Low & Slow's Ninja 250 project

[low&slow]

Here are some pix

[renault_megane_dci]

A fresh perspective !

Lol !

[Grant-53]

The shape is looking great. A couple minor tweaks to consider.
1) Widen the coroplast top piece at the shoulder by adjusting the overlap so the air does not hit the shoulders and passes cleanly on to the tail section.
2) Extend the upper half of the rear section forward to cover the gap between your back and rear access hatch. Add pieces of protective material at the shoulders and hips then look into using an inertial reel lap belt.
3) Cover the bottom of the nose piece ahead of the front tire.
4) Add ducting to the radiator then enclose the bottom of the bike.
5) Use some clear plexiglass to deflect air over the helmet and allow you to see the gauges.
I am incorporating some of these ideas in my bicycle fairing systems.

[sendler]

Very cool for DIY. Let's see how the fuel numbers are now. It get a little wide at the bottom to clear the steering front tire. It's adding quite a bit of frontal area.

[bschloop]

look into using an inertial reel lap belt.

seat belts are a bad idea on motorcycles... period.
unless you have a fully protective roll cage, you want to be ejected in the event of a crash. otherwise your bike will crush you to death.

[low&slow]

After doing some more business travel, I got the chance recently to resume work on my bike. During testing I found that the fairing around the front wheel was too flexible so I added more stiffening elements to framework. I refueled yesterday for my first full tank with the dustbin styled front end and got 104 mpg. I've also found that the bike moves through the air with noticely less throttle and that I can use top gear more with much less downshifting. I still need to ensure that I have sufficient cooling air flow and to enclose the opening around the headlight. I also need more roadtesting to ensure that the dustbin front end is durable enough for the long trip to Ohio.

[sendler]

Awesome! I am going to ask Craig about cutting up one of his noses on the front of my CBR250R without taking off the stock cowl.

[Grant-53]

Most people assume that a lap belt is a bad idea because they belive getting clear is better. The same arguement was made about cars decades ago. Kicking clear only works when you have nothing to hit such as guard rails, trees, cars, or buildings. A reinforced fairing system can protect the back and legs. Is it the anti-cager mentality or is there hard data out there? I've got SAE Journal articles and checked Hurd report findings etc. to go on.

[renault_megane_dci]

Originally Posted by Grant-53

Most people assume that a lap belt is a bad idea because they belive getting clear is better. The same arguement was made about cars decades ago. Kicking clear only works when you have nothing to hit such as guard rails, trees, cars, or buildings. A reinforced fairing system can protect the back and legs. Is it the anti-cager mentality or is there hard data out there? I've got SAE Journal articles and checked Hurd report findings etc. to go on.

To me, a seat belt on a bike would be a bad idea because of the big handling advantage there is by shifting your weight left or right to minimize the tilting angle that is required in a bend.

Obviously you could also go slower in said bend but who would want that ?
(braking / reaccelerating : bad for FE)

Also, on a car, most of the times you don't fall on the side and even if so, your legs and arms rarely occur the risk of being outside the "cage" => sounds difficult on a bike, even with a properly built cage.
On the same fashion, falling on the side (most likely in the event of a crash) with your body properly strapped (letting alone the issue of reflexes with your arms and legs that might do more harm than good) your neck will have to withstand your head + helmet weight

So : a lap belt on a bike, thank you but not for me.

Issue has been investigated by companies and they came up with air bags that follow the rider, sounds better.

[jkv357]

Originally Posted by Grant-53

Most people assume that a lap belt is a bad idea because they belive getting clear is better. The same arguement was made about cars decades ago. Kicking clear only works when you have nothing to hit such as guard rails, trees, cars, or buildings. A reinforced fairing system can protect the back and legs. Is it the anti-cager mentality or is there hard data out there? I've got SAE Journal articles and checked Hurd report findings etc. to go on.

That's is true unless you have a full cage to protect you.

Have you ever seen a cycle flip and cartwheel violently during a crash? As it is sliding it catches something that flips it and make it tumble violently. It doesn't have the weight and stability of a car, and when it crashes it's unpredictable.

For me, one of the biggest fears with a partially enclosed riding position would be getting stuck in the bodywork during a crash and not being able to tumble freely by myself.


Jay