[krishnaprasadgg]

Originally Posted by Xaos636

Maybe we should ride together to a common point soon
@krishnaprasadgg, Game for it? Lets hit Mumbai

I'm ready! Would be an epic ride for sure.

[SnS_12]

Originally Posted by Xaos636

Very true. Perhaps I am past that age where I enjoyed too much loud noise and destroying everyones ear’s for that matter. Had investigated so much, perhaps for months, hearing all the blades with all types of exhausts in real to come to the conclusion to get the Yoshi.

The older Japanese bikes sounded brilliant from the factory itself and now because of the ever-growing regulations that charm has faded away along with the bombardment on how the electronics control the bike compared to your right wrist.

Is this model of the Yoshi only available in CF? I personally prefer Titanium.

Originally Posted by Xaos636

RSV4 is running fine and the owner is indeed happy with it from my talks with him. Electrical issues are a bit common on these Aprilia’s from what I hear. The bike is a mental machine. A monster.

Had heard that the electronics were sorted/better in the current gen RSV4 but Bhpian no_fears elder brother always advises me against buying one. For me personally the desirability of owning a RSV4 is more than the current gen Ducati V4

Originally Posted by Xaos636

Maybe we should ride together to a common point soon
@krishnaprasadgg, Game for it? Lets hit Mumbai

Don't come during the monsoons as I am no longer brave enough to ride in rains or will have the heart to ride my bikes in the horrid Mumbai roads during monsoon.

Sometime in the future I plan to load a few of my bikes in a tempo and get them down to Chennai/Kerala when I can camp there for a few weeks at a stretch and ride the bikes around. Let's see how long that stays a pipe dream.

[Xaos636]

Originally Posted by SnS_12

Is this model of the Yoshi only available in CF? I personally prefer Titanium.

The 2 versions other than full carbon fiber are below. Stainless with Carbon end and full stainless SS. Sadly, a full titanium was never available.

Originally Posted by SnS_12

Sometime in the future I plan to load a few of my bikes in a tempo and get them down to Chennai/Kerala when I can camp there for a few weeks at a stretch and ride the bikes around. Let's see how long that stays a pipe dream.

Now that is a solid plan. Always welcome down south.

[SnS_12]

Originally Posted by Xaos636

The 2 versions other than full carbon fiber are below. Stainless with Carbon end and full stainless SS. Sadly, a full titanium was never available.

Is the mounting position on yours a little off as in the images the mounting seems to be more upright.

This portion of your exhaust seems to be pushed more into the fairing.

[Xaos636]

Originally Posted by SnS_12

Is the mounting position on yours a little off as in the images the mounting seems to be more upright.

This portion of your exhaust seems to be pushed more into the fairing.

The mounting position difference in official image and real is down to the angle of the pic I believe. I will get another blade with Yoshi too along with mine to see how it looks.
One the exhaust pushed more into the fairing, I too have noticed this way before installation on other bikes. It seems a bit inside on a few bikes and a bit outside on others. I dont know why this happens. Maybe because of the change in the thick exhaust gasket which is used where the connection happens between header and slipon. This is a wild guess but have seen some people using different gaskets for this and not sure if it makes a difference too.
Below is a screenshot from a youtube video. This looks way more inside than mine too. I am yet to see real life examples as the Yoshi website shows

[Xaos636]

Blade is back to KL for the holiday season after a 2 month run around through Bangalore roads.

While on the way I realized that Nice Road remains open only from 5AM to 10PM or so, so I had a bit of wait early in the morning so that I could use the road. Another case of just banning things instead of looking for a solution.

Before entering the jungle.


Had to take this one quick as stopping inside the Forest is against the law.


And the love story. The Thamarassery Churam(Waynad Ghats).




And the Christmas gift from Santa arrived. A Brembo M4, specially designed for CBR Fireblade SP model. Even though this is quite similar to the standard M4, the brake lines are centrally mounted on this(vs top mounted on standard) and piston size is of 30/32 for the SP versus 2X32 piston for the standard Brembo M4.

I bought this from a 2019 Blade SP owner in the United States who upgraded to the latest series of Brembo calipers for track use. Will update further on this in another post.

[Xaos636]

To start with, wishing a very happy new year to one and all!

The Brembo M4 were promptly ON and it makes a huge difference in bite and feedback from the brakes. I feel that this works much well in tandem with the RCS19 Corsacorta and some fresh brake fluid looks to have solved my braking issues. The ABS light was flashing before the Caliper change, however more on that later.

Its been 6 months since the last oil change and decided to go ahead and try the engine ice(finally) as well. My trusted buddy's F Motors were the first choice as I was in KL during this time and headed over there just after the Christmas day. The roads from Calicut to Cochin on a super sport will really test your patience.

First look with the Brembo M4's ON.


As always, hooked up @krishnaprasadgg by tempting him for an early oil change on his R1.




Replaced the engine oil with the same Motul 7100 FS, but used 10W30 this time instead if the usual 10W40. I decided to try this as the 10W30 was finally available in India and also comes recommended by Honda. Also here goes the old coolant(Honda Coolant) to welcome the Engine Ice.


Used a 5L distilled water can to flush out the old coolant and sucked out the remaining in the coolant reservoir(overflow reservoir). No points for Honda for placing this reservoir in the toughest place possible. To remove this, one will have to remove the rear shock as well as the swingarm

Cleaned the throttle bodies, air filter and installed new plugs as well. As always, a big thank you to Adhil Salim from Bigwing Topline Cochin, who arranged me the spark plugs as its really really hard to get these when you need it. I would like to appreciate HMSI too for arranging me the spares for the Blade whenever asked for. Also thanks to Abhishek from Bikers Lounge, Calicut for helping out on my knitty gritty works on the Blade.

I don't know how to thank my good friend Sanju(F Motors, Cochin) for his clinical precision when working on motorcycles. People like him with ultimate attention to details are hard to come by these days.









One more change was the grips. I am a sucker for Yamaha R series grip, but really thought of a change to OE Blade grips when I rode a friends Blade with the stock ones. These wern't as bad as I thought. Pretty decent to say the least. Costs a bomb though.

Out goes the R grips.


In comes the OEM CBR Fireblade grips.


One more thing that was bothering me was ABS switching off at times. This would make the ABS light flash and this phenomenon makes the front brake loose their bite. Removed the ABS sensors to find them pretty muddy and dirty and what not. Cleaned them with brake cleaner and the issue has been resolved.

Before cleaning. Greasy stuff on the sensor led to it unable to send proper signals.


Cleaned.


A pic from our return ride. All good and well.

[V0rtex]

If one was looking to purchase a pre-owned superbike where should he look at. Obviously OLX is a big no as it is full of dealers and scammers. It seems that most superbikes stick to a particular circle itself, and is hard for an outsider to approach it.

[Xaos636]

Originally Posted by V0rtex

If one was looking to purchase a pre-owned superbike where should he look at. Obviously OLX is a big no as it is full of dealers and scammers. It seems that most superbikes stick to a particular circle itself, and is hard for an outsider to approach it.

Best way is through friend of friends. Good old superbikes are hard to come by. Dealers are adding even their profit and accessory costs and post 2020 superbikes attract more cost than it was sold as brand new. Don't know the logic behind these.

For Blade update, she has been doing fine and been running mostly through weekends in and around Bangalore since a few months.

She has been in good company here. Most rides are with @wolfy and @krishnaprasadgg and sometimes with some other friends. Below is @wolfy's ZX-10R and another friends rare US direct import Monster 1200S.






The Jap Big 3.






The newer kids on the block are fast. Here's me trying out the Panigale V4.


Ready for the next ride, some cleanup and preps done at Highlander HSR.

[Xaos636]

Been on a hot summer 2 day ride with the boys to rural Karnataka covering Koppa, Shimoga, Chickkamagalur etc. Been able to ride such different high capacity machines has been a pleasure. Keeping this short because of time constraints. Hoping @krishnaprasadgg can fire it up all together in the R1 thread.

Starting at around 3AM near Koramangala.


Regrouping near Nelamangala Toll. Monster 1200S, Yamaha R1, Panigale V2 and the Fireblade complete the lineup.


First stop was for breakfast at Harsha Grand. Good food all around.






Some wildlife to watch for, though we saw none.


This thing is a beauty from all possible angles.


Some beautiful roads we got on the way, completely empty, all for us.




End to day 1 and this is how the homestay parking looked at Koppa.


Day 2 has been in and around the Bhadra reservoir, Shivamogga bearing the full effect of the scorching sun.

This is near the Bhadra reservoir which is almost empty.






And some off roading as well.




Some pics from the return trip.










And finally, the Blade hit the 30k mark during the return ride.

[Earthroamer]

That v2 in Bayliss livery is remarkable. It's a benchmark in my opinion.

[Xaos636]

Since Blade had completed 30,000 kilometers since the last ride, it was time for a service, which was completed at Highlander HSR by Karthik. I finally decided to switch from Motul and try the Silkolene engine oil, which is now available in India.

During one of my rides to Kerala, the Blade ended up staying longer than expected due to work and family commitments. As a result, she went into hibernation for more than a month.

At Highlander for the service


The engine oil. Much smoother than Motul 7100 FS.


Finally got a miniature through a friend from UK.


The ride to Kerala.




While the Blade was away and I was without a bike, I had @krishnaprasadgg's R1 with me since he had been in his hometown and the bike was ownerless for a few weeks.

Went on a ride to Murugan Idly Shop on one of the weekend on the R1 with a few friends.


The absolutely stunning BMR S1000RR


I took a test ride of the new UltraViolette EV bike at Murugan's. It was pretty decent, to say the least, but I don't see myself getting an EV until the last fuel station in India shuts down.

[Xaos636]

One major issue I've been putting off for some time was of my scored front rotors. Honestly, I have no clue how it happened because I've always changed the brake pads well before they needed it. The braking performance was still okay, but the noise they generated was terrible. I bought new EBC pads in the meantime thinking that could help, however they did not. And those will also need replacement if I decide to change the rotors.

I contacted Honda to arrange stock rotors, and the price they quoted nearly made me faint. So I spoke with @krishnaprasadgg and decided to reach out to @no_fear to see if Lanesplit could arrange Brembo's or GaleSpeed rotors for me. After discussing, @no_fear agreed to source Brembo Serie Oro semi floating stock replacement rotors for the Blade. Surprisingly, they arrived within 15 days and were delivered to my home from Italy. It arrived faster than promised and truly made my day. I had sourced Brembo brake pads to go with this well in advance.

This is how the box looked. Just a reminder, I needed two of these for the front, ensuring they were compatible with the ABS version, which meant they had the extra holes to accommodate the ABS ring.


Sneak peak




@krishnaprasadgg doing the PDI


Here's the final picture of the old rotor before replacing it. A special shoutout to Bikers Lounge in Calicut for handling this change on very short notice.


The stock rotor is of Japanese 'Yutaka' brand. Held on well for 11 years.


The Brembo pads to go with the machine.


The first ever pic after the rotors are mounted. It has been raining heavily in Kerala and this meant that I had to ride it down to Bangalore in those rains.


A closer look


Since it was raining continuously throughout my 400 km ride from Kozhikode to Bangalore, I couldn't take many pictures. Here's a shot of the Blade and @krishnaprasadgg's Fortuner taking a break after a wildlife-rich journey.


Here are some pictures of the dirty machine during the ride and after cleaning it upon reaching Bangalore.

Once again special thanks to @no_fear for arranging the rotors quickly, same way he arranged the master Cylinder.

I'm currently waiting for the pads and rotors to settle in. The entire front Brembo setup is now complete, featuring the RCS 19 Corsa Corta master cylinder, Brembo M4 calipers, and Brembo Serie Oro rotors. Braking performance is now sublime with excellent bite and feedback. I'll provide further updates once they've settled in after I've put more miles on them.

[shashrash]

Stumbled upon this thread and so happy to see online is still enjoying and pampering the OG of big Honda bikes. Had been a fan for a long time now since we were kids.
Did you ever get to try the 2017+ Fireblade Gen? How better/or not that is from yours ?
Hondas are the Superbike for jeepers. Supremely comfortable and manageable saddle.
Do share your thoughts ?
I bumped into Krishna n his gorgeous R1 unplanned at Suvarna Bhavan some time ago and had a good chat there. Stay in banglore, we guys should catch up sometime for a ride I say. Oh, n I think I missed adding. Ride an RSV4 here.

[Xaos636]

Originally Posted by shashrash

Stumbled upon this thread and so happy to see online is still enjoying and pampering the OG of big Honda bikes. Had been a fan for a long time now since we were kids.
Did you ever get to try the 2017+ Fireblade Gen? How better/or not that is from yours ?
Hondas are the Superbike for jeepers. Supremely comfortable and manageable saddle.
Do share your thoughts ?
I bumped into Krishna n his gorgeous R1 unplanned at Suvarna Bhavan some time ago and had a good chat there. Stay in banglore, we guys should catch up sometime for a ride I say. Oh, n I think I missed adding. Ride an RSV4 here.

Thank you
Yes I did try the the 2017+ blades and getting one back when I wanted was a tuff job(especially KA Reg). So basically the 2017+ Blade uses the same chassis and almost similar engine as the 2012-16 setup, but with completely minimal body work making it look less bulky. However if you compare both side by side, we can see that chassis, wheels, forks and almost all other parts except the fiber parts are the same. Power delivery and rideability should remain the same comparing each other but with the addition of more electronics. Pre-2017 felt more frugal without those electronics, but would still prefer all the electronics one can get when riding on Indian roads TBH. The RR-R was a complete departure from the RR's of 2008-19. It uses a totally new frame and a totally new engine with almost no parts shared with the previous gen Blade's. As the costs went up, Honda decided to put the RR on sale as well in most markets except for India where we got only RR-R, that too non-SP.

We should definitely catch up. The RSV4 is a dream machine and the next buy is planned to be a V4 for both of myself and @Krishna. I rate RSV4 way higher than the Panigale V4 and I can stare at that big one for a whole day without blinking. Hope the dream comes true sometime down the line. Hope to meet you soon as well.