Nichols Flywheel

[demoni]

Well just got my bike back from my local shop after having a Nichols Flywheel installed. Oh boy Oh boy my bike is sooo much fun to ride now. Everything is better in my opinion.

The bike just falls into turns and goes like it is on rails.
It builds rpm's that much faster.
The throttle response is just that much more responsive / crisp.

There are always drawbacks with any change.
I have noticed that if you are not taking your time and paying attention to your clutch work, the bike will shudder.

I also noticed about a 15% decrease in engine breaking. I personally do not consider this a bad thing. You can let the clutch out that much faster after downshifting without worrying about the rear wheel hopping. But thought i should mention it since it did change.

Overall I am very satisfied with the new flywheel. Rotating mass is the enemy and I took my first step at it's reduction.

The real negative thing to come from this mod is getting me to thinking how much better lightweight rims would be.


On a side note...
The mechanic said that my front tire is starting to "dovetail" when he showed me it was pretty obvious. I'll take a photo tomorrow to illustrate what he was talking about. Funny thing is the bike only has 3600 miles on it. The mechanic said it could be due to the original rider running the front tire below the recommended psi.

[svttodd]

Thanks for the post on the Flywheel, I am thinking of getting one for my '95 900ss/cr soon. What all parts will I need other than the flywheel? I already have an open cover. I want to do some new cluthces, a light flywheel, and a lighter basket, but I wasn't sure if there are any miscellaneous parts that I will need to complete the install. I will have a local shop do the install, but I wanted to just bring them all the correct parts. I guess Nichols will know what I need. Let me know if you have any tips.

On the tire 'dovetailing' or cupping..., I used to have a 2003 Yamaha R1, and whenever the rear tire began to wear down, the front tire would cup or dovetail. It would happen when the rear tire just began to show signs of 'I might be needing a new tire in the next 6 to 8 months'. I always checked my air pressure in both tires. The mechanic told me that it was very common in modern sportbikes that the front tire will quickly cup when the rear wears out. He named a few bikes where it does not happen (I think some CBR's), and several where it does happen. He seemed to think that the R1 was the worst for destroying a front tire when the rear starts to wear. As soon as I got new front and rear tires, the front stopped cupping, and I didn't have any problems until the next time the rear began to wear low. Again, new tires fixed the problem. So what I am trying to say is that it may be that it is time for new tires. I think that sometimes front tires 'cup' instead of 'wearing down' like the rear tire does. 3600 miles...it is probably 'about that time'.

[cheech]

Originally Posted by demoni

Well just got my bike back from my local shop after having a Nichols Flywheel installed. Oh boy Oh boy my bike is sooo much fun to ride now. Everything is better in my opinion.

The bike just falls into turns and goes like it is on rails.
It builds rpm's that much faster.
The throttle response is just that much more responsive / crisp.

There are always drawbacks with any change.
I have noticed that if you are not taking your time and paying attention to your clutch work, the bike will shudder.

I also noticed about a 15% decrease in engine breaking. I personally do not consider this a bad thing. You can let the clutch out that much faster after downshifting without worrying about the rear wheel hopping. But thought i should mention it since it did change.

Overall I am very satisfied with the new flywheel. Rotating mass is the enemy and I took my first step at it's reduction.

The real negative thing to come from this mod is getting me to thinking how much better lightweight rims would be.


On a side note...
The mechanic said that my front tire is starting to "dovetail" when he showed me it was pretty obvious. I'll take a photo tomorrow to illustrate what he was talking about. Funny thing is the bike only has 3600 miles on it. The mechanic said it could be due to the original rider running the front tire below the recommended psi.

yes, the clutch work is definitely tricky. however, you'll get used to it in no time. it's just bad when you're in stop and go and slow uphills... gotta be a weebit cautious. you may also want to consider regearing your bike for lowspeed eventhough yours is a supersport. it really helped on my 748. the flywheel is definitely a good mod.

[demoni]

I had already installed a 43 tooth rear (up from 40) before doing the flywheel. I am use to the clutch now. It just took a few miles to get use to it.

As for the tire. I'm still confused. The mechanic said the rear tire looked fine and had a good bit of life left. The other mechanic who took my bike for a test drive said that he could feel some feedback from the dovetailing when the bike is in a corner. I had been noticing this since day 1 ( when the bike had 1700 miles). So I am pretty sure that the original owner might have been running too low of a psi on his front.

Oh well, it's a good excuse to buy a front stand and have both my tires replaces with some Pilot sports (?).

[mad]

Originally Posted by demoni

I had already installed a 43 tooth rear (up from 40) before doing the flywheel. I am use to the clutch now. It just took a few miles to get use to it.

As for the tire. I'm still confused. The mechanic said the rear tire looked fine and had a good bit of life left. The other mechanic who took my bike for a test drive said that he could feel some feedback from the dovetailing when the bike is in a corner. I had been noticing this since day 1 ( when the bike had 1700 miles). So I am pretty sure that the original owner might have been running too low of a psi on his front.

Oh well, it's a good excuse to buy a front stand and have both my tires replaces with some Pilot sports (?).

My ST4s had a badly cupped front as well and became a handful in the turns as well as slight vibration under deceleration. I absolutely love the Pilot Powers on my 999 so had the same set installed on the ST4s. WOW! Rides like it's on rails now (previous tires were Pilot Sports by the way). I'd go Powers all the way. Mileage similar to the Sports according to most but WAY better in the corners IMHO. Enjoy whatever you decide!

[Ducoddy-SS]

I have the Nichols Clutch and lightweight Flywheel installed on my 96 SSCR also..AND the 41mm FCRs...Pics in the Gallery "N" section under nhowner...I am in the process of polishing D&D Pipes...and the passenger footpeg brackets and the riders footpeg brackets...
And I plan on clearcoating the painted pieces for some more shine!!
The bike also has polished al. rims...Plan on repolishing those also.
LOve the bikes performance...Am starting up a polishing business...
Bracketry and pipes..small stuff..so e me if you are interested!!
Mike S
1996 900 SSCR

[roadron]

one caution here.over at moto one they no longer recommend all aluminum flywheels on post 98 900s due to the fact they have seen the crank splines strip out. this was on ducati performance fly wheels.