Calling all motorcycle tuners!!

[4N GTO]

Has anyone ever heard of Power House Cycles? Im trying to judge the quality of their work. I ask because I am looking to pick up an '03 CBR 954RR with some motor work done by them. They bored it to a 980, and i want to make sure they are reputable. They dont appear to have a website, and the local shops around me have never heard of them.

Thanks,

Justin

Mods please move to 1WD section...Thanks

[avriette]

Has anyone ever heard of Power House Cycles? Im trying to judge the quality of their work. I ask because I am looking to pick up an '03 CBR 954RR with some motor work done by them. They bored it to a 980, and i want to make sure they are reputable. They dont appear to have a website, and the local shops around me have never heard of them.

A 954 is not a good starter bike, if this is your first. 954's dont need to be bored to 980, because you're going to make, say, 5% more power, and with a damn litre, are you going to notice that anywhere? Of course, they're going to deck the head, so you're going to run hotter, higher pressure, and you'll reduce engine life. Imagine what a four cylinder at 12,000rpm with 13.2:1 compression feels like.

If you must, start with a 600. Motorcycles don't need modifications. They're plenty damn fast. If you want to race, it's a different story.

[4N GTO]

I understand the motor work that was done to it, and the effects that it has on the engine. I am just trying to see if Power House is reputable. I agree that a litre bike isnt exactly the best starter bike, but im looking into my options. My car isnt exactly selling and im not going to move much more on the price, so i might as well trade out for something that i want.

If you know anyone looking to trade a nice bike for a decent car, let me know.

Thanks,

justin

[complacent]

I personally have not heard of the shop you've mentioned.

I can recommend two other sites to check: http://www.dcsportbikes.net and http://www.dcsportbikes.com

If nobody there has heard of this shop, I'd be concerned.

If you are going to start out on a liter bike, please do us all a huge favor and get all of the safety gear, wear said gear all the time, take all available MSF courses and be very careful.

Just as a point of reference... USA is the ONLY major, modern country that will allow you to buy and ride a bike with that much displacement as a rookie driver. Most of Europe and the whole of Canadia have a)Graduated motorcycle licensing programs and b)HP/displacement restrictions for a very good reason - Rookie drivers are not skilled enough to operate a bike with that much power.

I don't mention any of this as an assault on you personally, nor am I trying to be insulting. I'm trying to make sure you completely understand how serious a choice this is.

My favorite example of how a liter bike is "too much" power involves a friend at Summit Point raceway. Said friend has been racing liter bikes for north of 6 years now and riding for north of 15 years. The final turn before the start/finish line is a long, flat right-hander that the fastest people take at around 100mph. You're dragging knee hard and somewhere around the top of 4th gear/bottom of 5th gear. As he completed the turn, he applied just a little too much throttle, and at nearly 120 miles an hour he twelve o'clocked his bike. The front end went all the way up, the tailpipe and rear seat hit the ground so hard there were sparks. All of this while "putsing around" in fifth gear. He slid nearly the entire straight in his leathers. Ruined them and his helmet. Thankfully the only thing he hurt was his pride.

Be very cautious of your choice. Price of car or not, it would be (in my opinion) a very foolish choice in a first bike.

If you'd like advice, links to training and study materials, books on the subject, recommendations on gear, parts, bikes, etc - please don't hesitate to ask. Riding a bike is one of the most rewarding experiences you'll ever achieve. The results of mistakes and poor choices are much more grave than in a car.

That being said, I personally try to ride more than 300 days a year. Rain, cold, wind, all four seasons... I love riding. Please make educated and intelligent choices and ride defensively. Nobody likes a SQUID.

[avriette]

If you are going to start out on a liter bike, please do us all a huge favor and get all of the safety gear, wear said gear all the time, take all available MSF courses and be very careful.

...

That being said, I personally try to ride more than 300 days a year. Rain, cold, wind, all four seasons... I love riding. Please make educated and intelligent choices and ride defensively. Nobody likes a SQUID.

Don't worry, he gives me this shit too, but he's 100% right. In the last 90 days, I've missed three. Including 40F weather, thunderstorms, etc. Get the right gear (this means pants, boots, gloves, helmet, jacket – CE armored – and more), learn about how your bike works when it's wet out, and eek, which gears to use where (1-2 shifts, as I learned recently, can cause, uh, "vertical excursions").

And, really, a litrebike, man, don't start there. Please. You can get a used GSX750F if you want power (believe me, 750 is plenty), a Ninja 500, or a Suzuki Katana for less than $3500. My ZX7-R was about that much, but you really don't want to start there, either. It's a blast to drive, but every once in a while it scares the living daylights out of me.

edit: Colin and I have both bought all our bikes either through eBay or Craigslist. eBay seems to have a lot of fraud (you'll get ripped off), so I'd suggest CL. Just watch it for a week or four, and the right bike will show up. Really, it will. And look at kneedraggers.com and newenough.com for gear. A lot of gear can be had for less than $200 apiece. I think for Sandy and I to both take the MSF class, we spent about $600 on gear. The course was $375 (Apex), so we kinda got boned, but then, like Colin, I love riding and wouldn't do that money or course any differently (and I broke two ribs at Apex, and the gloves I bought were shitty. And I still love it.)

[4N GTO]

I appreciate your guys concern, I am just trying to get rid of my car. I have been trying to sell this thing for almost a year and a half or so and for some reason, litre bikes are the only ones that people are trying to trade me for. I would much rather start out on a 600 or something around there. I agree 100% that a litre bike is def. not a beginners bike, its like giving a 1000HP car to a 16 year old as a first car, its just stupid. I am suppose to be going to look at a 2003 R1 tomorrow, if i end up going with it, i will probably try to see if anyone wants to trade up, get my 600 or 750 that way. If i cant, then you better believe that i am going to baby that throttle.

Justin

[avriette]

If i cant, then you better believe that i am going to baby that throttle.

i'll shut up, right after this. what you're saying is like "i'll baby that sledgehammer." my step from a 250 to a 750 scared the shit out of me so badly, the first ride, i instantly thought, "holy shit, where's my seatbelt?!!!" i literally felt like the bike was going to throw my off the back. and i'd been riding a lot on that 250. With a litre, the magazines say things like "you only need gears 3, 4, and 5." you hit 5k or 6k rpm and the bike is ready to explode. one tiny, tiny little wiggle on your wrist (literally milimeters), and you're at 8, and then you're doing a hundred.

i don't see why you can't find somebody willing to sell you a zzr 600 or a night rod or something like that. i frankly don't know a lot of people with litre bikes, for that matter.