

Fortunately several companies manufacture rearsets - the main being Bonamici, Gilles, Woodcraft, Lightech, Vortex, Spider, Graves, CNC Racing, Rizoma and a few more.

Out of these, Gilles, Woodcraft and Lightech are the predominant favorites. Each has their plus and minuses.

I personally favor Lightech a lot. Their adjustable rear sets are one of the best, if not the best and numerous track teams on MotoGP and WSBK use them. The items are of high grade aluminum and they come with multiple adjustable settings. You can customize every single part of the rear sets, including the bolts (steel or titanium), the foot pegs, the heel guards, the levers, and the colors. The customization is endless. They are well suited for the track as well as street riding.

Having done my research, I ordered 2 versions of the Lightech rearsets, for the V4R and the V4S.

V4S is Lightech FTRDU012 - Adjustable Rear Sets With Fixed Foot Pegs

https://www.lightech.it/en/ftrdu012-...edi-fissi.html

V4R is Lightech FTRDU012R - Fully Adjustable Version Rear Sets

https://www.lightech.it/en/prodotti/...r-version.html

Lightech rearsets are not cheap, with the most basic one starting just shy of Rs 30k and ending at Rs 1.35 lacs for the fully adjustable ones. In general rearsets are a pricey item, given the high end manufacturing needed and the cost of the components.

Before I proceed, is there a cost justification on spending thousands or lacs of rupees on 2 pieces of aluminum? This is solely on the rider's rationale. I prefer to have a comfortable rider geometry and enjoy my rides. I hate the looks of the OEM stuff. And ultimately, I want to balance my body weight properly and comfortably. This helps me to control my V4 better, and get the agility and grip that I feel is missing with the OEM stuff.

But enough about my thoughts, let's carry on with the product review.

The boxes themselves are works of art. Very thoughtfully packaged with a detailed instruction kit (IKEA style) that explains how to install the rearset.

The basic difference between the W and the R series is pricing and some fancy parts. The R set has carbon fiber heel guards, titanium bolts, and fully customizable adjustable pegs and aluminum attachments.

The gear lever side is relatively easy to attach. The rearset comes with the quickshifter rod, and it took me about 30 minutes to complete the process after loosening the lower fairing screws.

The fun started with the brake rearset. After removing the OEM bit, we started to mount the Lightech bit. And realized immediately that the factory OEM brake light switch lever does not fit on the Lightech rear set. This was a head scratching moment. We re-checked our fittings to see if we goofed up. But no, we followed the IKEA like instructions to the minutiae and did not miss any steps.

I looked up online, and realized that the rearset does not come with the rear brake lever switch. It is an additional attachment that needs to be purchased separately. The Lightech rearsets are meant predominantly for the track and as such the brake light is meant to be disconnected. For road use, we need to buy the adaptor separately.

At this point, we did a bit of good fashioned Indian jugaad. We filed off the rounded edge on the Lightech rearset so that the OEM brake lever switch can sit flush with the rearset. And it fit!! Crisis averted.

By the time we completed the installation, it was well into the night and my service guy had to head back. So I rode back with the new rearsets, but without taking any pictures of the bike looking dandy in it's new gear.

The difference between OEM and Lightech is night and day. Better grip and leg balance inspires more confidence in riding. The heel set with its chunkier aluminum bits and the fully customized levers help me get the much needed leg rest and more flick ability. I will ride the V4S a few more laps on the street to see if the sets need further customization, but I am quite pleased with the overall results.

Below are a few close up pics of the rear set attachment process, and the finished product.

Lightech product and box contents





Installing the gear rearset - a relatively painless process See the different holes punched in. That is to customize how much you can move the levers back and forth, or up and down. Really well planned and worth the moolah









The brake gear does not sit flush with the rear set - problem



Filing down the raised portion and the levers sit flush now







The bike feels like a whole different animal. Fit, finish and quality of the rearsets are miles and leagues ahead of OEM and possibly competitors

[no_fear]

More Carbon Fiber

I an a sucker for carbon fiber. I love that stuff and if they ever made clothes out of carbon fiber, I would drape myself in it

Till then, I have kept my obsession mostly to blinging my bikes. I have been slowly upgrading bits on my V4S and the latest round of upgrades are the following

1. Ducati Performance front fender, rear fender and swing arm carbon cover.
2. Rear brake cylinder carbon cover
3. Custom carbon fiber rear tail
4. Lightech tail tidy
5. Lightech brake and clutch reservoir covers

The carbon fiber rear tail is a special production from the company that makes the same part for the Ducati V4 Superleggera. My older brother knows the company folks well and requested for the part to be made as a homage to the Superleggera. It is in fact an actual Superleggera tail (but a slightly different color - Ducati red instead of Ducati Supeleggera orange red)

After these additions, I believe that I am almost done with customizing my V4S. I will also add CF frame covers to reduce the heat from the engine frame and do a few more upgrades (Tappezzeria comfort seat cover and Lightech LED progressive turn signals). Note, emphasis on the word "done". My brother joked with me and said there is never anything "done" or final with bikes. Somehow we will keep on working and customizing. This stops being a hobby and turns into an addiction

The Lightech fender eliminator was something I always wanted, as the OEM tail is hideous. It detracts from the look of the bike and a tail tidy really accentuates the rear of the V4. The other option was NRC, but I wanted to keep the OEM turn signals or upgrade them.

A few pictures to highlight the new stuff on the V4S.

Lightech brake and clutch reservoir covers





Carbon fiber rear brake cylinder cover



Carbon fiber rear fender



Carbon fiber V4 Superleggera rear tail





Lightech rear tail tidy



A few final shots of the bike